There will be spoilers in our summary of the episode.
Recap
The episode starts out with a glimpse at the Flash in action. This is a character where it makes sense to have the main character narrating since that's how many FLASH comics started out, with Barry Allen explaining he's the fastest man alive. As this is an origin episode, we see what made Barry the man he is today, starting with being bullied as a child, fourteen years ago. This scene serves to show that despite being picked on, he had a pretty great family life with loving and caring parents. Until one night when everything changes.
Those familiar with the Flash mythos know Barry's mom was killed and his father was the main suspect. What we see is some yellow and red streaks surrounding her in the living room. Barry is woken up in the middle of the night by the noise and some strange phenomenon. Barry's dad tells Barry to run and suddenly he finds himself blocks away.
Jumping back to the present, before Barry gains his powers, we see he is constantly late. Working in the CSI division, Captain Singh is not happy with his constant tardiness. In Barry's defense, he is good at his job. We also see that Detective Joe West tries his best to cover for Barry.
Barry and Iris are close friends. It's clear he has stronger feelings for her than she realizes. She agreed to go with him to an experiment at STAR Labs but he needs to work on her father's case. Because he's so good at his job, he's able to come up with a big lead on Joe's case. Suckerpunch to Barry as he tries expressing his feelings to Iris before the experiment. When Iris' laptop is stolen, Barry tries chasing after the purse snatcher. This is where we meet Eddie Thawne, a detective transferring from Keystone.
Later we see that Barry has been gathering evidence trying to solve his mother's murder. Joe and his partner, Fred Chyre, try arresting the crook they were after. He manages to escape into the rainy night in a little plane. As the particle accelerator at STAR Labs goes off, the plane is apparently destroyed as the shock wave hits it. Back at Barry's lab, lightning crashes through the window just after the chemicals around him start to get super-charged.
Barry wakes up at STAR Labs and finds Cisco Ramone and Caitlin Snow in his room. They tell him he was struck by lightning...which "gave him abs." It's Harrison Wells that informs Barry he was in a coma for nine months. An anomaly went off as the particle accelerator went off. While in the coma, it appeared Barry kept flatlining. It turned out his heart was beating so fast at times, the EKG monitor couldn't register it. Barry feels fine and leaves the lab in search of Iris.
Barry starts getting moments where his powers start kicking in. Not sure what's going on, Barry goes out for some air. He soon realizes he can run at super-speed. Barry returns to STAR Labs and allows Wells, Ramone, and Snow to conduct tests on his speed. While running, he gets a flashback to the night of his morther's murder. Seeing a man dressed in yellow, he loses his concentration and crashes. Luckily his body recovers quickly.
It turns Iris got a boyfriend while Barry was in a coma. She's dating Eddie but her dad can't know. Barry sees them and Iris explains how he helped out and covered for her dad when Barry was in the hospital. Barry and Iris are almost hit by a police car in pursuit of a bank robber that appears to have weather powers. Barry chases and confronts him but he gets away. Barry tells Joe the robber was Clyde Mardon, the man that got away and died in the plane. Barry tries explaining that somehow he gained abilities. Joe won't hear any of it.
Barry confronts Wells about the night accelerator went off. He figures others must have gained abilities as well. Wells says they're not sure what happened. A barrier was opened and unleashed all sorts of energy on the city. They tried mapping how the energy was dispersed around the city but can't be sure of who might've been exposed. Wells tries explaining how Barry is not a hero. He's just a guy that gained abilities. These abilities could help others with his ability to recover from a broken arm in three hours. Barry runs to Starling City and talks to Oliver Queen. Ollie explains that Barry is different. He doesn't have to be a vigilante. He can actually inspire people.
Looking over police records, Barry's figured out that the meta-humans have been busy the past nine months. There's been a lot of deaths and unexplained crimes. Cisco shows a suit he designed that could withstand the abuse Barry's speed would put on normal material. Barry's ready to suit up and track down Mardon. Joe and Eddie go to the farm where they last tracked him down. Mardon explains how he gained abilities that night he 'died.' Eddie is knocked out as Mardon unleashes his powers. He's creating a tornado that could wipe out the city. Barry arrives in time to attempt to unravel it. Joe witnesses all of this and discovers his true identity.
The episode ends with Joe insisting Barry keep his secret from Iris and Barry determined to clear his dad. Well also reveals there is more to him than we thought. He knows a lot more than he's let on.
Thoughts
Because this is a spin off from Arrow, it's inevitable to make comparisons. The main difference is the tone. The Flash is simply much lighter in tone. That doesn't mean it's completely bright and cheery. We do have the murder of Barry's mom and incarceration of his dad going on.
As the characters are being set up, it feels a little forced with Barry always being late. This was something from the comics but almost feels like too much. The same with the friendship between Barry and Iris. Their banter is a little much but this was the pilot and just a minor thing to complain about.
Overall, the show is off to a great start. There are some spotty moments. The effects are pretty cool with some moments where it looks a little cheesy. When Barry is confronting Mardon, for some reason, his mask comes off and allows Joe to see his face. It adds another layer to the show but now we have four people that know his identity already. Having more people in the know is good to keep the conversation going. Having people to confide in is good but, based on this episode, it's hard to say whether or not Cisco and Caitlin will be likable characters. Those that know their comic book counterparts know they could have bigger roles in the future. It's a little too much of a coincidence but they are working with Wells so who knows.
With a lighter tone, this show can definitely stand on its own and apart from Arrow. It's unclear whether or not the show will maintain this lighter, more optimistic feel. The show still has some darkness as Barry is determined to try to free his incarcerated father. But the show doesn't dip down as much as Arrow does. Hopefully the show won't fall into a common routine of villain of the week, as on early episodes of Smallville, with each one a meta-human from the night the accelerator went off.
With some of the current comic book TV shows, I don't feel the immediate urge to watch the episodes right away. This is one I may have to be sure to keep up with week after week.
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