🎬 The Flash (1990)
Based on comic
The Flash is a 1990 American television series that brought the Scarlet Speedster to live-action for the first time in a leading role. Developed by Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo, the series aired on CBS for a single season of 22 episodes, from September 1990 to May 1991. It starred John Wesley Shipp as Barry Allen, a police forensic scientist who gains the ability to move at superhuman speeds after a lightning strike and chemical accident in his lab. The show took a darker, more grounded approach than the comic books, with Barry's iconic red costume replaced by a more practical, muscle-suit design created by costume designer Robert Short.
The series drew primarily from the Barry Allen era of the comics, but it made significant changes to the source material. Barry's origin was tied to a motorcycle gang and the death of his brother, a departure from the comics. His love interest was not Iris West but Tina McGee, played by Amanda Pays, a scientist at S.T.A.R. Labs who helped him understand his powers. The show also featured a memorable portrayal of the villainous Trickster by Mark Hamill, a performance so iconic that Hamill would later reprise the role in the 2014 CW series The Flash, connecting the two adaptations across decades.
Despite strong initial ratings, The Flash struggled against competition from The Cosby Show and was ultimately canceled after one season. However, it developed a cult following and proved influential. John Wesley Shipp's casting as Barry Allen was so well-received that he later appeared in the 2014 The Flash series as both Barry's father, Henry Allen, and the Earth-3 version of the Flash, Jay Garrick. The 1990 series also featured the first live-action appearance of the Flash on television, predating the character's appearances in Smallville and the Arrowverse by many years.
The Flash is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1, which was released in November 1939 with a cover date of January 1940. Nicknamed the Scarlet Speedster, all incarnations of the Flash possess superhuman speed, allowing them to run, move, and think at incredible velocities while seemingly violating certain laws of physics.
Over the decades, multiple characters have taken on the mantle of the Flash. The first was college athlete Jay Garrick during the Golden Age of comics. The Silver Age introduced forensic scientist Barry Allen, whose origin in a lab accident involving lightning and chemicals became the most iconic version of the character. Subsequent Flashes include Barry's nephew Wally West, his grandson Bart Allen, and more recently Avery Ho. Each has been a key member of major DC teams like the Justice Society of America, the Justice League, and the Teen Titans.
The Flash has been integral to DC's reality-changing storylines. The classic 1961 story Flash of Two Worlds, which featured the first meeting between Jay Garrick and Barry Allen, introduced the concept of the Multiverse to DC readers, a narrative device that has shaped decades of storytelling. The Flash's rogues gallery is also distinctive, featuring the code-of-honor-bound Rogues, the telepathic Gorilla Grodd, and the various evil speedsters known as Reverse-Flash or Zoom.
As one of DC Comics' most enduring and popular characters, the Flash has been adapted extensively into other media, including animated series, video games, feature films, and live-action television, cementing his place as a cornerstone of superhero pop culture.
