Tom Swift is a Science Fiction series airing on The CW, starring Tian Richards as the titular character. It is a Spin-Off from Nancy Drew (2019), and an adaptation of the classic book series by Victor Appleton.* Ashleigh Murray, Marquise Vilson, April Parker Jones, and Albert Mwangi also star, along with Levar Burton as the voice of Barclay. It aired on the CW on May 31, 2022.
When his wealthy industrialist father is apparently killed during a mission in space, brilliant inventor Tom Swift discovers a conspiracy to destroy his father's company, and must work with his best friend Zenzi, cousin Lino, and bodyguard Isaac to expose the conspiracy and find his father.
In June 2022, it was announced the show has been canceled by The CW after one season
. Despite the cancellation, the CW continued to air the series throughout summer 2022 until its season-turned-series finale.
This series contains examples of:
- Adaptational Diversity: The original books had a nearly all-white cast, whereas this series has nearly all of its important characters played by actors of color. It also has a number of queer characters, including its openly gay protagonist and his pansexual bodyguard, who is also a transgender man.
- Adaptational Sexuality: In this version, Tom Swift is an openly gay man.
- Afrofuturism: The series explores the life of a black Science Hero.
- Awesome, but Impractical: Most of Tom's inventions are really cool, but have questionable practicality; one of his inventions is a spray that creates a free-floating selfie camera, and the only thing he's used it for is taking better nudes.
- Benevolent Conspiracy: Episode 6 reveals that Tom's mother Lorraine is part of the Tubman Group, a secret society of black Americans amassing wealth to help black causes and eventually leave Earth for their own planet, away from white supremacy. It's indicated that this was the mission Tom's father was on when he went to space.
- Bittersweet Ending: Due to the series being Cut Short. Tom decides to save his father, but it comes at the expense of losing Barclay. The Road Back is still out there and Claire is still planning on taking over Swift Enterprises by blackmailing Lorraine. However, Barclay could still possibly be saved with an old backup, The Road Back gets fully exposed to the public, and Tom has finally grown from his flaky, immature self and finally forgives his father for how he treated him, especially after he gets an apology from him. But then there's the time-traveling twist/cliffhanger...
- Bodyguard Crush: Tom's bodyguard Isaac has an obvious attraction to Tom.
- Boring, but Practical: In "...And the Liftoff to Saturn", Zenzi charges Tom with developing a new type of liquid soap in order to fulfill the company's contract with a chemical manufacturer. While he balks about it being boring, Zenzi points out that soap is something that most people buy regularly, and thus would generate steady revenue for the company, unlike a lot of his other inventions.
- Brilliant, but Lazy: Tom is a genius inventor, but has long used his dad's money to avoid any sort of responsibility. In the pilot, after his father dies, Zenzi forces Tom to work on a contract to produce a new type of soap in order to prove that any of his inventions have a practical purpose.
- But Not Too Gay: Wholly averted, we see Tom and Justin make out in the pilot and have an implied sex scene, and then have a boundary-pushing love scene in full view in episode 3 that even the creators didn't think would get cleared by the network.
- Canon Foreigner: Every regular character was created for the series, other than Tom Swift and his father Barton.
- Cassandra Truth: Isaac is the first to suspect Rowan had something to do with Barclay being compromised but was dismissed by Tom, at until the end of the second episode.
- The Conspiracy: The Road Back is an extremist organization that has members everywhere, including Nathan Eskol, a congressman who's also a friend of the Swift family, his bodyguard Rowan, and Barclay (albeit unwilling).
- Contrasting Sequel Main Character: Nancy Drew is a white straight girl and Tom is a gay Black man, to point out an obvious difference. Also Nancy is used to dealing paranormal phenomenon, whereas Tom is science-minded and doubted the existence of ghosts, a contrast that was shown in the Poorly Disguised Pilot. Their series' genres also contrast with each other; Nancy Drew is a supernatural horror series and Tom Swift deals with science fiction.
- Cure Your Gays: "... And the Night to Remember" sees Susannah Robb reveal that the "allergic reaction" that Tom suffered when he was a kid was the result of Barton giving him an experimental drug to alter his sexuality.
- Dating Catwoman: Rowan is shady, works for The Road Back (though he has his own motivation in working with them), and doesn't tell Tom and his friends the whole truth. Naturally, Tom is smitten by him.
- Dude Magnet: Issac, Rowan, and recurring character Justin are all very into Tom.
- Evil Luddite: The Road Back seeks to stop the progress of technology due to them thinking that the uncontrolled growth is the reason for society's ills.
- Fully Absorbed Finale: Of a sort, Tom Swift gets a few name drops during Nancy Drew's final season, indicating that Swift Industries is still thriving and does survive the takeover Claire tries to pull in the cliffhanger season/series finale and Tom is still working to save his dad.
