Flash (CW)

[riddler]

True. If DC/WB/Fox are still going to be OK with Arrow continually borrowing villains from other character's rogues gallery, I suppose they could implement a mandate that requires said villains to be perceptibly differentiated to where, let's say, the Riddler on Gotham, would certainly not be confused with a Riddler appearing on Arrow. Which could be one way to ease in the DCU Multiverse concept if they so chose to.

Some villains are okay to borrow, some not. Deathstroke and Ras Al Ghul I can live with. But Lex Luthor in a story not involving Superman or the Riddler and Joker in a story not involving Batman (or his sidekicks) is just WRONG. Especially the Riddler who is there to out the words greatest detective, it would make no sense to have him go against the flash or Arrow.

[The Joker]

Some villains are okay to borrow, some not. Deathstroke and Ras Al Ghul I can live with. But Lex Luthor in a story not involving Superman or the Riddler and Joker in a story not involving Batman (or his sidekicks) is just WRONG. Especially the Riddler who is there to out the words greatest detective, it would make no sense to have him go against the flash or Arrow.

I'm more lax on the topic of villains being borrowed. Sure, it initially seems "off" to see a villain associated with a particular superhero appear on a show centered around another superhero, though I don't see Flash having to really resort to this since he has a more than sufficient list of Rogues to deal with, but given the track record of Arrow consistently helping itself to fairly well known (Deathstroke) to decidedly well known villains (Ras), I don't see this pattern diminishing anytime soon. Especially since it's likely being implemented in the first place to both gather excitement from fans, as well as a buzz for the show itself as it continues to move forward. Would a villain like Edward appearing as the major baddie for an entire season be the preferred method? Not particularly. 1-2 episode guest appearances would suffice. It doesn't need to be a persistent thing, but much like in the comic books, it's always kinda fun to see such character's cross paths. If even just briefly.

[Silver Nemesis]

Having been doing some research, what is your opinion on Hunter Zolomon Zoom from Geoff Johns run on Flash, Silver Nemesis? It appears he was fairly well liked, and from what I can tell, CW is borrowing his back story a bit for "Eddie" Thawne with the whole concept of Thawne working for the police dept...

To be honest, I'm less familiar with the Hunter Zolomon Zoom. But based on what I know about him, I think he's a decent stand-in for Thawne. I like the fact he has a personal connection to Wally West, instead of simply being a villain West inherited from his mentor. Barry and Eobard have a very personal vendetta, and a similarly personal animosity exists between West and Zolomon. Zolomon has a more sympathetic back story than Thawne. It has certain parallels with Barry's contemporary origin story, what with his mother having being murdered by his father. So it'll be interesting to see if those parallels are played upon in the TV show.

It doesn't need to be a persistent thing, but much like in the comic books, it's always kinda fun to see such character's cross paths. If even just briefly.

Very true. One thing that bothers me about the use of Batman villains though is the fact Batman doesn't exist in the Arrow/Flash universe. At least not as far as we're aware. In fact he doesn't exist in the Gotham universe yet either. We're getting inundated with Batman villains on TV, but no Batman. That seems somehow wrong to me.

[The Joker]

To be honest, I'm less familiar with the Hunter Zolomon Zoom. But based on what I know about him, I think he's a decent stand-in for Thawne. I like the fact he has a personal connection to Wally West, instead of simply being a villain West inherited from his mentor. Barry and Eobard have a very personal vendetta, and a similarly personal animosity exists between West and Zolomon. Zolomon has a more sympathetic back story than Thawne. It has certain parallels with Barry's contemporary origin story, what with his mother having being murdered by his father. So it'll be interesting to see if those parallels are played upon in the TV show.

That's interesting. Yeah, it appears like Thawne on this show will be a amalgam of both Eobard and Hunter to some extent. Having read up a little bit on the Hunter Zolomon Zoom, I thought it was interesting that Gorilla Grodd crippling Hunter, and Wally refusing to go back in time to change that event, was pretty much got the domino's rolling for his eventual transformation into Zoom. From what I can tell, another aspect to Zolomon's Zoom people seem to like, was his not being able to control the speed of his speech. Which would have him talking really fast, to where words in the word balloons associated with him would run together with no spaces inbetween. I do recall seeing him in crossover books associated with the 2005 INFINITE CRISIS event, where he apparently had a romantic relationship with the Cheetah from Wonder Woman's rogues gallery, but that's pretty much the extent of my exposure.

Very true. One thing that bothers me about the use of Batman villains though is the fact Batman doesn't exist in the Arrow/Flash universe. At least not as far as we're aware. In fact he doesn't exist in the Gotham universe yet either. We're getting inundated with Batman villains on TV, but no Batman. That seems somehow wrong to me.

That's different. Guess any character's, atleast as far as we can tell, associated with Snyder's films, are being shied away from in the television shows .... ? Kinda odd, as a longtime comic book reader, to think of Ollie being Ra's arch-nemesis since evidently Batman doesn't exist (yet?), but I guess the character's lack of a really good rogues gallery, and marquee value of other villains being available, explains why that would be. But that's a pretty astute observation about one show being Pre-Batman, showcasing Bats rogues gallery, and another show being No-Batman, showcasing another major top tier Batman rogue as well. 

[The Laughing Fish]

Did anyone watch the first episode?

I thought it was a decent start, if a little unspectacular. I can't help but feel the scene with Barry Allen going a test run to be very similar to the 1990's pilot version with John Wesley Shipp.

I think this Grant Gustin is okay as a young guy hoping to prove that his dad is innocent. He's still no Shipp, but he's okay for a CW TV show I suppose. The running special effects is very impressive so far.

Loads of potential this show has. From the characters that have been confirmed so far, I'm convinced the best is yet to come.

[The Joker]

I'm going along for the ride, and with 2 episodes in, I'm finding that I'm enjoying CW's Flash tv series just as much, if not more, than Gotham. The setting up for future character's to appear and such has been done pretty well, and I'm loving the easter eggs so far. Like "Hex's Gun Shop" at the beginning of episode 2, and a quick passing reference of "Ronnie" (Firestorm), which makes sense since Episode 2 featured a villain from his rogues gallery (Multiplex).

Good to hear it's getting good ratings for CW. Looks like another winner for them. 

[BatmAngelus]

Just caught the pilot. Off to a good start. Enjoyed the Arrow cameo and their behind-the-back reactions to each other's skills/powers.

Loved the passing of the torch scene between Gustin and Shipp.

Very interested in where Tom Cavanagh's character is going and what he's up to.

[The Joker]

Still enjoying the show, and oh yeah, the teaser with Grodd in the latest episode, was very cool!

[Grissom]

I'm enjoying the show as well, I rank it a solid ssecond behind Gotham. I think they need to focus more on his skill development and his relationship with his partners at Starlabs and ease off off a bit off the Iris story line.  Don't want to see him sort of whine for an entire episode while fighting off a villain.  Very good effects as well.

[The Laughing Fish]

I've been catching up with this show, it's pretty fun. It's definitely better than this season's Arrow.

I've warmed up to this Gustin guy as Barry Allen, but I'll always prefer Shipp in the role. I thought the best episode was the mid-season finale with the Reverse-Flash - great villain. The latest episode had a cameo appearance of Gorilla Grodd attacking two sewage workers underground. The CGI was good too.