Well, I suppose that’s one way to make the entire Renew/Cancel conversation boring.  Today, the CW handed out it’s early renewals for its scripted shows for the 2016 – 2017 season and the shows coming back are…all of them.  Well, all of them that have aired this year that haven’t been cancelled (Containment still needs to air).  That takes the CW off the board in terms of fretting whether your show is on the bubble or not.  Even low rated Reign and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend are coming back (the latter making me very happy, you should really watch this show).  


These renewals are raising a few questions, plus there’s some “good to know” facts for fun: 

– Do the math.  11 shows, ten slots.  What does this mean for the five pilots being made right now?  They all have a chance, although the CW will likely pick up just two or three.  With the demand of year round programming and reruns becoming unacceptable, there’s a lot of hours to fill.   Seasons are 36 weeks long and the most episodes a show gets is 23.  Thursdays has space and could easily be split into fall and winter.  The 100 is a limited series and will likely get 13 to 16 episodes, which is just a small chunk.  Legends of Tomorrow, iZombie, and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend currently are less than 22 episodes and it’s unknown how many they get next season. Reign has summer show written all over it, and it’ll join their reality slate of Whose Line Is It Anyway, Masters of Illusion and Penn and Teller Fool Us for summer.  Containment starts April 19th.  Otherwise, summer still has open slots.  There is plenty of room for more shows.  Or, Pedowitz puts it this way:  

“As we continue to further our strategy of more year-round original programming, picking up these 11 series for the 2016-17 season puts us in a great position of having proven, high-quality shows to launch in the fall as well as midseason and summer of 2017.”

– Supernatural, currently the only show to exist since day one of The CW, has been renewed for season 12.   What does that mean?  With the cancellation of America’s Next Top Model earlier this season, it now becomes the longest running show ever of The CW (granted that would sound better if this network wasn’t just 10 years old).  Supernatural will also hit a big milestone in season 12, it’s 250th episode.  For those of us who still remember the “Save our Show” campaigns back in the early days on The CW, that’s quite a thing.  Suck it Dawn Ostroff.  

– Speaking of Supernatural, Deadline reports that stars Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki are now signed through season 13, so the words “last season” shall not be uttered this year.

– While we’re on milestones, with the season five renewal Arrow will air it’s 100th episode next season.

– Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley have signed on for The Vampire Diaries season 8.  Even though the show’s ratings have drastically declined, they have boosted the super dead Friday night and get 100 percent plus gains in DVR.  No one is saying “last season” about this show either, although that announcement is traditionally saved for upfronts.  

–  Why the renewal of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend?  Two reasons.  First, Rachel Bloom is a real talent and won the Golden Globe.  The series is a critical darling and has a real shot at bringing award recognition to the network.  Second, it’s made by CBS Studios, who produces the three lowest rated shows on the network.  They need to have some shows on this network too and this isn’t a bad show at all to run with.  Couple it with Jane The Virgin (another CBS Studios show) and it’s a real entertaining night.  

Need a scorecard on what the next season will be?  Here is your handy-dandy guide:

Jane The Virgin – Season Three
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend – Season Two
The Flash – Season Three
iZombie – Season Three
Arrow – Season Five 
Supernatural – Season Twelve (Yes, the network is only going into season 11.  It’s older than The CW!)
Legends of Tomorrow – Season Two
The 100 – Season Four
The Vampire Diaries – Season Eight
The Originals – Season Four
Reign – Season Four

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