- Gayngst: Not so much within himself, as Tom accepted his sexuality as a child. But his father's constant disappointment in him, not to mention him trying change Tom's sexuality with experimental drugs has caused Tom a lot of angst.
- Gotta Catch Them All: The first season is dedicated to Tom and his friends finding his father's capsule pieces/Plot Coupons from his spaceship that spread throughout the USA.
- Hyper-Competent Sidekick: Zenzi, who deals with the day-to-day operations of Swift Enterprises while Tom is off inventing or flirting. She also helps Tom out with finding the capsule pieces.
- Idle Rich: Tom has this reputation within Swift Enterprises; despite his inventions and technical know-how. It's a useful cover for Tom to use while trying to piece together what happened to his father.
- Inadequate Inheritor: Tom is fighting against this reputation as Swift Enterprises is in his hands. Unfortuntely, he's busy trying to stop The Road Back and Claire Cormier, the SVP trying to take over the company.
- The Illuminati: The Road Back, which seeks to end the technological advancement of the human race.
- In Name Only: The tone is far more adult than the books ever got, and despite over a century of characters and plots to draw from, the only characters to carry over from the books were Tom and Barton. And even then, their personalities are wildly different from their book counterparts.
- Left Hanging: The creators were clearly anticipating on a season two before the show was canceled, so several plot lines are left open in the season turned series finale with new cliffhangers. Congressman Eskol may have killed by The Road Back. Lorraine discovers Claire was using the gel to get secrets from her, but then Claire blackmails her, gunning to be Swift Enterprises CEO. What's going on with Lino and his visions isn't made clear. And biggest of all, Rowan reveals he is from the year 2096 and reveals Tom's father traveled through a wormhole through time and to the future with Tom's rescue drone and sent Rowan back in time to the current year to make sure his and Tom's lives are saved.
- Love Triangle: Issac has his eyes on Tom, but Zenzi is showing interest in Issac.
- The Man Behind the Man: Well, woman in this case; Investor Susannah Robb turns out to be at the head of The Road Back and not Congressman Eskol. Eskol, as it turns out is Trapped in Villainy as The Road Back helped him with his campaign and has dirt on him and made him kill someone to keep him in line.
- Manly Gay: Rowan is an tough enforcer for The Road Back, but he is also gay and also a little In Touch with His Feminine Side.
- The Mole: Rowan is a double-agent; he works for The Road Back to spy on Tom Swift, but he's working in Tom's interests. As well as Barton's interests since Rowan is from the future and Barton is stuck there.
- Never Found the Body: In the pilot, Barton Swift's spaceship is destroyed, but being so far out from Earth, his body is not recovered. By the end of the pilot, it's revealed that Barton survived the explosion, but is marooned in space.
- Race Lift: The Swift family is black in this version.
- Really Gets Around: Tom is quite the playboy and has had many suitors, Justin in particular.
- Real Men Wear Pink: The otherwise-manly bodyguard Rowan keeps immaculately-styled nails, because he wants at least one part of him to be beautiful.
- Rogues' Gallery Transplant: The Road Back was first introduced in Nancy Drew and played a huge part in that show's second season. They seemingly have moved on from hindering Nancy's investigations and are now Tom Swift's Big Bad. In Tom's case, they are more of a thematic fit.
- Science Hero: Tom uses his brilliant inventions to find evidence of the conspiracy against his father's company.
- Secretly Dying: Susannah Robb's hatred of technology stems from her parents giving her experimental drugs to boost her intelligence when she was a kid. The drugs caused long-term damage to her insides and she expects that she will be dead by the time she's forty.
- Sex for Solace: Tom has sex with Justin right after his father's funeral service to distract himself for his pain.
- Sharp-Dressed Man: Tom, who is always dressed to the nines and has the latest fashions. Even when spelunking in a mine, his gear is fashionable. Zenzi is also a fashionista.
- Spared by the Adaptation: In the original novels, Tom's mother is long dead, but in this series, she is still alive.
- Stable Time Loop: Rowan is actually from the year 2096 and was sent to 2022 by Tom's father to ensure that Tom save him from space with the rescue drone. Everything Rowan did, from joining The Road Back, to compromising Barclay was to make sure the timeline stayed stable.
- Virtual Sidekick: Barclay, Tom's virtual assistant AI.
- Wanted a Gender-Conforming Child: The penultimate episode reveals that Barton was so adverse to Tom being gay that he used an experimental and highly dangerous drug to try and "cure" him back when he was a kid.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Tom feels the long shadow his father Barton cast over him, and deep down only wants to make him proud. Barton loves his son, but disapproves of his immature attitude and hasn't quite accepted him being gay.
