TV Odds: Rounding Up the Comics, Sci-Fi, & Fantasy Rumors

Too much TV will melt your brain. That’s what my grandpa used to say and, if that parental pseudoscience is true, I should be nearing nuclear meltdown.

Ironically, know who might send my brain to complete disintegration? Superheroes.

Yes, as popular as the DC and Marvel Universes have been on the big screen, some of the comic world’s best have also found great success on TV, and more is to come.

The CW Network is home to PG DC shows, like Arrow, Flash, Supergirl, and Legends of Tomorrow.

Meanwhile, some Marvel properties have been hanging out on Netflix, giving the site record numbers of streams. Even if the current run of Iron Fist appears to be Marvel’s first critically panned show on the streaming giant, it’s still garnering a lot of eyes and the Marvel/Netflix future is still bright.

The superhero genre isn’t the only escapist motif rising in popularity. Science fiction and other fantasy genres are also in vogue. People just want to tap pure escapism into their veins and delve into stories that help them forget about the craziness just outside of the door.

Unlike the theatres, which are dominated by rehashed stories and characters, many of TV’s escapist shows are bringing something novel to the viewer. Legion and The Preacher are two comic adaptations that have found great success. The standalone shows tell their own creative stories instead of relying on the Avengers, Defenders, or Justice League to swoop in and predictably save the day.

The same can be said for science fiction; for every generic show about aliens or space travel, you get a program like The Expanse or Colony, which bring something unique to the genre.

With so much content out there beaming at us from different directions, we are being inundated with choices and that doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon. For every Iron Throne and zombie apocalypse, a small show like Stranger Things comes along and becomes an instant hit. So networks are now looking to emulate and find that little piece of the magic of their own.

So what’s next for some of these great escapes?

The Walking Dead has wrapped up season 7 and is already plotting season 8. Game of Thrones is set to start up again this summer as it inches closer to a conclusion. Stranger Things is not dropping until October but there is a ton of speculation online about what season 2 will give us as far as stories from the fictional town of Hawkins.

As we did with film, below is a roundup of TV rumors and odds on some of our favorite hejira.
WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Stranger Things

We already know that season 2 is set to debut on Halloween (October 31, 2017) and fans can’t wait to be turned upside down in the town of Hawkins. What’s in store for Sheriff Hopper, Will Byers, Eleven and the rest of the kids? Below are the odds on what will happen in season 2. Hint, the clues are found in the Dungeons and Dragons game the boys play.

Odds on Stranger Things Season 2

• Odds the Thessalhydra will be the big bad monster in season two: 3/2
• Odds that Eleven and the Demogorgon are one and the same: 2/1
• Odds that there is still something living inside of Will: 2/1
• Odds that Will is the Thessalhydra: 17/3
• Odds that season two reveals that Eleven has a brother: 9/1
• O/U on how many episodes will go by before we see the return of Eleven: 4
• O/U on total number of seasons for Stranger Things: 5

Game of Thrones

Season 7 is set to debut on July 16, 2017, and addicts are panicking as they realize that there are only two seasons left. There are rumors of HBO being interested in a spinoff series, but we’re likely getting to the end of our time in Westeros.

We already set odds on the upcoming season including a “death pool” of who we think is going to meet their maker. Here’s an updated look at who will die in their quest for power and an ugly looking chair.

Odds to die in Game of Thrones Season 7

• Cersei Lannister: 1/19
• Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish: 1/9
• Euron Greyjoy: 1/9
• Theon Greyjoy: 1/4
• Gregor Clegane, AKA The Mountain: 1/3
• “Bronze” Yohn Royce: 1/3
• Edmure Tully: 1/3
• Sansa Stark: 3/7
• Missandei: 3/7
• Jorah Mormont: 3/7
• Jaime Lannister: 2/1

The Walking Dead

Now that The Walking Dead has finished up season 7, fans will be clamoring like zombies to know what’s in store for season 8. Here’s a hot take: season 8 will be about Rick Grimes and his crew suffering for our enjoyment.

AMC has said that the next season will air for eight weeks starting in October 2017, followed by a three-month hiatus, and then returning with another eight episodes in February 2018.

The Walking Dead, for the most part, has carved out its own storyline but has been influenced by Robert Kirkman’s original and ongoing comic series. So if we were going to put out early odds on story rumors, we look to that canon for some clues.

