Ensign Lestat's TV Log, 30/05/15
The Flash
Sometime during the second season of 'Arrow', a young man was introduced in a two-part episode. He lied about his background and his reason for being in Starling City, and immediately swooped Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards) off her feet with his beguiling ways and tech talk. They appeared made for each other, so it was slightly shocking when he returned home and got struck by lightening.
Of course, any ardent DC comics fan knew immediately who this person was, but I am not a DC comics fan so had no clue (the internet had ruined it for me, but essentially I knew nothing). Of course, from the arc of the two episodes it was evident that Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) was not going to disappear any time soon.
Thanks to all the hype during the SDCC, I was super-excited about the new DC shows. My opinions on the rest are here, but 'The Flash' was a proper surprise. Let's be honest, it's hard to stay away from a show with Grant Gustin in it - he is so obviously having the time of his life playing Barry and enjoying every crazy moment there is.
'Flash' could be a cheesy, campy mess, but for the most part it is comical, bright and crazy fun. The main cast is comparatively quite big; we have nerdy gadget-maker Cisco Ramon (Carlos Valdes), genetics specialist Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker), Star Labs head Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh), Barry's foster family, including foster dad Joe West (Jesse L. Martin), his foster sister Iris West (Candice Patton), and Iris' boyfriend Eddie Thawne (Rick Cosnett). That's a lot of people, but for the most part 'The Flash' doesn't feel over-crowded.
'Flash' has been one of the successes of this year, and a lot of it is down to its diverse cast and its ready acceptance of the source material. The show deals with meta-humans who have superpowers - this should be laughable, and it is, but it's meant to be entertaining, no more, no less.
So much of the show hinges on the emotional dynamics of the characters. If Barry didn't wear his heart on his sleeve, we may not have taken a lot of the antics seriously. The cast have such great chemistry with each other, that it's wholly believable that their characters get along and will do anything to help and save each other.
A lot of people have held the show up as an example of what can be done right, not because it's perfect but because it so successfully kept bringing people back. None of the routes were disturbing, and even the out-there science bits made sense within the universe.
Having said all that, 'Flash' still needs to work on its female characters. Caitlin is a geneticist, but spends the majority of her time healing Barry or other injured parties. She seems out of place in Star Labs, which is a crying shame, as she's a nice character to have around. I'm assuming Iris is going to get a lot more interesting now that she knows the Flash's identity. The moment she found out, there was a sea-change in her behaviour and the behaviour of the rest of the characters - it was almost tangible how significant she became. After spending nearly the entirety of the first season on the outskirts as the annoying love interest, Iris was now part of the plan, and an extra helping hand. Why couldn't they just have done it sooner? It's weird how often the female characters in mainstream media are the ones who must be protected from people's true identities - it always makes them extra cogs and annoying hindrances to the grand plan. It's a really stupid idea, and I'd read a long article on how stupid it was just before 'Flash' aired and my heart sank when Iris was given the same treatment from the first episode. She left no impression on anyone till she found out the truth, and presto!, for those few episodes Iris was the coolest part of the team. She's such a level-headed woman, played with such ease by Patton (who I have never seen before), that it's a shame she was wasted for the first season.
Before 'Flash' aired, the creators pointed out that they would have a recurring LGBTQ character in their cast. My default thought when someone says this is they're going to cast two young seriously attractive women who will be just lesbian-enough for the male gaze (I'm a born pessimist, deal with it). We've so far only been given that in the Marvel/DC cinematic universes (looking at you 'Arrow', 'Gotham' and, probably unfairly, 'Agent Carter'). In 'The Flash', the token gay character is the CCPD Captain, David Singh (Patrick Sabongui). Interestingly enough, whenever popular mainstream media wants to throw in male gay characters, they're usually unattractive, homely and platonic sorts. While I'm not going to judge Captain Singh's attractiveness (because, seriously, he's the captain!), I'm not going to bash his representation either. Captain Singh is a wonderfully stable gay character, whose relationship status gets upgraded without much song and dance. We learn he's gay when he mentions his boyfriend has put them on a diet. Later on, in the hospital, Joe has to convince the nurse to let the Captain's fiance into the room, as he's family (an apt nod to how same-sex partners are sometimes not considered 'family' by many institutions), and by the penultimate episode Joe's having a discussion in the Captain's room as the Captain's away on his honeymoon. It's great that a gay character is treated so casually and as the only one with a functioning, stable relationship.
