UPFRONTS 2019: The CW's Official Fall Schedule

Finally, here is the CW schedule!
Check back next week for my recap of the 2018-19 season!

Past CW Upfronts: 2018   2017

MONDAYS
8:00 All American (2nd season)
9:00 Black Lightning (3rd season)

The CW is making a lot of changes and most of their nights at least make thematic sense. But Monday is the outlier. They will lead off with teen/football drama All American and follow it up with the dark DC show Black Lightning. These two don't seem compatible at all. That probably doesn't matter all that much for the CW, but the rest of their lineup does flow together well. All American was a questionable renewal at best and Black Lightning saw a big drop this past season so Monday could be the worst night for them outside of Friday.

TUESDAYS
8:00 The Flash (6th season)
9:00 Arrow (8th season)

Arrow kicked off the CW/DC universe and was followed two years later by its biggest show, The Flash. Despite being the cornerstones of a sprawling group of shows, the two have never aired on the same night. Now they will for Arrow's final, 10 episode season. It seems like a fitting goodbye to Arrow and none of the newbies really seemed like a great fit to follow The Flash anyway. We'll see what comes to the slot at midseason, perhaps Roswell, New Mexico again.

WEDNESDAYS
8:00 Riverdale (4th season)
9:00 NANCY DREW

Once upon a time, Riverdale was a force to be reckoned with and could have been a great lead-in to a show like a dark spin on the teen sleuth Nancy Drew. But Riverdale is a shell of what it once was in the ratings (and apparently in quality too, I don't watch anymore) so I'm a little surprised that the order isn't switched here. It seems like it would have made much more sense to give Nancy Drew the local lead-in. As the shows stand in this order, I think Riverdale continues to decline and Nancy has a hard time finding its place.

THURSDAYS
8:00 Supernatural (15th season)
9:00 Legacies (2nd season)

The only night that is staying in tact is Thursdays. The veteran drama Supernatural will air its 15th and final season. Predating the CW itself, it has been a remarkable run that at one point seemed like it would never end. But it will and I'm sure the CW will do a lot of promotion leading up to its finale. It is followed by Legacies, which was its lead-out for most of this season. Legacies seemed like a pretty compatible drama so I understand this lack of movement.

FRIDAYS
8:00 Charmed (2nd season)
9:00 Dynasty (3rd season)

Friday is a dumping ground for the CW so it's at least a little surprising that Charmed is already getting pushed off to this night instead of All American or Black Lightning. Charmed has not done great on Sundays by any means, but it seemed like it was a higher priority for the CW and while timeslots means less on this network that any other broadcast one, it is still a timeslot downgrade. Meanwhile, Dynasty has carved out this night as its own and will shift back an hour to 9pm to give Charmed the local lead-in.

SUNDAYS
8:00 BATWOMAN
9:00 Supergirl (5th season)

Sundays are going full on girl power as Batwoman joins Supergirl on the night. Batwoman seems to be the biggest CW priority going into next fall so this seems like a smart move to give it the 8pm slot and pair it with one of the CW's more stable performers. I like the branding of putting Batwoman and Supergirl together. That was my suggestion (but I had it on Mondays). Considering how much buzz Batwoman has already gotten, it could be the strongest CW premiere in awhile, but we'll see.

MIDSEASON: KATY KEENE, The 100, DC's Legends of Tomorrow, In the Dark, Roswell New Mexico
No word on destinations for any of these shows but Katy Keene seems like it will be a Riverdale companion at some point while DC's Legends of Tomorrow may share with Black Lightning again and In the Dark could be Friday bound.

CANCELLED/ENDED: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, iZombie, Jane the Virgin

TO SUM UP:
The CW seems to be figuring out what its future will be even as they say all the right things. The reality is that things are getting anemic across the board even for one time hits like The Flash, Supernatural, and Riverdale. Not all that much separates their top show from their bottom show anymore. Now comes the news that they aren't continuing their Netflix deal and the new shows will be shopped individually. I think the CW has some great brand name shows that have clearly had an impact on the culture, but I just wonder how much longer they will be a viable network in their current format. I'm not sure it will be much longer, but a solid Batwoman premiere in the fall would be a good sign for them.