Monday
8:00 - All American (New Timeslot)
9:00 - Black Lightning
The CW's mass renewal of even its most marginal performers is less surprising now that we know their deal with Netflix is expiring; as a result, shows like All American have made the fall schedule. It moves to Mondays to pair with Black Lightning for a night with two dramas led by almost-entirely African American casts.
Tuesday
8:00 - The Flash
9:00 - Arrow (New Timeslot)
For its final ten-episode season, Arrow is moving again, this time to air behind the most successful show in the Arrowverse. It'll likely give a shot in the arm to the flailing veteran for its last few weeks.
Wednesday
8:00 - Riverdale
9:00 - Nancy Drew (NEW)
Thematically, this night works well. The new Nancy Drew series looks like a darker reimagining of the classic character, which should fit nicely with the dark, mysterious, weird reimagining of the Archie characters in Riverdale.
Thursday
8:00 - Supernatural
9:00 - Legacies
Thursdays stay intact as Supernatural heads into its fifteenth and final season.
Friday
8:00 - Charmed (New Timeslot)
9:00 - Dynasty
Though the reboot of Charmed started well last season, it faded by season's end. Moving it to Fridays this early in its run, especially when it's nearly guaranteed to get a few more seasons on air, is a bit of a surprise. But while Fridays have felt less like a death knell for CW shows than other networks, when a move to Fridays spells almost certain cancellation, it still isn't exactly a vote of confidence either.
Sunday
8:00 - Batwoman (NEW)
9:00 - Supergirl (New Timeslot)
An all-female superhero night is a gamble, but again counter-programming the male-skewing NFL isn't a bad idea. Supergirl did well on Sundays, particularly in the fall and particularly given that Sundays were an unknown this time last year. Shifting it back an hour to 9:00 isn't a bad idea, especially if the hype for Batwoman pays off and it debuts big and pulls Supergirl along with it.
Midseason
The 100, In the Dark, DC's Legends of Tomorrow, and Roswell, New Mexico all return at midseason (or later) and will be joined by Riverdale spin-off Katy Keene.
I like this schedule a lot, and that's something I don't know I've ever said. The CW has created quite a few "theme" nights, and I like the themes they've gone with: Super Girl Sundays, Black Excellence Mondays, Mystery Wednesdays, Paranormal Thursdays, and OG Arrowverse Tuesdays. It's kind of cool, and the shows should work well together, creatively and in terms of retaining live audiences (as important, or not, as that may be for the network).
This will be a year of transition for The CW. Their two longest-running shows are in their final seasons, and they just occupied a sixth night of programming. So either lots of shows with middling-or-worse ratings will continue to be renewed; more new series than usual will need to debut next year; or both. Putting Batwoman on the air is a good start, as that seems all but guaranteed to continue for a few years. Spinning off Riverdale also seems like a no-brainer, since despite its occasionally weak ratings, it's the biggest cultural phenomenon outside the Arrowverse that the net has launched. If Nancy Drew can capitalize on the true crime boom and find a respectable audience, it will have been worthy as well. I'm very interested to see how this season pans out and what it means for the net this time next year, especially without that cushy Netflix deal on the table.
Click after the jump for descriptions of The CW's new series.
Batwoman - Kate Kane (Ruby Rose) never planned to be Gotham’s new vigilante. Three years after Batman mysteriously disappeared, Gotham is a city in despair. Without the Caped Crusader, the Gotham City Police Department was overrun and outgunned by criminal gangs. Enter Jacob Kane (Dougray Scott) and his military-grade Crows Private Security, which now protects the city with omnipresent firepower and militia. Years before, Jacob’s first wife and daughter were killed in the crossfire of Gotham crime. He sent his only surviving daughter, Kate Kane, away from Gotham for her safety. After a dishonorable discharge from military school and years of brutal survival training, Kate returns home when the Alice in Wonderland gang targets her father and his security firm, by kidnapping his best Crow officer Sophie Moore (Meagan Tandy). Although remarried to wealthy socialite Catherine Hamilton-Kane (Elizabeth Anweis), who bankrolls the Crows, Jacob is still struggling with the family he lost, while keeping Kate –– the daughter he still has –– at a distance. But Kate is a woman who’s done asking for permission. In order to help her family and her city, she’ll have to become the one thing her father loathes –– a dark knight vigilante. With the help of her compassionate stepsister, Mary (Nicole Kang), and the crafty Luke Fox (Camrus Johnson), the son of Wayne Enterprises’ tech guru Lucius Fox, Kate Kane continues the legacy of her missing cousin, Bruce Wayne, as Batwoman. Still holding a flame for her ex-girlfriend, Sophie, Kate uses everything in her power to combat the dark machinations of the psychotic Alice (Rachel Skarsten), who’s always somewhere slipping between sane and insane. Armed with a passion for social justice and a flair for speaking her mind, Kate soars through the shadowed streets of Gotham as Batwoman. But don’t call her a hero yet. In a city desperate for a savior, she must first overcome her own demons before embracing the call to be Gotham’s symbol of hope. Based on the characters from DC, Batwoman is from Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television with executive producers Greg Berlanti (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl), Caroline Dries (The Vampire Diaries, Smallville), Geoff Johns (Arrow, The Flash, Titans) and Sarah Schechter (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl). David Nutter (Game of Thrones, Arrow) and Marcos Siega (The Vampire Diaries, You) executive produced the pilot.
