It’s incredibly difficult to believe that on October 10, 2012, almost 11 years ago, my friends and I were huddled in a friend’s living room together to watch the first episode of a show that would came to define not just a universe but also an entire era of a television network. That show of course was Arrow which aired on The CW, and the world built upon it is the Arrowverse, which concluded this week with the final episode of the second most successful show in the world, The Flash.
It’s almost difficult to remember this was before the MCU became the behemoth it is now, and though the first Avengers film was greatly anticipated that year, it was just as much DC’s year in the spotlight as anticipation and expectations were high for Nolan’s final Batman film Dark Knight Rises. So at the time comic fans weren’t entirely bereft of quality DC content on screen, though the film proved to be a mixed bag for critics and audience members alike; however, for fans such as myself of D.C. first and foremost I was still hungrily looking for the next big thing for D.C. to offer be it in the big screens or on TV.
Thankfully Arrow quickly satiated my appetite for that and more. Despite a shaky start, with some actors cast aside, some rightfully elevated, and an emphasis on “The Island” that would even make Lost fans ask “come on really?”, Arrow began to become a phenomenon and started to grow in its success as it brought a new broader audience to The CW. Two years later, almost to the day of Arrow’s debut, the network then debuted The Flash, which was another must-see moment for my friends and I.
The Flash, thanks in part to the success of Arrow, as well as its cameos, started off strong from the jump, and it eventually became the most popular series on The CW surpassing The Vampire Diaries as the highest watched premiere.
The network and the shows creators then went on to make these crossovers an annual event, which began to bring in more and more of the properties as they were developed.
Following Arrow and The Flash, the network created DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, which even without the inclusion of Arthur Darvill already felt like a superhero version of Doctor Who. Despite its own rocky start this show in many ways eclipsed the previous shows critically as it leaned into what made it so unique, thus earning it an 89% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes that is only matched by The Flash’s.
Quickly thereafter the Arrowverse seemed like it was growing exponentially, whether by saving a show, as with Supergirl which began on CBS before moving to The CW, saving a character, like with John Constantine originally from the titular NBC show who then joined DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, or by developing new ones including: Black Lightning, Batwoman, and two animated series Vixen and Freedom Fighters: The Ray.
In many ways this popularity, and expanding universe, couldn’t go on forever (cough, cough Marvel), and though the Arrowverse peak is disputed, some say 2016, others even earlier, undoubtedly it did peak, and more and more for my friends and I no longer considered it appointment television. Crossovers became almost too hard to watch, which episode goes where again?, and naturally our passion for some shows, and some characters, just faded.
I honestly can even admit I’m now behind, not just on The Flash which just aired its final episode, but many of the other series as well that I loved but just never felt I needed to keep up with in the same way. I still plan to go back to them, as I am a completist in this fashion; however, I’m in a smaller crowd I imagine than I once was.
That’s not to say however these shows, and this universe, wasn’t an incredible achievement. In fact, I wouldn’t be writing this if I didn’t think so, and I think in many ways the Arrowverse, perhaps tied alongside Supernatural, changed The CW for sure, but also helped change TV in many ways as well. Marvel certainly leaned into more TV shows to keep up with D.C., and like Arrow they had to learn to get over some early missteps to succeed as they did with Agents of Shield. Netflix as well seems to have developed series that capture the same audience, if not always the same ethos and style, of the Arrowverse.
So though the Arrowverse, and many ways The CW as its now understood, have come to a conclusion, this time will undoubtedly always be remembered as a high water mark. I know all the many actors whose careers were made certainly think so, and I as a fan will always look back at this time with love. I can only hope that somewhere in the twinkle of a writer’s eye there’ll be the future of another such incredible world, and that I won’t have to Flashtime too far in the future to watch it.
