Five DC Comics TV Shows Warner Bros. Should Stream in 2018
Earlier today, Warner Bros. Television confirmed rumors that they were developing a stand-alone [...]
CONSTANTINE
Constantine is a weird one; it has seemed ever since it was cancelled that DC was as bummed as the fans that it happened, and when you consider there's still an active, vocal fan movement to bring it back "as bummed as the fans" is pretty bummed.
Matt Ryan has returned as the character in an animated feature film (Justice League Dark) and a cameo on Arrow, as well as an upcoming animated series on CW Seed. So what would be the next natural step? Either adding him to Legends of Tomorrow or giving him his own solo series back.
The fan base wasn't enough to keep Constantine alive on NBC, but it came very close to finding a home at The CW and was aggressively shopped around in a Supergirl-like attempt to keep it alive after one network failed to see what they had. Is it too late to bring it back? If they did, would it even be the same show?
It was so good that it's worth finding out.
prevnextMANHUNTER
Something that could be a great police procedural-style show with a twist (think iZombie) is Manhunter.
Based on Marc Andreyko's take on the concept, Kate Spencer is a district attorney who one day snapped and got tired of supervillains who were constantly evading justice, either through loopholes or just plain old-fashioned escape, and raided the evidence locker to get her hands on some superhero and supervillain gear she could use to hunt and kill the most dangerous villains in her town.
The best Manhunter stories were the ones that focused on Kate, her family, what drove her to do what she did, and ultimately her work with the DEO (which isn't as alien-focused in the comics as it is on Supergirl) while the bits that worked the least were when they got super bogged down in DC's mythology, other heroes, and things that might blow up the show's budget.
prevnextHOURMAN
This one could be a great animated series, something that could expand DC's animated universe again alongside Young Justice: Outsiders.
It's likely too expensive to make an Hourman series with the 853rd Century Android and his giant Viking boat-looking timeship in live action anyway, but the fact that such a show would likely be by necessity a lot like DC's Legends of Tomorrow is a good enough reason to make it an animated series, and shift the focus a little.
If Hourman could, like the more recent Booster Gold comics, focus on events within the history of the DC Universe rather than the history of the real world, it could be a really interesting opportunity to bring a lot of DC's properties, eras, and concepts to a wider audience.
prevnextTHE SPECTRE
Whether or not they used Emmett J. Scanlan, the actor who played Detective Jim Corrigan in Constantine, the idea of a series for The Spectre is one that DC has explored in the relatively recent past, although it never got into active development.
Still, in the age of American Horror Story, a horror anthology series that centers on a cop-by-day, avenging-angel-by-night character but sees him dealing with different sinners and crooks each week is certainly something that's plausible enough.
The fact that it would give producers a chance to explore the cosmic/supernatural side of the DC Universe in a more direct way than Constantine ever did is also something that makes it worth exploring; can you imagine how much fun it would be to have a Spectre series where Shadowpact's bar played a part, for example?
prevnextTHE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES
With Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter involved with the upcoming Titans series, the question will inevitably come up: is the new series tied to the Arrowverse?
Whether it is or not, a DC fan-funded operation like the digital service could be a great opportunity to try out The Legion of Super-Heroes. Not totally unfamiliar to fans, the property had a short-lived animated series fronted by Superboy. Instead, though, a live-action iteration could center on Mon-El, played by Chris Wood on Supergirl.
There have been plenty of hints that the Legion could be coming to Supergirl, but what would they do next? Such an expansive universe would seem like a terrible thing to just let be an inside joke, but The CW is likely not in a position to bring more DC to the small screen right now, with Black Lightning coming, most of their shows coming back, and Warner Bros. TV signing a first-look deal with Archie that sounded like it might bring Riverdale spinoffs sooner or later.
...So why not here? Long live the Legion, after all.
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