I'm the Fastest Man Alive
May 21, 2015 7:26 AM   Subscribe

On Tuesday, the first season finale of CW network's The Flash aired. Can't wait 'til next Fall for your Flash fix? There's always the grittier 1990 series, which ran for a single season.

The Episodes
Season One: 1990-1991
1) Pilot (Trivia: When the bolt of lightning from the electrical plant jumps into the sky, it passes in front of the full moon, emulating the symbol on the Flash's chest.)
2) Out of Control (alternate link)
3) Watching the Detectives
4) Honor Among Thieves
5) Double Vision
6) Sins of the Father
7) Child's Play (Blink and you'll miss her: Patricia Tallman (Babylon 5's Lyta Alexander) plays "Kidnapper #2" in an uncredited role)
8) Shroud of Death
9) Ghost in the Machine (With Ian Abercrombie as Skip, Anthony Starke as The Ghost and Gloria Reuben (uncredited) as Sabrina. Reuben's character would return in several more episodes)
10) Sight Unseen
11) Beat the Clock (With Angela Bassett as Linda Lake)
12) The Trickster (Watch for: Mark Hamill as 'The Trickster'.)
13) Tina, Is That You?
14) Be My Baby (With Bryan Cranston as Phillip "Mark" Moses)
15) Fast Forward (On Veoh. Guest stars include Robert O'Reilly, who played Gowron on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
16) Deadly Nightshade (With Richard Burgi as Curtis Bohannan, Denise Crosby as Rebecca Frost and Jeri Ryan as Felicia Kane)
17) Captain Cold (With Michael Champion as Captain Cold and Jeffrey Combs as Jimmy Swain)
18) Twin Streaks
19) Done with Mirrors (With David Cassidy as The Mirror Master)
20) Good Night, Central City (With Bill Mumy as Roger Braintree)
21) Alpha
22) The Trial of the Trickster (With Mark Hamill as 'The Trickster')

The Show
* The Flash starred John Wesley Shipp in the title role.
* Guest stars included: Mark Hamill, Richard Belzer, David Cassidy, Bill Mumy, Bryan Cranston, Gloria Reuben, Denise Crosby, Ian Abercrombie, Jeffrey Combs, Robert O'Reilly, Joyce Hyser and Richard Burgi (who was considered for the title role)
* Danny Elfman composed the show's theme
* Each episode was budgeted at $1.5 million, which at the time was the largest budget ever for a series.
* The show moved time slots several times during the season, which along with the high per-episode cost led to its cancellation.

Old vs. New
The 2014 version of The Flash features several references to this show:
* John Wesley Shipp plays Barry Allen's father, Henry Allen.
* Amanda Pays reprises her role as Dr. Tina McGee.
* Mark Hamill once again plays James Jesse (aka The Trickster).
* Vito D'Ambrosio reprises his role as Anthony Bellows, who has now become Mayor.

What to Watch
The Crimson Lightning blog lists the following best and worst episodes of the series:
Best
* Ghost in the Machine
* Watching the Detectives
* The Trickster
* Double Vision

Worst
* Out of Control
* Sins of the Father
* Be My Baby
* Tina, Is That You?
posted by zarq (40 comments total) 21 users marked this as a favorite
 
Angela Bassett? Whoa.
posted by middleclasstool at 7:31 AM on May 21, 2015


Mitch really got around before settling down in Capeside.
posted by leotrotsky at 7:46 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


whoa, what a flashback. I remember watching some of those episodes. It was that long ago ? I remember it having a good, gritty feel for that era of TV..
posted by k5.user at 7:49 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


I liked this show well enough at the time, and considering all that's transpired since, the best parts may still hold up OK. But characterizing it as "grittier" than the current Flash series (except maybe from a production-values standpoint) seems wrong.

Mind you, I don't think either one is particularly gritty, but the 1990 show had some elements, like the two cops played by Biff Maynard and Vito D'Ambrosio, that were specifically comedic relief.