Katy Keene - A Riverdale spinoff, Katy Keene follows the lives and loves of four iconic Archie Comics characters — fashion legend-to-be Katy Keene (Lucy Hale), singer/songwriter Josie McCoy (Ashleigh Murray), performer Jorge Lopez/Ginger (Jonny Beauchamp), and “It Girl” Pepper Smith (Julia Chan) — as they chase their twenty-something dreams in New York City…together. Katy designs clothes for anyone she can, including her friend and roommate Josie, whose singing talent catches the attention of Alexander Cabot (Lucien Laviscount), a CEO who hopes to reboot the record label division of his father’s corporate empire. But Alexander’s dream of signing Josie to a recording contract meets resistance from Cabot Media’s powerful senior vice president Alexandra (Camille Hyde), who also happens to be his twin sister. Josie and Katy’s roommate Jorge works at his family’s bodega and has his eye on Broadway, but after a series of rejections, he hopes to take his drag performance career as Ginger to the next level. The mysterious Pepper Smith plans to open her own version of Andy Warhol’s Factory. She has the connections, but no one seems to know where she got her money — or if she really has any at all. Katy struggles to manage the pressures of her day job at Lacy’s Department Store and her very demanding boss, Gloria (Katherine LaNasa), who is a legendary personal shopper. But Katy has the support of her longtime boyfriend, KO Kelly (Zane Holtz), who has his own dream of becoming a professional boxer. As these aspiring artists take on the runway, the recording studio, Broadway, and the NYC social scene, they will find more than just a career in the big city — they’ll find long-lasting friendship. Executive produced by Greg Berlanti (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl), Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (Supergirl, Glee), Michael Grassi (Riverdale, Supergirl), Sarah Schechter (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, DC's Legends of Tomorrow) and Jon Goldwater (Archie Comics Publisher & CEO), Katy Keene is from Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios.
Nancy Drew - Nancy Drew (Kennedy McMann) is a brilliant teenage detective whose sense of self had come from solving mysteries in her hometown of Horseshoe Bay, Maine – until her mother’s untimely death derails Nancy’s college plans. Devastated by her mother’s passing, Nancy swears off crime-solving while crossing off the days until she can re-apply to college. But when a socialite is murdered, Nancy finds herself a prime suspect in the crime, along with a group of other teens present at the scene: Nancy’s nemesis from high school, George Fan (Leah Lewis); a rich girl with a mysterious past, Bess Marvin (Maddison Jaizani); Nancy’s secret boyfriend, Ned “Nick” Nickerson (Tunji Kasim), and amiable burnout Ace (Alex Saxon). The five of them must team up to clear their own names – encountering emotional entanglements and even more mysteries along the way. Nancy’s reawakening brings her into conflict with her widowed father, Carson Drew (Scott Wolf), who is dating Detective Karen Hart (Alvina August). And, when a supernatural presence begins to haunt Nancy’s investigation, she discovers that the current crime has an astonishing connection to the unsolved murder of a local girl. Whether the ghost is here to help, or hinder Nancy remains to be seen, but one thing’s for sure: Nancy’s going to have to unravel the clues from both the living and the dead to solve the crimes. Riley Smith also stars. Executive produced by Noga Landau (The Magicians), Melinda Hsu Taylor (The Gifted, The Vampire Diaries), Josh Schwartz (Gossip Girl, Dynasty, Runaways), Stephanie Savage (Gossip Girl, Dynasty, Runaways) and Lis Rowinski (Dynasty, Runaways), Nancy Drew is a production of CBS Television Studios in association with Fake Empire.
