Imaginative, witty, tragic, funny, nail-biting—”The Flash,” Season 1 has everything that a dramatic program should have, becoming much more than just a superhero series. It absorbs us from the very beginning, continually providing great stories, humor and production. A young CSI technician acquires super-speed during a particle accelerator explosion, which also produces a lot of supervillains. The ongoing storyline centers on Flash’s greatest nemesis and one of the best bad guys in the entire comic-book world—the Reverse Flash. Practically every episode is filled with great moments, and the season finale does not disappoint. Not as dark as Batman or Daredevil, which is fine: the Flash is supposed to be a light-hearted, optimistic superhero, and this TV version stays true to the original character.

Extras:

• Flash pal and Star Lab engineering guru Cisco (played by Carlos Valdes) probably represents the best Hispanic character in an American TV series after Ricky Ricardo in the 1950s “I Love Lucy.” Cisco is both very funny and very smart without hiding his Hispanic heritage. Go Cisco! (2021 Update: Cisco leaves the series in Season 7. “The Flash” has not been the same since.)
• Mark Hamill is awesome as the Trickster in Episode 17 (think clown + Hannibal Lecter), essentially portraying the same Joker character that he voiced for years in the 1990s Batman animated series.