The Fall of Jericho
Mar. 27th, 2008 11:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eggwardsThe TV show Jericho left the airwaves Tuesday Night.
I'm sure most people didn't even know it was still on, after a seven-episode reprieve ignited by a fan mail-in and the need to have television with already written scripts. The show may be one of the more depressing series in all of television, but was also very critical of the handling of the Iraq war in a very twisted way.
The show explored the aftermath of a great terrorist calamity, nuclear bombs going off in most of the major cities of the US. The questions stayed for many episodes, who did it, why, and what was to gain for it? Was it the Chinese? Islamic radicals? What was the tie between the bombings and this little sleepy Kansas town that seemed far away from the targeted cities?
The answers (spoiler alert) came mostly in the second season, more of a coda to the first season, showing that the leaders of a Haliburton type organization, not liking the current state of US affairs after already "running" Iraq, decide to place the country into chaos and take over with their own self-appointed president and bringing in their own Blackwater-like militia.
The first season was paced too slowly over the corse of 22 episodes, and lost viewers quickly. Still, the show took some chances, not only killing off major characters often, including several townspeople dying in the middle of winter of starvation and lack of heat, but also outwardly criticizing the Bush administration, albeit from the perspective of the aftermath of the continuance of current policy. One could see Dick Cheney working to keep control in some way like this.
Still, even with the serious side, with people scratching to survive until the Halliburton overlords come in to rebuild (again, mirroring Iraq), there was several problems, like the bagboy who inherited the grocery store after the grocer he worked for was killed over food became a smuggler himself. Skeet Ulrich's character seemed to be able to fly, drive a tank, and do almost superhuman feats. A few different love stories were attempted, one where the chapel of the tiny Kansas town was filled with burning candles, just days after all the electricity was lost. Seemingly bad judgement when no one seemed capable of going out to the electric plant to work on it (or see that there wasn't fuel for it.)
In the end, the last seven episodes tried to explain much of the background that was only speculated in the first season. The pacing went up several notches with the producers knowing that were likely to only get the one chance. Fans wanted to know who was responsible, and that's what the writers delivered.
While I love episodic, serialized, television, it seems like it just doesn't sell to a mass audience. Networks can't take the time to let the show build, or allow it to finish a story line. They also end up breaking up the episodes too much, where you go several weeks before the show comes back. This not only hurst Jericho, which had several long hiatuses, but also hurt shows like Invasion, which also suffered because of interminably slow pacing, but also since it was always in reruns.
It's much easier to pick up an episode or two of CSI or Law and Order that doesn't have a consistent storyline. Besides a few actors, what's that different between season two and season 18?
Lost would be right this year if it wasn't for the writer's strike puting in a monthlong break in the season. Create shorter seasons and run the episodes together as a series. It's much more like the 13 episode runs of british television. With short attention spans, this should be the way to run shows, and not like the television year of old, trying to string 20 or so episodes over a 40 week period.
There should be room for shows like Jericho, Wonderfalls, Firefly, Invasion and even Sports Night, but perhaps these shows shouldn't be made for the major networks. maybe something new is needed. Perhaps they should be sold more like comic books...you pick up the episode on demand, maybe the first week, or maybe sometime later. It's not like we'll take the book out of the bin when the run is over.
Perhaps these stories should be sold more like graphic novels. In DVD sets they almost are, and I know many people have watched Lost and 24 as DVD sets after their first run on TV. Perhaps they shouldn't be on TV at all, but just sold to the public ala carte. Delivered directly through Tivo, or your on demand cable box rather than broadcast. It's close, with box sets and iTunes, but it's not quite there yet.
Sure it would take a different type of marketing to get you to pick up a series that isn't just flown over the airwaves, but as much as music isn't on TV anymore and people still manage to discover artists not found on the radio, perhaps shows like Jericho could survive outside the need to please the lowest common denominator.
I'm sure most people didn't even know it was still on, after a seven-episode reprieve ignited by a fan mail-in and the need to have television with already written scripts. The show may be one of the more depressing series in all of television, but was also very critical of the handling of the Iraq war in a very twisted way.
