I have been eagerly anticipating the return of “Flash Gordon” ever since we first got wind of it going into production early last year for the SCI FI Channel. I say that because then you will understand how disappointed I was in last night’s pilot episode of the new series. I’m just happy that the “Doctor Who” episode that preceeded it was as good as it was, or it would have been a totally wasted SCI FI Friday.
The show opened with very brief introductions of Flash, his business partner Nick, Dale and her new fiancé. After that highlight, it began plunging into a mundane, highly predictable, slow moving, jumbled up mess of seemingly unconnected scenes and an unbelievable storyline.
Eric Johnson is adequate as Flash, and given time, he will probably grow into the role just fine. However, the same cannot be said for Jody Racicot as Zarkov and John Ralston who portrays Ming. It seemed as if Racicot was an after thought and he comes off as this bumbling fool…maybe I’ve just been spoiled after watching the wonderful Topol be Dr. Hans Zarkov in the film from 25 years ago. His performance as Zarkov was flawless. I will give Ralston a break though. I understand that he is trying for a different take on the bad guy Ming. Yet, I kind of liked my Ming the Merciless to be over-the-top and a bit mad. Ralston’s Ming is your typical power hungry, loves-to-hurt-others despot. I don’t need to watch what I see everyday in real life across the globe on Friday night in a television program that is suppose to transport me to a scifi world of make-believe and escapism. Yes,I want my Ming to be ruthless, unscrupulous, vicious, but I also want him to have some flair and a sense of humor. These are sadly lacking in Ralston’s portrayal, at least in this pilot episode. Perhaps he will loosen-up a bit in future episodes.
I think the one bright spot in this series will be Karen Cliche, the young actress who plays the bounty hunter Baylin. She’s smart, brash, very pretty, tough as nails and has got a great sense of humor and almost perfect cadence in how she performs her scenes. She kind of reminds me of Claudia Black in that regard. So, if I would have one really good thing to say about this new “Flash Gordon” it would have to be that the producers were wise to include this actress in the casting because she will be this show’s one saving grace. I know that is what will make me want to watch it again next week.
Aside from the fact that I dosed-off on two separate occasions while watching this pilot episode, I will give the show a couple of more chances to bite me in my scifi soft spot. But for now, on my Uncle Sam scale of 0 to 5 stars, the most I can muster is 
stars.
I have to completely agree with you, Sam.
I’m also not big on how they deal with space travel: it seems like they stole it right out of “Sliders”.
I was thinking about a B- better than any Scifi channel movie they have done, but not impressive.
yeps me too. it was stargate with out anything cool in it.
darcy
I just expected to see some more fun from a Flash Gordon show and this totally lacked fun. Really disappointed. I’ll definitely watch the next one but without a sharp increase in quality, I can’t see investing too much more time into this series.
wlg
I missed the first 30 minutes due to the different west coast showing time for Sci Fi. But, I don’t think I missed much. I have to agree with what you wrote Sam, but I’d give it only 2 stars.
The Anna van Hooft (Aura) was very easy on the eyes, even if she wasn’t a very good actress.
Yeah, I was bored watching this show. It didn’t catch me at all. The actor portraying Ming was flat and boring, I wasn’t thinking he was a bad guy at all. I’ll keep watching it for now, but only because it’s on after Doctor Who, but I’m not going out of my way for this show.
The funny thing is–I didn’t think the Dr Who episode before it was all that great, though events in it do come into play as series three plays out.
As for Flash Gordon, here are my thoughts…
The episode definitely suffered from “pilot syndrome.” It had to introduce us to the universe and all the players in the game. I think the series would have been better suited to maybe concentrate more on the introduction of Flash and Dale than in the “throw in all the characters we’ll see in the opening credits” story we got here. It made it so I didn’t really care a fig about any of the characters.
I’m not sure why Ming is so evil…except he acts in a stereotypically evil manner. Oh, I am hoarding the water and charging tons for it. Ha, ha, ha.
And I wonder something–so we can jump from Earth to Mongo. And the dialogue seems to indicate Mongo is a very big, diverse world. So, can we only go from Earth to Mongo? If so, that is going to get old fast…
I made it through about 50 minutes, and I pretty much just wandered off. I was a little disappointed when I realized it was going to be longer than an hour.
My son and I went immediately into MST3K mode with this show. It’s just terrible. The actors were so wooden they could have easily been replaced with puppets. In more than one place we were reciting lines of dialogue BEFORE the actors said them (“This is for you, Dad.”). And I already want to shoot the geeky sidekick who keeps running around predicting something terrible is going to happen, but never explains why.
Sorry, Sciffy. I know you want to keep throwing stuff against the wall hoping that something will stick.
Hey, I have an idea. Drop this dog now and bring back Dresden….
