What Happened to Network Television?

There used to be a time when network television was good. Sadly, it seems that time is fading quickly. Sure, you have a few gems here and there. Take a look at Modern Family this season. It is doing quite well in the ratings and is genuinely a good show. I would argue that Modern Family is an exception to the rule as the show was created by one of TV’s most respected sitcom writers and producers, Christopher Lloyd. While it has been successful, it still falls in line with the traditional family sitcom. It isn’t groundbreaking at all. It seems nothing new and creative makes its way to network television anymore.

When you look at a couple shows that were truly original in their concept (meaning not a cop/lawyer/doctor show), they have failed. NBC’s Kings was an excellent show with excellent acting by Ian McShane. NBC barely gave it a shot. ABC could have won big with a space mystery/drama in Defying Gravity but they didn’t have faith in it and started it in the late summer and with little to no promotion. Shows like Mad Men and Breaking Bad went to AMC because the networks didn’t want to risk their profit margins on new, and possibly risky, ideas. Instead, they have become a haven for reality programming, procedural dramas and spin-offs, and dance shows.

It is now getting to the point where I will not watch new shows on any of the major networks anymore for fear that I will like them and they will be canceled. The networks are too worried about their bottom line to take risks like they used to. In fact, NBC CEO Jeff Zucker has even mentioned that such an iconic show like Seinfeld would not make it in today’s TV climate based on the shows initial soft ratings. It is sad that so much creativity and originality is stifled because of the bottom line. Who knows what other Seinfelds might have been cultivated if given the opportunity to grow.

An Open Letter to ABC in Regards to Defying Gravity

Dear ABC,

I know we haven’t been on the best of terms lately. I’ve hated you since you make us wait so long for new episodes of Lost. I get mad at you for not heavily promoting the really funny Better Off Ted. You canceled really original shows like Eli Stone and Pushing Daisies. I want to give you another chance though. Here is how you can get back on my good side: do not cancel Defying Gravity.

I know that there has not been any word that the show will be canceled, but I don’t know anyone who has actually heard of the show, I don’t see any promotion for it, and it has to be expensive to make. That being said, I really think you need to give this show a chance. You almost set it up to fail by starting it in August when not many people are watching TV and you never really promote it, which is a shame. This is a really good show. Sure, the writers play it fast and loose with the science aspect of it, but the stories are good. I really want to follow the “adventures that await the crew as they quickly discover their lives and destinies to be intertwined and carefully directed, not only by Mission Control officials on Earth, but also by an unseen force which is much closer and far more powerful.” Why aren’t you promoting this show more? It is something that hasn’t been done before. It has the sort of mystery that Lost has that can draw people in if they would just know about it. If you cancel it, what are you going to replace it with? Another cop show? Or how about a doctor show? We don’t have enough of those.

Here is what I propose: finish showing this season this fall. Commit to a second season, but in the spring/summer re-air season 1 with a lot of promotion. You need to hook people in from the beginning or they won’t start watching. There’s people like my dad, who I know would love the show but would not be able to watch the episodes available on Hulu, who need some way to catch up.

So in conclusion, we can finally make up if you do me this one favor. Keep Defying Gravity around. Promote it a little bit. If you give viewers a chance, they will not let you down. We can become BFFs again with just a little effort. Don’t turn into my ex-BFF NBC. They never give quality programming (shows like Kings) a chance, and have made me not want to give any new shows on their network a shot for fear that I will like it only to see it canceled after a few episodes.

Sincerely,
Shep

NBC Loves The West Wing Actors

Have you noticed how much NBC loves actors from their hit 7 year drama The West Wing? I’ve noticed it in recent years as they have been popping up all over the NBC-owned USA Network since TWW went off the air.

  • Richard Schiff, who played Toby Ziegler on TWW, has appeared in episodes of Monk, Burn Notice, and In Plain Sight.
  • Joshua Malina, who played Will Bailey, has appeared in several episodes of In Plain Sight
  • Dule Hill, who played Charlie Young, is a main character on USA’s psychic detective show Psych.
  • Bradley Whitford, who played Josh Lymon, appeared in an episode of Monk
  • Mark Feuerstein, who played Cliff Calley, now stars in the new series Royal Pains.
  • Mary McCormack, who played Kate Harper, is the star of In Plain Sight.
  • Gary Cole, who played Bob Russell, has appeared on Psych
  • Tim Matheson, who played John Hoynes, appeared on Burn Notice.
  • Kathryn Joosten, who played Dolores Landingham, appeared in two episodes of Monk.

There might even be more, but those are the ones I could come up with.  They are all fine actors and I’m glad to see that NBC recognizes talent and keeps them in mind for future programming, even if for one episode.

It’s Not TV, It’s Cable

Starting with new television shows airing on HBO several years ago, we’ve seen a giant shift of new programming moving to non-traditional paid channels. There was a time where over-the-air networks dominated the new show markets, but that time is over. Each TV season we see a plethora of new programming on the “cable” networks, and not just HBO. The best thing about these new shows is that they are often better than the shows found on the traditional networks.

When I think about it, this trend really took root when the networks were dominated with “reality” programming and game shows. People who didn’t want to watch The Biggest Celebrity Dance Star getting voted off the island by big brother tuned into programming that was too edgy for network television. FX, TNT, and USA were a few of the networks (besides HBO and Showtime) that began airing original programming. Shows like The Shield Rescue Me and The Closer dominated cable ratings. Monk has been on for years and continues to draw good ratings, followed by one of my favorites, Psych.

It has come to a point in my TV viewing where most of the TV shows I watch are not on the major networks. Monk, Psych, Raising the Bar, True Blood, Weeds, In Plain Sight, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, are all great shows that draw me away from the networks. In fact, there was a recent article that stated the USA Network drew more viewers than the 5th “major” network, The CW. Networks like TBS, A&E, Starz, and AMC have joined TNT, FX, USA, HBO, and Showtime on the original programming bandwagon, and oftentimes they air some of the best programming on television.

I think part of the reason these new shows thrive and survive on the cable networks (besides the fact that they may be able to get away with more edgier content) is that on paid TV the shows are given more of a chance to pick up steam. A show like Psych would have never survived if it was shown on parent network NBC instead of USA. The ratings would not have been high enough. If you look at the show Kings on NBC it had low ratings but, in my opinion, was a really good show. I think part of the reason is that it was never given a proper chance to gain viewership. NBC should move it to USA over the summer and see if it gains traction there (why not, they’ve done it with two Law and Order series).

Perhaps the major networks could learn something from the cable stations and take bigger chances on programming. Or perhaps, since many of the cable channels are owned by the same corporations as the major networks, they are content having shorter seasons and keeping the programming where they are. I don’t know, but I continue to find myself watching the major networks less and less.

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Zack Morris Visits Jimmy Fallon

Mark Paul Gosselaar went on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon last night to promote the season premier of his TNT drama Raising the Bar, only he didn’t exactly go as himself. He went as his most famous character, Zack Morris from Saved by the Bell. He dressed in “Zack-style” clothes, made inside jokes about SBTB moving from Indiana to California and Kelly moving to a different zip code (90210), and even pulled out his classic cell phone, all before playing “Friends Forever” by his band Zack Attack. It’s nice to see him embrace a character he will forever be known as, which a lot of actors hate doing. He even agreed to the SBTB reunion that Jimmy Fallon has been trying to set up for months. Watch the interview below, it’s awesome.