TV upfronts season is officially upon us, with many waiting with bated breath to find out the fates of their favorite — and soon-to-be favorite — television shows.
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As fans have come to know over the past few years, the week of network presentations and parties usually means quite a lot for comic book-inspired television. An ever-growing number of properties from DC, Marvel, and other labels have made their way onto the small screen, giving every sort of comic book fan a different show to root for.
While some comic book television shows have already been renewed for new seasons, the fates of other properties have yet to be officially announced. And beyond that, there are plenty of new pieces of information that networks could be announcing within the next week. So without further ado, here are some reasons comic book fans should keep an eye on the TV upfronts.
‘Krypton’
Since it debuted in March of this year, Syfy’s Krypton has been making quite an impression among DC Comics fans. The series, which follows the journey of Superman’s grandfather, Seg (Cameron Cuffe), earned the network’s highest pilot ratings in four years, and has somewhat kept the momentum up as the season has gone on.
At the time of this writing, Syfy hasn’t officially renewed Krypton for a second season — but that could very well change at upfronts. After all, those involved with the show have ideas for many more seasons in mind, and there’s no telling what other beloved comic book characters they could introduce in future years.
Fans could find out the fate of Krypton during NBCUniversal’s upfronts presentation, which will take place on Monday, May 14th at 10:30 EST.
‘Gotham’
Another show whose fate is currently up in the air — something that has made fans slightly anxious — is Fox’s Gotham.
The series has arguably hit its stride over the past four years, providing fans with a unique take on Batman and those in his orbit. Even just over the past few episodes, Gotham has given fans a long-anticipated take on the Joker, an adaptation of the iconic “No Man’s Land” storyline, and plenty of other unique DC Comics nods and Easter eggs.
Gotham‘s Season Four ratings have fluctuated slightly over this season, meaning that fans have been looking to the upfronts to find out the show’s fate. Granted, Fox has already renewed and cancelled several of its established shows, meaning we could know what’s next for Gotham before the presentation even begins.
Fox’s presentation will take place on Monday, May 14th, at 4pm EST.
‘Agents of SHIELD’
Another established show that could be on the bubble is none other than Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD.
The ABC series has had a somewhat-rocky tenure over the past few years, with many wondering if the current fifth season would end up being the last. While the upcoming season finale title seems to hint at what could be “The End” for the series, some are optimistic that there’s more story to be told.
“I have questions about the future of the show and for Coulson,” series star Clark Gregg recently told ComicBook.com. “It’s been a really … there’s been some very dark developments, and from the minute Joss [Whedon] pitched me the show five years ago, it was clear that he wouldn’t be brought back to life without repercussions, and some of those are finally coming due. So, it’s a fun story arc to tell and it’s been a very moving ending of the season, and we’ll see what happens from here.”
As with Krypton and Gotham, there’s a very good chance that the future of SHIELD could be announced as part of next week’s upfronts presentations. Fans will find out when ABC’s event takes place on Tuesday, May 15th, at 4pm EST.
The Arrowverse
While The CW’s quartet of Arrovwerse shows — Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, and Supergirl — were renewed last month, there’s a chance that the upfronts presentation could bring some new information.
For one thing, the network’s presentation comes right in the middle of the Arrowverse’s season finales, which could possibly hint at some interesting details coming to light. While Legends of Tomorrow‘s third season finished last month, Arrow will air its finale the night of the upfronts, with The Flash and Supergirl set to wrap up in the weeks after.
But outside of that, there’s a good chance that The CW’s upfronts could bring some new sort of information about the Arrowverse, mostly with regards to scheduling. Last year’s upfronts saw Arrow get a major timeslot change, and the schedules of other shows reshuffled, meaning something similar could very easily happen this year. And there’s always a chance that the presentation could provide the first tease for the fall’s annual Arrowverse crossover, which has some pretty big shoes to fill after last year’s “Crisis on Earth-X”.
‘Black Lightning’
While it currently exists outside of the Arrowverse, Black Lightning has been a whole new kind of hit for The CW, earning the best premiere ratings for the network in years.
Hype for Black Lightning has only seemed to grow, especially after the entire first season was recently put on Netflix. And while the series is already renewed for a second chapter, there’s a chance that the upfronts could deliver some sort of new information.
A tweet from series star Cress Williams hinted at production resuming this summer, which could indicate that the second season could hit TV screens in the fall, as opposed to season one’s winter premiere. If that’s the case, the upfronts would be the place for fans to find out about it, as well as any other sort of teases for what to expect.
‘Riverdale’
Another one of The CW’s bonafide hits — one that will be in a unique place when upfronts roll around — is Riverdale.
The Archie Comics-inspired series will air its season finale the night before upfronts, meaning that a handful of teases about the upcoming third season could come to light. Considering the explosive nature of last night’s episode — which saw the Black Hood being unmasked, one character almost meeting their end, and a hell of a lot of new drama — it’s safe to assume that fans will have questions.
And outside of that, the upfronts presentation will probably reveal if the show keeps its Wednesday night time slot or expands into some other spot in The CW’s new six-night programming.
‘iZombie’
While the fate of almost all of The CW’s established programming has been announced, one show still remains on the bubble: iZombie.
iZombie‘s fourth season has brought fans plenty of new changes, as the show essentially shifted into a new normal, transforming Seattle into a zombie haven. And for the most part, iZombie‘s ratings have been pretty consistent, with an average of 0.792 million viewers per episode, and a current 18-49 demographic hold of 0.24. But even then, the show’s cast has been unsure about what would come next for the series.
“We’ll have to wait until the show comes out,” Rahul Kohli, who plays Ravi Chakrabarti, said earlier this year. “It’s too early to say. Probably 50/50.”
As The CW promised last month, the fate of the other midseason shows would be decided on this month, and it looks like the upfronts presentation could be the place where that happens.
Fans can find out what’s next for the Arrowverse shows, Black Lightning, Riverdale, and iZombie when The CW’s upfronts presentation takes place on Thursday, May 17th, at 10am EST.
New Pilots
But even though the upfronts could bring a bit of heartache for some fans, there could be plenty of new programming for comic book fans to get excited about.
One of ABC’s most buzzed-about pilots is The Greatest American Hero, a reboot of the 1980s series of the same name. The pilot — which stars New Girl‘s Hannah Simone as the titular reluctant superhero — has yet to officially be picked up to series, but ABC’s upfronts presentation could tell us one way or another.
And while The CW most likely won’t be introducing another comic book-inspired series, several of their potential pilots could make genre fans very happy. In addition to reboots of Roswell and Charmed, the roster could include the Supernatural spinoff Wayward Sisters, which received a fan-favorite backdoor pilot episode earlier this year.
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Which show has you most looking forward to next week’s TV upfronts? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
