While Warner Bros. still goes through growing pains with their DC Extended Universe theatrical franchises, their heroes are thriving on The CW‘s separate Arrowverse. Their inaugural series, “Arrow” is coming off of a fantastic run and entering its sixth season. “The Flash” had a rocky ride last season, but ended on a high-note that could take the upcoming fourth season to new heights.
“Legends of Tomorrow” rocked out its sophomore run like a pro and looks to continue that in its third season. “Supergirl” is poised to knockout her own third season as well. On top of it all, we also have a newcomer in “Black Lightning“. Let’s take a look at what all of these shows are up to in the wake of their SDCC 2017 panels and previews…
“SUPERGIRL”
(Premieres October 9th, 2017)
Kara Zor-El (Melissa Benoist) enters her third season as National City recovers from the attempted Daxamite invasion. Supergirl must also deal with the banishment of her lover, Mon-El (Chris Wood), as well as the rise of a grave new threat: the world-killer Reign (Odette Annable). This year, the series will also add characters Morgan Edge (Adrian Pasdar), Psi (Yael Grobglas), Ruby (Emma Tremblay), and M’yrrn J’onzz (Carl Lumbly).
Cat Grant (Calista Flockhart) will be back in the premiere and recur throughout the entire season, as opposed her almost non-existent presence in the second season. Unlike Cat, however, we should not expect to see much of Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) in the coming season. As of this moment, there are no plans for the character to appear in the next run, although that could change on down the line.
“THE FLASH”
(Premieres October 10th, 2017)
The fourth season will pick up six months after Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) was imprisoned within the Speedforce. The team will continue their effort to free him, while Wally West (Keiyan Lonsdale) steps up as a hero and Iris takes a more proactive role on the team. Caitlin/Killer Frost will also factor in heavily. The series will also return to the more light-hearted approach of the first season.
This year’s threat comes in the form of The Thinker (Neil Sandilands), who will finally offer up a formidable non-speedster adversary for the titular hero. Also arriving on the show are Danny Trejo and Kim Engelbrecht. The latter will be playing one of The Thinker’s minions. The former will be portraying Gypsy’s father, Breacher. It sounds like poor Cisco is going to be getting severely intimidated by his lover’s father. Hopefully we can count on the annual Trickster (Mark Hamill) appearance to continue as well.
“LEGENDS OF TOMORROW”
(Premieres October 10th, 2017)
The Legends have disbanded in the wake of Rip Hunter’s (Arthur Darvill) formation of the Time Bureau. Don’t expect them to stay apart for long, however. This third season of the wild time travel/alternate history-filled series will see the return of Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough), as well as Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller) in a recurring role. Darhk will supposedly be a bit less humorous this year, whereas Cold might slowly return to his heroic Season 1 self. There’s no word on if we’ll get our annual Jonah Hex-filled episode, but hints have been dropped that John Constantine and Ray’s evil twin could be making appearances. This year the series also adds the heroic Zari Adrianna Tomaz (Tala Ashe) and the villainous Kuasa.
“ARROW”
(Premieres October 12th, 2017)
Unlike its sister shows, what lies ahead for Green Arrow (Stephen Amell) on the next season of his series is still largely shrouded in mystery. Last season ended with a massive explosion that tossed the fate of his teammates (and a few enemies) into question. For now, the only ones we know for a fact survived…be it due to this promo or past announcements…are Oliver, his son William Clayton (Jack Moore), Black Canary (Juliana Harkavy), Deathstroke (Manu Bennett), Wild Dog (Rick Gonzalez), and Black Siren (Katie Cassidy).
That still leaves the fates of Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards), Samantha Clayton (Anna Hopkins), Mister Terrific (Echo Kellum), Speedy (Willa Holland), Spartan (David Ramsey), Artemis (Madison McLaughlin), Talia al Ghul (Lexa Doig), and Nyssa al Ghul (Katrina Law). It will be very interesting to see who made it out alive. Word is that we might not actually find out until the third episode! In addition to this, the series is also adding Michael Emerson (“Lost“) in an as-yet-undisclosed role, as well as bringing back Anatoli Knyazev (David Nykl). We will also finally find out who is behind Vigilante’s mask.
Furthermore, this will mark the first season to not have a flashback narrative, although do not expect them to be gone entirely. While Oliver’s past has been well-showcased, this year will see flashbacks coming in an entirely different form. This season will give us occasional glimpses into the pasts of other characters, including Deathstroke.
“BLACK LIGHTNING”
(Premieres in early 2018)
The CW’s latest DC superhero series is still marching along towards its first season, which will not arrive until after the start of the new year. The show centers around former hero Jackson Pierce (Cress Williams), who must return to his previous heroic ways when his family is endangered by the world around them. James Remar and Damon Gupton have been cast in main roles, with the former playing Jackson’s mentor and the latter an ally on the police force. As previously reported, there are currently no plans for any crossovers with the four shows above, but that could change with time.
