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Arrowverse - 2014-2015 Season

I am now officially alternating between multiple shows at once. Let the chaos begin.

This post will cover:

Arrow - Season 3

The Flash - Season 1

Crossover Event - Flash vs. Arrow

Arrow - Season 3

Wow. This season is a hot mess.

Right off the bat, the decision to fridge Sara is infuriating. She's a great character and deserves better to be unceremoniously killed off. (I know she comes back and is a part of Legends of Tomorrow, but that's besides that point for this season.)

The rest of the arc is absolute nonsense. Malcolm's motivations make no sense. Ra's is even worse, and undermines himself constantly by simply doing something stupid. Not to mention him being woefully miscast -- a White Australian guy in the part is certainly a Choice -- and the fact that everyone flip-flops on how to pronounce his name.

The pacing of this season is also pretty bad. It feels like we spend just a little bit too long on every individual part. Things clearly happen just to fill some runtime and stretch out the tension. Then the finale rushes through everything at a breakneck pace. It all just feels off.

But hands down the worst part of this season is how none of the characters have learned a damn thing about keeping secrets from each other. I recognize that this is a theme, that it's meant to be part of people's character arcs, but that doesn't change how infuriating it is to watch. The show has become an endless cycle of characters keeping secrets, dealing with the fallout when the secret is revealed, resolving not to keep secrets anymore, then immediately deciding that actually they're gonna keep secrets. It's agonizing.

Also, Laurel is awful. She is the worst character on this show by far. She doesn't listen to anyone, she makes objectively stupid decisions against everyone's advice, she never learns a single thing... I have to wonder when the writers will just cut their losses and write her out altogether. She fundamentally is not working.

Roy also feels like an afterthought, like he always has. But this season gave him a little more to do and wrote him out in a satisfying way, so I can't complain as much.

Meanwhile, the flashbacks in this season are really strange. It feels like they need to one-up what Oliver was doing during his five years, even if it doesn't really make sense. Waller has no real reason to recruit Oliver, and the whole plot isn't terribly engaging -- especially when the non-flashback scenes reveal everything important that happened already. We know the Alpha/Omega is going to be released, we know Akio is going to die, we know Maseo is going to abandon Tatsu, but the show still acts like these are huge revelations.

Despite my many complaints, there are still some things here that work. The primary one being Ray Palmer. God, what a breath of fresh air he is. Brandon Routh is so charming and contrasts so well with the other characters. He isn't meshed with the rest of the season well, at all, but he's so fun that I don't really care.

Overall, the season wasn't unwatchable by any means, but it was easily the worst of the show so far. And it doesn't help that I'm watching it alongside its sister show that's doing everything better.

The Flash - Season 1

(Full confession, this is not my first time watching this season. But I'd forgotten a lot.)

This show hit the ground running -- pun absolutely intended. Everything here just works. Every single member of the cast is phenomenal, and the characters have excellent chemistry. They seem to have learned from Arrow and set up a clear Team Flash from the get-go, with each character having a clear role in that dynamic.

The show also has a much lighter tone than Arrow, which I feel suits the story more naturally. It doesn't go to dark places nearly as often. The show settles into an easy formula that's just nice to settle into.

The Flash also does something I adore, which is emphasizing strong platonic relationships. Barry and Joe's father/son dynamic is everything to me. Cisco and Caitlin have a great friendship, as do Caitlin and Barry. And I truly appreciate that for 90% of the season, Barry and Iris are mature adults despite Barry's feelings for her. Barry doesn't try to get between her and Eddie (apart from one instance that was a misunderstanding) -- he values her friendship over everything else and prioritizes that.

If this season has one flaw, I think it played its hand with Wells way, way too early. They reveal that something's up with him in the first episode, reveal that he's the Reverse-Flash in the mid-season finale, and have the rest of the cast catch onto this a few episodes later. I think they robbed themselves of a truly spectacular twist moment, where the penny drops and everyone realizes they've been played. It makes the end of the season lose a lot of its punch as a result.

