On Sun, Feb 10, 2013 at 6:50 PM, Kevin M. <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Sun, Feb 10, 2013 at 5:55 PM, Tom Wolper <[email protected]> wrote: > > > On the other hand NBC was open about wanting broader appeal in > > their series and that was probably a directive to the new showrunners. > (SNIP) > but I look at "West Wing" as an example of a show that became > unwatchable from season five onward after network notes and a new > showrunner. It gained some new viewers, but the new viewers lacked the > loyalty of the viewers it lost. It went from being a talked about show > by critics and fans to a barely regarded show that had to resort to > gimmicks like girls in short skirts and live episodes just to remind > people it was still on the air. By the end of that series, actors > openly stated their characters were doing things they never would have > done, and the show ceased to be about what it was initially about. (SNIP) > I am contractually obligated to balance Kevin's negative (and, IMO, exaggerated) take on the last three seasons of The West Wing. The first half or so of Season 5 was quite bad, by TWW standards, but were hardly unwatchable; it during those episodes the show descended to the level of an average broadcast drama (which, I suppose, some would define as unwatchable, so maybe I should stand corrected). But the show corrected and by the last third or so of season 5 was much better; and the last two seasons were actually quite good, in some way as good as seasons 3 and 4. Those last two seasons have become even more interesting in retrospect, as in so many uncanny ways they anticipated the rise and election of Obama (or maybe inspired and instructed that rise). Community has (IMO) never been nearly as good a sitcom as TWW was a drama, but I think Kevin's basic take is valid - the re-tooled show will likely be a downgrade from what fans of the original liked, though I would leven that with my point about TWW, namely that even the watered down Community was better than a show like Whitney. I suspect many Community fans would rather have the watered-down version than no version at all. -- -- TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TVorNotTV" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
