It’s Smallville Week here at iFanboy! We are celebrating the end of one of the most important comic book-inspired shows in the history of television by counting down some of our favorite aspects of Smallville. And then come back on Friday night to join us in a special live chat during the east coast airing of the two hour series finale!
It was around ten years ago when we first saw that strange, powerful image of Tom Welling strung up like a scarecrow in a cornfield, branded with the scarlet letter of Superman. While the series hasn't always embodied the audacity of that visual (probably a good thing), TV's Smallville spent an entire decade showcasing and reinventing the ongoing adventures of Superman for modern audiences. Ten years is an impressive run for any kind of show, but for a teen drama based on hayseed hero Clark Kent, with or without the familiar cape and tights? It's staggering. Smallville concludes tonight, and in the wake of NBC's decision not to move forward with the Wonder Woman series, the new television landscape is void of costumed crusaders.
Given the success of modern comic book film franchises, Smallville's legacy is unlikely to be left collecting dust. It's Warner Brothers' and Geoff Johns' mission to find the new Smallville. We've already seen screen tests for a Blue Beetle show, though the fate of that project is undetermined. We also shouldn't look at the dissolution of David E. Kelley's Wonder Woman series as either a condemnation of superhero projects or of the character herself. In the end, the mix apparently just wasn't right. Don't hang up the lasso just yet.
Looking at the wide variety of characters and situations from throughout the history of the DCU, here are five suggestions for your consideration.
5. Starman by James Robinson
The stars all align in James Robinson's celebrated Starman series. Like Smallville, Starman tempers the super heroics with the consistently popular and relatable theme of familial legacy. It's a story about fathers and sons, fathers and daughters, and of sibling rivalry and fellowship. Jack Knight is a charismatic lead, and his approach to vigilantism is already balanced perfectly for television. No suit to radically redesign. No huge compromises. Opal city makes for a colorful setting, especially with regard to Jack's junk shop and the opportunity to move freely from the city to the countryside. Where there is a traveling carnival. Carnivals are hugely popular in film and television right now (gift horse), and any show with a built-in carnival tangent has a leg up over just about anything else. Get James Garner to play Ted Knight and we're off to the races.
4. Bat Lash
Listen. Hear me out. You liked Brisco County Jr. and Maverick, right? Westerns seem to be working right now. True Grit. Rango… And Justified is sort of a western. Ish. The iron is as hot as it's gonna get. Jonah Hex is a bit too surly for primetime, network TV. He's also probably too much of an antihero to pull his own regular live action series, even if you did go to cable. Plus, the name's a little damaged right now. That's why we pan over to the left to that rapscallion Bat Lash. We meet him sneaking out of a convent window or being hurled from the door of a saloon. He's young. He's dapper. He's sly and charming. Find the next Chris Pine or Nathan Fillion, and you have yourself a rip roaring comedy western. Has lapel flower, will travel!
3. Deadman
Quantum Leap meets The Fugitive (where is the man with the hook?!) meets The Ghost Whisperer. With monks!
2. Zatanna
Her cameo appearances on Smallville serves as proof of concept for this one, whether the approach is a direct spinoff or a ground-up rebuild. The premise is a solid new entry, given the zeitgeist. An appealing young heroine at the nexus of all things supernatural. Zatanna is the most grounded and–no bones about it–attractive tour guide to the magic corner of the DCU. While elements like Shadowpact or Dr. Fate or even Detective Chimp could figure into special guest roles, the regular cast could easily make room for Traci Thirteen and the Blue Beetle or even Jason Blood. That's probably the trick with DC's more outlandish horror and magic characters. Used sparingly, they make ideal cameos and support cast for born headliners like Zatanna.
1. Gotham Central by Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka
You had to know this was coming, right? If Smallville was the perfect venue for exploring Superman in a comfortable teen drama setting, Gotham Central is absolutely the best way to bring Batman to live action television. In fact, it's probably the only way. It's as simple as that. It's a police procedural, one of the most commonplace templates on TV, constantly in search of uncommon twists. And Batman's rogues gallery is about as uncommon and valuable a commodity as a procedural could hope to utilize. If there's one major question mark at the moment, it's the precedent set forth by the forthcoming Powers TV series for FX. The concept is similar, so would one become the Babylon 5 to the other's Star Trek: Deep Space Nine? Or is the world big enough for two capes and cops dramas?
Previous Lists:
Smallville: The Best Episodes
Smallville: The Best Characters
Smallville: The Best DCU Guest Stars
Smallville: The Best Moments
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Zatanna!
definitely agree with you there on gotham central, to me it’s a no brainer!? done right, it could make really great tv!
Gotham Central is a definite YES!!!! I’d also like to see a young Bruce Wayne show and I’m surprised they never brought in Bruce on Smallville. I can see it now, have Geoff Jon’s write a Smallville episode called “World’s Finest”… sigh. Also a Bat LAsh show would be cool but I’d like to make it “All-Star Western” and add in Jonah Hex, El Diablo, and the rest.
Gotham Central. On HBO. It’d better happen.
@JesTr I think everyone wished they brought Bruce into Smallville. I don’t know if you have heard or not, but it’s been all but officially confirmed that Warner Bros. put a blockade around Bruce Wayne/Batman with regard to Smallville. At the time the show started, The studio was trying to get a new Batman movie (which would eventually become Batman Begins) off of the ground, and didn’t want viewers to get confused. Nevertheless, that is also a big reason why Green Arrow originally felt a bit more like Batman than himself. I hope this is informative for you, otherwise I just wrote this for nothing. Anyway, the more you know…
@jono87 They also had a block on Wonder Woman and, I think, eventually, Green Lantern.