I only watched about 5 mins. of FG, then turned it off. Some ideas are worth bringing back (Doctor Who, Battlestar Galactica), but *Flash Gordon*? I just hope that FG’s ratings don’t affect Doctor Who, because I think FG is going to be a ratings bomb.
The initial 30 minutes were REALLY slow, but after they did the jump to Mongo things got a little better. Maybe is the öh, shiny!” factor of finally seeing the alien world, but I ended up liking it better towards the last 15 minutes.
I’ll give it a few more weeks on the DVR before declaring defeat. I think that after the Painkiller Jane disaster, I really want to believe they can still put something good next to the brilliant Doctor Who.
We’ve been waiting for this show with anticipation and our experience can be summed up by my sons (13 and 7) reaction to the pilot – they fell asleep. While I figured the 7-year-old wouldn’t last very long, I can’t remember the last time that my 13-year-old fell asleep watching something on TV. I struggled through to the end, wanting it to improve. It’s as though they can’t make up their mind what they want this show to be. It reminded me of some of the shows from the late 1970’s – early 1980’s at some points. It couldn’t decide if it was going for the camp factor or not. I think that they either need to embrace the campiness and have fun with it or they need to abandon it entirely and find some new approach – maybe playing up the conspiracy angle. I just don’t see the conflict that is driving the show. Flash wants to find his dad. Ming doesn’t want him to. I don’t think that this is enough to carry a show on – and the reason for not telling anyone – it will be the end of the world, some kind of cosmic arms race. That is so lame. I’m going to give this show a little more time because I don’t think that a pilot is enough to write off a show for and I really want scifi shows on TV. Having said that, I can’t believe that they canceled The Dresden Files, just when it was coming all together in spite of everything that they did to kill it, and went with this show. As it is, with the cancellation of The Dresden Files I’ll be recording Galactica on Tivo to watch. The only reason that I watched it live after they moved it to Sunday was because I was already watching the channel to see The Dresden Files. How can a channel that is supposed to specialize in science fiction be so clueless? The only things that they’ve gotten right with regard to series TV production are The Dresden Files, Battlestar Galactica and Eureka. Everything else that they make stinks – and now I’m hearing noises about whether or not they are going to continue with Dr. Who after this season. If they drop that and Galactica goes off the air, I’ll only be watching the SciFi channel for the 12 weeks that Eureka is on the air.
Your review was too generous. I too fell asleep while watching the pilot. I expect that type of “quality” from the Sci-Fi Saturday Movie, not from a weekly series. It made “Mansquito” look like “Citizen Kane.”
Yikes, was this godawful. An hour wasted. This show had so much potential.
My two favorite moments of horrible acting:
1) When Flash mustered all of his strength to break through the force field in his mommy’s foyer. The stumbling and grimacing were not only canned, but they didn’t match the visual effects.
2) When the shifty scientist that Flash instantaneously placed all of his trust in knocked the goldfish bowl off of the counter. Setting aside my questions as to why there was a goldfish bowl there in the first place and why the writers decided it should be knocked over, the acting was just a touch below a grade school drama production. The scientist guy was unable to deliver his line and knock over the bowl at the same time. As a result, he fumbled his line (obviously concentrating too hard on how he needed to knock over the bowl), then paused, then swung at the bowl very deliberately.
That said, I think with a few minor changes (move Flash out of mom’s house, get new writers, add some more interesting conflict, recast all characters, change the names of the show, Ming, Mongo, and Flash, and come up with a method of interplanetary travel that doesn’t suck) and I think they’ve got a winner.
That said, I’ll probably watch about two more episodes before I officially call this one the dog that it appears to be.
I think the pilot had some interesting one liners. The wacky science guy bit about the government trying to devlope it’s own “hammer”, but how that arms race could lead to the destruction of the universe. And the daughter mentioning how Ming had “saved” the world but became a bad dude in the process. Hopefully, these could be explored a bit more.
The previews showed the bounty hunter chick is going to room with Flash, that sounds promising.
I am heartened in a way to see that so many other people were let down by Flash Gordon. I am just worried that with the complete incompetence of those in charge that this is a show that will actually get a full season and more…
The fact that this network would end BSG and greenlight something as horrible and cheap as this just makes me think that any villages that seem to have lost their idiots can look no further…they’re wearing suits and sitting in offices over at The Sci Fi Channel.
This show was bad to the point of being unwatchable. I still forced myself to sit through it, for much the same reason I forced myself to sit through League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: I wanted to see just how bad it could get. And, wow, did it get really bad.
This is Flash Gordon. How hard is it to make a Flash Gordon TV show? Flash, Dale, Zarkov. Spaceship. Mongo. Rayguns. Done. Yet, Zarkov doesn’t even go to Mongo, Flash and Dale are there for about a minute and a half and now it looks like most of the action is going to be on Earth? Really?
Meh.
They gave it a full-season based on the proposal, right?
