Best TV Series from the Network, Ranked

Launching on September 2006, The CW has been around for almost 16 years. The network’s goal at first was to mainly appeal to young women audiences by airing reality shows such as America’s Next Top Model, but they came to realize that it wasn’t an efficient way to promote their program. Ever since then, The CW has been appealing to both men and women, and its audience demographic is currently said to be split in half. Although The CW gets criticized by the general public for its low-quality effects, it still has some of the most unforgettable TV series

Updated, July 25, 2023: To keep the article fresh and relevant by adding more information and entries, this article has been updated by Rafa Boladeras.

Yet the CW, as fans know it, is massively changing. The network was acquired by Nexstar Media Group. Shortly before the acquisition was made official, the network canceled ten series, including Batwoman, Legends of Tomorrow, and Dynasty, to name a few. Since then, Nextar looks to change the format of The CW and what type of series it broadcast and is looking to expand with police procedurals and reality television. The CW is now looking to cut costs, which means the era of fandom-friendly television on the network might be over. Yet the network has had an incredible run of series that is worth looking back on. These are the best TV series from The CW.

13 Nikita

Nikita was worth it just to see Maggie Q as the action hero, and lead of a show she always deserved. Based on the Luc Besson movie and the 90s showed that followed, this spy series had Nikita and her protegé Alex (Lyndsy Fonseca) trying to destroy the evil spy organization that trained them, and used other spies for nefarious purposes. As with any CW show, there was also a will they-won’t they between Nikita and Michael (Shane West) that lasted all four seasons; and the show always had great action, surprising twists and turns, and some globe-trotting missions.

12 Smallville

Smallville was all about the teenage years of Clark Kent before he became Superman. The show was a sensation when it aired and was ahead of its time in proving that audiences wanted superhero shows in their lives. Tom Welling played the hero as he learned of his powers, had crushes on girls like Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk), became best friends with Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum), and started his journey to defend the world. Some of the digital effects might’ve aged poorly, and the dialogue could be corny, but the villain of the week structure evolved into interconnected stories that showed how bigger and full that world was, something the CW would use later for its Arrowverse.

11 Veronica Mars

Veronica Mars tells the story of the character of the same name, a teenage girl who is also a detective trying to solve the murder of her best friend Lily Kane. Although only the third season was part of the CW, the show was so good that become one of its best, especially for the snappy dialogue, the incredible and breakout performance of Kristen Bell as Veronica, and the will they-won’t they relationship between her character and Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring).

The original show lasted three seasons, and only that last season aired on the CW, but there was enough hunger for more stories that a movie financed by fans was made in 2014, and Hulu released a fourth season in 2019, more than a decade after the show ended on the CW.

10 Gossip Girl

The success of Gossip Girl as a TV series in the early 2000s was truly unmatched. Based on the novel series of the same name, the plot is narrated by an unknown blogger called “Gossip Girl”, who tattles about the upper-class adolescent and their messy dramatic lives in New York City. In the same manner of Pretty Little Liars, the identity of the blogger is concealed throughout the series and serves as the drive of the storyline.

Gossip Girl went on for six seasons, and due to its popularity, has had a lot of other adaptations across the world. Despite some toxicity surrounding the group of wealthy friends, the show makes you realize just how lonely you probably tend to get. In 2021, a Gossip Girl reboot aired, this time streaming on HBO Max, ultimately continuing the story with a whole new cast.

9 The Vampire Diaries

The CW love its supernatural concepts and The Vampire Diaries is just one popular example. Once again based on a book of the same name, the story follows Elena Gilbert, played by Nina Dobrev, and the Salvatore brothers as they deal with many dangers involving the entangled history of vampires, werewolves, witches, and many fantastical beings. The series had the largest audience drawn with the series premiere — almost 4.8 million, per TV Guide — and it kept its biggest popularity until the arrival of Arrow.

Even though The Vampire Diaries ended after its eighth season back in 2017, the universe has continued in other media, such as the TV series The Originals and The Legacies.The Vampire Diaries has a lot of emotionally damaged characters that just keep on getting hurt over and over again, and you can’t help but enjoy the vampire drama.

8 The Flash

Set in the same universe as Arrow, The Flash is a character from DC Comics and tells the story of Barry Allen, a crime scene investigator who suddenly gains superhuman abilities to fight off the criminals and other supervillians. The producers didn’t plan to fully develop the series, but after the success of the pilot episode, The Flash has since gone on for eight seasons.

