Taking a Shot On an Unknown Kid

Over the past five years or so it seems that if a new show doesn't gain a good following in the first year, sometimes in the first month, it is yanked off the air. This is more common for dramas than for sitcoms (it's the only reason I can give for Yes, Dear to still be on) but anyone is susceptible.

Certain networks, we won't mention any names (*cough*Fox*cough*), give their shows less of a chance than most. It is not unusual for them to cancel a show within one or two episodes. Anyone remember American Embassy? Probably not as Fox gave it a grand total of two episodes to prove itself before it yanked it from the air. Two episodes, may I add, that were far better than a lot of things that are kept. This fall Head Cases aired once before Fox yanked the plug. I didn't see it, and quite frankly the reviews I read weren't favourable, but I don't see what the point is of giving a show a timeslot, adding it to your schedule, if you're not going to give it a chance to prove itself. Perhaps the pilot wasn't strong, but are there any shows that begin perfectly?

Even when you've made it through the first season, that isn't a guarantee that you're safe. Arrested Development operated under the constant threat of a swinging axe. It has won two Emmys as Best Comedic Program and was cancelled last month. However, as much as I enjoy Arrested Development, I understand why it was removed. It hasn't received good ratings and in television, it's all about the money. The question remains, however, if Arrested Development could have done better had it been marketed properly and been able to stay in its original timeslot.

Which leads to another issue... Who is coming up with these program schedules? Never have I seen such nonsensical groupings of shows. Back in the day, NBC had the right idea. Put all of your power house shows on one night, particularly as they were all popular with the same demographic. It wouldn't really matter what happened on the other six nights of the week because on that one night, you had 5 of the top 10 rated shows. And it also packaged shows together in smart ways. Monday nights were for the teens. Blossom followed by The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and then a nice melodramatic movie of the week starring Mark Paul Gosselaar or Kellie Martin. Wednesday nights were for the adults. Dateline, Law and Order and usually some other high-tension drama. Lately it feels like they just throw things together randomly and when they have an open hour they create another Law and Order spinoff.

Fox is actually getting better at this. Their Animation Domination on Sundays is not a bad idea. And they're grouping together sitcoms that actually compliment one another now. With the exception of The War at Home. I'm not sure how that's supposed to fit in with all their other animation shows on Sunday. Fox still doesn't know what to do with Friday night though. The X-Files fared well there, but that was in the days when Fox was lucky to get any viewership at all. It didn't start thriving until they moved it to Sundays. Dark Angel sank. Firefly tanked. Reunion has just been cancelled. Because the key demographic for all three shows were people between 18-25. And how many of those are home on a Friday night? Very few. Poor planning to put high-concept, youth-oriented shows on that night. Better to do like CBS and schedule mysteries starring Andy Griffith and Dick Van Dyke.

I have a feeling things are going to get worse before they get better. Maybe they'll just air pilots and see what catches on before ordering 22 episodes. Maybe high-concept dramas will be relegated to the Sci-Fi network, HBO or Showtime. Maybe they'll start releasing TV shows straight to DVD. Or maybe TV will become a thing of the past and a new entertainment wave will hit us. But until that happens, I hope that the next show I fall in love with gets a fair shake before they yank it from the air.