But, we don't stop there. In an unusual move, we have a villain who is gay as well. He's only there for two episodes, but Rathaway/ Pied Piper (Andy Mientus) is unique because not only is he gay, but his homosexuality is not the reason for his villainy and it's not brought up in any way or form after its initial, devastating mention. I'd read about the uniqueness of the character, and we need more characters like that - good, bad, ugly - people can choose whatever path they want, irrespective of their preferences.
'The Flash' has consistently tried to up-end the norm, without being in-your-face about it. And that is probably a big reason why the show has out-done its originator 'Arrow' - where 'Arrow', for all its greatness, has stagnated and back-tracked its subversive elements, 'The Flash' has embraced it, and then some.
The rogue's gallery is one place this show has outdone itself. Not all the rogues are interesting, but those that are, hook you to the show. Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller) is so hammy and over-the-top, but yet such an enigmatic draw that I wanted him back every episode. His team-up with Heatwave (Dominic Purcell) was brilliant, and the two of them seemed to be reveling in their performances.
The one big reason why I think a lot of people kept coming back to the show was Harrison Wells. Cavanagh plays the role with such relish. He's all sugary sweet, and the perfect mentor for Barry in the first episode, and then we see the epilogue, and we know immediately, not all is right with this guy. The epilogues were often the best part of each episode, as Wells was revealed to us in bits and pieces.
Wells was such a devious, evil, conniving character, he was brilliant. I loved that character, absolutely loved him. I waited with bated breath for each new revelation. It will be hard to top an antagonist like that, because he was delicious in his villainy. He wasn't treacherous or cruel, but he was the ultimate villain in that he betrayed the people who loved and respected him the most. The duality of his character appealed to me the most. The beatific smiles he bestowed on Cisco, Caitlin and Barry, together with his underhanded deeds after-hours just made him so compelling. We were kept guessing about his motives, what did he want and why was he so passionate about Barry's ability to improve his powers, we couldn't wait to find out.
The revelation of his true identity eroded his character a little bit, for me. But even then, the sneer with which Cavanagh played him just never dimmed. I will miss his character the most - if there's a way to bring Cavanagh back, I will be ever so happy.
I think the ability to make the crossover episodes with 'Arrow' work also boosted the show. There's something unnaturally hilarious about seeing the dark and gritty characters of 'Arrow' show up in a place full of meta-humans, and vice-versa. Caitlin and Cisco even joke about how different their life of crime-fighting is. I feel really bad for Roy Harper (Colton Haynes) and Felicity Smoak - the two of them rightfully belong in 'The Flash' universe, as was evident from the constant eye-rolling Roy was doing when Cisco was talking. Also, Felicity and Barry seemed made for each other when first they met, but the grounds were laid for Barry's unrequited love. It's kinda sad that the only time Barry and Felicity share a kiss is when they've got no chemistry going. I still think she fits better with Barry than with the much older Oliver (Stephen Amell), but hey man, who am I to judge?
I've mentioned before that the show has a lot of emotional elements. It's that aspect of the show that stands out. Remember the first time Barry goes into the past? That was the first time I'd wanted a show to retcon the deaths of characters. Usually, time travel that saves emotional deaths is frustrating, but this one, I was screaming for it. Why? Because the two character killed/put out of action were two characters of colour, but not only that, they were important emotional cores of the show.
[MAJOR SPOILERS: When Cisco is killed in that episode, it was devastating - you can't just kill of your POC nerd, who is single-handedly the funniest guy in the DC entertainment universe. But more than that, it was that Captain Singh had been so greviously injured that he wouldn't be able to return to work. It was the sight of his weeping fiance that nearly killed me, and made me wish there was a way for Barry to change it all back. This is a bright and brilliant TV show, so yes, we can wish it and get it. It's true escapist television.]
No episode was more emotional than the finale. Granted the time-travelling paradox is still making my head hurt, but the entire episode was made relevant and intense due to Barry's emotional decision to go back and change the past and risk what he has in the present. It was so utterly devastating to see him weeping at every given point when he's thinking about everything he can gain and everything he will lose.
[MORE MAJOR SPOILERS: Throughout the show, some of the most outstanding scenes have been between Barry and his father Henry (John Wesley Shipp). They have excellent, believable father/son chemistry, and the more Barry holds back his tears, the more the viewer is willing to shed them.
The beauty of the finale was that it was a real tear-jerker. There's the openly emotional scene with his father who decides against Barry's decision to save his mother. Then that sob-worthy farewell between Barry and Joe, where Barry calls him Dad and Joe responds by calling him son - oh man, just thinking about it makes one weepy.
