Back in 2018, when Black Lightning graced The CW, I, as a comic book enthusiast, was taken aback. This series, unlike the other DC Comics-inspired shows on The CW, such as The Flash, Green Arrow, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, and later Batwoman, didn’t share the same universe. Jefferson Pierce and his family were a standalone story. However, by the third season of Black Lightning, everything shifted dramatically. With the epic crossover event, Crisis on Infinite Earths, our hero and his world were finally integrated into the Arrowverse.
Joining the Arrowverse during Crisis, Black Lightning initially seemed a significant change for the show. It indeed paved the way for the main character’s appearance in another crossover, Armageddon. Though fans might have been thrilled about Black Lightning becoming part of The CW’s expansive shared universe, looking back, the series never truly meshed seamlessly into the Arrowverse. This integration potentially limited the hero’s broader potential and failed to bring any meaningful benefits to the show itself. Instead, it would have been beneficial for the series to continue independently as its own universe.
Black Lightning Was Never Meant to Be Part of the Arrowverse
Initially, Black Lightning wasn’t supposed to be a part of the Arrowverse. Before its premiere, The CW president, Mark Pedowitz, clarified that the series was conceived as a standalone project from the beginning. Interestingly enough, it had initially been developed for another network and was intentionally distinct from shows like The Flash, Arrow, etc., in terms of both origin and design.
For quite some time now, Pedowitz has harbored a desire to collaborate with series creators Mara and Salim Akil. This ambition dates back to his days at ABC Studios. With Black Lightning, FOX initially held the pilot but ultimately chose not to air it. However, Salim and Mara presented them with an alternative proposal. The concept of Black Lightning differed significantly from other superhero productions in their portfolio and was never intended to be part of the Arrowverse.
According to Salim Akil himself, the series Black Lightning was designed to stand on its own and create a unique universe of its own, as perceived by Akil.
In a respectful manner, Akil expressed that the Arrowverse isn’t significantly tied to the show we’re working on. He highlighted that it was wonderful for Warner Bros. and The CW to grant them the freedom to build their own universe. Their aim was to let viewers get acquainted with this family first before exploring other aspects.
Black Lightning Was Tonally Very Different
As a movie enthusiast, I can say that my observation about Black Lightning doing something different from The CW’s Arrowverse proved right. This show, unlike others, delved deeply into societal and cultural issues, setting it apart from series like Arrow and The Flash. Instead of Jefferson Pierce, the principal of Garfield High School and community pillar in Freeland, being just another superhero, he became Black Lightning to save his daughters, Anissa and Jennifer, who were kidnapped by Tobias Whale’s gang, The 100. While the family threat and city peril are common in superhero stories, it was the direct confrontation of contemporary issues that made Black Lightning stand out.
One illustrative instance of this occurs right from the start of the series, where we see Jefferson being stopped by the police and subjected to rough treatment, including being forcibly removed from his car without any clear reason for the stop, as Jefferson hadn’t committed any offense. This scene left viewers feeling uneasy – a sensation that resonated particularly with Black viewers, as it mirrored an incident in Akil’s personal life. Akil shared with ComicBook that he too had experienced a severe traffic stop, and starting Black Lightning with such a scenario was crucial to establish the show’s atmosphere.
Akil mentioned that there were conversations with the network, and they were quite intense, but they weren’t conversations instructing him not to do something. Instead, they resembled more of an inquiry, asking “Can you explain why, at the beginning of the first episode…” He emphasized that it was crucial for them to discuss all the topics under consideration.
Black Lightning Never Actually Felt Like Part of the Arrowverse
In essence, although Black Lightning initially seemed like an integral part of the Arrowverse, it always felt distinct from the rest, both thematically and stylistically. This disconnection became particularly noticeable in Season 3’s ninth episode, “The Book of Resistance: Chapter Four: Earth Crisis,” which directly linked to the Crisis on Infinite Earths event. The episode depicted Freeland being affected by the red skies of the Crisis, with Jennifer Pierce encountering alternate versions of herself from other worlds before a destructive white wave—similar to what Arrowverse fans saw wiping out Earth-2—overwhelmed Freeland and took the Pierces away. Remarkably, Black Lightning was saved by The Monitor and shielded in blue light before vanishing, a fact that viewers wouldn’t learn until the third hour of Crisis on Infinite Earths.
In the “Crisis” episodes of shows like Supergirl, Arrow, The Flash, Batwoman, and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, the storylines felt like organic developments for each series. However, Black Lightning’s connection to the Crisis seemed somewhat out of place. Although Black Lightning assisted in containing an unstable anti-matter cannon and joined the Justice League, there were no major changes to his world post-Crisis as there were for other heroes. While the other series continued with significant repercussions for their worlds, Black Lighting resumed its storyline without any apparent effect from the Crisis. This left fans puzzled about why Black Lightning was involved in the Crisis initially, especially since they found the “Earth Crisis” events and overall lack of impact confusing.
In essence, incorporating Black Lightning into the Arrowverse turned out to be a missed opportunity. The Arrowverse seldom revisited or expanded upon the concept of Black Lightning’s involvement, with only occasional appearances like his role in Armageddon where Barry asked him to remove his powers. Interactions between Black Lightning and the mainline Arrowverse heroes were scarce, giving the impression that Freeland remained separate. This lack of integration within the franchise led to confusion when other DC shows on The CW were taken into account. For instance, Stargirl, although it seemed connected to the Arrowverse during Crisis on Infinite Earths, was not officially recognized as part of it. Similarly, Superman & Lois, despite its direct ties to the franchise, was not categorized as an Arrowverse series. Thus, adding Black Lightning didn’t seem to benefit the overall narrative and instead left many unanswered questions regarding other shows in the DC universe.
Black Lightning is streaming on Netflix.
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2025-02-02 23:11