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Ranking TV’s New Fall Shows Based On Their Trailers: The CW

Now that the 2017 Upfronts are complete, networks are starting to release trailers for their upcoming pilot seasons. Fan Fest will be watching them all and giving you the low-down on what to watch and what you should probably avoid.

Ranking TV’s New Fall Shows Based On Their Trailers: The CW

4. Dynasty

Time Slot: Monday’s at 10 p.m.
Premise:
 A reboot of the old Aaron Spelling melodrama about the 1% of the 1%

https://youtu.be/Uxacuu_vg8Y

After watching the trailer for Dynasty I had many thoughts. The first being that you can 100% tell that this show was created by the minds behind The O.C. and Gossip Girl. I, for one, do think that this crazy family drama should find some viewers on The CW as similar shows have in the past, but felt that a lot of the main characters seemed to fall flat. The plot seems overplayed but I wouldn’t put it past this show to have some interesting twists. Fans of the original may tune it, but whether or not there will be enough for them to stick around remains to be seen. While series like Gossip Girl, The O.C., and even the new hit Riverdale certainly had their fair share of adult drama, the main draw was the younger generations of characters. I’m not entirely sure Dynasty will be able to retain audiences unless the supporting cast is strong.

3. Valor

Time Slot: Monday’s at 10 p.m.
Premise:
 Follows a group of helicopter pilots after returning home from a mission that did not go according to plan. As new developments occur they discover that the decisions made both at home and deployed will have major consequences. 

https://youtu.be/8dqzih8hI1U

Snap Judgement: This is probably one of The CW’s most valid attempts to get a serious drama on the air. The only problem with Valor is that I’m not entirely sure that it’s premise and genre will really find an audience on the network. While their abundant amount of superhero shows are clearly bringing in an older demographic, one can’t help but wonder if they will leave the TV on for a military drama. Aside from that, the trailer seemed a bit clunky. There was a lot going on and it was hard to even figure what was going on, but it sure did look nice. You can tell The CW really cranked out the big bucks for this one. You have to appreciate the risk they are making here and if you look close enough you can still see all of your classic CW staples – love triangles, drugs, deceit, and plenty of drama.

2. Life Sentence

Time Slot: Midseason
Premise: A girl who had been living her life to the fullest as she prepared to die of cancer all of the sudden finds out that she has been cured and must deal with all of the changes and secrets that come with her new life sentence.

https://youtu.be/in3OecHvWXQ

Snap Judgement: Life Sentence actually looks adorable. Normally, this show wouldn’t make a bit of sense on The CW, but with the success of similar style shows like Jane the Virgin and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend it just may work. Lucy Hale takes the helm and seems excited to be finally taking on a new role after her many years on Pretty Little Liars. It appears the first season will revolve around Stella discovering all of the lies people told her so that she could live the last 8 years of her life peacefully, while simultaneously discovering that her decisions throughout those 8 years will have many consequences. The CW has clearly figured out how to do this genre well and I think that Life Sentence will be another ray of light on the somewhat darker CW lineup.

Black Lightning

Time Slot: Midseason
Premise: The CW’s newest superhero show about Jefferson Pierce who hung up his Black Lightning suit many years ago, but finds himself needing to put it back on again to protect his city and his family.

https://youtu.be/RZpJeuXo2CY

Snap Judgement: First and foremost, it has been confirmed that Black Lightning will not be involved in the current CW Arrowverse. This is one of the main reasons why I think this show will be successful. Having the ability to start fresh and remain independent will give it a lot more freedom to truly build its own world. I also like the fact that it’s narrated by Jefferson’s daughter and it looks like we will be skipping over the origin story. Having the title character be older with a family may give the show a more mature and darker feel, plus it will really up the stakes of his decision to put his suit back on. With the history of successful superhero shows on the network, I would put my money on viewers wanting to tune into this.

 

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