But nothing trumps the stunning scene when Barry is holding his dying mother in his arms. Not for nothing was Grant chosen for this role. He is evocative to a fault, and it comes out best in this scene, when he's openly crying and the tears are flowing, but instead of laughing at his cry-face (which is what usually happens when a grown actor is weeping on-screen) you can't help but cry along with him. And I'm not the only one who thinks this. Check out io9 for some corroboration.
And, if the weeping wasn't enough, the show threw us a shocking curve ball to end it all. Here's the thing about Eddie - we all knew he was going to die. Because it's never quite convincing enough if a character transfers out of state or disappears for family issues in the writers' efforts to break up a relationship. On TV, the best way to break up is to kill off one half (unless you're 'Arrow', in which Oliver and his ex Laurel (Katie Cassidy) are not only great friends, but partner together as heroes.)
But even though we've been expecting Eddie's death (I'd been counting down since the mid-season finale, actually), the writers were still able to present it in a shocking way. As Eobard Thawne (Wells) is getting the better of our heroes, a gun shot interrupts the proceedings. Eddie has just shot himself through the heart to stop his descendant Eobard from ever existing and therefore, killing his friends right now. I was so stunned I exclaimed out loud (much to my embarrassment). That right there was the sum total of what made 'The Flash' so special, it's ability to make you fall in love with all these characters and keep you guessing about their fates. Eddie dies with a smile on his face, because he's done the best he can to save the people he loves. He etched a place for himself in all our hearts in that moment. Now when I think back to the first season, I think of Eddie as someone beautiful and sweet and I know I'm going to miss his wide-eyed wonder at everything in the next season.
A lot of rumours abound over what Eddie's actions mean for the universe. Technically, all it means is that a singularity has opened up over Central City. I'm not one to speculate on what the coming season will hold (speculation always leads to disappointment). I hold with the multiverse scenario, that each timeline exists in its own universe, but even that theory doesn't support what happened in the finale, so I'm not going to break my head over the time-travelling science of the show.]
There was a lot to love about this show, and I can only hope that the writers and creators continue to improve as they have done over the course of the first season. It is obvious that having one central antagonist over the course of the season, along with episodic crimes is where success lies. If we can make Iris and Caitlin more relevant to the every day crime-fighting activities, and add some more (non-love interest) female characters, this show is going to go a lot of places. Keep being the wondrous rays of sunshine 'Flash', we love you for it.
The Flash
Of course, any ardent DC comics fan knew immediately who this person was, but I am not a DC comics fan so had no clue (the internet had ruined it for me, but essentially I knew nothing). Of course, from the arc of the two episodes it was evident that Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) was not going to disappear any time soon.
Thanks to all the hype during the SDCC, I was super-excited about the new DC shows. My opinions on the rest are here, but 'The Flash' was a proper surprise. Let's be honest, it's hard to stay away from a show with Grant Gustin in it - he is so obviously having the time of his life playing Barry and enjoying every crazy moment there is.
'Flash' could be a cheesy, campy mess, but for the most part it is comical, bright and crazy fun. The main cast is comparatively quite big; we have nerdy gadget-maker Cisco Ramon (Carlos Valdes), genetics specialist Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker), Star Labs head Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh), Barry's foster family, including foster dad Joe West (Jesse L. Martin), his foster sister Iris West (Candice Patton), and Iris' boyfriend Eddie Thawne (Rick Cosnett). That's a lot of people, but for the most part 'The Flash' doesn't feel over-crowded.
'Flash' has been one of the successes of this year, and a lot of it is down to its diverse cast and its ready acceptance of the source material. The show deals with meta-humans who have superpowers - this should be laughable, and it is, but it's meant to be entertaining, no more, no less.
So much of the show hinges on the emotional dynamics of the characters. If Barry didn't wear his heart on his sleeve, we may not have taken a lot of the antics seriously. The cast have such great chemistry with each other, that it's wholly believable that their characters get along and will do anything to help and save each other.
A lot of people have held the show up as an example of what can be done right, not because it's perfect but because it so successfully kept bringing people back. None of the routes were disturbing, and even the out-there science bits made sense within the universe.