8:00 - All American (New Timeslot)
9:00 - Black Lightning
The CW's mass renewal of even its most marginal performers is less surprising now that we know their deal with Netflix is expiring; as a result, shows like All American have made the fall schedule. It moves to Mondays to pair with Black Lightning for a night with two dramas led by almost-entirely African American casts.
Tuesday
8:00 - The Flash
9:00 - Arrow (New Timeslot)
For its final ten-episode season, Arrow is moving again, this time to air behind the most successful show in the Arrowverse. It'll likely give a shot in the arm to the flailing veteran for its last few weeks.
Wednesday
8:00 - Riverdale
9:00 - Nancy Drew (NEW)
Thematically, this night works well. The new Nancy Drew series looks like a darker reimagining of the classic character, which should fit nicely with the dark, mysterious, weird reimagining of the Archie characters in Riverdale.
Thursday
8:00 - Supernatural
9:00 - Legacies
Thursdays stay intact as Supernatural heads into its fifteenth and final season.
Friday
8:00 - Charmed (New Timeslot)
9:00 - Dynasty
Though the reboot of Charmed started well last season, it faded by season's end. Moving it to Fridays this early in its run, especially when it's nearly guaranteed to get a few more seasons on air, is a bit of a surprise. But while Fridays have felt less like a death knell for CW shows than other networks, when a move to Fridays spells almost certain cancellation, it still isn't exactly a vote of confidence either.
Sunday
8:00 - Batwoman (NEW)
9:00 - Supergirl (New Timeslot)
An all-female superhero night is a gamble, but again counter-programming the male-skewing NFL isn't a bad idea. Supergirl did well on Sundays, particularly in the fall and particularly given that Sundays were an unknown this time last year. Shifting it back an hour to 9:00 isn't a bad idea, especially if the hype for Batwoman pays off and it debuts big and pulls Supergirl along with it.
Midseason
The 100, In the Dark, DC's Legends of Tomorrow, and Roswell, New Mexico all return at midseason (or later) and will be joined by Riverdale spin-off Katy Keene.
I like this schedule a lot, and that's something I don't know I've ever said. The CW has created quite a few "theme" nights, and I like the themes they've gone with: Super Girl Sundays, Black Excellence Mondays, Mystery Wednesdays, Paranormal Thursdays, and OG Arrowverse Tuesdays. It's kind of cool, and the shows should work well together, creatively and in terms of retaining live audiences (as important, or not, as that may be for the network).
This will be a year of transition for The CW. Their two longest-running shows are in their final seasons, and they just occupied a sixth night of programming. So either lots of shows with middling-or-worse ratings will continue to be renewed; more new series than usual will need to debut next year; or both. Putting Batwoman on the air is a good start, as that seems all but guaranteed to continue for a few years. Spinning off Riverdale also seems like a no-brainer, since despite its occasionally weak ratings, it's the biggest cultural phenomenon outside the Arrowverse that the net has launched. If Nancy Drew can capitalize on the true crime boom and find a respectable audience, it will have been worthy as well. I'm very interested to see how this season pans out and what it means for the net this time next year, especially without that cushy Netflix deal on the table.
Click after the jump for descriptions of The CW's new series.
Batwoman - Kate Kane (Ruby Rose) never planned to be Gotham’s new vigilante. Three years after Batman mysteriously disappeared, Gotham is a city in despair. Without the Caped Crusader, the Gotham City Police Department was overrun and outgunned by criminal gangs. Enter Jacob Kane (Dougray Scott) and his military-grade Crows Private Security, which now protects the city with omnipresent firepower and militia. Years before, Jacob’s first wife and daughter were killed in the crossfire of Gotham crime. He sent his only surviving daughter, Kate Kane, away from Gotham for her safety. After a dishonorable discharge from military school and years of brutal survival training, Kate returns home when the Alice in Wonderland gang targets her father and his security firm, by kidnapping his best Crow officer Sophie Moore (Meagan Tandy). Although remarried to wealthy socialite Catherine Hamilton-Kane (Elizabeth Anweis), who bankrolls the Crows, Jacob is still struggling with the family he lost, while keeping Kate –– the daughter he still has –– at a distance. But Kate is a woman who’s done asking for permission. In order to help her family and her city, she’ll have to become the one thing her father loathes –– a dark knight vigilante. With the help of her compassionate stepsister, Mary (Nicole Kang), and the crafty Luke Fox (Camrus Johnson), the son of Wayne Enterprises’ tech guru Lucius Fox, Kate Kane continues the legacy of her missing cousin, Bruce Wayne, as Batwoman. Still holding a flame for her ex-girlfriend, Sophie, Kate uses everything in her power to combat the dark machinations of the psychotic Alice (Rachel Skarsten), who’s always somewhere slipping between sane and insane. Armed with a passion for social justice and a flair for speaking her mind, Kate soars through the shadowed streets of Gotham as Batwoman. But don’t call her a hero yet. In a city desperate for a savior, she must first overcome her own demons before embracing the call to be Gotham’s symbol of hope. Based on the characters from DC, Batwoman is from Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television with executive producers Greg Berlanti (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl), Caroline Dries (The Vampire Diaries, Smallville), Geoff Johns (Arrow, The Flash, Titans) and Sarah Schechter (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl). David Nutter (Game of Thrones, Arrow) and Marcos Siega (The Vampire Diaries, You) executive produced the pilot.
