After what felt like an agonizingly long wait, The CW finally gave us the debut of the new DC Comics TV series The Flash. Has all the tease, all the build up, all the anticipation been worth it? Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!

Last season, Fox’s Sleepy Hollow was the new show to get me excited about the new fall season, and this year it’s definitely The Flash. (Sorry, Gotham. While watchable, you’ve already fallen into a rut after three episodes of “Jim Gordon: Good Guy” constantly being doubted, questioned and suspected of nefarious deeds by everyone around him. At least Jada Pinkett Smith and Robin Lord Taylor bring a little comic book life to the show.)

But The Flash has all the elements that make not only a good comic book TV adaptation, but a good TV show as well. Right off the bat, we get Barry Allen’s backstory quickly out of the way. Even if you have no idea who Barry Allen is coming in to the show, you pretty much know him within the first ten minutes: he’s a kid who lost him mom under mysterious circumstances, his dad is in prison for the murder, and he has a close relationship with a detective (who raised him) and works as a forensics assistant. And he can run really, really, really fast.

Grant Gustin is perfectly cast as Barry. He’s young enough to be slightly dorky, especially when it comes to the opposite sex, and he can be a grown-up when the need arises, like when he has to save someone’s life. He can also deliver some of the funnier dialog without being too obvious about it, such as the line he utters after waking from his nine-month coma: “A coma gave me abs?” Best of all, he makes Barry’s unbelievable situation very believable.

The show is stocked with an excellent supporting cast as well. Law & Order alum Jesse L. Martin hits the beat once again, adding father figure to his repertoire, and thankfully he learns of Barry’s abilities by the end of the first episode. At least we won’t have to endure an obsessive hunt for another masked vigilante. Tom Cavanagh’s Harrison Wells, the man who used to run STAR Labs, seems to have many, many tricks up his sleeve. He’s the man responsible for Barry’s new abilities – as well as an untold number of others in the surrounding area – and the same accident caused him to be paralyzed. He’s now a seemingly benevolent man bent on righting his wrongs by helping Barry adjust … but his final scene revealed a shocking, multi-layered surprise. There’s definitely more to Wells than meets the eye.

The rest of the supporting cast, including Candice Patton, Danielle Panabaker and Carlos Valdes, turn in some fine work, and for old school The Flash fans, it was more than a little thrilling to see TV’s original Barry Allen, John Wesley Shipp, playing the new Barry Allen’s dad. And although he was carted off to the pokey, I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of him throughout the season (his last scene in the pilot with Gustin was a real tear-jerker).

We were also introduced to the first of the bad guys affected by the STAR Labs accident, a criminal who could control the weather, and the season promises to roll out more familiar faces (at least to the comics fans) including Firestorm (Robbie Amell), Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller), The Clock King (Robert Knepper) and Heat Wave (Dominic Purcell … hmm, does someone have a fascination with the cast of Prison Break?). And we’ve already seen Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) show up to lend Barry some superhero advice (and there will be another Arrow/Flash team-up), and John Diggle (David Ramsey) will pay a visit too. Oh yeah, Dr. Tina McGee (Amanda Pays) will also be dropping by (hardcore geeks will know why this is so exciting)!

The first episode of The Flash really brought back memories of the first episode of Smallville, which was also able to hit the ground running (there was even a bit of a callback to that show with mention of Barry’s own Wall of Weird), by introducing us to what is a pretty large cast of main characters and giving them all strong personalities and reason for being so we don’t have to focus on lengthy relationship stories. We feel like we already know these people (well, except for Wells). The premiere episode gave The CW its best premiere ratings since the debut of The Vampire Diaries (it even beat Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD over on ABC!), and if they can keep up the pace and the story without falling into some of the ridiculousness (and bad writing) Smallville suffered a few seasons in, we should be in for a real treat as the series progresses. I’m fully on board with The Flash. Are you?

Once you build a successful comic-book based series on a network that loves you, the natural thing to do is to build a spinoff. The Flash, along with “parent” show Arrow, represent much about what’s right on The CW these days. Grant Gustin is a perfect Barry Allen, and producers Geoff Johns, David Berlanti and Andrew Kreisberg have surrounded him with an outstanding cast, including Broadway star Jesse L. Martin (Joe West), TV heavyweight Tom Cavanagh (Harrison Wells), newcomers like Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow) and they have even brought in someone who knows what it’s like to be under the cowl in John Wesley Shipp (Henry Allen).

