Syfy announced today that freshmen series The Magicians will be returning for a second season which will comprise thirteen episodes. The news comes as no surprise seeing as it is the best rated scripted show on the network since last 2014’s Z Nation. The first episode of The Magicians actually pulled only a 0.3 rating when it was given a special preview after the third night of the network’s Childhood’s End mini-series. But that episode plus the second installment averaged a 0.4 rating when aired back-to-back when the series proper started on January 25th. Last week saw the show’s numbers lip a little bit but not much. And Syfy has given almost all of its scripted shows a second season of late as a chance to build their audience. Case in point, The Expanse which is more expensive and has pulled much lower ratings than The Magicians, but which has already been renewed for a second year. The Magicians is based on the series of novels by Lev Grossman about a college for magic and it currently airs at 9 PM EST on Mondays (you can see the full mid-season schedule at this link).

There will be plenty more renewal and cancellation announcements in the weeks and months ahead as we head into Upfront season when the cable and broadcast networks start announcing their schedules for the coming year. So be sure to stay tuned to this site and the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for announcements and breaking news.