Odds on The Walking Dead Season 8

• Odds on Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs) returning: 2/1
• Odds that Negan is taken prisoner by Rick: 3/1
• Odds on a prequel episode based on Negan’s past (comic mini-series Here’s Negan): 17/3
• Odds the show introduces Alpha and Whisperers: 9/1

Legion

Season 1 just concluded and the surprise mutant hit on FX is all primed for season 2, which will now be filmed in the southern California sun instead of the brooding and wet Vancouver.

For people who read the X-Men-spinoff comic series, it wasn’t a surprise when David Haller’s father was revealed to be Professor Charles Xavier’s son. When the show returns in 2018, it will bring ten more episodes and hopefully a few more answers in regards to David’s story and his character trajectory.

Currently, there are not a lot of rumors online of where the story will go next as the show doesn’t really follow the comics that closely. But we set the odds on whether we will actually see Professor X make a cameo in the upcoming season.

Odds for Professor X in Legion

• Odds Professor X makes a cameo in season 2: 1/1
• Odds that Professor X is played by Patrick Stewart: 3/7
• Odds that Professor X is played by James McAvoy: 7/2
• Odds that Professor X is played by someone other than Stewart or McAvoy: 23/2

Star Trek: Discovery

What the world needs is another Star Trek show. There has been a black hole-like void since Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and Voyager went off the television airwaves. Now it appears that a new Trek TV series is in development, or development hell, depending on how you look at it.

The show was scheduled to be released sometime in 2017 (January or May) but the premiere has been delayed indefinitely. That “indefinitely” part doesn’t sound good.

CBS has pulled the reins on the show, feeling it needs more polish. More actors were just added to the ever-expanding cast, but there has been no update on when the show is set to debut. Some sources say early fall is the new target.

When will we finally get to explore Star Trek: Discovery? We have the interstellar odds.

Odds on when Star Trek: Discovery premieres

• Fall of 2017: 1/1
• Summer of 2017: 2/1
• Winter of 2018: 17/3
• Spring of 2017: 100/1

New DC Television Series

DC Comics’ Geoff Johns is not only a prolific comic-book writer but also co-runs the DC Film division with Jon Berg. Back in January of this year, Johns made a few announcements via Twitter. The most tantalizing tease was a possible new DC television series.

There is no word if this new series will be an addition to CW’s Arrow-verse, which includes Arrow, Supergirl, The Flash, and Legends of Tomorrow. It could also be something that’s already been rumored to be in development like the Black Lightning project or Birds of Prey. Other DC TV projects currently in development include Syfy’s DMZ and Ronin, USA’s Amped, NBC’s Red, ABC’s Unfollow, and FX’s Y: The Last Man.

If you were to ask my daughter, she’s hoping for more Teen Titans, but something tells me that the rumored Black Lightning is set to announce development plans.

Below are the odds on the next big DC TV series announcement this year.

Odds on what new DC TV series will be announced next

• Black Lightning: 2/3
• Birds of Prey: 17/3
• Krypton: 9/1
• Y: The Last Man: 9/1
• Nightwing: 25/1
• A live action adaptation of Teen Titans: 100/1

Doctor Who

Season 10 of Doctor Who is set to premiere on the BBC on April 15th but there is already a ton of speculation about season 11 next year. The current and twelfth Doctor in the series, Peter Capaldi, is leaving the series after the 2017 Christmas Special. Longtime showrunner Steven Moffat is also exiting stage-right and will be replaced by Chris Chibnall.

That leaves the TARDIS in a state of flux for 2018 but with BBC concerned about recent ratings, a fresh look and feel for the show might be just what the Doctor ordered.

Who will replace Capaldi as the new Time Lord? According to British tabloid The Mirror, the next Doctor Who could be a younger actor. According to their sources, “BBC management wants a return to the David Tennant era, when you had a dashing male lead and a young female companion.”

There is also a push to have the roles reversed by having the first female Doctor Who. Below are the current front-runners to take on the role.

Odds on who will succeed Peter Capaldi as Doctor Who

• Phoebe Waller-Bridge: 3/1
• David Harewood: 5/1
• Kris Marshall: 17/3
• Tilda Swinton: 9/1
• Anthony Head: 12/1
• Olivia Colman: 15/1
• Richard Ayoade: 25/1
• Richard Madden: 25/1
• Ben Whishaw: 28/1
• James Norton: 28/1
• Reece Shearsmith: 33/1
• Eddie Redmayne: 55/1