Ironically, I was thinking that the Batwoman thread had become alive again with news of the show's cancellation. Good luck to the fans, writers, and others bingeing and tweeting, etc., to keep the series alive, but right now, I'm very iffy if that is going to work.
Really the series should've been canceled after Ruby Rose left. But I do give them credit for creating a brand-new legacy character for the lead. Conceiving of Wilder as a Black character, particularly in the age of the Black Lives Matter Movement, opened up a lot of new storylines to explore as well. And despite Rose leaving the show, in retrospect, Season 2 of Batwoman held up fairly well. I think they made it work for the most part.
And going into the third season there was a chance to really take it to the next level, but I think the writing just wasn't there. It started off with all the Batman rogues' weapons, and while that could've turned into a repetitive weapon of the week season, it still connected Wilder more deeply to the Bat mythos. And when they had actual Batman villains (Hush, Zsasz, Poison Ivy, and the Black Glove Society) they often were shortchanged. Ivy could've been a season long big bad, as could Hush and Zsasz. It was a neat twist to make Jada Jet, the Jezebel Jet equivalent, into Wilder's birth mother, but even that story lost some spice after the twist that made her an ally and not the big bad or one of them. Instead, the writers chose Marquis as the big bad. I guess they thought a deadly sibling rivalry would work better (even though the series already had had that with Kate and Beth, and there was still residual sibling bad blood with Beth and Mary before Marquis was introduced). And I don't think the Marquis Joker really cut loose, to really push Batwoman to the limits of her morality or sanity, which many of the best depictions of the Joker have done to Batman. Ultimately the Marquis Joker storyline fizzled for me.
Poison Ivy also fizzled. Great choice of actress, not bad costuming, but ultimately it went nowhere. I was enjoying how hard it was for Batwoman and her team to fight Poison Ivy, the writers did do a good job of making her a big threat, but then they quickly moved on when they could've developed a longer story arc for her, and Montoya.
I do think the Batwoman cast is likable (I liked Leslie in the lead role more than Rose), and I don't want to see any of them out of work, but I don't have high hopes for a renewal. I could see the suits rationalize that now that Naomi is on the network, they don't need two DC comics/superhero series fronted by Black females.
While Caroline Dries seems to have some ideas for a fourth season, I feel that last season was a big, missed opportunity, and I have little faith it will be game changing. If there is a fourth season, I'll take a look at it and see what they have planned or where it's going.
Really the series should've been canceled after Ruby Rose left. But I do give them credit for creating a brand-new legacy character for the lead. Conceiving of Wilder as a Black character, particularly in the age of the Black Lives Matter Movement, opened up a lot of new storylines to explore as well. And despite Rose leaving the show, in retrospect, Season 2 of Batwoman held up fairly well. I think they made it work for the most part.
And going into the third season there was a chance to really take it to the next level, but I think the writing just wasn't there. It started off with all the Batman rogues' weapons, and while that could've turned into a repetitive weapon of the week season, it still connected Wilder more deeply to the Bat mythos. And when they had actual Batman villains (Hush, Zsasz, Poison Ivy, and the Black Glove Society) they often were shortchanged. Ivy could've been a season long big bad, as could Hush and Zsasz. It was a neat twist to make Jada Jet, the Jezebel Jet equivalent, into Wilder's birth mother, but even that story lost some spice after the twist that made her an ally and not the big bad or one of them. Instead, the writers chose Marquis as the big bad. I guess they thought a deadly sibling rivalry would work better (even though the series already had had that with Kate and Beth, and there was still residual sibling bad blood with Beth and Mary before Marquis was introduced). And I don't think the Marquis Joker really cut loose, to really push Batwoman to the limits of her morality or sanity, which many of the best depictions of the Joker have done to Batman. Ultimately the Marquis Joker storyline fizzled for me.
Poison Ivy also fizzled. Great choice of actress, not bad costuming, but ultimately it went nowhere. I was enjoying how hard it was for Batwoman and her team to fight Poison Ivy, the writers did do a good job of making her a big threat, but then they quickly moved on when they could've developed a longer story arc for her, and Montoya.
I do think the Batwoman cast is likable (I liked Leslie in the lead role more than Rose), and I don't want to see any of them out of work, but I don't have high hopes for a renewal. I could see the suits rationalize that now that Naomi is on the network, they don't need two DC comics/superhero series fronted by Black females.
While Caroline Dries seems to have some ideas for a fourth season, I feel that last season was a big, missed opportunity, and I have little faith it will be game changing. If there is a fourth season, I'll take a look at it and see what they have planned or where it's going.
