Would Arrowverse shows be better with closer to 13 episodes?

[Jim Kelly]

BLACK LIGHTNING felt rushed toward the end. And they seemed to introduce Martin Proctor late in the game just to have a fall guy for the season. Yet he was a cardboard cutout nowhere near as well developed as the other villains.

I think 16 to 18 episodes is the ideal.

However, people act like filler stories are terrible, when I feel these are often the best stories. They aren’t serving the larger story arc, so they can try other things. And a longer season allows some of those epidodes.

[Powerboy]

I think two 13 episode arcs might help them cut the fluff. Or, as AJBopp said, maybe even more than two arcs or maybe arcs that last as long as it takes to tell the story without padding and some individual episodes that are concisely told in one episode.

[Osiris-Rex]

I think they should go old school and have 23 stories per season. Watch re-runs of the Adventures of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman. Each episode was pretty much self contained. At most as story
would last two episodes. Even lots of modern shows follow this format, NCIS, L&O:SVU, Hawaii Five-O. They may have some underlying thread, but each episode is pretty much self contained.

[Gray Lensman]

I gave up on all the comic shows halfway through last season. It will always be All Barry's Fault, Oliver will never learn to stop keeping dark secrets, and something contrived will always come between Fitz and Simmons. Once I realized that I was unable to keep interest.

[Zero Hunter]

I think they should go old school and have 23 stories per season. Watch re-runs of the Adventures of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman. Each episode was pretty much self contained. At most as story
would last two episodes. Even lots of modern shows follow this format, NCIS, L&O:SVU, Hawaii Five-O. They may have some underlying thread, but each episode is pretty much self contained.

The problem with that approach is you get the "monster of the week" style story telling. This works with police procedrials sure, but with superhero shows it gets old fast. That was one of the biggest knocks people had about sci-fi/superhero shows in the past. Shows like Smallville used to get roasted for that tired troupe all the time.

[bobellis75]

They need to cut episodes or like others have said, don't rely on one arc for an entire season.

I suggested at one point they do shorter 13 episode seasons and they could run shows all year...when one ends, another kicks off. Another idea would be to do a Brave and Bold show where they focus on crossovers from different shows. Different characters team up, like the comics. Maybe you have a science arc with Ray Palmer, Felicity, Cisco, Wells, etc.

You could do 2 to 4 episode arcs on a show like that, keep everything fresh, and mix character from the universe, keeping it even more fresh and less tied to the constructs of each individual show.

If you have 52 weeks per year divided be 13 episodes you could run 4 seasons in a row and fill a year. Of course you'd need some overlap, etc. Maybe....

FALL: Arrow/Supergirl
SPRING: Flash/Legends
SUMMER: Black Lightning and then do the Brave and the Bold show here as well.

something like that.

[AJBopp]

I feel like season-long arcs are unique to this decade, and it will be looked back on with amused disapproval, like wide ties and lapels in the 70s. There is little of interest, really, in a hero that takes the better part of a year to defeat. The premise also makes it difficult to re-introduce interesting characters. I think Grodd is good for one two-parter a season. But if you're trying to tell one story about Thinker, a Grodd story seems like shoehorning.

Also, not every story has to be about defeating a villain. There are natural disasters, an unknown illness befalls the hero or supporting cast, or even lighter shows such as the protagonist trying to get to some important event only to be constantly interrupted with traffic accidents and bank robberies that take his time and attention.

[bobellis75]

I feel like season-long arcs are unique to this decade, and it will be looked back on with amused disapproval, like wide ties and lapels in the 70s. There is little of interest, really, in a hero that takes the better part of a year to defeat. The premise also makes it difficult to re-introduce interesting characters. I think Grodd is good for one two-parter a season. But if you're trying to tell one story about Thinker, a Grodd story seems like shoehorning.

Also, not every story has to be about defeating a villain. There are natural disasters, an unknown illness befalls the hero or supporting cast, or even lighter shows such as the protagonist trying to get to some important event only to be constantly interrupted with traffic accidents and bank robberies that take his time and attention.