The show explored the aftermath of a great terrorist calamity, nuclear bombs going off in most of the major cities of the US. The questions stayed for many episodes, who did it, why, and what was to gain for it? Was it the Chinese? Islamic radicals? What was the tie between the bombings and this little sleepy Kansas town that seemed far away from the targeted cities?
The answers (spoiler alert) came mostly in the second season, more of a coda to the first season, showing that the leaders of a Haliburton type organization, not liking the current state of US affairs after already "running" Iraq, decide to place the country into chaos and take over with their own self-appointed president and bringing in their own Blackwater-like militia.
The first season was paced too slowly over the corse of 22 episodes, and lost viewers quickly. Still, the show took some chances, not only killing off major characters often, including several townspeople dying in the middle of winter of starvation and lack of heat, but also outwardly criticizing the Bush administration, albeit from the perspective of the aftermath of the continuance of current policy. One could see Dick Cheney working to keep control in some way like this.
Still, even with the serious side, with people scratching to survive until the Halliburton overlords come in to rebuild (again, mirroring Iraq), there was several problems, like the bagboy who inherited the grocery store after the grocer he worked for was killed over food became a smuggler himself. Skeet Ulrich's character seemed to be able to fly, drive a tank, and do almost superhuman feats. A few different love stories were attempted, one where the chapel of the tiny Kansas town was filled with burning candles, just days after all the electricity was lost. Seemingly bad judgement when no one seemed capable of going out to the electric plant to work on it (or see that there wasn't fuel for it.)
In the end, the last seven episodes tried to explain much of the background that was only speculated in the first season. The pacing went up several notches with the producers knowing that were likely to only get the one chance. Fans wanted to know who was responsible, and that's what the writers delivered.
While I love episodic, serialized, television, it seems like it just doesn't sell to a mass audience. Networks can't take the time to let the show build, or allow it to finish a story line. They also end up breaking up the episodes too much, where you go several weeks before the show comes back. This not only hurst Jericho, which had several long hiatuses, but also hurt shows like Invasion, which also suffered because of interminably slow pacing, but also since it was always in reruns.
It's much easier to pick up an episode or two of CSI or Law and Order that doesn't have a consistent storyline. Besides a few actors, what's that different between season two and season 18?
Lost would be right this year if it wasn't for the writer's strike puting in a monthlong break in the season. Create shorter seasons and run the episodes together as a series. It's much more like the 13 episode runs of british television. With short attention spans, this should be the way to run shows, and not like the television year of old, trying to string 20 or so episodes over a 40 week period.
There should be room for shows like Jericho, Wonderfalls, Firefly, Invasion and even Sports Night, but perhaps these shows shouldn't be made for the major networks. maybe something new is needed. Perhaps they should be sold more like comic books...you pick up the episode on demand, maybe the first week, or maybe sometime later. It's not like we'll take the book out of the bin when the run is over.
Perhaps these stories should be sold more like graphic novels. In DVD sets they almost are, and I know many people have watched Lost and 24 as DVD sets after their first run on TV. Perhaps they shouldn't be on TV at all, but just sold to the public ala carte. Delivered directly through Tivo, or your on demand cable box rather than broadcast. It's close, with box sets and iTunes, but it's not quite there yet.
Sure it would take a different type of marketing to get you to pick up a series that isn't just flown over the airwaves, but as much as music isn't on TV anymore and people still manage to discover artists not found on the radio, perhaps shows like Jericho could survive outside the need to please the lowest common denominator.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
Digital Subchannels, DVDs and Streaming Video
Date: 2008-03-28 05:44 am (UTC)It's funny watching a slowly-growing TV company designed for local station's with a 2nd sub-channel called the Retro Television Network and being reminded that many of the shows from the 1950s and 60s used to produce as much as 39 episodes per season and the one-hour shows were 50+ minutes of program content instead of 41+ minutes now.
The other odd thing is companies selling TV shows on DVD. More shows from the past decade are being released to DVD than the shows from 20-40 years ago.
