The Flash: 10 Action Sequences That Totally Blew Our Minds

9. Unraveling A Tornado

Flarrow Fight oliver queen barry allen
The CW

Episode: 1x01 - Pilot

Combatants: The Flash vs. a tornado

What Happened: When Barry Allen wakes from a coma after being struck by lightning generated by a malfunctioning particle accelerator, he discovers that he has superspeed. When he and the scientists at STAR Labs realize that he wasn't the only only person to gain strange abilities from the particle accelerator, a string of bank robberies in which extreme weather somehow manifested indoors begins to make far more sense. 

In the climax, Barry faces off against Weather Wizard Clyde Mardon as he summons a massive tornado and turns toward Central City. In the first and best example of the "run really fast and save the day" tactic, Barry races around the tornado in the opposite direction to unravel it. 

Why It Was Great: From a purely aesthetic standpoint, the sequence of Barry unraveling the tornado was gorgeous. The effects are unprecedented for the small screen, particularly for a freshman CW series. The emotional intensity brought by Grant Gustin as Barry and Tom Cavanagh as Dr. Wells over the comms raises the stakes, making the climax of the pilot one of the most visually stunning and mind-blowing sequences of the series thus far. 

Who Won: The Flash

Contributor
Contributor

Fiction buff and writer. If it's on Netflix, it's probably in my queue. I've bought DVDs for the special features and usually claim that the book is better than the movie or show (and can provide examples). I've never met a TV show that I won't marathon. Follow on Twitter @lah9891 .