Despite high hopes (well, for some), it looks like the 2010-11 season is set to be another wipeout for fans of science fiction and fantasy on mainstream network TV.
The viewing/ratings statistics website By the Number (http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com) has a chart they update each week on the status of shows on the big 4 networks plus The CW, and it's pretty grim:
Medium: Cancelled
No Ordinary Family: Certain to be cancelled
The Cape: Certain to be cancelled
V: Likely to be cancelled
Human Target: Likely to be cancelled
The Event: Likely to be cancelled
American Dad: On the bubble
Fringe: On the bubble
Chuck: On the bubble
Smallville: Not cancelled, but ending anyway
The only shows that the site considers safe are the spy series Nikita (not really SF/F but it targets the same demographic), and the supernatural shows, er, Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries. And the fandom-friendly Big Bang Theory if you want to be picky.
Forget about quality issues, because before you say "well the shows suck that's why" note that Fringe continues to be acclaimed, Medium has many followers, and the fact Chuck has a loyal fanbase that loves the show goes without saying. I keep saying this - quality has no nearing on success in the ratings and never have, and if you need the example to prove it, try starting a thread about how bad a show Firefly was!
Anyway, every year this question gets asked, but I think it's going to stick this time. How many people are basically giving up on watching any SF/F-related programming on the mainstream American networks in the future? Shows like V, The Cape - I put a lot of interest into those shows, but they're dead in the water. Moreso than in past years, I'm being left rather gunshy about putting in any more "investment" into new shows.
Cases in point: they've announced a new show called 17th Precinct for NBC which is about police detectives working in a magical fantasy city. Sounds really cool. I won't be watching it because it'll be cancelled in 6 episodes. I'm curious to see what David Kelly does with Wonder Woman, but even if they cast Summer Glau as Diana (hey, looks like she'll be available soon) I won't be watching because the ratings show the American mainstream network audience isn't interested in superhero shows.
Thank god for the cable networks, where shows like Being Human and Doctor Who and Torchwood continue to thrive. Doctor Who wouldn't have lasted 6 weeks on NBC.
I'm just wondering how much it will take for Ronald D Moore (who is behind that 17th Precinct), David Kelley, Joss Whedon to finally realize it's a waste of time, emotional investment, and money to keep flogging a dead horse and try to get the American mainstream audience to watch these types of shows when they'd rather look at J-Lo's ass on American Idol or see what The Bachelor is up to. Not saying they should stop making TV series - the TV series format is still superior to film in terms of telling detailed, long-form stories - and I'm not even saying they should abandon mainstream networks because I know they have contracts that all but force them to dance with the devil, but rather than launching a series for one of the main networks and saying they have a 3-year story arc planned, only to have Fox kill it in 4 episodes (Wonderfalls), they should look to the past and revive the mini-series.
I think if we went back to "event" shows there might be more success in the SF/F arena on mainstream TV. The Cape, Fringe, even Chuck might have worked a lot better - ratings-wise, and some might also argue quality-wise - as, say, an 8-hour "novel for television". The success of Torchwood: Children of Earth shows old-school mini-series can still work in the 21st century; Russell T Davies was so convinced by how COE did he's basically sworn off "full-length" seasons - the next Torchwood "season" will be a 10-hour mini-series.
If they turn around and say 17th Precinct will be a 5-night event, or Wonder Woman will be a 6-episode limited run series, then I'd probably tune in because I've never heard of a mainstream network cancelling a mini-series midway through.
Alex
The viewing/ratings statistics website By the Number (http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com) has a chart they update each week on the status of shows on the big 4 networks plus The CW, and it's pretty grim:
Medium: Cancelled
No Ordinary Family: Certain to be cancelled
The Cape: Certain to be cancelled
V: Likely to be cancelled
Human Target: Likely to be cancelled
The Event: Likely to be cancelled
American Dad: On the bubble
Fringe: On the bubble
Chuck: On the bubble
Smallville: Not cancelled, but ending anyway
The only shows that the site considers safe are the spy series Nikita (not really SF/F but it targets the same demographic), and the supernatural shows, er, Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries. And the fandom-friendly Big Bang Theory if you want to be picky.
Forget about quality issues, because before you say "well the shows suck that's why" note that Fringe continues to be acclaimed, Medium has many followers, and the fact Chuck has a loyal fanbase that loves the show goes without saying. I keep saying this - quality has no nearing on success in the ratings and never have, and if you need the example to prove it, try starting a thread about how bad a show Firefly was!
Anyway, every year this question gets asked, but I think it's going to stick this time. How many people are basically giving up on watching any SF/F-related programming on the mainstream American networks in the future? Shows like V, The Cape - I put a lot of interest into those shows, but they're dead in the water. Moreso than in past years, I'm being left rather gunshy about putting in any more "investment" into new shows.
Cases in point: they've announced a new show called 17th Precinct for NBC which is about police detectives working in a magical fantasy city. Sounds really cool. I won't be watching it because it'll be cancelled in 6 episodes. I'm curious to see what David Kelly does with Wonder Woman, but even if they cast Summer Glau as Diana (hey, looks like she'll be available soon) I won't be watching because the ratings show the American mainstream network audience isn't interested in superhero shows.
Thank god for the cable networks, where shows like Being Human and Doctor Who and Torchwood continue to thrive. Doctor Who wouldn't have lasted 6 weeks on NBC.
I'm just wondering how much it will take for Ronald D Moore (who is behind that 17th Precinct), David Kelley, Joss Whedon to finally realize it's a waste of time, emotional investment, and money to keep flogging a dead horse and try to get the American mainstream audience to watch these types of shows when they'd rather look at J-Lo's ass on American Idol or see what The Bachelor is up to. Not saying they should stop making TV series - the TV series format is still superior to film in terms of telling detailed, long-form stories - and I'm not even saying they should abandon mainstream networks because I know they have contracts that all but force them to dance with the devil, but rather than launching a series for one of the main networks and saying they have a 3-year story arc planned, only to have Fox kill it in 4 episodes (Wonderfalls), they should look to the past and revive the mini-series.
I think if we went back to "event" shows there might be more success in the SF/F arena on mainstream TV. The Cape, Fringe, even Chuck might have worked a lot better - ratings-wise, and some might also argue quality-wise - as, say, an 8-hour "novel for television". The success of Torchwood: Children of Earth shows old-school mini-series can still work in the 21st century; Russell T Davies was so convinced by how COE did he's basically sworn off "full-length" seasons - the next Torchwood "season" will be a 10-hour mini-series.
If they turn around and say 17th Precinct will be a 5-night event, or Wonder Woman will be a 6-episode limited run series, then I'd probably tune in because I've never heard of a mainstream network cancelling a mini-series midway through.
Alex