Years ago, I felt that a show was a success if it lasts 4 seasons or at least 100 episodes. With DVDs and streaming shows on-line, some shows may gain some new audiences, dated material notwithstanding.
Re: Digital Subchannels, DVDs and Streaming Video
Date: 2008-03-28 12:00 pm (UTC)This is especially true since, as you say, the running times are longer and those shows are usually clipped for re-run broadcast.
I think fewer people would buy DVD's of the older shows, unless there's nostalgic reason to, especially black and white. I think we'll see the same black and white bias applied to non-HD shows in the near future. TV won't want to broadcast it.
What would be good is if someone started buying up this content and made an internet channel (sort of like the Hulu idea) where you could watch old episodes of say - he Addams Family - on demand. It could easily be ad-supported, and if it was Apple TV supported, all the better. I know there is a little of this now, but it's not consistent, you can't find full seasons, just highlights.
I'd love to go and watch the old Burns and Allen show again, but don't want to buy the DVDs, nor have to watch for it on a broadcast schedule.
We'll see just how much TV changes in the next few years.
no subject
Date: 2008-03-28 06:26 am (UTC)Loved the pilot.
Hated Gerald McRaney and Skeet Ulrich.
First 1/3rd to 1/2 of the first season sucked ass.
Then suddenly the show got really awesome.
Was really sad to see it cancelled. Shocked to see it come back.
I missed two episodes this season due to DVR screwups, but this season was some of the best, most subversive television I've ever seen. In the end, I think it was worth it. If the show should get saved again and put on another network, I will gladly watch it. But if it has to stop now, I think they ended it well.
no subject
Date: 2008-03-28 12:13 pm (UTC)Skeet's Character was troublesome. He was a mercenary, a playboy, a savior...it was a little too much. They seemed to tone down the "Super Skeet" ways after the first 13 episodes though.
When they finally got to moving the mythology forward, then it got good, but man, did it drag for a while, and it looked really hopeless that the town would survive. Really one of the more depressing shows!
I really don't think they will find a home for it. It would be really hard for them to do a third season without changing the focus away from Jericho itself. You could see that the writers were having trouble trying to tell the story of the outside world from the limited point of a Kansas town. Would the major battles in the upcoming war between the Cheyenne government and the Columbus government take place in Jericho?
no subject
Date: 2008-03-29 05:36 am (UTC)And it stayed that way because no one wanted to risk losing an audience by throwing them off a pattern. But then HBO and the Sopranos proved that people are willing to wait and are incredibly flexible when it comes to watching tv. Possibly because of the growth of TiVo or HBO's ability to broadcast repeat viewings. Either audience behavior has become more flexible; we have shown that we can accept bigger gaps.
Unfortunately, this is cable phenomenon because cable is supported not by advertising but by subscription and cable fees. Cable companies pay studios/production companies to run content, whereas network television need be supported by ad revenue. The BBC and all its sub-channels is funded by viewers via television licenses and is otherwise subsidized by the government. That is the true cause of british televisions tendency to run shorter shows with more daring, pointed and tighter writing.
A network television show has to run for a long time in the US to be successful, and hence the formula is clear. Make the audience comfortable, make the laugh, run it cheap, do anything to keep it going until it reaches a syndication threshold and so on.
For TV to get more like cable and the BBC, we will have to change the advertising model, or just pay for it ourselves. (though i doubt we'll ever pay per show...but we might all just pay for tv, and that payment be distributed to all. though that would limit the channels or really raise the cost.)_
no subject
Date: 2008-04-02 01:24 pm (UTC)That's where the comic book model comes in. you can buy the single issues when they come out, or wait for a graphic novel for the most popular titles. I could see people picking up television the same way, purchasing single episodes or full seasons. I doubt this would be a big seller for the CSIs and Law and Orders but would be for the serialized shows that unfold with each episode.
There are already some shows that do better in DVD sales than they ever did on TV. Lost, Battlestar Gallactica and Buffy the Vampire Slayer all have good sales on DVD. I could see more people using this method than watching original first-run episodes, because it's hard to fix your schedule to broadcast times when you don't have to anymore.