There are a plethora of superhero TV shows on the air right now, and some of them do end up having to share the same night on the TV schedule. This fall, however, CBS’ Supergirl and Fox’s Gotham--both DC Comics shows—will be duking it out on Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET. The move by CBS to air the show in the same slot Gotham has and will continue to run in has been questioned by some, but at a press room at Comic-Con on Saturday, Supergirl executive producer Greg Berlanti allayed our fear somewhat, telling us he feels there is room for both shows. On Monday nights. At 8 p.m.
I think so many people I know watch stuff the night of, but watch one thing that’s an 8 o’clock show at 8, then another 8 o’clock show at 9. You know, there’s so many different ways and there’s so much competition anyway just to be in TV that you just have to really make the best show you can and then hope that everybody that’s meant to be shows up for it.
He’s certainly spouting facts when he talks about the changing nature of television, noting that people capably DVR programs and watch them at their own pace. The DVR’ing process may not always be conducive to ratings success, but if people are watching Live or the same day, it usually works out alright. Berlanti also talked about how he sees both DC Comics-based properties as good shows and the best both teams can do is put out a good product and hope both will be able to find audiences.
I’ve been against enough things with shows that I thought, ‘oh, we’re doomed,’ but the show worked, or conversely, I thought, ‘oh, this is gonna be a cakewalk,’ and then the other show trounced us. So I really think that a lot of times both things can work. If they make a great show—which they do—and we make a great show than I think we’ll both be OK.
Every primetime TV show always has someone to compete with in the timeslot. Not only do the big 5 networks have to compete with one another, but now there’s often compelling cable and subscription cable originals to contend with, as well. So maybe there really will be room for two superhero shows on Monday nights. After all, The Flash and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. make it work on Tuesday nights, as well.
Interesting, it’s not as if Gotham and Supergirl will be directly competing right away. Fox announced a short while ago that Gotham will be hitting the schedule on Monday, September 21 at 8 p.m. ET. Supergirl is getting its official premiere more than a month later, on October 26. While it will typically air Mondays at 8 p.m. ET, CBS is giving the series a Big Bang Theory lead-in, and the first episode will actually hit the schedule at 8:30 p.m. ET, just to confuse things.
Supergirl is one of the highest-touted dramas of the season, thanks to its subject matter and the fact that it sports an incredibly endearing yet competent female lead. We already know a lot about the upcoming series, and we'll let you know if any other fun tidbits head our way before you get the chance to see how Supergirl stacks up against Gotham yourself.
