In an unprecedented and unexpected turn of events, the plans for the next Arrow and Flash spin-off series have been revealed. Described as a “team-up” show from Arrow/Flash producers Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Marc Guggenheim and Sarah Schechter, the show will be led by Brandon Routh (Arrow‘s Atom), Wentworth Miller (The Flash‘s Captain Cold), Caity Lotz (Arrow‘s Canary) and Victor Garber (one half of The Flash‘s Firestorm), and feature “three major DC Comics characters who have never appeared in a TV series.”
Wait… what?! This is so out of left field that it feels almost too good to be true. While a show featuring Atom, Captain Cold, Firestorm (or at least Dr. Stein) and Canary is exciting, it’s hard to imagine how it’ll be pulled off, especially considering the fact that Caity Lotz’s character died in the opening episode of Arrow‘s third season.
What this show is, and what other characters it will feature, is a complete but enticing mystery. My guess is it’ll be some kind of Justice League or Justice Society variation, but how Captain Cold fits into that remains to be seen. Maybe they’ll just call it The Brave and the Bold, and feature the adventures of several DC superheroes from week to week? I’d be down with that.
The show is expected to skip the pilot season race altogether, and may go right into development for a premiere next midseason. That certainly makes sense, as all four leads are already cast and have already proven that they can embody their characters. Additionally, the producers – several of which are also developing CBS’ Supergirl show – have played around in the CW’s DC sandbox for enough time now to know how to develop a successful series, so they don’t have to prove to the network that they can run a show like this.
Another big question mark here pertains to those three mystery roles. The fact that they have supposedly “never appeared in a TV series” rules out anyone else show’s shown up on Arrow and The Flash, as well as a wide variety of characters who showed up on Smallville, like Cyborg, Aquaman, Booster Gold, Blue Beetle, Hawkman and Martian Manhunter. One also has to wonder if that requirement includes animation, as characters like Green Lantern have been given their own series in the past…
We’ll have more information on this new spin-off series as it develops. In the meantime, let us know your thoughts about this news, and your wishes for those three DC mystery characters, in the comments below.