Friday, April 2, 2010

Crashed and burned: shows dead on arrival

It's almost that time of year when television networks announce their upcoming fall season schedules. After the pilots are filmed and the deals are made, networks are ready to tell audiences and critics about the shows that they hope will become their network's new flagship shows. This allows for television viewers to eagerly anticipate that season's crop of new shows, and the shows will develop a certain amount of hype.

Sadly, oftentimes shows that are often greatly hyped do not deliver. One of the side effects of the Internet's popularity is that people can become more excited about TV shows before they premiere, because the Internet can provide plenty of fodder and discussion about the shows, and I think that for a lot of people, that can make them more excited about television shows, increasing their expectations.

Over the past decade, many TV shows with plenty of promise failed to captivate an audience or television critics, and they are canceled quickly. Here are some of the most disappointing shows that did not live up to their intense hype.

"Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip:" I have to admit, I watched this show when it was on NBC in the 2006-07 season, and I enjoyed it for the most part, even though it was imperfect. However, now that I have seen creator Aaron Sorkin's other television shows, "Sports Night" and "The West Wing," I see why people were so disappointed in "Studio 60." The show-within-a-show faced the difficult challenge of debuting in the same year as "30 Rock," which quickly outpaced "Studio 60" with critical acclaim. It reeked of self-importance, especially the executive producers of the fictional titular comedy show, played by Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford (when I watched the show, I was never a fan of the main characters, rather, I enjoyed seeing the writing staff of the show, namely Nate Corddry and Lucy Davis' characters). Sorkin developed two great "behind the scenes" shows in the past, but it seemed as though this show became unrelatable to the audiences, and was a Hollywood insider show. However, Hollywood critics were unimpressed, and ratings kept sinking.

"Sit Down, Shut Up:" It breaks my heart to put this on my list. Like "Studio 60," this show was greatly hyped because of the creator. Mitchell Hurwitz, who created the excellent, amazing and genius "Arrested Development" reteamed "Arrested" cast members Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Henry Winkler, along with Will Forte and Kristin Chenoweth to create this series. Telling the story of a group of disaffected high school teachers, the animated comedy was seen by "Arrested Development" fans as a sort of sequel to the brilliant but cancelled show. However, "Sit Down, Shut Up" lost much of the charm of "Arrested Development." It took the most juvenile moments of "Arrested," which were few and far between but always brilliant, and tried to make a complete series out of them. Unlike its predecessor, these characters were not unlikeable but endearing, they were just plain unlikeable. The show was canceled by Fox even faster than "Arrested Development" was, and us desperate "Arrested" fans are still left without that long-promised movie.

"My Big Fat Greek Life:" It was the little indie movie that could. I first heard about "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" because *NSYNC's Joey Fatone was to be featured in the film, and as your typical 12-year-old girl who supported everything the group did, I planned on seeing this movie. Little did I expect it to become one of the highest-grossing romantic comedies of all time. As a result of the movie's success, this show, based on the movie, was commissioned by CBS in 2003. Lacking one of the movie's star, John Corbett, as well as the heart and passion of the film, the show only lasted seven episodes. Instead of entertaining audiences past the movie, it simply appeared to be a last-chance way to keep the trend alive.

"Dirt:" The premise of this FX show seemed fascinating; Courteney Cox starred as a tabloid magazine editor who attempted to gain the often tawdry scoop on celebrities. It was like an "E! True Hollywood Story" about the people who would make "E! True Hollywood Story," it was a brazen and lifeless show. The characters were not sympathetic, and, even against channel-mate "Nip/Tuck," it reeked of desperation, using ridiculous and controversial plots to gain attention. When they brought in Cox's "Friends" costar Jennifer Aniston to engage in a lip lock with Cox, I knew that this show was grasping at straws.

"FlashForward"/"Invasion:" In 2004, ABC debuted "LOST," which changed the game for television shows in terms of storytelling, audience participation and plot twists. The show was such a success that ABC tried to recreate that formula, first with "Invasion" in 2005. Granted, I think a lot of "Invasion's" failure stems from ABC and unfortunate circumstances. It depicted a Florida town whose inhabitants were being taken over by aliens after a hurricane hit; it was scheduled to premiere shortly after hurricane Katrina. Tensions in America were high following Katrina, and I don't think audiences were ready to watch a fictionalized and more disturbing account of what they had been watching on the news all month, and ABC was more than willing to sideline the show in terms of promotion. However, the show itself lacked the suspense of "LOST," and it really was not as frightening as it could have been.

Last year, the network tried again with "FlashForward," a show about the aftermath and search for the cause of a worldwide two-minute blackout, in which people got a glipse of their lives six months in the future. I was very excited about the concept of the show, because it was original and seemed addicting. However, as with "Invasion," there was little suspense, and the show is rather boring. Nothing happens in the first 35 minutes, and then they drop a bombshell in the last segment, leaving you wondering why you wasted so much time watching it, when you could just skip to the end and understand it. However, there isn't much to understand or to care to understand, it's confusing, but unlike "LOST," it doesn't leave viewers with a desperation to find answers. Additionally, for reasons I cannot explain, Joseph Fiennes' character bothers me beyond belief. After a long hiatus and behind-the-scenes creative conflicts (it's already on its third show-runner), it looks like "FlashForward" will suffer the same fate as "Invasion."




I know I'm not the only person who has been burned by the promise of a great show. What shows have disappointed you? Did you enjoy the ones on my list?

1 comment:

  1. I go back and forth on Flash Forward. There are weeks when I think it's one of the better shows on TV and there are weeks where I kick myself for getting started watching it. It's been one of my disappointments of the year, but since it came back from hiatus, it's been a lot better; it's had more action, actually answered some questions, and seems to be going in a fairly good direction. It can be a tad confusing, though, when it gets all wrapped up in scientific mumbo jumbo, but it's improving. It won't see season two, however, which is a pity.

    The Forgotten was something that disappointed the heck out of me. I know, Christian Slater in a police procedural doesn't sound too promising, but the vigilante justice/feel good aspect of it was interesting and it seemed like a different take on cop shows. But it bored me to tears to the point where it was a chore to watch it; by around October, I dumped it and haven't looked back since. The fact that like 8 people watch it gave me more incentive not to get wrapped up in the show because it would get cancelled soon.

    Good piece of writing. :)

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