I am hopeful that in the coming weeks that it gets better….
Agreed! Boooring.
There’s no conflict that I actually care about. I mean, I’m sure Flash is very sad that he doesn’t have his father anymore… except that he doesn’t seem all torn up, really. Bruce Wayne? tortured by the loss of his parents. Flash? Not so much. So making that his overwhelming drive seems a little weak. It would have been better if he was just a nerd who thought it was totally awesome that he could travel to a new universe. Cause… that somehow seems like a better reason to go a place where they want to kill you.
The secondary actors also kind of suck. That alone will probably kill this show.
I’m going to give it a few more episodes, because I think Baylin might be a saving grace. She has potential. And the show might find its voice in a few eps as well. They seemed confused as to whether they were going for comedy.
Too bad. I wish they hadn’t taken Gina Holden from Blood Ties for this.
Does the fact that so many people, myself included, dozed off make this the sleeper hit of the summer?
Max Von Sydow, where are you?!?!? The pilot was a real disappointment, on all levels. Mongo looks like Earth, too much so; Ming (the Merciless) “Ruler of the Universe†looks deflated and weak, like an accountant who got rejected as someone’s dad in a Buffy episode (not saying he can’t act, just that my expectations for the great “Ming†are a bit more “larger than life†over the top evil, not a mean accountant).
So far, this series looks, cheap, poorly written, and poorly acted/miscast. A lazy attempt at a great franchise. I’ll continue to support this sci-fi attempt (bad sci-fi is still better than most of what’s out there) and continue to hope; but not for very long if it continues to remain sub-par. The new Flash Gordon needs a Farscape infusion, get some of those writers, costumes, special effects and aliens, and this might just have a chance.
How come the Sci-fi channel has the guts and brains to give us shows like the Dresden Files, Dr. Who, Battlestar, Farscape, Stargate, Eureka, The Invisible Man, etc.etc.etc, and they keep cancelling many of them only to be replaced by this kind of crap? Stargate SG1 was getting a bit weak and old, but still much better than FG, and the Dresden Files was great, and in no way could have been overly expensive, as say a Farscape might have been.
Sci-fi, stick with your first guess and support the shows you are brave enough to air in the first place. Dumping good series is getting old, fast! Oh ya, stop it with the Wrestling crap, what’s with that?? Leave the fighting to Spike TV.
I like it, and yes, the Baylan characters is what will keep me coming back for more. Dale Arden wasn’t bad either 🙂
http://www.flashgordon.myfandoms.com
Alot of people expected alot with the new flash gordon series. Its only early days yet. No matter what show it is the pilot always seems to be rushed and less to the point. But I enjoyed Flash I thought it could of been better but its only ep 1. The new series of flash is also trying to lure in new fans who is unfamilar of the show, so they went into alot of detail trying to shove everything in at once. Flash Gordon Defiantly has the potential there, we just have to see what has to come in the coming weeks. I Also Thought that Eric Johnson did a great Job.
How could anyone give this tripe any stars?
Just goes to show that the “Sci-Fi” channel knows nothing about Sci-Fi.
Glad to see that I wasn’t the only one who was less than impressed with the Sci-Fi Channel’s Flash Gordon. Granted, if you back at some early episodes of beloved shows like Star Trek TNG, DS9, B5, Farscape, etc, etc. they are kind of hard to watch knowing how great they became later. The problem with FG (among many) is the “hook”. The “lost father” plot just isn’t enough. The only thing that could save this show is if that plot line ends early and Flash, Dale, and Zarkov end up trapped on Mongo. But I don’t see that happening. The tribes of Mongo are the most interest aspect of the Flash Gordon franchise. I hope this series realizes it soon.
My scifi side went ‘OMG PLX LET ME ERASE THIS MOMENT NOW’ + I think I snored in between…
Bad acting, bad story, just crap. Nothing to keep me interested.
I operate on the three strikes principle. I’ll (probably) catch two more episodes before I completely write this show off.
Overall a very unimpressive start. Pretty much all the acting can be described as forgettable. However, you can’t say the actors let writers down. The Zarkov character was particularly poorly thought out. This is supposed to be the genius who helps Flash succeed? He seemed he should be living under a freeway in LA or in a subway tunnel under NYC. Ming was a cliche evil bad guy and his daughter the spoiled rich bitch girl. The bounty hunter girl might become an interesting character but I doubt it.
About the Scifi channel. First, they put on wrestling. Then they announce Battlestar Galactica will wrap after a fourth season. They follow this by foisting Pain Killer Jane on us. Then they cancel The Dresden Files and now Flash Gordon looks like it may be a huge bomb. The rumor is that Doctor Who may not be carried next year. Pretty soon only Eureka will be left. Are the suits at the SciFi channel trying to drive viewers away?
