Within the past day, there has been news of some big changes to a couple of my favorite TV show. First, there was the article posted yesterday where the producers of 24 said they were "hurt" by the criticism they've received this year and that this may be the last season of 24 under its current structure. They wouldn't go into detail as to what changes may come, but it certainly is perplexing. In reality, the formula works (as proven by last season's awesomeness), it's a matter of getting and keeping strong characters. They've killed or arrested so many great characters that they were left with a hollow shell of themselves this season. So unless they have the power to bring people back from the dead, I don't know if structural changes are the answer.
Then there was this story which is primarily about NBC CEO, Jeff Zucker. However, there was an interesting nugget of information about the fact that they are considering expanding The Office to an hour permanently. My initial reaction was "yes, do it!". But I do have some reservations. While there have certainly been episodes that I felt were short-changed due to only having 21 minutes to tell a story, I worry that to continue to come up with stories each week that fill an hour may be a bit daunting. Then again, with the large cast that they have and the improv skills that they possess, maybe they could easily handle it. We should know for sure whether this will happen or not in a few weeks at the network upfronts.
Lastly, since we're talking about TV, I would figure that I would mention that I wrote a letter to TV Guide critic Matt Roush and he posted it in his Ask Matt column. You can read my question and his response here(It's the ninth question down).
1 comment:
1. The producers should just wipe their eyes with all the $100 bills they've got coming out of their ears. Hurt? Give me a break. Where are we, a high school poetry workshop? And if people are disappointed, well who the heck are you writing the show for anyway? Your mother? Sometimes I bake a cake and not everyone likes it. That doesn't mean I'll change the recipe. Now when your own mother tells you 24 needs to be re-vamped, well, don't talk back to your momma.
2. One hour of The Office is one hour I'll miss because something else is on I have to record. Maybe that'll change by the time a decision is made. Who knows how the line-up will turn out by that time.
3. I'm glad you had your question answered, glory whore, but consider that this type of fan response has been around and affecting work that I know of since comic books started printing "fan letters" in the back of some issues. That's not so big anymore, as publishers prefer getting paid from ads instead of hearing out their fans. Still, what's the point of blogs if not to share your opinions, etc.? Anyway, I don't want the writers of any show to be too isolated. If you want to know about a television show in which the one producer/writer/director has made the decision to ignore every single piece of criticism then look no further than the movie we call the United States of America. The producer/writer/director? George Bush. That's what happens when creator give no credende to fan reaction. What's the balance? As long as they do what I want them to do, then they're in the clear.
Peace
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