Also, there was no graphic violence to speak of - this was a CBS show, and so was subject to the network standards & practices of the time - and the John Wesley Shipp version of Barry Allen had two living, un-incarcerated parents, and no particular angst otherwise about being the Flash. So all in all, not really that gritty.
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 7:50 AM on May 21, 2015 [2 favorites]


I think it may have come across as "gritty" in 1990, due to the obvious aesthetic influence of Tim Burton's Batman. Of course, the Burton Batfilms now seem like gothic camp in the wake of the Nolan trilogy, but idea of live-action TV superheroes who fight crime at night (Batman '66 and Wonder Woman mostly took place in broad daylight) in rubberized muscle-suits to a Danny Elfman score seemed pretty grown up and badass at the time.
posted by Strange Interlude at 8:05 AM on May 21, 2015 [8 favorites]


the obvious aesthetic influence of Tim Burton's Batman.

Right down to the Danny Elfman theme song!
posted by 1970s Antihero at 8:10 AM on May 21, 2015 [2 favorites]


Nat, that's fair. I tend to think of the current show as more lighthearted, but it does have a lot of mature themes.
posted by zarq at 8:11 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


I'm not going to lie, I am a huge fan of the Arrow/Flashiverse, although I will prolly cop to liking Flash a bit more. I find Grant Gustin tremendously likeable, I like the less grimdark aspect, and I was so surprised to see Tom Cavanagh doing such a good job as Wells, as my only prior exposure to him was Scrubs.
posted by Samizdata at 8:36 AM on May 21, 2015


Strange Interlude, I'd agree that the 1990 Flash was comparable in some respects to the 1989 Batman film, and definitely seemed gritty compared to previous superhero TV like Wonder Woman, Batman '65, the George Reeves version of Superman, the Bill Bixby/Lou Ferrigno Hulk, or those awful Marvel TV movies from the 1970s with Spider-Man and Dr. Strange.

But by today's standards, it doesn't seem all that gritty, just as the 1989 Batman and its immediate successors seem a bit cartoony compared to the Nolan movies.

Consulting IMDB did remind me that the 1990 Barry did have a dead older brother, though, who supposedly was part of his motivation for wanting to fight crime. (Said brother was a motorcycle cop killed in the line of duty.) However, compared to the current Barry Allen, with his mom's death and dad's imprisonment serving as a major story engine, it must not have been all that important, because I honestly didn't remember it at all.

Note that I'm certainly not trying to discourage anyone from a re-watch, as I think this show was fun and got a lot of stuff right, for the time. It's just the "gritty" thing I'm quibbling with...

Samizdata, for more of Tom Cavanagh being a good actor, check out "Ed," the NBC series in which he played a big-city lawyer who gets dumped by his wife, returns to his small Ohio hometown and buys the local bowling alley, all the while pining for the girl from high school who got away (played by Julie Bowen), and being annoyed by his employees (played by Michael Ian Black, Darryl Mitchell, Mike Starr, and a very young Justin Long).

It was a funny show that also had some heart. There are four seasons, 83 episodes total. I know there were issues with a DVD set because of music rights, not sure if it's subsequently made it to any of the streaming services, but if you can find it, it's worth a look.
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 8:46 AM on May 21, 2015 [2 favorites]


Yes, the brother dies in the pilot, I believe.
posted by zarq at 8:54 AM on May 21, 2015


Sorry to say it but these YouTube copies are really messed up. There a chunk missing from the very beginning of all the ones I've looked at, they're horizontally compressed and cropped top and bottom with the result that there's information lost and what's there looks stretched.

They've also been slathered with a lot of ads, which might be reasonable if the uploader owned the content but it really doesn't look like they do.

Much as I hate to drive traffic to DailyMotion, they seem to have much better looking copies, complete and not cropped or distorted.

(Though you're still giving ad revenue to someone who isn't entitled to it if you're not using an ad blocker.)
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:03 AM on May 21, 2015 [2 favorites]


(Make that TON of material missing from the beginning. The whole black-and-white 1950s prologue from "Ghost in the Machine" is absent in the YouTube copy. At least 5 minutes worth. What they've done is cut off all the titles, including the titles that continue at the bottom of the screen during the first act.)
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:05 AM on May 21, 2015


Doubling back to add that, as much as it has the potential to be a hot mess, I'm looking forward to "DC's Legends of Tomorrow." If you had told me ten years ago there'd be a primetime network show built around the Atom, Hawkgirl, and Rip Hunter, Time Master, among others, I would have thought you were nuts, but it'll be here before you know it.

