This past weekend, I finally caved to the peer pressure and watched the first episode The Flash TV series (aired on CW). The series follows the adventures of Barry Allen (played by Grant Gustin), who after being struck by lightning from the explosion of a particle accelerator, wakes up nine months later to discover he has super speed. Barry is taken in by the creator of the particle accelerator, Harrison Wells (played by Tom Cavanagh), and with his and Wells’ staff’s help, Barry comes to terms with his new powers. This freak accident ultimately is what inspires Barry to become the Flash, and he leads the fight against other “meta humans”, dangerous people who were also given powers by the particle accelerator explosion.

That’s the watered down summary that I got before starting the series, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I had heard that the show was highly acclaimed by critics and users, but superhero movies tend to come out super cheesy, with problems solved by believing in yourself and helping those around you. And this show did have those themes- but thankfully, it didn’t cram them down my throat. There are moments where a problem is solved or villain defeated by Barry believing in himself and suddenly finding greater power within himself, but overall, the series stays away from the cliche impossibles. Often, heroes are beaten by finding ways out of a problem, which not only is much more entertaining to watch but also much more realistic and relatable for me.

What the show did that I didn’t expect was give such a rich life for Barry Allen as a normal person. Barry works at a criminologist at the same police department as his adoptive father when he’s not saving the world as the Flash. Already I saw the appeal in a character who could intelligently analyze crime scenes and used his smarts to solve problems instead of some blowhard meathead who rushed into fights like other super heroes. Barry also has a complicated family life and a troubled childhood- when he was just a boy, his mother was murdered and his father convicted as her murderer, resulting in his lifelong sentence in prison and Barry being adopted and raised by police detective Joe West (played by Jesse L Martin). But the plot thickens, as Barry claims his Dad is innocent, saying that that night a yellow man in lightning was the one who killed his mother. As the show progresses, we see this underlying mystery slowly be revealed with each episode. This mystery is the main thing that grabbed me from the get go. The show offers you little tidbits of information to keep you guessing about the nature of the mystery and excited to find out more. Not to mention all the secrets that are slowly revealed to you about Harrison Wells and his true motives for what he’s done in his surprisingly dark past.

One criticism I have of this show is the character of Iris West(played by Candice Patton), who is Joe’s daughter and Barry’s adoptive sister.When Barry begins garnering some news attention as the Flash over his super powered rescues, Iris feels a need to spread the news of the Flash and the hope he brings to everyone all over the world by posting a blog about him. Unfortunately, this is a problem since being a strong advocate for the Flash pinpoints her as a target for the Flash’s enemies, and Barry puts forth every effort to stop her from blogging. What makes all of this so complicated is that Barry also happens to be head over heels in love with Iris, and has been ever since they were kids. This means that he is constantly fighting between his desire for her to ignore the Flash so she can stay safe and wanting to impress her as his superhero persona, getting her attention in a way that Barry Allen can’t. While this struggle is cute and interesting to watch, I don’t like the girl that is being struggled over. Iris has a strong need to be individualistic, and while I appreciate the image of a modern empowered woman, the idea smothers her character. To me, she seems unreasonable and stubborn, ignoring the pleas of those who love her and risking her life for an idea that doesn’t seem all that life and death important. She could decide to post her blog anonymously, but instead proudly displays her name, opening her up to any and every dangerous meta human out there and causing Barry to have to save her from said meta humans. Gosh, I could just strangle her. But I digress.

Overall, the series is very well done. The characters are extremely well fleshed out, with rich lives and backstories about everyday lives just as much as superhero adventures, making Barry one of the most relatable heroes out there and his supporting characters actual people instead of just wallflower sidekicks. Not to mention the superb acting does the character complexities the justice they deserve(especially Gustin’s performance of Barry). The plot is well balanced out between the cheesy and the believable and momentum is kept up by the suspense and tension as we learn about the mystery of Barry’s mother and Harrison’s past. The only real thing I could feel I can complain about is that this show is too good- I ended up watching six episodes in a classic Netflix binge. I think I can honestly say I’ve already fallen in love with the Flash, and I can guarantee you will too.