The Comic Book Shows We Can't Wait For in 2019

As we leave 2018 behind us, one thing becomes abundantly clear: far from the 'superhero fatigue' [...]

By Russ Burlingame - January 3, 2019 04:13 pm EST

As we leave 2018 behind us, one thing becomes abundantly clear: far from the "superhero fatigue" that Hollywood trades have warned against for 20 years or so now, 2019 seems to be a great time to be a fan of comic book adaptations.

Coming off of 2018 -- which saw the release of a massive Avengers film, a Black Panther adaptation that has awards buzz, and the best Spider-Man movie ever made, we will see superheroes and other comic book adaptations continuing to drive a lot of the biggest and buzziest projects in show business next year.

And while the movies tend to drive a lot of the conversation, it is difficult to argue that the blending of "peak TV" and our culture's superhero obsession has not collided to create a wealth of high-quality TV adaptations of comic book properties in the months to come.

We're going to run down nine -- yes, nine -- new series (as in, don't get offended if your fave isn't on this list, because we are only talking about new launches)...and that is even without any of the rumored Disney+/Marvel collaborations, which have not yet officially been scheduled and so will not appear here.

So what are the shows you're gonna be excited for in 2019 (and beyond)? Read on...!

Deadly Class

This one screwed us up a little bit, because SYFY surprised fans by debuting it early in time for Christmas, but we're still callling it a 2019 show since it will be January 16 before the series premieres on TV, and has a second episode the following week.

Fans who want to see the episode, which ComicBook.com called one of the best comic book TV pilots ever made, can do so here.

Deadly Class, which IMDb has rated as one of its ten most-anticipated TV shows of 2019, follows a homeless teenager named Marcus (Bejamin Wadsworth) after he is recruited to a boarding school for budding assassins, is based on a comic book written by Rick Remender, who also produces the show. He has said that one of the benefits of TV is that he will get to explore some of the spaces in between stories in the comics, and to elaborate on things that he moved past fairly quickly the first time around.

Remender's influence has also seemingly guaranteed that the work of artist Wes Craig, colorist Lee Loughridge, and letterer Rus Wooton are translated as accurately to the screen as they can.

The Boys

From the artist behind Happy! and the writer of Preacher, The Boys has already got a live-action pedigree in addition to critical accolades and a huge cult following in the comics.

The Boys is set in a world where superheroes embrace the darker side of their massive celebrity and fame. It revolves around a group of vigilantes known informally as "the Boys" who set out to take down corrupt superheroes with no more than blue-collar grit and a willingness to fight dirty. This group consists of Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), Wee Hughie (Jack Quaid), Mother's Milk (Laz Alonso), Frenchie (Tomer Capon) and Female (Karen Fukuhara).

The Boys is based on the Dynamite Entertainment series of the same name, which is created by Preacher creator Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The television adaptation will be created by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and Supernatural and Timeless alum Eric Kripke, with the pilot episode directed by 10 Cloverfield Lane's Dan Trachtenberg.

Umbrella Academy

The Umbrella Academy is written by Jeremy Slater. It is based on the Dark Horse Comics series written by Gerard Way and drawn by Gabriel Ba. The series tells the story of an eccentric, dysfunctional, and estranged family of superheroes. The family is forced to come together to solve the mystery of their father's murder.

The cast of The Umbrella Academy also includes Mary J. Blige as Cha-Cha and Kate Walsh as The Handler.

Steve Blackman serves as showrunner and executive producer of The Umbrella Academy. Bluegrass Television and Mike Richardson and Keith Goldberg from Dark Horse Entertainment are also executive producers. Way is a co-executive producer.

The Umbrella Academy comics debuted in 2007 with the first miniseries, The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse, which serves as the inspiration for the first season of the television series. A second miniseries, The Umbrella Academy: Dallas, followed in 2008. The third miniseries, The Umbrella Academy: Hotel Oblivion, is currently being worked on by Way and Ba and a fourth miniseries has also been promised. The series has received multiple comics industry awards.

Doom Patrol

Even in a crowded field of pickups and cancellations, Doom Patrol was quick to get noticed: not only is it a spinoff from a series that had not yet premiered when Doom Patrol was ordered, but it is yet another series from Greg Berlanti, the super-producer whose shingle currently has more shows on TV than anyone in history.

According to Warner Bros Television, the Doom Patrol series "is a re-imagining of one of DC's most beloved group of outcast Super Heroes: Robotman, Negative Man, Elasti-Girl and Crazy Jane, led by modern-day mad scientist Dr. Niles Caulder (The Chief). The Doom Patrol's members each suffered horrible accidents that gave them superhuman abilities — but also left them scarred and disfigured. Traumatized and downtrodden, the team found purpose through The Chief, who brought them together to investigate the weirdest phenomena in existence — and to protect Earth from what they find. Part support group, part Super Hero team, the Doom Patrol is a band of super-powered freaks who fight for a world that wants nothing to do with them. Picking up after the events of Titans, Doom Patrol will find these reluctant heroes in a place they never expected to be, called to action by none other than Cyborg, who comes to them with a mission hard to refuse, but with a warning that is hard to ignore: their lives will never, ever be the same."

The one-hour drama comes from executive producers Greg Berlanti, Geoff Johns, Jeremy Carver, and Sarah Schechter . The pilot was written by Carver.

Young Justice: Outsiders

The only one on this list that is kinda/sorta not a season one, we're counting it since it has been years since the first two seasons of Young Justice, this one has a new title and a new network.

Titled Young Justice: Outsiders, the third season of the fan-favorite animated series has been hotly anticipated. Originally debuting on Cartoon Network, the new season on DC Universe will pick up several dangling plot threads left unresolved when the show went off the air in 2013.

