The Flash The Flash Season 1, Episode 1 "Pilot" General Discussion

[spider-neil]

Not really fair to compare Gotham and Flash but they 'are' shows set in the DC Universe.

Anyway, with Flash I was hooked two minutes in (even before the powers) and was very sad when the episode ended because I wanted more. With Gotham, watching it is frankly a chore, I was meh on the pilot and have only watched the first 3 episodes to see if the show improved and for me it hasn't. I'm on the verge of dropping Gotham.

This may be hyperbole but The Flash is the best superhero pilot I have ever seen.

 

[W/ Great Power]

It came across as cliched and a bit lazy. It also led to some pretty awkward and unnatural deliveries by otherwise competent actors. A lot of it felt forced.

It also introduced plot elements in a way that felt a bit awkward. I was reminded of the scene in Goldmember when Dixie Normous talked about being a sexy single mother (or some such nonsense). The only difference is that THAT was intentionally awkward.

Overall, yes, there may have been a few scenes here and there where the dialogue was a bit cheesy or the scene itself felt forced, but the show itself was still good enough for me to give it a 9/10.

For example, the scene where Iris and Barry are walking, and the police chase of Clyde Mardon just happens to pass the two of them, was definitely a time where I thought they could have done things differently.

My initial post was about the scene where Barry visits his father in jail, though. That ended up being my favorite scene in the pilot.

 

[Mr.X]

THAT. WAS. AWESOME.

Loved it. Instantly hooked unlike being on the verge of dropping Gotham.
Don't know if I like Barry having to work for Iris. Aren't they 'soul mates' in the comics?

I hope they don't have him pining for her every episode, that's going to get annoying for me real quick. And I don't know about the soul mates thing since I don't read comics.

 

[brainchild81]

Good start to the series! The part w/Ollie was kinda cheesey, but they really want to stress how it's in the same universe so it was ok. Villain was a lil lame, but seeing the broken cage & that ending that left so many questions made the show for me.

 

[Doctor Evo]

My initial post was about the scene where Barry visits his father in jail, though. That ended up being my favorite scene in the pilot.

I know. I still think it was clumsy and awkward.

Especially the part where Barry asks if his dad remembers when he wanted him to change his name because he didn't want his son associated with him. Why would he need to add that last part in conversation? Is his dad's memory that bad?

That's not something that would realistically be said in that situation, and it was obvious that the entire purpose of adding that last bit was for the sake of the audience. It's a lazy device that resulted in bad/awkward dialogue. And that isn't the first time it happened, either.

For example, the scene where Iris and Barry are walking, and the police chase of Clyde Mardon just happens to pass the two of them, was definitely a time where I thought they could have done things differently.

I didn't mind that at all. That was a total non-issue for me.

 

[Mr.X]

Overall, yes, there may have been a few scenes here and there where the dialogue was a bit cheesy or the scene itself felt forced, but the show itself was still good enough for me to give it a 9/10.

For example, the scene where Iris and Barry are walking, and the police chase of Clyde Mardon just happens to pass the two of them, was definitely a time where I thought they could have done things differently.

My initial post was about the scene where Barry visits his father in jail, though. That ended up being my favorite scene in the pilot.

I didn't mind the scene where Barry notices Clyde Mardon in the getaway car, what would you have done differently with it?

 

[W/ Great Power]

I know. I still think it was clumsy and awkward.

Especially the part where Barry asks if his dad remembers when he wanted him to change his name because he didn't want his son associated with him. Why would he need to add that last part in conversation? Is his dad's memory that bad?

That's not something that would realistically be said in that situation, and it was obvious that the entire purpose of adding that last bit was for the sake of the audience. It's a lazy device that resulted in bad/awkward dialogue. And that isn't the first time it happened, either.

I guess that's one way to look at it, but you have to keep in mind that his father has been in jail for quite some time. Obviously Barry and people like West know that his father is innocent, but most people associate the name Henry Allen with murder. Barry understands his father must suffer every day knowing that he's in the real world carrying the dirt that's been bestowed on the Allen family, so he brought up that particular event to remind him that he's proud to be his son.

Maybe it's an event Barry had never mentioned before since it was something that probably happened when he was little. Telling his father that he recalls something from his childhood, when his father probably didn't expect him to remember it, sends the message that Barry holds holds his dad in high esteem. It's one thing to say he cares about his dad, but it's another to back it up with a deeper memory, especially considering he just came out of a coma.

I didn't mind that at all. That was a total non-issue for me.

I didn't mind the scene where Barry notices Clyde Mardon in the getaway car, what would you have done differently with it?

It's just that Barry is having a moment with Iris, and of all routes that the getaway could have gone through, it happened where the two of them were walking?

They could have Mardon committing another crime and Barry having to flee his meeting with Iris, or something along the lines of that. Having the car pass right through where Iris and Barry were made it seem forced, as if they did that just to somehow put Iris in danger.

 

[Delwin]

Barry understands his father must suffer every day knowing that he's in the real world carrying the dirt that's been bestowed on the Allen family, so he brought up that particular event to remind him that he's proud to be his son.

