Superhero shows don’t have very long shelf lives anymore. Back in the day, networks like The CW relied on comic book projects to fill up their slates. The Arrowverse’s flagship show, Arrow, ran for eight seasons, and its most successful spinoff, The Flash, got nine before it ran off into the sunset. But the world has changed so much with streaming. There are so many options that people don’t commit to seasons with 20+ episodes, wanting to get in and out of a world as quickly as possible and move on to something else. However, just because the golden age of superhero TV is over doesn’t mean it’s time to forget about the rejects.
More than a few superhero shows failed to get off the starting line. Most of them were like Inhumans, flawed from the start and in need of a quick death. There are a handful of others, though, that never got a fair shake for one reason or another. Here are five superhero shows cancelled way too soon.
5) Swamp Thing
In the early days of the streaming boom, Warner Bros. launched the DC Universe streaming service, which it hoped would house all of its content. One of the first shows to get the green light was Swamp Thing, about a doctor named Abby Arcane who learned about the mysteries of her home in Louisiana and a creature that called the swamp home. Right after the series premiered and received positive reviews from critics, DC Universe announced it was canceling the series. The remaining episodes released proved just how much potential the horror series had.
4) Constantine
DC decided to lease its most important warlock, John Constantine, to NBC in 2014. Constantine followed the titular character’s fight against the occult and his struggles with his past. Unfortunately, the show only ran for one season before NBC decided to pull the plug. One network’s trash is another network’s treasure, though, as Matty Ryan’s version of the character took his talents to the Arrowverse, where he appeared on both Legends of Tomorrow and Arrow. He deserved to be in the spotlight for longer, but he made the most of his opportunities.
3) Powerless
The superhero TV formula can get so stale. There are only so many fist fights a character can get into before something needs to change. Well, NBC’s Powerless decided it would be clever to showcase a bunch of characters living in the DC Universe with no powers. They still reacted to all the major events, even taking advantage of Superman turning back time by having a day where they did whatever they wanted, but it wasn’t enough. NBC cancelled the show before the end of its first season, even going so far as not to air the final three episodes. Like its characters, Powerless was harmless, and it deserved better than it got.
2) Wolverine and the X-Men
X-Men: The Animated Series and its sequel, X-Men ’97, are obviously the cream of the crop when it comes to mutant content. However, the other shows don’t need to be dismissed just because they’re not everyone’s favorite. Wolverine and the X-Men, for example, was a great attempt at reimagining the titular team’s story, putting Logan at the helm and having him embrace the greatness that Professor X saw in him. Sadly, despite getting good ratings and solid reviews, Wolverine and the X-Men failed to get a second season. The plan was for it to cover the “Age of Apocalypse” storyline, which probably would’ve helped it reach new heights.
1) The Defenders
The final entry on this list is a bit of a weird one because it was marketed as a limited series from the jump. Netflix’s The Defenders brought together characters from Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and Iron Fist to work together to defeat a common enemy. The six-episode season wasn’t great by any stretch of the imagination, but it had a lot of potential. If Marvel and Netflix had stayed on course and not cancelled all of its series, it might’ve had something special in The Defenders. At least there’s a chance that the team reassembles on Disney+.
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