Gotham Central would be perfect. The Wire with added Batman. (Which, let’s face it, is just about the only thing that show was lacking.)
If TV fams think Lost got weird, I wonder what they’d make of The Doom Patrol… (The Grant Morrison era, obv)
Also, Morning Glories is surely a dead cert for a TV adaptation?
Gotta cast my vote for Gotham Central as well.. was there anybody reading it that didn’t think “this should be on TV”?
..and get Brubaker and Rucka on the writing team, please.
Speakng of Rucka… what about a Queen and Country adaptation?
I started reading Hitman on the iPad and I think that’s a comic that can be adapted for a reasonable price, preferably on a cable channel.
I’d never considered Deadman in a TV show but Paul’s right. That’d be the perfect way to pitch it. Deadman may need an attractive female companion who can see him though. Get some sex appeal added to the show.
Given the Smallville is on the CW, I could see Zatanna working, even a show that highlight Robin with Batman as a background character.
I like how you kept all the ideas for a show grounded Paul. none of these shows have an emphasis on lots of special effects, which I am sure make them more attractive to studios.
I’ve wanted to pitch Warners about the Death of the New Gods, but they’re ressurected as High Schoolers. But Barda comes back in the body of an insecure nerd girl and teaches her how to stand up for herself.
I mean, I know that Queen and Country is neither a superhero book, nor a DC book, so it really doesn’t fit in this discussion.. just something I thought of when mentioning Greg Rucka, and something I think would be cool. 😉
But yeah, if Gotham Central wasn’t number 1, I think this comments section would have blown up (rightly so). LOL
Not sure about Gotham Central after Birds of Prey. Starman could be awesome. Rosenbaum as Deadman would be awesome. After all, he did the voice on Brave and the Bold.
I can see all of those except for Bat Lash. I just can’t see a Western TV show having any sustained audience. Thanks for reminding me of Brisco County JR! ha
Deadman and Zatana could be really cool shows. I think the secret to getting these properties to work is to take them away from comic book costumes and make them a bit more realistic.
Gotham Central also could be cool. A bit of CSi with a sprinkling of Superheroes in the background.
I’ve been hoping against hope that the introduction of Conner Kent this season was leading up to a Teen Titans spin-off! A girl can dream…
Gotham Central could work.
I mean it’s mainly a Cop comic with a pepper of Bat-villains and a cameo by Batman once in a blue moon. Just make it like Detroit 187 and it’ll work.
I’d love to see Starman.
i love the term “Cops and Capes” btw….is that a Paul Montgomery original?
@wallythegreenmonster You owe me 35 cents for even quoting it here.
Is “capes and robbers” better?
Bollocks to that — What about a live action version od ‘Hellblazer’ (i know its a Vertigo book but he’s back in the DCU) that should liven up the TV schedules
Starman and Gotham Central would be great. I’ll only agree with Zatanna if there will be appearances from Constantine 😉
Left out Constantine for a couple of reasons. Too early to consider him a DCU character at this point. And if you want to do it good and proper and not just a Kolchak or Dresden Files level softening, it has to be effed up. And that limits it to premium cable.
@PaulMontgomery –thats a good one too! royalty checks! on noes! …but but i saw it on the internet!
How about Wayne Manor following Bruce Wayne through college and into becoming Batman.
Constantine on premium cable would be amazing, they’d sooner or later have the episode where he had to sex himself out of a demon convent.
A western could work or blow up, it’s all about luck tied to talent with that genre lately.
I want a live action Detective Chimp show in the veins of Scooby-Doo but messed up, have him travel around with a bunch of teenagers solving mysteries but have lots of blood and violence.
I think Tom Welling is up for putting on a backpack and walking across America to solve society’s ills in a condescending manner.
I’d love to see a Gotham Central show done in the same tone and style as the Nolan films.
I wouldn’t mind seeing Green Arrow get his own series.
And speaking of green.. She-Hulk would be a crazy series to get made.
I don’t think it would ever happen. But if we could get a version of Gotham Central that was as gritty and serious as Homicide: Life on the Street (a show that Rucka and Brubaker clearly drew from for GC), the world would be a more amazing place for it.
y’know I absolutely LOVE the idea of a Gotham Central tv series, but there’s no way hollywood wouldn’t fuck it up. They’d most definitely put more Batman in it than there should be and i don’t think the series works as well if Batman went from just having cameo appearances to being a full time supporting cast member
Zatanna!
@jono87 I guess I just got learned.
I must say all of these are good choices!
Great list! I knew Gotham Central would be #1 before I clicked the link, but that’s only because it’s 100% the best answer.
Now that Law & Order is done on televison, i would LOVE a Gotham Central television show! LOVE it!!!
Gotham Central gets a thumbs up from me.
Also, would be interesting to see what could happen with a Deadman series. I have visions in my head that it could be done well, but it would have to be done well or it’d be left looking silly.
Erica Durance as Zatanna.
Gotham Central has my backing too, I think it has the potential to be really cool. I always loved how Gotham itself was like a character in the Batman universe and if they could tap into that, make the city looks really unique and threatening with specific building styles etc it would be an amazing backdrop to a cope drama. Plus, ya know…the whole Batman thing
Zatanna!
i would love a starman tv show with Colin Farrell as Starman
I say it a lot but Sandman Mystery Theatre would be the most perfect, easiest superhero to make a TV series or movie about. It’s Sam Spade with a gas mask and gas gun fighting mobsters and serial killers. The stories themselves are like Dashiell Hammett by way of David Fincher. It’s PERFECT.
Tork beat me to SMT as a series. Set it in the 30s and I would so watch.