DC’s Most Underrated Series Had Serious Potential (And It Was Cancelled Way Too Soon)

If there is one thing that DC has had success with when it comes to live-action adaptations, it’s television. More mature series, like HBO Max’s Peacemaker and The Penguin, have been big hits, and more family-friendly series have also done very well. The CW’s universe of DC adaptations, the Arrowverse, was a big hit, as it gave heroes like Green Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, and more a chance to shine with compelling stories told across multiple seasons. But the shows of the Arrowverse weren’t The CW’s only foray into the world of DC. The network took some big swings with superhero shows not connected to the Arrowverse, and there’s one that was wildly underrated — and cancelled way too soon.

Debuting midseason in 2023, Gotham Knights was a Batman-adjacent DC adaptation unlike anything viewers had seen before. Instead of telling a straightforward story about the Dark Knight, or even following some of the hero’s best-known allies and supporting characters from the pages of comics, Gotham Knights mixed things up with the introduction of an entirely original character: Bruce Wayne’s adoptive son Turner Hayes, who is forced into an unlikely alliance with runaways and criminals when they’re framed for Bruce’s murder. As the series progressed, the mystery of who was behind the framing began to unravel, as well as dark secrets about Turner’s own history. The first season ended on a stunning cliffhanger with the introduction of Henri Ducard (aka Ras al Ghul) and the transformation of Harvey Dent into Two-Face, but that’s all fans ever got. The series was cancelled after just one season.

Gotham Knights Wasn’t Perfect, But It Got a Lot of Things Right

Now, it’s not unfair to say that Gotham Knights was far from a perfect show. The series was a little slow to start, taking a few episodes to find its footing. There was also a bit of an adjustment in terms of expectation. Gotham Knights didn’t directly follow established comics canon. As previously mentioned, Turner was an original character. Batman’s operating Robin wasn’t Tim Drake or Dick Grayson or even Jason Todd; it was Carrie Kelley (The Dark Knight Returns). The series also brought in some lesser-known comics figures, including Harper and Cullen Row, as part of the team. For some, this marked a big adjustment for a series building itself in Batman’s backyard.

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However, even with these elements, Gotham Knights still excelled at things other DC adaptations didn’t. Instead of using comics and familiar characters to retell stories most DC fans already know, Gotham Knights flipped things and approached them from a much more realistic angle.  This was a story less about Batman and more about the experience of living in Batman’s world – and, in a much larger sense, living in Bruce Wayne’s world. As the series progressed, it’s actually Bruce and the Wayne family’s history that became much more significant. It unfolds that the real threat to Gotham and the reason Bruce Wayne was murdered (and the Knights framed for it) is the Court of Owls, who have a long, dark history in Gotham and equally sinister plans.]

The result is a story that focuses much more on Gotham and its characters, rather than being just another Batman story. Mix in a slow-burning mystery about what dark role Batman may have had in the death of Turner’s biological parents, and you’ve got something fresh, different, and full of potential.

Gotham Knights Was Cancelled Before It Truly Got to Shine

Despite being full of potential and primed to be something genuinely interesting and unique in terms of DC’s live-action adaptations, Gotham Knights was cancelled with two episodes left in its first season. A big reason for that was big changes for both The CW and the DC Universe. Gotham Knights arrived at an interesting time, with The CW seeing a change in ownership and some major budget cuts. Those budget cuts saw many of the network’s scripted series cut, and among those that survived, there were reduced episode counts and downsizing of casts. Superman & Lois, for example, was another DC adaptation that survived for one more season, but saw its budget and cast greatly reduced. On the DC side of things, there were changes as well, with the announcement of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Studios and the creation of a new, interconnected DC Universe franchise. Ultimately, Gotham Knights didn’t fit into either DC’s or The CW’s revised plans.

The show also never fully recovered from the initial backlash. As noted, the series took a few episodes to find its footing in terms of pacing, performances, and even dialogue, and while things improved dramatically once it did, a lot of people didn’t give it a chance. There was also a lot of pre-judgment about the series as it notably centered around unfamiliar and original characters. However, in looking back — and going back to rewatch it — Gotham Knights was actually a solid addition to DC’s exploration of the Batman story, and deserved way more room to grow.

Gotham Knights is available to stream on HBO Max.

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