Having said all that, 'Flash' still needs to work on its female characters. Caitlin is a geneticist, but spends the majority of her time healing Barry or other injured parties. She seems out of place in Star Labs, which is a crying shame, as she's a nice character to have around. I'm assuming Iris is going to get a lot more interesting now that she knows the Flash's identity. The moment she found out, there was a sea-change in her behaviour and the behaviour of the rest of the characters - it was almost tangible how significant she became. After spending nearly the entirety of the first season on the outskirts as the annoying love interest, Iris was now part of the plan, and an extra helping hand. Why couldn't they just have done it sooner? It's weird how often the female characters in mainstream media are the ones who must be protected from people's true identities - it always makes them extra cogs and annoying hindrances to the grand plan. It's a really stupid idea, and I'd read a long article on how stupid it was just before 'Flash' aired and my heart sank when Iris was given the same treatment from the first episode. She left no impression on anyone till she found out the truth, and presto!, for those few episodes Iris was the coolest part of the team. She's such a level-headed woman, played with such ease by Patton (who I have never seen before), that it's a shame she was wasted for the first season.
Before 'Flash' aired, the creators pointed out that they would have a recurring LGBTQ character in their cast. My default thought when someone says this is they're going to cast two young seriously attractive women who will be just lesbian-enough for the male gaze (I'm a born pessimist, deal with it). We've so far only been given that in the Marvel/DC cinematic universes (looking at you 'Arrow', 'Gotham' and, probably unfairly, 'Agent Carter'). In 'The Flash', the token gay character is the CCPD Captain, David Singh (Patrick Sabongui). Interestingly enough, whenever popular mainstream media wants to throw in male gay characters, they're usually unattractive, homely and platonic sorts. While I'm not going to judge Captain Singh's attractiveness (because, seriously, he's the captain!), I'm not going to bash his representation either. Captain Singh is a wonderfully stable gay character, whose relationship status gets upgraded without much song and dance. We learn he's gay when he mentions his boyfriend has put them on a diet. Later on, in the hospital, Joe has to convince the nurse to let the Captain's fiance into the room, as he's family (an apt nod to how same-sex partners are sometimes not considered 'family' by many institutions), and by the penultimate episode Joe's having a discussion in the Captain's room as the Captain's away on his honeymoon. It's great that a gay character is treated so casually and as the only one with a functioning, stable relationship.
But, we don't stop there. In an unusual move, we have a villain who is gay as well. He's only there for two episodes, but Rathaway/ Pied Piper (Andy Mientus) is unique because not only is he gay, but his homosexuality is not the reason for his villainy and it's not brought up in any way or form after its initial, devastating mention. I'd read about the uniqueness of the character, and we need more characters like that - good, bad, ugly - people can choose whatever path they want, irrespective of their preferences.
'The Flash' has consistently tried to up-end the norm, without being in-your-face about it. And that is probably a big reason why the show has out-done its originator 'Arrow' - where 'Arrow', for all its greatness, has stagnated and back-tracked its subversive elements, 'The Flash' has embraced it, and then some.
The rogue's gallery is one place this show has outdone itself. Not all the rogues are interesting, but those that are, hook you to the show. Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller) is so hammy and over-the-top, but yet such an enigmatic draw that I wanted him back every episode. His team-up with Heatwave (Dominic Purcell) was brilliant, and the two of them seemed to be reveling in their performances.
The one big reason why I think a lot of people kept coming back to the show was Harrison Wells. Cavanagh plays the role with such relish. He's all sugary sweet, and the perfect mentor for Barry in the first episode, and then we see the epilogue, and we know immediately, not all is right with this guy. The epilogues were often the best part of each episode, as Wells was revealed to us in bits and pieces.
Wells was such a devious, evil, conniving character, he was brilliant. I loved that character, absolutely loved him. I waited with bated breath for each new revelation. It will be hard to top an antagonist like that, because he was delicious in his villainy. He wasn't treacherous or cruel, but he was the ultimate villain in that he betrayed the people who loved and respected him the most. The duality of his character appealed to me the most. The beatific smiles he bestowed on Cisco, Caitlin and Barry, together with his underhanded deeds after-hours just made him so compelling. We were kept guessing about his motives, what did he want and why was he so passionate about Barry's ability to improve his powers, we couldn't wait to find out.
The revelation of his true identity eroded his character a little bit, for me. But even then, the sneer with which Cavanagh played him just never dimmed. I will miss his character the most - if there's a way to bring Cavanagh back, I will be ever so happy.