I was especially psyched to see the Atom finally shrinking in the "Legends" trailer, because this Iron Man-knockoff thing, while it may be a necessary transitional step, wasn't going to cut it over the long haul. Here's hoping that the show finds a way to trap a tiny Ray Palmer inside a light bulb and/or strap him to a hand grenade that's about to explode...
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 9:08 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner: "Samizdata, for more of Tom Cavanagh being a good actor, check out "Ed," the NBC series in which he played a big-city lawyer who gets dumped by his wife, returns to his small Ohio hometown and buys the local bowling alley, all the while pining for the girl from high school who got away (played by Julie Bowen), and being annoyed by his employees (played by Michael Ian Black, Darryl Mitchell, Mike Starr, and a very young Justin Long).

It was a funny show that also had some heart. There are four seasons, 83 episodes total. I know there were issues with a DVD set because of music rights, not sure if it's subsequently made it to any of the streaming services, but if you can find it, it's worth a look.
"

Sounds interesting. I will check it out. Thanks for for the recommendation.
posted by Samizdata at 9:11 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner: "Doubling back to add that, as much as it has the potential to be a hot mess, I'm looking forward to "DC's Legends of Tomorrow." If you had told me ten years ago there'd be a primetime network show built around the Atom, Hawkgirl, and Rip Hunter, Time Master, among others, I would have thought you were nuts, but it'll be here before you know it.

I was especially psyched to see the Atom finally shrinking in the "Legends" trailer, because this Iron Man-knockoff thing, while it may be a necessary transitional step, wasn't going to cut it over the long haul. Here's hoping that the show finds a way to trap a tiny Ray Palmer inside a light bulb and/or strap him to a hand grenade that's about to explode...
"

You and me both, but in my opinion, the test flights (Barry/Arrow, Barry/Arrow/Firestorm) have been just about as successful as they could have been. Strikes me they've got a gem in Berlanti.
posted by Samizdata at 9:13 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


Yeah, while I'm more a fan of the current Flash than Arrow, I think Berlanti's generally got a good handle on how to do this sort of show, which is why I'm hopeful about DC's LoT (or however it ends up getting abbreviated).

The Ant-Man trailer already has demonstrated some ways a tiny superhero can be visually interesting on film, and of course there are plenty of examples to follow in the source material.

My concerns are mainly that 1) time travel stories can get ridiculous pretty quickly; and 2) I'm not sure how well the villains will work as part of a regular ensemble. Wentworth Miller has been giving a fun performance as Captain Cold, but I think it might be one of those things best enjoyed in small-to-moderate doses. But these concerns seem manageable, given smart enough writing, so I'm pretty much at the "shut up and take my money!" stage right now.
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 9:23 AM on May 21, 2015


yeah, sorry if gritty was a derail. Perhaps gothic is more on the lines. I remember it as dark in the color, saturation, settings. The comparison to Batman (89) is apt.
posted by k5.user at 9:30 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


which is why I'm hopeful about DC's LoT

You know, I was okay with the Arrow and Flash parts of that trailer, and of course Firestorm, and it's pretty cool to flip Captain Cold and Heatwave into reluctant heroes, and maybe even White Canary, but then suddenly some guy pops in going "oh, and me! I'm from the future and I'll take you all over the timestream!" And then Hawkgirl (who?), and then the guy who knows what your wife really wants for your anniversary (nice, I guess, but doesn't really seem to fit somehow), and by the time brainwashed Skeletor and Rainbow Dash showed up going "we can win with the power of friendship!" I was just like, okay, fuck it, I'm out.
posted by Naberius at 9:37 AM on May 21, 2015


I remember liking it when it aired, and then being excited to find out that Hepcat's Alex Desert was in it.
posted by drezdn at 9:39 AM on May 21, 2015


whoa, what a flashback.

I see what you did there.

Also, Hamill's role as the Trickster here pretty much landed him the role of his next DC villian, Batman: TAS's Joker.
posted by radwolf76 at 9:40 AM on May 21, 2015


Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner: "Yeah, while I'm more a fan of the current Flash than Arrow, I think Berlanti's generally got a good handle on how to do this sort of show, which is why I'm hopeful about DC's LoT (or however it ends up getting abbreviated).

