News

Back in a 'Flash': CW's speedy superhero is back for a second season

« Back to News

 
Author: 
Jacqueline Spendlove / TV Media
Grant Gustin stars in “The Flash”

Grant Gustin stars in “The Flash”

With the summer’s late sunsets and balmy evenings behind us for another year, we can finally go back to parking ourselves in front of the TV in the evening relatively guilt-free. Premiere season is upon us -- in fact, we’re right in the thick of it.

As you’re getting reacquainted with the shows that were deemed worthy of renewal, keep an eye out for "The Flash." The superhero series got off to a strong start last year and was consistently well received by critics and audiences alike. Check out the second season of "The Flash" when it debuts Tuesday, Oct. 6, on CW.

With the current glut of superhero movies and TV series, "The Flash" is certainly holding its own. When the "Arrow" spinoff premiered last year, it -- pardon the pun -- hit the ground running. With 4.8 million viewers, the pilot episode was the second-most-watched series premiere ever for The CW. The series held strong throughout its freshman season, averaging 3.8 million U.S. viewers per episode and nabbing the People’s Choice Award for Favorite New TV Drama.

The show provides an origin story for the DC Comics character The Flash, a.k.a. Barry Allen, played by Grant Gustin. "Glee" fans will recognize the triple threat from his recurring role in the series as scheming jerk Sebastian Smythe -- a somewhat less heroic character than the one he currently plays. In "The Flash," Barry, a crime scene investigator with a tragic past, develops superhuman speed when a particle accelerator malfunctions and he's struck by lightning in the ensuing storm. After a nine-month coma, he awakens to discover his remarkable new abilities, which he uses to fight bad guys in Central City -- primarily other "metahumans" who, like him, were affected by the accident and the storm it caused.

The season 1 finale left off with a cliffhanger that saw Barry zipping into a black hole to try to stop it from destroying the city and, ultimately, the world (he’s also kind of responsible for it, but that’s neither here nor there). It’s probably safe to assume that he does get the situation under control, since a show about a world obliterated by a black hole wouldn’t be very entertaining, but that’s not to say it doesn’t cause a whole mess of trouble first.

The black hole formed after Barry jaunted through time to save his mother, who died when he was a lad. Things don’t work out as planned, but now that we’ve got time travel on the table -- not to mention the concept of the multiverse (a universe with multiple and alternate realities and timelines) -- anything is possible. Showrunner Andrew Kreisberg hinted at San Diego’s Comic-Con International: "We have a multiverse on the show that anyone who has died can still be on the show." So any character, dead or alive, can make an appearance, as can different versions of the same character -- a real "Terminator"-esque mind bender.

Danielle Panabaker as seen in “The Flash”

Danielle Panabaker as seen in “The Flash”

As for the heretofore socially awkward Barry, Gustin hopes that this season will see him growing more into his superhero role. "I want to be able to, next year, get a little more cocky with it and confident with the super powers," he said at The CW’s 2015 upfronts back in May. "I want to be a little bit closer to the Flash from the comics."

Some more characters from the comics will also be joining the show for season 2. The terribly mysterious Zoom (Tony Todd, "Candyman," 1992) will be this season’s primary antagonist, sending villains aplenty from alternate worlds to kill The Flash. Among these will be Killer Frost, a dark version of Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker, "Time Lapse," 2014) from an alternate reality. We got a brief glimpse at her through the wormhole in the season 1 finale.

Said Kreisberg of Zoom at the Comic-Con panel: "He's faster than the Reverse-Flash, faster than Flash and will be very hard to catch. He's going to be terrifying and scary and fast, and it's going to be all kinds of cool."

Fortunately for Barry, there are some new good guys joining the cast as well. With Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh, "Ed") erased from existence (and also not really who he said he was, and a big, sneaky liar ... long story), Barry will need a new mentor. Enter Jay Garrick (Teddy Sears, "A Single Man," 2009), who, in the comics, was the very first Flash, despite sporting decidedly unflashy blue jeans and a really silly hat. Patty Spivot (Shantel VanSanten, "The Final Destination," 2009) is the new partner of Det. Joe West (Jesse L. Martin, "Law & Order"), Barry’s surrogate father, and a potential new love interest for Barry.

When you’ve got a multitude of universes and timelines at your disposal, the TV world is really your oyster. Anything can happen in season 2 of "The Flash," which premieres Tuesday, Oct. 6, on CW.