Watch the full Young Justice: Outsiders trailer above.

According to a press release from DC Universe, "Young Justice: Outsiders continues the story with our heroes still dealing with the events of season 2 while facing the new threat of metahuman teen trafficking and the intergalactic arms race for control of these super-powered youths."

While the new season is set to premiere in January, eager fans can revisit the first two season of Young Justice with "enhanced episodes" coming to DC Universe. There's also a Young Justice prequel comic on the way and a "Making of" documentary about the show.

Watchmen

Unlike Zack Snyder's feature film, this take on Watchmen won't attempt to retell the story of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon's graphic novel. Instead, the Damon Lindelof-produced series will take place in an alternate history, using the same premise and themes as a road map of sorts.

During New York Comic Con, Gibbons praised Lindelof and HBO's new direction with the property.

"The original is something that we always saw as standing alone and it never in our mind required prequels or sequels or homages or pastiches or anything like that," Gibbons said. "It isn't that we thought it should be treated with great reverence, it's just that we thought: If you've done something right just leave it alone."

The all-star cast of Watchmen includes Regina King, Jeremy Irons, Don Johnson, Tim Blake Nelson, Louis Gossett Jr., Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Andrew Howard, Tom Mison, Frances Fisher, Jacob Ming-Trent, Sara Vickers, and Dylan Schombing. Produced for HBO by White Rabbit in association with Warner Bros. Television, based on characters from DC.

As of now, the new Watchmen series doesn't have an official release date, but HBO has revealed that it will arrive in 2019.

Pennyworth

Gotham showrunner Bruno Heller is set to bring the story of a pre-Bruce Wayne version of Alfred Pennyworth to life for Epix, and he'll be joined by Danny Cannon, who will serve as co-executive producer.

"As genuine fans of these classic DC characters, as well as the incredibly talented Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon, we couldn't be more excited to make Epix the home of this series," Epix president Michael Wright said in a statement when the series was announced. "We can't wait to work with Bruno and Danny — along with Peter Roth, Susan Rovner, Brett Paul and the team at Warner Horizon — on this fantastic origin story."

"Michael and his colleagues have created the perfect venue for original storytelling, and all of us working on Pennyworth are thrilled to be on the Epix slate," Heller and Cannon said in a joint statement.

The series will tell the story of Alfred Pennyworth in 1960s London, after his time serving in the British SAS. Batman's father, Thomas Wayne, will also have a major role in the show, as he is set to be a major ally for Alfred.

Swamp Thing

Swamp Thing follows Abby Arcane as she investigates what seems to be a deadly swamp-born virus in a small town in Louisiana but soon discovers that the swamp holds mystical and terrifying secrets. When unexplainable and chilling horrors emerge from the murky marsh, no one is safe. The series is expected to draw inspiration from Alan Moore's iconic run, particularly the "Anatomy Lesson" issue.

Swamp Thing was first given a script-to-series order in May of this year, to the delight of DC Comics and horror fans alike. The project will be co-written by Mark Verheiden (Daredevil, Battlestar Galactica) and Gary Dauberman (It), who will serve as showrunners. The pilot will be directed by Underworld director Len Wiseman. Aquaman director James Wan is set to executive produce, alongside Atomic Monster's Michael Clear, with Atomic Monster's Rob Hackett set to co-produce.

"This is one, when you talked earlier about the rating for The Nun, we always set out to make Swamp Thing as hard R as we could and go graphic with the violence, with the adult themes and make it as scary as possible," producer Gary Dauberman explained in a recent interview. "Because we're doing it through the DC streaming service, they really pushed us, although they didn't have to push hard, for us to go as extreme as we could. We really took our inspiration from the Alan Moore run in Swamp Thing, this landmark I think run. Fans of that series will know it gets pretty weird and extreme and scary. We really wanted to live up to that standard that Moore set up back in the '80s."

Stargirl

Stargirl will follow high school sophomore Courtney Whitmore, who inspires an unlikely group of young heroes to stop villains from the past. The series will feature appearances and reference to multiple members of the Justice Society of America, the group that Courtney is most often associated with in the comics. In a recent interview, Stargirl co-creator Geoff Johns explained that the series is one he's wanted to do for some time.

"I've been wanting to do it for a while, and the truth is, over the last few years as I'd been talking to Warners and DC about getting back to wanting to write and produce, this was something that was at the very top of my list," Johns said. "I've been working with Greg and Sarah over at Berlanti TV, and with Warner TV -- I mean, I've been working with them for years. It's been great. I get to work with my team at DC in a more creative way. It's been in my head for a while, and once I made the move at DC, it came together pretty quickly."

Originally created by Johns along with Lee Moder and inspired by Johns' late sister Courtney, Stargirl made her DC Comics debut in 1999's Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. #1. The character has previously appeared in live-action on both Smallville and Legends of Tomorrow.

Honorable Mentions

elseworlds batwoman debut reactions — (Photo: The CW, DC Entertainment)

As we noted earlier, Disney+ will bring some Marvel content, including new series starring big-name Hollywood actors carrying their characters over from the Marvel Cinematic Universe for TV series, sometime between late 2019 and 2020.

Those series include a Scarlet Witch-centric series, one about Loki, and one featuring Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson.

The CW is also developing a series around Batwoman, and while it seems more of a sure thing that at least the pilot will air in 2019 -- they are reportedly shooting it soon -- with no official date yet, we didn't want to get too much talk in. But Ruby Rose was a highlight of the "Elseworlds" crossover, and we're hoping we get to see more of her Batwoman soon.