The Ant-Man trailer already has demonstrated some ways a tiny superhero can be visually interesting on film, and of course there are plenty of examples to follow in the source material.

My concerns are mainly that 1) time travel stories can get ridiculous pretty quickly; and 2) I'm not sure how well the villains will work as part of a regular ensemble. Wentworth Miller has been giving a fun performance as Captain Cold, but I think it might be one of those things best enjoyed in small-to-moderate doses. But these concerns seem manageable, given smart enough writing, so I'm pretty much at the "shut up and take my money!" stage right now.
"

Well, he has certainly been handling the multiple comic metahumans per story better than anything else has (see continuity 1 Spiderman). Plus he's got a good grasp on keeping the characters canon ENOUGH for print fans not to get pissed off while having enough elbow room to experiment a little.

(And, yeah, loving me some Wentworth Miller, but it could go to overdose rather easily.)
posted by Samizdata at 9:40 AM on May 21, 2015


Though you're still giving ad revenue to someone who isn't entitled to it if you're not using an ad blocker

It's impossible to tell if this is the case for any given video, but it's common for ads on infringing content to pay to the content owner. It's even an option that can be automatically selected by the content owner when YouTube's Content ID detects infringing stuff.

posted by jjwiseman at 9:54 AM on May 21, 2015


Flash 1990 has Amanda Pays. And it doesn't have that goddamn shmoopy dewy-eyed CW Smallville preteen throbby romance dribbling. Or a "My name is Galumphit Shuggart" narration in the title sequence. Game, set and match.
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:55 AM on May 21, 2015


Wow. I hadn't seen or heard of the trailer. Vandal Savage? (As a far from tiny and fairly masculine male, can I SQUEEEEEEE! ?)

(Also I cackled at the end when Palmer shrinks and starts running. Then I started wondering if the math on the shrunken flight pack would work.)
posted by Samizdata at 10:06 AM on May 21, 2015


I remember liking Amanda Pays' character at the time, but man, did she seem wooden in her recent cameos on the current Flash series. Maybe it's just that her acting chops are rusty from disuse, but something seemed off there. She still looks fine, but as an actor, I don't think she's in the same league as Cavanagh, Jesse L. Martin, or Victor Garber.

Agree that the romantic subplots are by far the weakest part of the current Flash series, but I don't mind the opening voice-over narration (which seems like it'll have to change some anyway, given the events of the season finale).
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 10:07 AM on May 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner: "I remember liking Amanda Pays' character at the time, but man, did she seem wooden in her recent cameos on the current Flash series. Maybe it's just that her acting chops are just rusty from disuse, but something seemed off there. She still looks fine, but as an a actor, I don't think she's in the same league as Cavanagh, Jesse L. Martin, or Victor Garber.

Agree that the romantic subplots are by far the weakest part of the current Flash series, but I don't mind the opening voice-over narration (which seems like it'll have to change some anyway, given the events of the season finale).
"

Actually, I really like both series' intros, even if I liked the Flash's more. Seems to me DC's come to the mass media late, after a serious good run in animation, but I must say, I think they have made some REALLY good decisions in doing so, more so than Marvel. Now to see if they can beat greed, keep doing decent shows, and not run everything into the ground with over exposure.
posted by Samizdata at 10:10 AM on May 21, 2015


Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner: "I remember liking Amanda Pays' character at the time, but man, did she seem wooden in her recent cameos on the current Flash series. Maybe it's just that her acting chops are rusty from disuse, but something seemed off there. She still looks fine, but as an actor, I don't think she's in the same league as Cavanagh, Jesse L. Martin, or Victor Garber.

Agree that the romantic subplots are by far the weakest part of the current Flash series, but I don't mind the opening voice-over narration (which seems like it'll have to change some anyway, given the events of the season finale).
"

Also, on further thought, I think Pays pretty much peaked with Max Headroom.
posted by Samizdata at 10:13 AM on May 21, 2015


Also, Hamill's role as the Trickster here pretty much landed him the role of his next DC villian, Batman: TAS's Joker.

