every time i give it gas it makes an almost flutter sound that's quite noticeable in person and the second i stop it sounds like it wants to die on me but stays running

It's gotten an oil change, new spark plugs, new distributor cap and rotor, new air filter
basically a tune up

the throttle body barely has anything on the plate but i'm still planning on cleaning it out

the dash lights flicker when i have it in drive, but tested the alternator and it seems to be doing enough

has a pending code for a cylinder 1 misfire
before the tune up it had a cylinder 4 misfire only

also has a full tank of gas

if anyone can give me ideas on what to check next, i would really appreciate it.

it only has 109k miles and 2001 rwd

 

What code specifically is it throwing? The problem went from 4 to 1? 1 to 3 maybe, but unless you have crossed wires changing sides, the fact that it's both front cylinders seems odd and not great.

Just throwing "it could be's" at this, a few things to try would be:
1) pull the plug and check it's seated right and the wire is tight.
2) check the injectors; a blocked or faulty injector could be a culprit. You could also try feeding some cleaner in to the throttle body while it idles and manually flap the blade a few times to cycle it through. Something like seafoam and a plastic syrine and tubing can do it. Don't go too fast or you'll flood it and don't get too close as it can back fire...
3) look around your engine for leakage. A head gasket leak can cause misfire codes. If you check it cold, you can get a pretty good look around with a flash light (top and bottom)

Before throwing any more money at it you can try those things. If it's an internal issue (cylinder compression and the like) you can quickly get into a can of worms situation. Good luck man.

 

Just to add on to the good advice from ABN31B, while you're under the hood you may also want to check your battery health and connections. A poor ground from the battery could contribute to at least some of the issues you've mentioned such as the flickering dash lights. If you can, check and clean both the connections at both the battery as well as where they connect to the frame & block. Just to eliminate it as a possible source of trouble.

 

I am also facing the same issue.