''Flash Gordon'' is a

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

television series that debuted on

Sci-Fi Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

in the United States on August 10, 2007 and continued airing new episodes through February 8, 2008. It has also appeared on the British/Ireland variant of

and

Space Space is a three-dimensional continuum containing positions and directions. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions. Modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless ...

in Canada. The series was developed by Peter Hume, who served as executive producer/

showrunner A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors, in contrast to feature films, in which the director has creative control over th ...

and wrote the first and last episodes, among others.

Plot

The series was loosely based on the comic strip of the same name and incorporated elements from several previous adaptations, following the adventures of Steven "Flash" Gordon ( Eric Johnson), a twenty-five-year-old who lives with his mother and whose scientist father was lost in a mysterious accident when Flash was 13 years old. Flash's ex-girlfriend,

Dale Arden Dale Arden is a fictional character, the fellow adventurer and love interest of Flash Gordon and a prototypic heroine for later female characters, including Princess Leia and Padmé Amidala in ''Star Wars''. Flash, Dale and Dr. Hans Zarkov fight ...

(

Gina Holden Gina Holden (born March 17, 1975) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles as Coreen Fennel in '' Blood Ties'', Dale Arden in ''Flash Gordon'', Monica Eaton in '' Suits'' and Shea Allen in ''Harper's Island''. Early life Gina Holden ...

), is a television news reporter and engaged to police detective Joe Wylee. They meet Professor Gordon's eccentric former assistant, Hans Zarkov (Jody Racicot), when rifts in space appear, allowing travel between Earth and the planet Mongo. Mongo is ruled by the ruthless dictator

Ming The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Han people, t ...

( John Ralston), who controls "Source Water", the only source of safe drinking water on Mongo. Unlike the previous adaptations, he is only called "the Merciless" in closed circles and is publicly called "Benevolent Father". He also exhibits the traits of modern, media-savvy dictators, rather than the more simplistic, stereotypically evil characterization of earlier incarnations. Also unlike previous depictions, Ming resembles a blond Caucasian human rather than a bald East Asian man. Ming's daughter,

Princess Aura Princess Aura is a fictional character in the ''Flash Gordon'' comic strips and serials. She is the selfish daughter of Ming the Merciless, the evil ruler of the planet Mongo and Emperor of the Universe. First appearing in the original 1934 ' ...

( Anna van Hooft), is disturbed by her father's brutality. The series adds a new non-Terran character, Baylin ( Karen Cliche), a bounty hunter from Mongo. She finds herself trapped on Earth and becomes a comrade of Flash, Dale, and Zarkov and their guide to Mongo and its inhabitants. The peoples of Mongo live in "

cantons A canton is a type of administrative division of a country. In general, cantons are relatively small in terms of area and population when compared with other administrative divisions such as counties, departments, or provinces. Internationally, th ...

", tribal groups that echo the animal-human hybrids of the original comic strip. The cantons include the Verdan (based on Prince Barin's forest-dwelling people from the strip), the Turin (based on the strip's Lion Men), the Dactyls (the series' version of the strip's Hawkmen), the Omadrians (women who create powerful medicines), the Frigians (who live in the frozen wastelands), the Tritons (who live beneath the ocean), and the Zurn (painted blue "Magic Men" led by Queen Azura). There is also another group known as the Deviates, mutants whose ancestors drank "Grey Water" (toxic water) to survive. The Deviates are led by Terek, their unofficial king (later revealed to be Aura's brother) and are distrusted by almost everyone.