But overall, it's still an excellent first season, and I completely understand why The Flash sort of took over as the Arrowverse's flagship.

Crossover - Flash vs. Arrow

The pattern of crossovers is made pretty clear -- some light overlap, where they will reference or lightly feature characters from the other show, plus one big crossover event multi-parter that requires tuning in to both shows for that week. It's simple, but works fairly well... for the most part. The crossovers don't actually line up perfectly and require you to rearrange events in your head. In fact, Oliver's appearance on The Flash's penultimate episode implies that at some point he slipped away from Ra's al Ghul's tight watch, not to speak with his friends and inform him of his plans, but to beat up Harrison Wells as a favor for Barry. And that's hilarious, honestly.

The actual crossover is solid. It's very clear that Barry was set up to contrast Oliver, and these episodes work with that excellently. Their styles and personalities clash in all the right ways, making for excellent drama and letting them learn from one another.

They also manage to use the different tones of the two shows to great effect, emphasizing the contrast and how the two cities shape each of the heroes' styles. It's exactly what a good crossover should be, really.

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Superman vs. The Elite

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Superman vs. The Elite

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Superman vs. The Elite

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Superman vs The Elite

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Saw a video recommending Superman vs the Elite and decided to check it out. Story and characterization is a 10/10. I'm gonna check out the original comic it's based on. And would love to see a story like this realized in live-action.

Animation is like a 4/10 tho. Some real wack character designs in this one.

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Black Canary (Sara) - F

Yeah, this is a woman in a comic book hero costume alright. No self-respecting combatant would have their entire chest exposed that. And I realize the wig is comic accurate, but that has to be flying in her face the entire time. It really needs to be kept out of her face.

Black Canary (Laurel) - D

This is better, if only because her chest is actually covered. The wig is a bit more restrained, but still obnoxious. I don't particularly like this mask, the way it fits around her eyes. And why in god's name does she have so many buckles?? (I may also be influenced because this character is utterly insufferable.)

Nyssa al Ghul - B

Does this count? I dunno. I like. Shows off a bit more cleavage than makes sense (not well shown in this picture), but it's not to an absurd degree. It gives her a good silhouette, and matches the rest of the League of Assassins while still allowing her to stand out.

I'm gonna start ranking Arrowverse suits, for no other reason than my own enjoyment. Will be updated as I go.

Green Arrow - A

I do hate how he starts off with the dark eye makeup instead of an actual mask. It's genuinely distracting. Once he has the mask though, this is a good look. Not over the top, which suits his character. Simple and functional.

Dark Archer - B+

Much like Green Arrow, it's simple and functional. I like the textures. No complaints.

Arsenal - D

Something about his mask looks bizarre to me -- his eyes are distracting. I think if the entire suit were the same, but his mask were black, it would look much better. And the red just does not suit this actor or the overall darker color palette this show often goes for.

Flash - A+

This suit looks good. The red suits Barry way better than it does Roy, and suits the color palette of the show better. It's got a good amount of texture, I like the lightning embellishments that don't go over the top. They managed to give him a helmet that doesn't look too goofy.

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Arrow Season 2

Another season done! Overall a stronger outing than last time, though still falling victim to some CW nonsense.

Season 1 got a lot of the obvious flaws out of the way, so Season 2 can start right in with the formula that works. Oliver has a proper Team Arrow from the start, and they're still excellent.

Sara is a fantastic new addition to the season. Caity Lotz is excellent. I know she's a major character in some of the other Arrowverse series, which I'm very happy to hear.

Roy is a sort of nothing character. Even though he's a major part of the plot, I keep forgetting he's there and that he joined Team Arrow.

Slade is utterly ridiculous as a villain. His motivation is completely nonsensical -- holding Oliver responsible for Shado's death when it clearly wasn't his fault for over five years is just absurd. Fortunately, the actor has such good energy and poses such a genuine threat that it doesn't really matter.