We sat down with these folks at San Diego Comic-Con this summer, and as the show is set to premiere next week, we share what they told us is coming up in season one:

Grant Gustin

You can tell that Gustin really likes Barry, “He’s just full of hope and optimism. He’s easily relatable.” He’s played so many characters that he wouldn’t want to be in the same room with (we’re looking at you, Sebastian Smythe) that it is refreshing to play someone who people like. He grew up a big (very big, says the tattoo he showed us) Superman fan, so he’s had to learn a lot about the character he now portrays. He’d originally thought about reading the entirety of the run of Flash books, until he saw just how many there were. The New 52 series seems to be similar to what they’re trying to do, and Gustin points to just how knowledgeable and accessible the producers have been in helping build the character grounded in the canon.

Gustin is looking forward to delving into some of the Flash’s extended powers, specifically time travel. They tease it a little in the Pilot, but he wants more. “I think it just presents a lot of fun storylines.”

John Wesley Shipp

Shipp hasn’t yet felt that moment of weirdness seeing someone else in the suit, but the following week was to be his first scene with Grant in the Flash costume. If that moment of “weirdness” was to happen, he expected it then. But his Flash was much different tonally then this Flash. “I can’t imagine Emmet Walsh killing Priscilla Pointer [the actors who played his parents], you know?”

You can tell that Shipp is still disappointed that his show was cancelled after just one season. “Although for a one season show, it has had an incredible life … but how often do you get to come back?” He called it an extraordinary opportunity for healing.

When asked about watching the evolution of superhero properties in popular culture since 1990, Shipp talked about how audiences are more informed, “It’s a smarter sensibility … so we can address the fact that The Flash is about speed and needs to be aerodynamic.” But he kids that the landscape is saturated with comic shows and movies now. He joked with our table that we were too young to remember it used to be all about westerns, and lately it’s CSI and Law & Order.

Shipp is taken by Grant Gustin. “He’s really sincere … he’s very real.”

Shipp says he doesn’t want the character to be “Dawson’s dad thirteen years later.” Obviously prison has changed Henry, but he thinks that it is more important to demonstrate that impact in a nuanced way, “If you don’t [see how prison changed him] that’s my bad, that’s my failure.” One of the most difficult things he experienced in prison was that no one – save Barry – believed him, including specifically Joe West, his neighbor and friend … and the man who raised Barry in Henry’s absence. That’s a reunion I’m looking forward to seeing.

Shipp points to the audience’s thirst for darker shows like Constantine and The Walking Dead as to why there’s been difficulty getting another Flash property off the ground. And while this The Flash tends to be a little darker in some areas – specifically in the Allen family backstory – it is still very much rooted in the tone of the comics. Gustin’s sense of comedy: running into himself, tripping over his feet balanced with his power, demonstrates an everyman quality that is endearing.

Tom Cavanaugh

Cavanaugh was asked about what research he might have done with folks who are wheelchair-bound. He dodged the question specific to The Flash, but talked about the work he did for a little-seen independent film called Sublime. After that, he said, working in a motorized wheelchair was a big improvement. He said that the differences in the two wheelchairs were symbolic of the differences of working on a big-budget production like the show, and a much tighter-budgeted small film.

Cavanaugh was attracted to the different layers the characters portrayed, especially Harrison Wells. You could tell too, that he was a bit taken aback by fast-paced storytelling that occurs in the first nine episodes. If there is anything that The CW should get credit for, it is helping to usher in shows that tell stories at a breakneck speed, and it looks like The Flash is going to be one of them. “Things that you might want to keep in your quiver, they’re firing those things off in a hurry.”

Cavanaugh thought he had a pretty good understanding of The Flash’s stories from the comic books, but after taking the role, he realized he was a neophyte. But producers Kriesberg and Geoff Johns have been incredibly helpful, informative and – almost more importantly – welcoming to someone who wants to learn the canon.

Danielle Panabaker

Panabaker is excited to be a part of a superhero franchise with a preexisting fan base, “It’s so cool! It’s so great because people are excited about The Flash.” Playing Caitlin Snow, who brings a lot to the table, is a big part of that. “It’s great to have a really smart woman on board who also brings that emotional, sensitive perspective.” Snow is fresh from the trauma of losing her fiancé in the accident, so has that drive to keep Barry safe. That trauma has also made her much more serious than she was pre-accident (a side of her we will get to see in flashbacks early in the season).

