Was "Black Lightning" A Flop?
Background Info on CW;
The CW is an American television network that has close partnerships with CBS, Warner Media and Warner Bros. Series such as "The Vampire Diaries" , "The Originals", and "Gossip Girl" helped generate large audiences for the network. It gained favour with critics with the superhero series called "Arrow" based on the "DC Comic's Green Arrow". What soon followed was "The Flash", "DC's Legends of Tomorrow", "Super girl", and finally the moment you've all been waiting for..."Black Lightning!"😉
The Real Tea;
Now that we're done with all that, let's get straight into the tea!
Was "Black Lightning a flop"...or not?
My thoughts before watching Black Lightning;
I probably delayed myself watching this series on Netflix for a number of weeks. I think when I started watching it, it was a couple months before season 2 would air. I honestly didn't want to watch it at first because I thought it would be terrible because Netflix produced it, so I thought because of the Netflix sign that is on "Black Lightning", and no offense to Netflix but I'm not really a fan of their adaptations when it comes to superhero stuff, I mean you don't exactly get the same feel in comparison to a Marvel or DC movie, probably due to Marvel and DC having a higher budget.
But my sister kept insisting I watch it, and so...I did.
My thoughts while watching;
I was HOOKED!
Now don't get me wrong, I did immediately notice that the superhero costumes were a bit well...low budget but it wasn't a bad thing. It actually played well into Uncle Gambi's character.
It was good to see a familiar face AKA China Anne McClain AKA China from "A.N.T. Farm" and Uma from Disney's "Descendants".
I loved how there was good representation of a black family, a superhero family for that matter, it was honestly refreshing to see, that and of course the amazing and real acting, the gripping scenes and dilemmas faced throughout the series, along with the special effects. It's probably what caught the attention of viewers and won the hearts of many and made this "Black Lightning" series a household name.
My opinions on the characters;
I will hopefully make a separate blog post on some or all of the characters, but for now I will just give a brief overview of why I like/dislike the primary characters.
Jefferson Pierce AKA Black Lightning - I felt he was a wholesome character that would do every and anything for his family in order to protect them as well as the people of Freeland. Yes he would do anything to protect his family and the people of Freeland at all costs, but he doesn't always make the right decision mainly from acting on impulse.
Lynn Stewart - I love how she was very intelligent and basically made scientific history, low-key. I honestly wasn't too fond of her, I felt she was at times annoying but overall a great character.
Anissa Pierce - I like how she didn't back down from what she believed to be right and just, took after her father I must say. She seemed to be an accomplished and grounded character, who like everyone else was still going through her own personal problems behind the scenes, but she continued to push through and put her powers to good use, helping vulnerable people and being an inspiration to many.
Jennifer Pierce - was a typical teenager who was almost forced to grow up after learning of her powers, (besides the whole having super powers part...LOL), that were at some point a danger to her. She was faced with so much responsibility, different to before and she used that as motivation. I think she felt she owed it to her family to get better but also for Khalil.
Lastly I will talk about Uncle Gambi - he was like a father figure for all the characters, he kept his secrets at the start but proved where his loyalty stood and vowed to stand by the Pierce family. He risked a lot for the family even his own life, but he never shied away from doing what was right and looking out for Black Lightning even at times when they might have been fighting or when Black Lightning was doing something he didn't fully support. Not to mention the fact that he basically watched our Black Lightning grow up, which is honestly so heart-warming.
I know I left out Tobias and Khalil but I think I will do separate blog posts for each of those characters, I feel they were much bigger and had so much more to their stories that wasn't even visible from the surface.
My Final Thoughts;
I don't believe Black Lightning was a flop, was it a low budget production, maybe it seemed so in the first season, but it was honestly enjoyable. From the portrayal of an African-American family man balancing the life of being a principal and running a school, while being a dad at the same time, caring for his daughters and wife, as well as the obvious...being a superhero by night, shooting out lightning beams from his hands...literally. And for that reason I don't think it was a flop, if anything I think the show was needed and touched on racial issues. It was sad to learn China will not be returning to the series but I am wishing her all the best!
That's all for today folks, signing off now!
Got to go save the world and do some superhero stuff!!!😊😉🦸
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