All of the romances are annoying in this show. The CW's ability to work love triangles into absolutely everything astounds me.

Laurel finding out that Oliver is the Arrow didn't really amount to anything? She's just in the loop now, and that's that. It was extremely underwhelming.

The little mini pilot for Barry was extremely well done and got me hype for The Flash to start.

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Arrow Season 1

I decided to start watching the Arrowverse, because I have no respect for my own time! This will probably be something I stop and start, since there's a lot to get through.

But I have just finished the first season of Arrow, so here are some thoughts!

The season definitely takes its time to grow on you. I thought the first four or five episodes were kinda shit, but if you stick it out it does improve significantly. The main thing is that Oliver really needs a support team with additional characters to bounce off of. The first few episodes are filled with awkward voiceover so Oliver can explain what he's doing. Once Diggle gets involved, they can drop that and just explain things in dialogue. And then Felicity adds even more to the team dynamic.

The structure of the episodes exploring Oliver in the current day and Oliver's time on the island is honestly really interesting. Even if Stephen Amell's wig is distracting as hell.

Honestly, after watching other superhero shows with the more modern condensed episode count and heavily serialized storylines, coming back to a longer season reminded me why I miss it. Things have room to breathe. Characters and their dynamics feel more fleshed out, just because there's more time devoted to them.

It's hilarious how badly this show just wants to be Batman. It also takes itself way too seriously at times.

I found Tommy incredibly boring, but he did start to grow on me towards the end and it was a shame to see him killed off.

I want to like Laurel, but she's trapped in an awful love triangle that I already don't care about.

Felicity is a breath of fresh air. A lot of the characters have a similar energy, so having someone so clearly distinct and bubbly compared to the more brooding and serious cast helps a lot. I completely understand why she quickly got promoted to a main character -- she pairs so well with Oliver, even if her forced adorkableness gets occasionally grating. I feel like she definitely took a lot of cues from Smallville's Chloe.

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I'm gonna start ranking Arrowverse suits, for no other reason than my own enjoyment. Will be updated as I go.

Green Arrow - A

I do hate how he starts off with the dark eye makeup instead of an actual mask. It's genuinely distracting. Once he has the mask though, this is a good look. Not over the top, which suits his character. Simple and functional.

Dark Archer - B+

Much like Green Arrow, it's simple and functional. I like the textures. No complaints.

Arsenal - D

Something about his mask looks bizarre to me -- his eyes are distracting. I think if the entire suit were the same, but his mask were black, it would look much better. And the red just does not suit this actor or the overall darker color palette this show often goes for.

Flash - A+

This suit looks good. The red suits Barry way better than it does Roy, and suits the color palette of the show better. It's got a good amount of texture, I like the lightning embellishments that don't go over the top. They managed to give him a helmet that doesn't look too goofy.

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Please Watch My Adventures with Superman

This show is just so delightful and manages to capture the essence of Superman in a way a lot of adaptations just don't quite get. If you've ever been curious about Superman, if you've ever felt Superman is too boring for you, or you just enjoy a fun superhero story, I highly recommend checking this series out.

The first season has ten episodes, and the second season has just aired its third episode. In the US, it's available on Adult Swim and Max.

What It's About

If you aren't familiar with Superman, he's an alien -- the last survivor of planet Krypton, sent to Earth as an infant where he was found and raised as Clark Kent. Being an alien, he has extraordinary powers which he uses to lead a double life as a hero. This show focuses on a core trio of Clark, his girlfriend Lois, and their friend Jimmy, all of whom work at the Daily Planet newspaper.

Clark Kent / Superman

One of the main reasons this show works is it understands that Clark is Clark, first and foremost, and Superman is his disguise. Clark is a big friendly nerd. He's a huge sweetheart who cares so deeply about the people around him and the planet that adopted him.