Not at first. Originally, the BTAS producers had cast Tim Curry(!) in the Joker role, but he had to drop out after only recording a limited amount of dialogue. As it happens, Hamill was already involved with the show, doing voicework for a one-off character in an early episode. After losing Curry, they offered him the role and the rest is history.
posted by Strange Interlude at 10:20 AM on May 21, 2015 [2 favorites]


I have to admit I am enjoying watching the evolutionary progress of these shows. I figure Arrow was Berlanti dipping his toe in the water, seeing if they could weekly replicate some of the increasing acceptance of comic book media, while doing so on a television budget. Then, after he got a core of viewers, decided to see if adding some more heroes would work, while avoiding the issue of earlier multiple hero media. (And I am stating live action here, to divorce these shows from what I see as DC Animation's sterling successes, not the least of which is getting me to like Superman again). Then he finally went full on metahuman with Flash and decided to try out not only further teamups, but also crossovers, a beloved trope of the comic industry. And now he is trying a full out teamup series (although I admit I am reserving my opinion on Hawkgirl, as I have had rather limited enthusiasm for the whole Hawk* thing).
posted by Samizdata at 10:39 AM on May 21, 2015


Hamill's role as the Trickster certainly did land him this role as the Trickster on JLU, which is one of the best scenes in a show that has lots of great scenes.
posted by 1970s Antihero at 11:51 AM on May 21, 2015 [2 favorites]


Samizdata, for more of Tom Cavanagh being a good actor, check out "Ed,"

The first three seasons of Ed rank with my favorite shows of all time.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 11:58 AM on May 21, 2015


The Flash's Nightshade episodes also really set the blueprints for the Grey Ghost in B:TAS.

I recently ended up rewatching the original Flash (I hadn't seen it since its original broadcast) and there are quite a number of small carry-overs or name checks that apply to the current series, and discovering those turned out to be an unexpected treat.

The oddest thing that stuck me when watching the earlier version was how much style and fashion has changed. In the Schipp version, the characters were dressed as professional adults, complete with suits and ties. In the new version, there is much more emphasis on youth (jeans, T-shirts and running shoes) and casual clothing.

I must admit, I did enjoy the running gag of Barry's lab partner setting him up with one blind date after another. As bad as they were, they're still a better idea than the current Barry-Iris relationship.
posted by sardonyx at 12:05 PM on May 21, 2015


In the Schipp version, the characters were dressed as professional adults, complete with suits and ties.

OMG in the one I just rewatched a bit of, Shipp is wearing (at the police station, not after hours) pleated chinos with a thin belt, a slightly shiny dark tone-on-tone striped shirt with buttondown collar and a narrow straight-sided solid-color tie. It's a look I associate more with 1985 than 1990, but it weirdly it looks less dated to me now than that sort of thing did a few years ago.
posted by George_Spiggott at 12:22 PM on May 21, 2015


Pater Aletheias: "Samizdata, for more of Tom Cavanagh being a good actor, check out "Ed,"

The first three seasons of Ed rank with my favorite shows of all time.
"

Well, aherm, I will be able to comment more knowledgeably soon. Or, rather, I have a friend who will. The same friend who has also been binging on Community lately...
posted by Samizdata at 12:27 PM on May 21, 2015


The aesthetic definitely reads more 80s than 90s to me as well. I don't think the 90s had figured out what they were (or were going to be) by that point in time.
posted by sardonyx at 12:29 PM on May 21, 2015


I note also that in 1990 an hourlong TV show was still as long as 48 minutes* without commercials, not the 42 or so it is now.

*Don't go by the YouTube version, as I note above apart from the bizarre frame cropping the uploader has also simply chopped off the first 5 or 6 minutes of each episode, apparently as a blunt-instrument way of eradicating all trace of opening credits.
posted by George_Spiggott at 12:40 PM on May 21, 2015


Looking back, fashion in about the first third of each decade always looks like the stereotype we have for the look of the previous decade.
posted by straight at 1:38 PM on May 21, 2015


OMG, Amanda Pays! I had such a crush on her Max Headroom character. :)
posted by webmutant at 5:48 PM on May 21, 2015 [2 favorites]


webmutant: "OMG, Amanda Pays! I had such a crush on her Max Headroom character. :)"

What right proper geek at the time didn't want her voice coming into their ear as they went through their day?
posted by Samizdata at 8:34 AM on May 22, 2015 [2 favorites]


O Theora!
posted by irisclara at 12:11 AM on May 24, 2015 [1 favorite]


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