Hatrack River Writers Workshop: Losing A Damn Good TV Show

This is topic Losing A Damn Good TV Show in forum Grist for the Mill at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.

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Posted by Rommel Fenrir Wolf II (Member # 4199) on :

Can anyone tell me the logic behind canceling Stargate Atlantis? I have been hearing roomers that it was being canceled.

BUT WHY?

I love Stargate SG1 and was pissed when I heard that it was canceled. But WHY Atlantis?
They have gotten nowhere in defeating the Wrath, and they have not fulfilled their mission of securing the Ancients technology for the benefit of Earth.

WHY? WHY? WHY? Must good shows end? There is few, very few shows I watch on the TV. Most are on The History Channel, The Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and Adult Swim (on Cartoon Network late at night).

I don’t get the logic behind the powers to be at the TV Networks.

Is it just me or am I alone in this thinking?

RFW2nd

Posted by satate (Member # 8082) on :

I already gave up on TV.

Posted by LAJD (Member # 8070) on :

I've never moved past the loss of Firefly...

Posted by BoredCrow (Member # 5675) on :

::holds a Firefly mourning session with LAJD::

Posted by Broda (Member # 8280) on :

If my wife doesn't know about this already, she's going to be pissed. They are going to make direct-to-dvd movies afterwards though which is cool - SG1's 2 movies were pretty damn good.

We still have Firefly/Serenity marathons every couple months and we get our fix of Mal with Dr. Horrible and Slither. Jayne is on the show Chuck but I haven't watched that one yet. And, of course, Summer Glau is the Terminator protecting John Connors (until that gets cancelled). I haven't seen Wash in anything recently (except A Knight's Tale which was on TNT tonight). Anyways, time for bed.

Posted by Robert Nowall (Member # 2764) on :

I figure it wasn't performing for them, in a way that justified the expense of it. Or at least that's my gut instinct---I didn't even know it was canceled, or even on the air, come to think of it---I recognize the name but never saw it. (SF on TV---outside of some "Star Trek," and also the original "The Twilight Zone," and a bit more here and there...it's just not my cup of tea.)

Of course the networks, cable or broadcast, all do peculiar things. Sometimes they'll cancel a show after just a few airings---or, in at least three cases I know of, and maybe more, after only one airing. Which begs the question: why did they put the damned thing on the air in the first place?

Posted by Broda (Member # 8280) on :

Yeah, I heard they're cancelling My Own Worst Enemy on NBC as well. I only saw the pilot but I've got the rest of the season DVRed to watch later. It's a pretty cool show but I think the horrible ratings slump that Heroes is in killed the ratings of anything that might come after it (last year it was Journey Man and this year My Own Worst Enemy). I'm actually kinda surprised Lost has held on since it is now a sci-fi show and not just a "normal" show. Last season was awesome and I can't wait for the next.

Posted by philocinemas (Member # 8108) on :

Journeyman was OK, but got repetitious real quick. It's a shame about My Own Worse Enemy - it's a great show with a great concept.

The Sci-Fi channel has a history of cancelling shows based on cost, successful or not. I think Farscape was the best pure sci-fi show since ST:TNG. It had a rough final year, but was still popular when it was cancelled.

Posted by annepin (Member # 5952) on :

Dude, it's just The Way It Is. The universe conspiring to inundate us with stupid T.V. shows.

Of course, this is what Netflix was made for--to catch up on all the oldies! I'm still going through the Wire, which is pretty depressing and can only be handled in small doses (I'm on the last season), and Battlestar Gallactica, which I actually like to laugh at but my hubby adores it. I've tried to watch, but couldn't get into Rome, even though it seems right up my alley. What else? Oh, I'm sort of started watching Sanctuary, with Amanda Tapping, which has been kind of fun...

Posted by Robert Nowall (Member # 2764) on :

Further thoughts on canceled and cancelling shows...

I think I've mentioned my involvement in Internet Fan Fiction from time to time. (Yes, of course I have.) In my involvement with that particular online community, I took the time to research and study why the one particular network handled its shows. I generally don't mention the show by name, but I don't think I'm tipping my hand too much by admitting the network was MTV.

Now, MTV has this habit of putting shows on that sometimes become Iconic Cultural Landmarks---but if a show does not become an I. C. L., it got cast into the Outer Darkness. (The show I wrote Internet Fan Fiction for was not one of those I. C. L.s) Moved about the schedule, postponed, canceled, renewed as filler, shortened seasons, editing. (Incidentally, MTV was / is notorious for advertising and promoting shows to be on at a specific day and time, then not running it.)

Also, another phenomenon comes into play here. Some of you older types may remember MTV as the network that played music videos, all day all night, and series shows were the exception rather than the rule. It's hardly the case now.

It's the guys that run these cable networks---call them "The Suits," 'cause a lotta people do. You see MTV as a place to watch music videos, just like you saw the Nashville Network as the place for country music, Court TV as a place to watch the justice system at work, CNN Headline News as a place to get the news every half hour any half hour.

But The Suits---they just see cable channels as a spot on a lot of cable systems, a place where they can exploit some lowest-common-denominator asset / programming they've got on hand, and often less expensively than what's currently put on them, and sell ads and raise revenue. That's why MTV dropped music videos on a regular basis (it's not their stuff), why the Nashville Network morphed into Spike TV, why Court TV is slowly turning into TruTV, why Headline News started running talk shows in the evening hours.

Posted by Rommel Fenrir Wolf II (Member # 4199) on :

I just find it all too confusing and lacking logic.

I missed all but 3 episodes of the 1Oth Season of SG1 due to being in the army. I missed most of the seasons of Atlantis due to lack of cable lack of TV time being in the army and no TV when deployed.

I was just getting back into Atlantis and was excited that there not all the Asgard died when they killed them selves. But some remained in the Pegasus Galaxy after the Ancients left. I think that the show should not be canceled but kept on for a few more seasons to tie up loose ends.

And I was going to try to get into the Get in the Gate Contest when I got out of the army.

RFW2nd

Posted by Zero (Member # 3619) on :

It's all about money.