There's something very awe-inspiring about a lighting flash, that's for sure. It's such a bright light, even the darkest of nights become bright as day for a split second. It can be awfully pretty.
Then again, a lot about thunderstorms can be beautiful and even sometimes calming, with the lighting, and the pounding of rain, even a bit of wind -- as long as it's not too severe a storm. It's no longer fun when the sky looks green and they're talking about tornadoes. :(