The CW is bringing another superhero drama to an end. Black Lightning is ending after its upcoming fourth season.

It’s a sad day for Black Lightning fans. The CW has opted to end another of its superhero shows.

Black Lightning Season 4 will be the last. There is going to be no fifth season, but the spin-off series Painkiller is still in the works.

Whose decision was it to end the show? It sounds more like The CW’s decision than the creators’, and it fits the idea that the network is ushering in a new generation of superheroes.

Black Lightning ending with Season 4

TVLine reported the news, sharing an update from the show’s creator and showrunner Salim Akil. This is a series that came about thanks to more Black voices being heard. Black people want to see themselves on the screen. They want to see themselves in lead roles and even have their own shows on main networks.

Black Lightning certainly gave everyone that chance. Not only did fans have Jefferson Pierce, a Black man in the lead role, but fans got Anissa and Jennifer as two Black female superheroes. And let’s remember Anissa is a Black lesbian superhero.

The show has offered us a complex villain in the form of Tobias White, an albino character that is not just your standard bad guy. This is a series that has promoted and celebrated diversity, and it’s going to be sad to lose it.

The good thing about it is that the show’s writers are getting some warning. They’ll be able to work on bringing the series to an end. Hopefully, it’s not the redirect that The 100 writers seemed to have to do with the seventh and final season.

Black Lightning: Season 1 (BD) [Blu-ray] ($)

Painkiller spin-off still in the works

We’re not completely losing the Black Lightning family. And this is where I’m sure it’s The CW’s decision to end the series.

The spin-off was announced a few weeks ago. It will focus on Khalil Payne, played by Jordan Calloway, and the backdoor pilot will happen during Black Lightning Season 4.

The CW has focused on bringing in a new generation of superheroes, starting with Batwoman. Stargirl followed and now we’re getting a Wondergirl series. The only spin-off that hasn’t been picked up yet and sees to have been quietly turned down is Green Arrow and the Canaries, an Arrow spin-off.

There is also the upcoming Superman & Lois spin-off planned, with Supergirl coming to an end after its upcoming sixth season.

How is Black Lightning going to end and will any of the characters appear in Painkiller? We’ll have to wait and see. There isn’t much longer left to wait.

MORE: The Flash, All American and more land 2021 premiere dates

What do you think about the decision to end the series? Would you prefer the series to run concurrently with its spin-off? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Black Lightning Season 4 will premiere on Feb. 8, 2021 at 9/8c on The CW.