Katy Keene - A Riverdale spinoff, Katy Keene follows the lives and loves of four iconic Archie Comics characters — fashion legend-to-be Katy Keene (Lucy Hale), singer/songwriter Josie McCoy (Ashleigh Murray), performer Jorge Lopez/Ginger (Jonny Beauchamp), and “It Girl” Pepper Smith (Julia Chan) — as they chase their twenty-something dreams in New York City…together. Katy designs clothes for anyone she can, including her friend and roommate Josie, whose singing talent catches the attention of Alexander Cabot (Lucien Laviscount), a CEO who hopes to reboot the record label division of his father’s corporate empire. But Alexander’s dream of signing Josie to a recording contract meets resistance from Cabot Media’s powerful senior vice president Alexandra (Camille Hyde), who also happens to be his twin sister. Josie and Katy’s roommate Jorge works at his family’s bodega and has his eye on Broadway, but after a series of rejections, he hopes to take his drag performance career as Ginger to the next level. The mysterious Pepper Smith plans to open her own version of Andy Warhol’s Factory. She has the connections, but no one seems to know where she got her money — or if she really has any at all. Katy struggles to manage the pressures of her day job at Lacy’s Department Store and her very demanding boss, Gloria (Katherine LaNasa), who is a legendary personal shopper. But Katy has the support of her longtime boyfriend, KO Kelly (Zane Holtz), who has his own dream of becoming a professional boxer. As these aspiring artists take on the runway, the recording studio, Broadway, and the NYC social scene, they will find more than just a career in the big city — they’ll find long-lasting friendship. Executive produced by Greg Berlanti (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl), Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (Supergirl, Glee), Michael Grassi (Riverdale, Supergirl), Sarah Schechter (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, DC's Legends of Tomorrow) and Jon Goldwater (Archie Comics Publisher & CEO), Katy Keene is from Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios.
Nancy Drew - Nancy Drew (Kennedy McMann) is a brilliant teenage detective whose sense of self had come from solving mysteries in her hometown of Horseshoe Bay, Maine – until her mother’s untimely death derails Nancy’s college plans. Devastated by her mother’s passing, Nancy swears off crime-solving while crossing off the days until she can re-apply to college. But when a socialite is murdered, Nancy finds herself a prime suspect in the crime, along with a group of other teens present at the scene: Nancy’s nemesis from high school, George Fan (Leah Lewis); a rich girl with a mysterious past, Bess Marvin (Maddison Jaizani); Nancy’s secret boyfriend, Ned “Nick” Nickerson (Tunji Kasim), and amiable burnout Ace (Alex Saxon). The five of them must team up to clear their own names – encountering emotional entanglements and even more mysteries along the way. Nancy’s reawakening brings her into conflict with her widowed father, Carson Drew (Scott Wolf), who is dating Detective Karen Hart (Alvina August). And, when a supernatural presence begins to haunt Nancy’s investigation, she discovers that the current crime has an astonishing connection to the unsolved murder of a local girl. Whether the ghost is here to help, or hinder Nancy remains to be seen, but one thing’s for sure: Nancy’s going to have to unravel the clues from both the living and the dead to solve the crimes. Riley Smith also stars. Executive produced by Noga Landau (The Magicians), Melinda Hsu Taylor (The Gifted, The Vampire Diaries), Josh Schwartz (Gossip Girl, Dynasty, Runaways), Stephanie Savage (Gossip Girl, Dynasty, Runaways) and Lis Rowinski (Dynasty, Runaways), Nancy Drew is a production of CBS Television Studios in association with Fake Empire.
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