Live Action: THE FLASH (1990-91)

[chas]

Taeblewalker just lent me his DVD set for the 22 episode live action TV Show THE FLASH (starring John Wesley Shipp and Amanda Pays) which ran 1990-91. I hadn't seen one since its original airing, and the episodes are better than I remember consistantly, and aquite faithful to the old comic series from the Silver Age. I'd like to make a few notes for you while it is all still fresh in my mind. And since there are no extra features with the set, I'll mention a few fun things about it as well. Its well worth watching, if you're looking for something superheroish...

*Most scripts are by comic writer extraordinaire Howard Chaykin

*Great guest stars appear, from Richard Beltzer, Angela Bassett, Billy Mumy and David Cassidy to one episode with not one but two Star Trek actresses from different ST shows working together. Best of all is Mark Hamil chewing the scenery as The Trickster in two episodes, which was sort of a dry run for his subsequent well known career as the animated Joker on Batman: The Animated Series and other DCU works. MH was to play The Trickster again on the animated Justice League series.

*Scenes set in the past (1955) and the future (2001).

*Updated traditional Flash comic villains such as The Trickster, Mirror Master, and Captain Cold.

*A nice supporting cast with good continuity in their jokes and actions.

*For you trivia buffs, the names of streets and buildings are often those of Flash comic creators or characters (Hotel Infantino, Garrick Street).

I only saw a few of the episodes originally. A pal reminded me that its time slot had been changed to a less accessible one during its run, which more or less ruined the chance of catching more of them when it was aired. So several others had the same experience as me, having not really seen most of the series at all.

Have fun watching or re-watching it, and share any thoughts with us here as well.

Edit: I've checked wikipedia since posting, and The Flash was considered an expensive and major effort, which the network later admitted they wrecked by scheduling against Simpsons and The Cosby Show when it was new, and then rescheduling later to bad times. The show got great reviews with both the regular and fan press when it came out. There is a link to a good interview with Shipp, who in 2006 when the DVD set came out, was making the rounds of SF Cons.

[Yodaking]

I remember watching this show when it was on tv and thinking it was pretty good back then. Maybe I'll add it to my netflix queue.