CW’s Arrowverse: A Crisis Of Mediocrity

The recent Crisis On Infinite Earths may have threatened the existence of the multiverse, but the Arrowverse has been facing a crisis of its own since its inception — a crisis of poor creative decisions.

The beginning of an era — Credit: CW

Kicking off in 2012, Arrow set the foundations for what would expand into a full-fledged series of DC television shows. The success of this show would lead into the introduction of The Flash (played by now-beloved actor Grant Gustin), joining Stephen Amell’s Oliver Queen as a headlining character.

Now, it must be said that I was fully on board with this decision at the time, with my excitement for the adaptation of another one of my favourite comic book characters through the roof. And it would remain that way up until about the end of the first series of The Flash.

A universe in the making — Credit: CW

So, what changed? It was no secret that Arrow was heavily drawing from another popular street-level hero, that being Batman, but I didn’t mind because of Amell’s inherent likability and a lack of similar alternatives at the time. But as the years went on, it became very apparent how formulaic these shows would become (or perhaps this is how they had always been). Our starring character would begin on a solo vendetta or with a small support group who knew their identity, and over the course of a couple of seasons it was like they couldn’t walk downstairs without their hand being held. Every minor character from Iris West to Alex Danvers just had to have their chance to shine, no matter how uninteresting this was over the span of a ridiculously inflated 22 episodes per season.

The super heroics and engaging comic book-esque storylines were becoming obsolete in the mind’s eye of the writers, instead opting for uninteresting soap opera dramatics. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not one of those people who hates going five minutes without an action scene or pretty explosion, but I honestly — truthfully — do not care about another side character’s personal dramas, particularly when this involves them arguing with their romantic partner about their vigilante exploits. Notice how I didn’t specify any names? Well, that’s because this story has been repeated over and over and over again for lord knows how many years, so almost everyone has been through the motions at some time or another.

Too many characters? — Credit: CW

You may be angrily ready to tell me to stop watching, but believe me I don’t want these shows to fail. Every time I sit down to watch an episode, I am hoping to be entertained. I wouldn’t have kept mostly up to date for seven years if I had no interest in seeing my childhood icons realised on screen. Yes, I may be a season behind on Supergirl and still yet to catch the latest crossover, but this isn’t for lack of trying. Blame the showrunners for failing to meet my expectations year after year.

But you know what? I’m going to keep persevering. This final season of Arrow has been a massive improvement in quality over the past few attempts, and this gives me hope that there is some semblance of competency over in the writer’s chair. I’m not going to say that the lesser episode count is the reason for this marked improvement, but it is one hundred percent the reason…

Moving forward, I can honestly say I am eagerly anticipating the new Superman And Lois TV show, as Tyler Hoechlin played the role so endearingly in his short-lived appearances. And even Batwoman, despite its faults, makes me want to keep watching for the inevitable introduction of a recurring Batman (probably as Bruce Wayne, but I’ll take what I can get). Kevin Conroy has shown that they can get away with this, so why not? Just please don’t repeat Titans’ iteration with Iain Glenn; that’s quite frankly a version of the Bat better left forgotten.

Crisis On Infinite Earths — Credit: CW, courtesy of EW

With so much high-standard DC television out there nowadays, with the spectacular Harley Quinn animated show and the charmingly unique Doom Patrol, the CW cannot afford to be lacklustre. I’ll admit that Crisis On Infinite Earths is a genius manoeuvre towards gaining fan favour, but the fact that I am yet to watch it out of dread for catching up on Supergirl speaks volumes for the issues underlying the fanfare.