Fox made two high-profile renewals last night, one expected and one less so. The former isGotham, Fox’s “James Gordon prequel series” that quickly turned into aBatmanprequel series. The show dipped in the ratings from Season 1 to Season 2, but has held fairly steady with Season 2 for its currently running Season 3. As with the second season, this third season was divided up into two thematic chunks—“Mad City” and “Heroes Rise”. The Court of Owls have become a major plot point on the show, as notable comics villains have taken a larger role.
Gothamis a unique case in that it’s one DC Comics TV series that’snotrun by the folks that spearhead the CW pack ofArrow/The Flash/Supergirl/DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. Instead, it stands alone on the Fox network, and it’s brought in a solid genre following for Fox and thus they’ve decided to continue the story for at least another season.
As for that other renewal, the half-hour comedyThe Last Man on Earthwill be returning for a Season 4. This was considered a bubble show as it had dipped in the ratings considerably, especially over the past couple of months, but creator/starWill Fortemade his creative pitch for what Season 4 would entail and it sounds like Fox wants to stick with it.
The series began tremendously as a breath of fresh air, but between seasons 2 and 3, Forte stepped down as showrunner and handed the day-to-day duties over toDan Sterling. This third season has had its ups and downs, but as evidenced by the ratings has been kind of stuck in a rut over the past handful of episodes, becoming more of a traditional sitcom than the twisty, boundary-pushing comedy series it was in the beginning. So here’s hoping there’s a return to form in Season 4.
To catch up on all of the renewals and cancellations—which are coming in fast and furious now—check out our completeTV Lifeline.