I had my hopes up, but the pilot was atrocious, plain and simple. You’d think with all the advances in CGI and the reduced production costs both it and digital filmaking provide, that there would at least be an attempt to preserve the over-the-top outlandishness of the source materials. The effects were almost non-existent, and the lame attempts to justify their lack were abundantly apparent: from keeping the action on Earth instead of Mongo much of the time; to using rifts in space-time rather than having to deal with a single spaceship effect.
I wish more people understood that great sci-fi shows of the past like Doctor Who, Star Trek, Space 1999, heck, even Lost in Space and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, were charming in their attempts to tell truly epic tales on shoestring budgets. All of those series didn’t let the lack of convincing effects stop them from attempting to tell their grand yarns, but after seeing the pilot of Flash Gordon, it looks like that’s exactly what the producers are doing to this show; which is a shame.
I agree that Flash Gordon is a terrible disappointment. In particular, the casting and portrayal of Ming has to be considered a sci-fi atrocity (no disrespect meant to Ralston as an actor, it’s just that he’s not at all right for this role). The only thing I like about the show is Eric Johnson, but he doesn’t have much to work with. Also, I agree the bounty hunter chick is cute and interesting.
I have to disagree, though, that Dresden was a good show. I really liked the first episode and thought it had great potential, but it seemed to go terribly downhill from there. A real borefest, if you ask me.
I’m getting a little discouraged with all of these turkeys that Sci-Fi Channel is throwing at us. Even the quality of BSG has slipped, with the last season being so depressing that I almost had to open up my wrists, though thankfully the season finale was good.
Ok, as I write this, I’m watching the bounty hunter chick oiling up her naked body. I thing I’ll watch Flash for a few more episodes…
In a word, BLAND!
So many other reviews here are right on the money! Even if you can argue that many successful shows of the past had bad pilots, this one doesn’t give you a reason to come back.
If the budget isn’t there, a show can still have imagination. Mongo could be an exotic place but instead we get an uninspired setting filled with plain white Canadian brunettes.
If they want to change the familar imagery of previous Flash Gordon versions, so be it! Just have an equally interesting idea or visual to match it. This doesn’t have it. Worse, you get the feeling they didn’t even try.
Bad writing. Bad dialogue. Uninteresting characters. Void of any creativity. Crap on a budget. In the entertainment business, they failed Rule #1: To entertain.
I can’t believe you even gave it 2.5 stars!
It was abismal!
I have seen the 2nd episode on the off chance that it got remotely better but I can safely say I won’t be going anywhere near the thing again.
An absolute atrocity. I just can’t believe anyone looked at the premise and thought….. yeah that’s brilliant, let’s make it!
They have completely lost what makes Flash Gordon brilliant.
He’s supposed to be isolated and cut off from earth to start with…. mistake number 1
Zarkov is suppose to be a genius and not a bumbling idiot….. mistake number 2
Ming is ‘supposed’ to be frightening and merciless…. mistake number 3
The actors should have a good script to work from….. mistake number 4
The actors should be backed up with convincing FX…. mistake number 5
The interior scenes of Mongo should look as lush and lavish as the exterior and not like an abandoned warehouse……mistake number 6
Sci-Fi actual backs it….. mistake number 7
I could keep going but I think you get the picture!
Believe it or not, I am a Sci-fi fan, I’m just a very dissapointed one at the moment.
Absolute GARBAGE…I fell asleep after thirty minutes. This thing slumped across the television set for an agonizingly long time. Wait…it wasn’t that long.
IT JUST SEEMED THAT WAY.
What a waste of a potentially great idea for a remake.
Let’s hear it for the vocal minority.
You know.. I’ve been recording the series on my dvr and I have tried and failed to even get through the pilot episode. Part of me has hope that it will get better, it has to right?
My friends and I have a theory about Sci-Fi productions,8 times out of 10 they fail. This is one of those times.
SciFi Channel is to Science Fiction as Adult Swim is to Cartoons.
So sad, this series is another victim of SciFi making soap operas out of anything that runs more than one episode. Ghost Hunters is another prime example of the SciFi crew in action.
The Hawkmen didn’t even have wings!
Couldn’t believe how bad this show was? Its amazing how they can seem like a low-budget knock-off when they were dealing with the original low-budget sci-fi concept. I was looking forward to this the first night it was on. I think I watched that first episode, and tried to watch a second. But had to switch off the Tv when I realized the second wasn’t any better. Truly horrible TV. They’d be better off just showing the old black-and-white show from way back in the last century. This even makes me miss the bad movie with the soundtrack by Queen and the guys in tights.
What is it about this concept that leads to bad shows and movies? Its your basic sci-fi space opera. It should be easy to do. This should be like training wheels for anyone wanting to do sci-fi before moving on to more advanced stuff like Battlestar Galactica. Why is it no one can ever do this concept justice?