I like some of the lighter shows with flash...scenes like Barry realizing he can't get drunk, or when the boys went to the strip club, etc. You could still build in minor things like "bachelor party interrupted by a bank robbery" as you can't make the entire episode be them at a strip club...but agreed...some of those episodes are fun and adds some depth and information (and then Cisco creates the drink to get Barry hammered, etc).

[Osiris-Rex]

The problem with that approach is you get the "monster of the week" style story telling. This works with police procedrials sure, but with superhero shows it gets old fast. That was one of the biggest knocks people had about sci-fi/superhero shows in the past. Shows like Smallville used to get roasted for that tired troupe all the time.

I don't know. I wasn't one of those people knocking that format. What made people come to the conclusion they enjoyed a story that dragged out all season instead of individual stories? When I eat I don't eat the same food everyday.
I eat ribs, spaghetti, shrimp, roast beef, chicken depending on the day. Why do I want to watch the same villain week after week when it is obvious the villain won't be defeated until the final episode. How is this better that defeating
that villain the first episode and then moving on to another one?

[Osiris-Rex]

I like some of the lighter shows with flash...scenes like Barry realizing he can't get drunk, or when the boys went to the strip club, etc. You could still build in minor things like "bachelor party interrupted by a bank robbery" as you can't make the entire episode be them at a strip club...but agreed...some of those episodes are fun and adds some depth and information (and then Cisco creates the drink to get Barry hammered, etc).

Or like with Supergirl where Reign is the overall threat. But there are individual episodes having Supergirl go to Mars to help the good White Martians, or Kara and Alex going to Midvale and reminiscing on their childhood.
or dealing with the legacy of Toyman. Or even going to Fort Rozz orbiting the blue star, where it was part of the story arc, but could have easily been a stand alone episode.

[Elmo]

Multiple arcs within a season allows them to do more stories with more villains. However, the petty drama between character that is used for no other purpose than to fill up an episode's length is beyond tiresome. Agents of SHIELD kills it because they do multiple plotlines in one season and always keep it tight, fresh, and engaging. Never a dull moment. You cannot say the same for any Arrowverse show. In every Arrowverse show, villains are able to easily get away or defeat the hero throughout the episode just to stretch out the story allowing the hero to beat them in the end. It's absolutely ridiculous at this point

[Sandy Hausler]

The problem with that approach is you get the "monster of the week" style story telling. This works with police procedrials sure, but with superhero shows it gets old fast. That was one of the biggest knocks people had about sci-fi/superhero shows in the past. Shows like Smallville used to get roasted for that tired troupe all the time.

That COULD happen. But there have been plenty good shows before LOST (which, I believe, began the season-long story format), where each episode of a show told a complete story. If nothing else, it makes it easier for new viewers to get into a show.

Sandy Hausler

[VolcanikTiger86]

As someone has already mentioned, yes it could be good with less fluff however if you really wanted to you could say they have had at least 2 arcs one with Cayden James and the other with Diaz, another way to look at it is before NTA become annoying and after, the problem is if the writing is crap then no matter how you plan the show its still going to be crap you just get less of it which isn't that bad but did I mention still crap.

[Powerboy]

The problem with that approach is you get the "monster of the week" style story telling. This works with police procedrials sure, but with superhero shows it gets old fast. That was one of the biggest knocks people had about sci-fi/superhero shows in the past. Shows like Smallville used to get roasted for that tired troupe all the time.

There will be complaints no matter what.

Some people prefer a concisely told story, complete in one or two episodes. Other people complain that those sorts of shows could be shuffled and shone in any order because the characters never change.

Those people prefer the continued storyline while the episodic crowd calls that a soap opera.

As people already said though, even if they go episodic but keep the subplots, the problems will still exist. Oliver will keep dark secrets and Felicity will act like a petulant child. Barry will always blame himself and so on.