What’s likable about the TV show is how it humanizes its own characters. For instance, despite having the power of super speed, Barry always manages to be late. The DC cities usually have their own distinct vibe, but in The Flash the city simply loves him and supports him at catching the rogues. The series has had a great impact on the character and likely will keep the character of Barry Allen relevant for modern audiences after how badly the 2023 film starring Ezra Miller underperformed.

7 iZombie

iZombie is a TV series also loosely based on a comic book and with a little grittier premise than usual: medical examiner human-turned-zombie Olivia Moore eats the victims’ brains to solve the crimes. The show ran for five seasons, with its final one airing in 2019. The show is full of great characters, such as Ravi Chakrabarti, who, instead of freaking out upon discovering that zombies exist, immediately starts looking for a cure for his friends and tests it on himself. iZombie also delivers perfectly iconic lines, and the humor is immaculate. It’s one of the shows that, once you watch and love, you won’t be able to recreate the same feeling when watching it the second time.

Related: Best Zombie TV Series, Ranked

6 Black Lightning

Running for four seasons, Black Lightning is yet another superhero TV series that The CW picked up and developed. It has Cress Williams as the titular character of Jefferson Pierce, a retired superhero who’s now the school principal and is forced to go back to his previous job when it mingles with his personal and professional life. Black Lightning officially became part of the Arrowverse during the third season as part of a crossover DC event. Despite the quality of the series, The CW yet again handled the cancellation unprofessionally, given how the actors found out the news from Twitter. It was the first superhero production from The CW that was canceled without any sort of conclusion — and that says a lot.

5 Superman & Lois

The newest show on The CW, Superman & Lois tells the story of a married Superman and Lois Lane as they attempt to raise their two young sons, Jordan and Jonathan Kent, in Smallville. It is one of the best modern takes on the Superman story and is one of the few series to survive the massive purge of series following Nextstar’s acquisition of The CW. It will be interesting to see if the upcoming fourth season, which has had its cast cut down quite a bit, will be the last in order to clear the way for the upcoming film Superman: Legacy. Even if it is Superman & Lois not only stands tall in terms of superhero television but the history of The CW.

4 The 100

The 100 is a post-apocalyptic science fiction TV series loosely based on a novel of the same name. With Eliza Taylor and Bob Morley in the lead roles, the plot follows a group of delinquents who return to Earth from a space habitat a century after a nuclear catastrophe. Not only do they have to get used to the new lifestyle, they also have to learn how to co-exist with the people who survived on the grounds.

3 Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend was a one-of-one show, as there had never been anything quite like it. The show was about Rebecca Bunch (Rachel Bloom who also created and wrote the show), who followed an ex-boyfriend across the country to get him back. The series had musical numbers on each episode with incredible lyrics, sometimes funny, sometimes poignant, that showed Rebecca’s state of mind. Those musical numbers had a surprisingly nuanced approach to mental health, as the songs marked the character’s journey. Although it was one of its less-rated shows, the CW knew it had a treasure in its hands and kept renewing it, especially when Bloom won a Golden Globe for her performance.

2 Supernatural

As the longest-running American fantasy TV series, Supernatural managed to run for 15 seasons. With Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles in the lead roles as the Winchester brothers, the plot centers around the two as they carry on the family legacy by hunting all kinds of supernatural beings, such as demons and ghosts. Due to its big following, you’re bound to have two parties that are completely divided on their opinions about the show. One party genuinely enjoyed everything that Supernatural put out, and the other just rolled with all of their mistakes because they wanted to know how the story was going to end. Although airing a TV show for 15 seasons runs the risk of stories going stale, Supernatural still remains as one of the most enjoyable series on the network.

Related: Why Supernatural is One of the Greatest Fantasy Shows of All Time

1 Jane the Virgin

Based on a Venezuelan telenovela Juana la virgen, Jane the Virgin is a satirical romantic comedy-drama that has received high critical acclaim for its performances and overall storyline. With Gina Rodriguez in the lead role, the plot follows a 22-years-old Latina virgin who accidentally gets pregnant due to artificial insemination by her gynecologist. The TV series is amazing in all its aspects: it has canon gay characters, found family, peak comedy (as well as parts of dramedy), and themes of sexual realization. On top of that, it’s very emotionally compromising, and even violent in some seasons.