Actually - this is quite natural. Barry wants to remind his father that he still believes in him, proudly uses his name etc. It is sth you say in order to bring smile on someone's face...

 

[Guy-on-Couch]

Loved the Pilot and the Arrow crossover...can't wait to see more....awesome Easter Eggs....

Can't wait to see what they do with Grodd!!!!

 

[Doctor Evo]

Actually - this is quite natural.

And nobody said that it wasn't. That wasn't the aspect I took issue with.

 

[W/ Great Power]

It says a lot for these small concerns to be the main issues after watching the pilot episode. That's definitely a better start than I was expecting.

Can't wait until tomorrow.

 

[Superwoman Prime]

The story moved too quickly (I made the obligatory super speed pun in the general discussion thread). Some of the scenes exaggerated the drama too much. I don't watch Arrow, so my appreciation was limited when the two heroes talked and Barry became inspired.

I think I was being a bit generous with the 7/10 rating.

The next episode was a definite improvement.

 

[Lencho01]

The Most Surprising Flash Easter Egg: An io9 Shout-Out

 

[Mask&Cape]

Yeah, I think it might be the same.

I don't think she's important, the camera was on her to show Barry seeing her drop the plates in slo-mo.

Sorry for the delay - I actually typed a response a few days again but it seems I didn't hit the Submit Reply button.

Thanks for answering. So Iron Heights is in Starling City.

About the waitress, yes I know the slow motion was to show Barry's power, but I was referring to afterwards when everything went back to normal and Iris asked her if she was okay. I just got the feeling when the camera was on her that we were meant to take notice of her in particular.

 

[BH/HHH]

Not really fair to compare Gotham and Flash but they 'are' shows set in the DC Universe.

Anyway, with Flash I was hooked two minutes in (even before the powers) and was very sad when the episode ended because I wanted more. With Gotham, watching it is frankly a chore, I was meh on the pilot and have only watched the first 3 episodes to see if the show improved and for me it hasn't. I'm on the verge of dropping Gotham.

This may be hyperbole but The Flash is the best superhero pilot I have ever seen.

I recently watched both the Gotham pilot and the Flash pilot, I definitely agree with you. I didn't really enjoy Gotham but the Flash pilot was really enjoyable. My brother dropped Arrow but loves Gotham, he said it seems like they spent more money on it, I really would be surprised if that was the case as Gotham didn't look any bigger at all.

But anyway back to the Fladh, it truly was a well done pilot, not the best I've seen but definitely one of the better ones.

 

[Spidey's Curse]

I just got around to seeing the pilot, and honestly, I wasn't too impressed. Got a strong Amazing Spider-man vibe from this. I mean, this dude was Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker. Looked the same, dressed the same, acted the same. And it doesn't help it's a CW show. A lot of the characters were really annoying (Long haired scientist guy especially) and I hate how they have to constantly insert trendy things into the show to make it seem cool and hip (blah blah blah twerking blah blah blah facebook blah blah blah blog). They really need some superhero shows on other channels than CW desperately. The effects were pretty good. I don't understand why The Flash looks like a yellow fluorescent light when he's running though, considering the lack of yellow in his costume.

 

[Rorschach2012]

The most recent episode and the second episode are both better than the pilot ^

 

[Bathead]

I just got around to seeing the pilot, and honestly, I wasn't too impressed. Got a strong Amazing Spider-man vibe from this. I mean, this dude was Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker. Looked the same, dressed the same, acted the same. And it doesn't help it's a CW show. A lot of the characters were really annoying (Long haired scientist guy especially) and I hate how they have to constantly insert trendy things into the show to make it seem cool and hip (blah blah blah twerking blah blah blah facebook blah blah blah blog). They really need some superhero shows on other channels than CW desperately. The effects were pretty good. I don't understand why The Flash looks like a yellow fluorescent light when he's running though, considering the lack of yellow in his costume.

I 5think that is supposed to be energy from the "Speed Force" in the form of yellow lightning. It's got nothing to do with the colors on his suit.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

Little late to the party, got SO many shows to catch up on and so little time! But overall, I thought this was a REALLY well done pilot and origin story for The Flash in general. It had heart, emotion, good action, and was a great set-up for the rest of the series, it was even better than the really well done Arrow pilot for me.

If the Flash movie in 2018 is as good as this we are in for something special, really looking forward to what comes next. Oh and the Arrow crossover in the pilot, brilliant!

 

[Jesse]

My first impression of The Flash pilot is that it's more Smallville than Arrow. I didn't mind the costume when they debuted it months ago but now I'm really hoping they update it with less muted colors. Loved the Grodd easter egg. Not a fan of the Geoff Johns origin but I do like Professor Zoom. The CGI used in the bank scene when the stained glass ceiling shattered wasn't great. Honestly prefer the Rogue's powers based on technology. I do kind of like that Barry has team Flash as support at S.T.A.R. Labs. Probably the best scene is when Ollie shows up and CW spoiled that months ago. That last scene was interesting and unexpected.