This version of Clark is starting out very young (early 20s), so a lot of this story is about him just figuring things out. He's gradually learning the truth about his origins, the extent of his powers, and how best to be a hero -- all while grappling with the fact that he isn't human and his people of origin may in fact be a massive threat to Earth.

Clark is voiced by Jack Quaid, which you might not expect to work well, but he honestly nails it.

Lois Lane

Lois is loud. She's ambitious. She's intelligent and quick-witted. She doesn't take no for an answer. She has jumped off a building to prove her point -- twice. She is an unstoppable force of nature, and this show refuses to dumb any of those traits down.

But above all, she's kind. She wants to use everything she can do to help people. Her relationship with Clark is also everything you could ever want from a Clois dynamic.

This version of Lois is Korean-American, and voiced by Alice Lee, who does a phenomenal job.

Jimmy Olsen

Jimmy is Clark's best friend and roommate. This version portrays him as a supernatural/paranormal vlogger, running a web series called Flamebird. He's easily excitable, very passionate, as well as one of the most dedicated friends you could ask for.

Following in the footsteps of several previous iterations of the character, this version of Jimmy is African-America. He's voiced by Ishmael Sahid, who's just perfect in the part.

Why It's Great

The characters are all fun and interesting in their own right, while also having a great dynamic with each other -- as duos and as a full trio. And because the characters are shown as being very young and just starting out, they're very relatable. Additionally, every character feels very true to the spirit of their comics counterpart, despite taking a lot of liberties with the specifics.

There's a great cast of villains so far -- Livewire, Task Force X, Mxyzptlk, Parasite, Silver Banshee, and plenty of others that I don't want to spoil. They've also been teasing some really interesting stuff for the Kryptonians, which is noticeably different from any previous adaptations I'm familiar with.

The show is very anime-inspired, giving it a distinct flavor from other Superman adaptations. The creators are clearly having a ton of fun with it. Classic Superman villain Mxyzptlk, who's typically shown as an imp, now looks like he just walked out of a Dragon Ball episode, in an episode called "Kiss Kiss Fall In Portal."

It's also the same animation studio as The Legend of Korra and Voltron: Legendary Defender, who do excellent work. The character designs are unique while still fitting the characters perfectly. I particular love Clark and Superman's designs -- they've struck a balance between making sure he's big and muscular while also retaining a certain softness to his appearance. The fight scenes are fluid and dynamic. It all just works.

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Hands down the best part of Superman: Unbound is when Brainiac is monologuing about how humanity is worthless and Earth is his to destroy, and Lois just flips him off. 10/10, perfect woman

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Having a long-ish drive to do, I listened to a good chunk of the 1940s Superman radio serial. And my favorite thing about it is how absolutely unhinged this version of Clark must seem to people. He disappears out the window and reappears hours later halfway across the country. He gets stopped by the police and politely declines arrest before casually running away. He's on a malfunctioning plane and climbs out onto the wing with zero hesitation. Absolute mad lad.

It's also damn impressive how Bud Collyer can switch from Clark to Superman mid sentence with just his voice.

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Honestly I feel like making a really good DC film universe should be so easy and the fact that I have now seen three that didn't live up to that at all is just baffling to me. While there are individual good films within the DCEU, the DCAMU, and the Tomorrowverse, all of them fundamentally fail at being an engaging shared universe, imho.

Like, the MCU already figured out the template for you. You pick 5-6 core characters and give them each a standalone film. Then you do a big crossover movie where they all team up and form the Justice League. Then you return to standalone movies, but now they have light crossovers between them, and are gradually introducing more side characters. You come back to another big Justice League movie. And you repeat this 2-3 more times before ending with a huge Justice League event. The MCU is far from perfect, but they definitely cracked the perfect simple formula to structure their early phases -- DC could really learn from it.

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Perry's notes about Lois are cracking me up. If I had to summarize Lois Lane in a single image, this would be it.

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