3 out of 5

covers season 1

1. Spinning off from the once-exciting-but-continually-more-and-more-soap-opera Arrow and 2. Announced in the wake of DCs “grim and gritty” film universe decisions and 3. Airing on CW, which always hovers questionably on being too teen-drama or sensational… ‘The Flash’s bright colors and smiling hero not only made it clear that it wouldn’t be Arrow, but the generally smart writing and focus on family over on-again off-again love added it to the pile of recent CW efforts – The 100, Jane the Virgin – which have proven that the station can be a home to different flavors of television after all.  For the uninitiated, The Flash is – well, the one we’re focusing on – is Barry Allen, forensic scientist, caught in the fallout of an explosion that ends up giving him a superpower: lightning speed.  With the help of the disgraced scientist responsible for the explosion, and a small crew of dedicated assistants, Barry dons a suit and uses his power to track down others who’ve gained abilities but aren’t, necessarily, putting them to the same type of use.  Along the way a mystery begins to pop up: was there a Flash who played a part in a tragic event from his past which left his mother dead and father, blamed for the murder, incarcerated?  And the CW gets some of its kicks by toying with Barry’s love for Iris, the daughter of the man who raised him in his father’s stead; thankfully, this is kept in check by Barry learning early on the “with great power” concept, and thus he withholds his feelings along with his super-powered secret, and the duo are forced to pursue a friendship over the course of the season, which makes for much richer characterization.  Most importantly, though, The Flash embraces its roots but funnels it through the lessons of both DCs and Marvel’s movie / television attempts and keeps the cheek grounded in humanity, giving us the best of both worlds: full-on comic book fun, and well-written characters with rewarding arcs.  Still, the show struggles for direction to break free of its baddie-of-the-week formula, and once getting the tone in check after a few episodes (figuring out how serious to play it; when to lighten up), it isn’t until around midseason that lingering plotlines pay off and it begins to feel less predictable, leading up to a truly exciting string of season closing episodes and a nail-biting cliffhanger.

While it wasn’t as tonally striking as The 100 and took a while – a la Agents of SHIELD – to find its footing, The Flash’s first season is primed to lead us into a really spectacular second season, hoping that the creative team can continue applying the lessons they learned along the way.