It doesn’t look like Caitlin is being set up as an immediate love interest for Barry, but there’s a triangle dynamic that might develop with the two of them and Iris. “Barry has always pined for Iris but he can’t have her, so he’s got to figure out what’s next? The sad scientist over here?”

Andrew Kreisberg

Kreisberg was taken by one of the decisions that Smallville made early on, showing how Clark had trouble adjusting to his powers. There is something to be said too about having too much power and becoming god-like. “We’re going to try and keep [his powers] – at least early on – as limited as we can.” But there is definitely a desire (as is apparent in the Pilot) to eventually get to some of the Flash’s more dynamic powers like phasing through matter and (gasp!) time travel. Expect a Smallville-esque difficulty in learning to contain those powers.

There was a conscious decision early on on Arrow to ground the stories in reality as much as possible (thus the mirakuru storyline). The Flash, however, represents an ability to go a step farther and open the world up a bit. Berlanti came up with the idea of the particle accelerator as a way of “building” a group of super-humans all tied to the same event. “The thing that will keep it like Arrow is the way in which people view these impossible, miraculous things,” explains Kreisberg. “We’ll never have a show, especially early on, where people are just like, ‘oh yeah … guy’s flying.’”

Kreisberg doesn’t see a lot of competition between Arrow and The Flash and the other new DC Comics properties coming to television this season. “One of the things that DC did really well this year is for all of the shows they’re doing, they are so completely different. Even Arrow and Flash are two very different shows; one is a grounded, crime, revenge, Shakespearian drama and Flash is more blue skies, superpowers.” Their approach is that they are only in competition with themselves to make quality television. But a “rising tide lifts all ships,” and he’s looking forward to seeing Gotham and iZombie.

The last of the major networks revealed its new fall schedule, and looking at The CW’s plans it seems that not a whole lot is changing, at least on Wednesday and Thursday. Of all the broadcast networks, The CW had probably the most successful fall launch last year with only The Tomorrow People getting the ax from the new batch of shows introduced in 2013. Of the returning shows, Nikita and The Carrie Diaries did not make the 2014 fall cut, and of the new shows introduced mid-season, Star-Crossed will not be around come fall.

Considering the bloodbath at the other networks, The CW is sitting pretty coming into the fall. So pretty that some of its stalwart shows, Beauty and the Beast and Hart of Dixie, and most anticipated newcomers, iZombie and The Messengers, are being held for mid-season. The network is making a bold move by using this season’s biggest hit, The Originals, to anchor Monday night, with new telenovela-inspired Jane the Virgin taking over the 9:00 PM slot. Tuesday’s 8:00 PM time goes to what is probably the network’s hottest newcomer, The Flash, which got people buzzing when 1990 version Barry Allen, John Wesley Shipp, was cast on the new show. The network’s longest running scripted series, Supernatural, remains at 9:00 for its tenth season. Will this be the last, or will it break Smallville‘s record?

Wednesday and Thursday remain the same as they stand now, with mid-season hit The 100 remaining on Wednesday night. Friday sees the biggest shift in programming as the net goes all reality with a new Whose Line Is It Anyway? at 8:00 PM (a repeat airs at 8:30) and America’s Next Top Model returns for an astonishing 21st cycle with Kelly Cuttrone and J. Alexander returning to the judges’ panel.

The network’s biggest omission from the season has to be the proposed Supernatural spin-off, Supernatural: Bloodlines, that aired its pilot within the regular Supernatural season but ended up being roundly criticized for its cardboard characters and lack of strong female leads (even though strong female leads were promised). CW president Mark Pedowitz is still high on the franchise, however, and hopes to develop another spin-off possibly featuring characters already in the Supernatural universe. (Maybe a prequel show with Bobby??) Whatever it turns out to be, no decision will be made until June or July. So until then, here’s what The CW’s fall schedule looks like:

Monday
8 p.m. — The Originals
9 p.m. — Jane the Virgin

Tuesday
8 p.m. — The Flash
9 p.m. — Supernatural

Wednesday
8 p.m. — Arrow
9 p.m. — The 100

Thursday
8 p.m. — The Vampire Diaries
9 p.m. — Reign

Friday
8 p.m. — Whose Line Is It Anyway?
9 p.m. — America’s Next Top Model