The newest DC TV show, Powerless, had a lot going for it. It had some big names like Vanessa Hudgens and Alan Tudyk, it was a unique concept to the superhero genre, and it was on NBC, a channel known for some legendary comedy shows. It began midseason at the beginning of February and as far as pilots go, it wasn’t half bad. But since then, ratings dropped and NBC has now decided to not even let it all air. The last three episodes of the twelve episode season will not be airing in their normal scheduled Thursday time slots and may not ever air.

So what went wrong? DC has seen a lot of success on the small screen, and even other one season shows like Constantine (also on NBC) got to at least air all their episodes before being cancelled, so what led to Powerless being cut prematurely?

I watched every episode. Not because I particularly enjoyed it, but because it aired between Superstore and Riverdale, and I was, at one point, excited for it. Like I said, it did have a lot going for it. But episode after episode failed to deliver and it never really showed signs of getting better. As far as comedy goes, it was pretty weak. I chuckled a few times in the first couple episodes, but there were no memorable jokes.

The characters were all annoying too. Emily’s pep and positivity was likable and inspiring at first, but overtime it got tiring and forced and too much to handle in that setting where no one could match it. Van’s constant lack of authority or maturity or basic compassion was frustrating and unlikable. Jackie’s one-tone voice and her role as ‘team mom’ was boring. Ron and Teddy’s friendship was nice, but was a little too similar to that of Abed and Troy in Community, and Teddy on his own was rather unpleasant. And Wendy was….Wendy.

The special effects and costumes were less than satisfactory, though I’d be able to forgive that (considering it is twelve episode first season) if the rest of the show made up for it, but instead it just made it all seem too cheesy and fake. The filming technique was awkward and often filmed too close to the characters, making the show and the acting more forced and uncomfortable.

Maybe this show was doomed to fail from the start, as there were some changes in showrunners even before the first episode premiered. It’s really too bad, because the show did have some fun ties to the larger DC universe and could have touched on so much more due to its uniqueness as a superhero workplace comedy, but instead the show focused on bringing together a rather dysfunctional team of rather annoying people.

I can’t say I’ll miss Powerless too much, but will you?