I think the ability to make the crossover episodes with 'Arrow' work also boosted the show. There's something unnaturally hilarious about seeing the dark and gritty characters of 'Arrow' show up in a place full of meta-humans, and vice-versa. Caitlin and Cisco even joke about how different their life of crime-fighting is. I feel really bad for Roy Harper (Colton Haynes) and Felicity Smoak - the two of them rightfully belong in 'The Flash' universe, as was evident from the constant eye-rolling Roy was doing when Cisco was talking. Also, Felicity and Barry seemed made for each other when first they met, but the grounds were laid for Barry's unrequited love. It's kinda sad that the only time Barry and Felicity share a kiss is when they've got no chemistry going. I still think she fits better with Barry than with the much older Oliver (Stephen Amell), but hey man, who am I to judge?
I've mentioned before that the show has a lot of emotional elements. It's that aspect of the show that stands out. Remember the first time Barry goes into the past? That was the first time I'd wanted a show to retcon the deaths of characters. Usually, time travel that saves emotional deaths is frustrating, but this one, I was screaming for it. Why? Because the two character killed/put out of action were two characters of colour, but not only that, they were important emotional cores of the show.
[MAJOR SPOILERS: When Cisco is killed in that episode, it was devastating - you can't just kill of your POC nerd, who is single-handedly the funniest guy in the DC entertainment universe. But more than that, it was that Captain Singh had been so greviously injured that he wouldn't be able to return to work. It was the sight of his weeping fiance that nearly killed me, and made me wish there was a way for Barry to change it all back. This is a bright and brilliant TV show, so yes, we can wish it and get it. It's true escapist television.]
No episode was more emotional than the finale. Granted the time-travelling paradox is still making my head hurt, but the entire episode was made relevant and intense due to Barry's emotional decision to go back and change the past and risk what he has in the present. It was so utterly devastating to see him weeping at every given point when he's thinking about everything he can gain and everything he will lose.
[MORE MAJOR SPOILERS: Throughout the show, some of the most outstanding scenes have been between Barry and his father Henry (John Wesley Shipp). They have excellent, believable father/son chemistry, and the more Barry holds back his tears, the more the viewer is willing to shed them.
The beauty of the finale was that it was a real tear-jerker. There's the openly emotional scene with his father who decides against Barry's decision to save his mother. Then that sob-worthy farewell between Barry and Joe, where Barry calls him Dad and Joe responds by calling him son - oh man, just thinking about it makes one weepy.
But nothing trumps the stunning scene when Barry is holding his dying mother in his arms. Not for nothing was Grant chosen for this role. He is evocative to a fault, and it comes out best in this scene, when he's openly crying and the tears are flowing, but instead of laughing at his cry-face (which is what usually happens when a grown actor is weeping on-screen) you can't help but cry along with him. And I'm not the only one who thinks this. Check out io9 for some corroboration.
And, if the weeping wasn't enough, the show threw us a shocking curve ball to end it all. Here's the thing about Eddie - we all knew he was going to die. Because it's never quite convincing enough if a character transfers out of state or disappears for family issues in the writers' efforts to break up a relationship. On TV, the best way to break up is to kill off one half (unless you're 'Arrow', in which Oliver and his ex Laurel (Katie Cassidy) are not only great friends, but partner together as heroes.)
But even though we've been expecting Eddie's death (I'd been counting down since the mid-season finale, actually), the writers were still able to present it in a shocking way. As Eobard Thawne (Wells) is getting the better of our heroes, a gun shot interrupts the proceedings. Eddie has just shot himself through the heart to stop his descendant Eobard from ever existing and therefore, killing his friends right now. I was so stunned I exclaimed out loud (much to my embarrassment). That right there was the sum total of what made 'The Flash' so special, it's ability to make you fall in love with all these characters and keep you guessing about their fates. Eddie dies with a smile on his face, because he's done the best he can to save the people he loves. He etched a place for himself in all our hearts in that moment. Now when I think back to the first season, I think of Eddie as someone beautiful and sweet and I know I'm going to miss his wide-eyed wonder at everything in the next season.
A lot of rumours abound over what Eddie's actions mean for the universe. Technically, all it means is that a singularity has opened up over Central City. I'm not one to speculate on what the coming season will hold (speculation always leads to disappointment). I hold with the multiverse scenario, that each timeline exists in its own universe, but even that theory doesn't support what happened in the finale, so I'm not going to break my head over the time-travelling science of the show.]
There was a lot to love about this show, and I can only hope that the writers and creators continue to improve as they have done over the course of the first season. It is obvious that having one central antagonist over the course of the season, along with episodic crimes is where success lies. If we can make Iris and Caitlin more relevant to the every day crime-fighting activities, and add some more (non-love interest) female characters, this show is going to go a lot of places. Keep being the wondrous rays of sunshine 'Flash', we love you for it.
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