It will be a slow roll-out – very slow, in some cases – for CW’s new-season shows.
Most will arrive in an eight-day stretch from Jan. 17 (“Batwoman,” now with a new star, shown yhere) to Jan. 24 (“Charmed”). But viewers will have to wait until Feb. 8 for “Black Lightning” and Feb. 23 for “The Flash” and the new “Superman & Lois.”
Unlike bigger networks, CW took a cautious approach to the COVID shutdown: It filled its fall line-up with a patchwork of delayed summer shows or shows from other countries, plus the final “Supernatural” episodes. That meant its main shows could wait until January.
Now it turns out that their return will be spread over six weeks, with a couple temporary shows filling a Tuesday gap. Here are the starting dates:
– Jan. 8: Two shows – “Penn & Teller: Fool Us” and “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” – move from Mondays to Fridays, where they were originally slated.
– Jan. 12: The temporary Tuesdays begin, with the low-budget “Two Sentence Horror Stories” and the Canadian “Trickster,” a supernatural series.
– Jan. 17: “Batwoman” returns with a new look: Ruby Rose, who played Kate Kane and Batwoman, has left; now a different character, Ryan Wilder, will be Batwoman. Like Kane, she is gay; unlike her, she is Black. She’s played by Javicia Leslie, who was Miles’ sister in “God Friended Me.”
– Jan. 18: “All-American” returns.
– Jan. 20: The Wednesday line-up is back, with “Riverdale” and “Nancy Drew.”
– Jan. 21: “Walker” debuts and “Legacies” returns. Jared Padalecki stays at the network where he’s had 15 “Supernatural” seasons; he’s also back in his Thursday timeslot, this time in a prequel to “Walker, Texas Ranger.”
– Jan. 24: “Charmed” returns, in the Sunday slot behind “Batwoman.”
– Feb. 8: “Black Lightning” returns in the Monday spot behind “All American.”
– Feb. 23: “The Flash,” CW’s most-watched show, finally returns. It’s followed by the debut of “Superman & Lois.”
That last one (starring Tyler Hoechlin and Bitsie Tulloch) is not to be confused with “Supergirl,” one of many shows that were already slated for mid-season – whenever that is. Others are “Dynasty,” “In the Dark,” “Legends of Tomorrow” and “Roswell, New Mexico,” plus two new shows – “Kung Fu” and “Republic of Sarah.”