Cast

Main

* Eric Johnson as Steven "Flash" Gordon *

* Karen Cliche as Baylin * Jody Racicot as Dr. Hans Zarkov * John Ralston as

Jonathan Lloyd Walker Jonathan Lloyd Walker (born 13 September 1967) is an English-Canadian film and television actor, producer and screenwriter who resides in Canada. He is known for film roles in '' Shooter'', ''Red'', and as the British radio operator Colin in ' ...

as Rankol

Recurring

* Anna Van Hooft as

* Panou as Nick Gilmore * Giles Panton as Joe Wylee * Jill Teed as Norah Gordon * Carmen Moore as Joely Lavant * Carrie Genzel as Vestra * Craig Stanghetta as Terek *

Steve Bacic Steve Bacic ( ;"Waiting for lift-off; U of W alumnus Steve Bacic hopes to revise role on Andromeda" by Ted Shaw, ''Windsor Star, The Windsor Star'' (17 Jan, 2004) inal EditionRetrieved from ) is a Canadians, Canadian actor. He is known for ...

as Prince Barin * Ty Olsson as Prince Vultan * Jody Thompson as Queen Azura

Episodes

Broadcast

''Flash Gordon'' was canceled in April 2008. Re-runs of the show began airing weekly on

ION Television Ion Television (referred to on-air as simply Ion) is an American broadcast television network and FAST television channel owned by the Scripps Networks subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company. The network first began broadcasting on August ...

on August 1, 2008.

Reception

The show was not well received. Metacritic gave the show an average score of 35/100 based on reviews from 13 critics. UK science fiction magazine '' SFX'' described episode 3 as "possibly the worst episode of anything, ever", and as part of their 200th issue features, they named the series as the worst they had ever reviewed. The ''

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...

'' gave the show 0 stars describing it as "a disgrace to the name of the enduring comic-strip-character-turned-movie-and-TV space hero". Another UK science fiction magazine, ''

TV Zone ''TV Zone'' was a British magazine that was published every four weeks by Visual Imagination that covered cult television. Initially, it mostly covered science fiction, but branched out to cover other drama and comedy series. History ''TV Zone ...

'', in a review for episode 13, stated "the series continues to improve, and you start to see the meaning in the producers' madness - they must have hoped they could lull passing viewers into watching Sci-Fi with pedestrian, mainstream plots, before building up a world of ''

Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

''-like complexity...which might even have worked if the early episodes hadn't been so dire that no-one but reviewers are still watching". When the show premiered in the UK, the magazine recommended it to readers, noting "you may well be wondering, considering the vitriol of our early reviews of the series, why we're picking out ''Flash Gordon'' as something to watch out for. Well, the point is that while the early episodes are dire...this is one series that does eventually—and we mean eventually—reward patience and endurance".

Home media

In August 2007,

Best Buy Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was r ...

offered an exclusive DVD that included "The Premiere Episode", selected deleted scenes (with incomplete effects) and a gallery of series concept art. This release includes the truncated 65-minute version of the pilot, exactly as it aired on

four days prior. Subsequent DVD releases include the full 87-minute version of the pilot, split into two parts. Phase 4 Films released the complete series on DVD in Region 1 (Canada only) in July 2009. The 5-disc set features all 22 episodes of the series. Mill Creek Entertainment has released the complete series on DVD in the USA in April 2013.USA Release for 'The Complete Series' of Sci-Fi's 2007 Show

In other media

CD releases

In February 2014,

Perseverance Records Perseverance Records is a record label which releases film scores on CD and online. Releases are usually accompanied by extensive booklets. Extras, such as audio interviews with composers, are also sometimes included. Discography * *''No Pass ...

released a CD containing selected cues by composer Michael Picton. A second album was released in May, with the final volume scheduled for later in the year.

References

External links

SCI FI Digital Press Day, Cast Video

a
www.sci-fi-online.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Flash Gordon (2007 Tv Series) 2000s American science fiction television series 2007 American television series debuts 2008 American television series endings 2000s Canadian science fiction television series 2007 Canadian television series debuts 2008 Canadian television series endings American action adventure television series American fantasy drama television series Canadian action adventure television series Canadian fantasy drama television series Flash Gordon television series Space adventure television series Syfy original programming Television shows filmed in Vancouver Television series set on fictional planets American English-language television shows