NBC ushers in the Year of the Remake
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For all the talk about NBC doing a year-round schedule and it being a bold new way of doing business -- even though it isn't entirely new -- the schedules the network presented Wednesday look pretty conventional.
And since there's next to zero footage from any of the new shows NBC has picked up, it's rather difficult (and pointless) to try to guess whether they'll be any good. So that leaves only the programming philosophy to judge. And based on what NBC co-chairman Ben Silverman told us yesterday, I'd have to give it a qualified "Eh."
The point Silverman and Teri Weinberg, the No. 2 person at NBC Entertainment, repeatedly made was that NBC in 2008-09 is going to be about escapism and inspiration. Real life is kinda bleak right now, they think we think, and they want to offer a respite from that when people turn on their televisions at night. "We've watched a lot of dark stuff not work, and we've learned from that," Silverman says.
"The world is filled with a lot of bad news and bad info, and we're looking to break through both in terms of making noise, but also in giving accessible entry points to heroic themes that we all believe in."
And how does one accomplish that? With a lot of remakes and updates and retellings.
I can just about guarantee that you'll see dozens of stories declaring 2008-09 the Year of the Remake between now and the start of the fall season, just like this year was (at least before the writers' strike) the Year of the Foreign Actor. Partly because of the strike, the networks are relying heavily pre-sold concepts in their development; more than a dozen pilots or series projects are based on other shows, or books, or, in the case of NBC's Kings, a biblical story.
It's just that NBC is doing almost nothing but those kinds of shows. Knight Rider is a sequel/remake of its 1980s show. Crusoe is based on Robinson Crusoe. Kath & Kim is an adaptation of an Australian hit. The Office spinoff speaks for itself.
Which may be why, of all the shows NBC announced Wednesday, I'm most intrigued by the Christian Slater drama My Own Worst Enemy. Which, by the way, isn't exactly a brand-new idea either: Silverman describes it as "Jekyll and Hyde meets Jason Bourne."
What My Own Worst Enemy at least seems to be trying to do, though, is use those well-worn tales as a jumping-off point rather than just putting them in new clothes. Slater plays a middle-class father with a boring job (efficiency expert) whose alter ego is a black-ops spy and trained killer. Neither identity knows much about the other until the wall separating them breaks down.
See, that sounds kind of cool to me (though I admit to being a bit of a sucker for both spy yarns and dual-identity stories). Unlike, say, with Knight Rider or Crusoe, I don't quite know what I'm going to get if I watch that.
I do at least understand what Silverman and Weinberg are trying to do. They were very good Wednesday at staying on message about the escapist nature of their programming; heck, they even talked about re-establishing something of a family hour at 8 p.m. (whether Chuck or My Name Is Earl are truly family viewing, I'll leave to others to decide).
Silverman also declared himself a "huge geek" in perhaps the silliest moment of Wednesday's press conference (he was responding to a question about the number of sci fi-tinged and fantasy shows on the schedule). Hmm -- I thought he was a rock star.
Geek, rock star or otherwise, though, I don't know if what Silverman is pushing will work. I think Knight Rider, which got pretty good but not great ratings against mediocre competition (and was pretty universally panned), looks like nothing more than this year's Bionic Woman, which also debuted to strong ratings before going in the tank. NBC can pay as much lip service to taking its time to get things right as it wants, but I struggle to believe that the pent-up demand for a weekly Knight Rider series is strong enough to sustain those ratings.
More than once, Silverman referred to last year's box office rankings -- and big earners like Spider-Man 3, Transformers and the final Pirates of the Caribbean movie -- as evidence that people crave the familiar. There may be something to that (though at least equally important is the fact that studios are unlikely to commit big money to a film unless it comes pre-packaged), but the box office for all three movies plummeted by at least 45 percent in their second weeks of release. That gets TV shows cancelled.
What do you think about NBC's new schedule? Do you turn to prime-time TV to help get your mind off the world at large?
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I have two completely different TV-viewing personalities. One really craves great story-telling and intriguing characters, and I normally get this from FX, ShowTime, HBO, and the occasional network show like "LOST" and "Life". The other personality wants junk TV that will help me relax. I get these shows primarily from VH1 but others like "Big Brother" tend to sneak in from the networks. It looks like NBC is trying to "shoot the gap" and I am not convinced it is going to work.
"...as evidence that people crave the familiar."
I guess NBC "craves the familiar" of being the Number 4 network. More power to them.
MY BOY BLUE!!!! LOL! I agree though, I don't know about any of the decisions that they made this coming up year (sans The Office spinoff and Knight Rider). It seems like they are saying a big "you know what" to the writers and other producers by only accepting a certain number of pilots this year. Also, as much as I want to disagree about their statement on how people are cool with the familiar, Silverman is sadly right. People scream about how much they hate stuff being remade and how it's not original, but they were also screaming that about the original.
Doesn't sound like anything exciting to me ! Not since I was 10 yrs old have I liked the same old formulaic hero rides to the rescue each week to save the day (Knight Rider, Love Boat, Fantasy Island). Never liked Robinson Caruso either. And spin offs are rarely as good as the original. I'll check out Slaters show - but do not have high hopes for it. Afterall - Bionic Woman could have been so great and between the network and the behind the scenes drama they killed it.
NBC's FALL 08 pilots in my own opinion, My Own Worst Enemy, if Heroes can get better and decide who are the good guys and who are the villians and who will lead each side(It should be HRG for good guys, while Cyrus Should lead the bad guys.) Also it might be alright for Christian Slater to go to TV, Patrick Dempsey, Rob Lowe and Charlie Sheen who were big in the 80s are now really big TV stars due to their shows and, (If they could make this work it could possibly be a hit drama!)
Kath and Kim, possible trainwreck of 08/09 TV Season won't last even 6 episodes! Knight Rider remake, if it can be better with its acting and use really good and even better special effects it could last as long or longer than LAS VEGAS. Crusoe, could be a hit if they find the right cast and if it is the combo of Cast Away, Pirates and MacGyver and if they can get a man in mid 40 or early 50 who is smart or even get Richard Dean Anderson, for pete's sake he did well with Satrgate SG-1 anyways and it lasted a full decade. NBC 09 Midseason pilots, in my own opinion, The Philanthropist sounds really dark and unusual really good in a way. The Office spin-off better be good if they want the series to continue on NBc and in syndication! Merlin sounds weird and not right for NBC's TV schedule or TV slate. Kings will be a good edition to Sunday Nights. It is dark and original for primetime and NBC. NBC SUMMER 2009 pilots in my own opinion, America's Toughest Jobs will most like return because it is unique and the rest of the shows will be cancelled!
I've always been a Christian Slater fan, but I was in my teens watching Gleaming the Cube, Heathers, and Pump Up The Volume so I have an excuse. I really hope TV does him well. I'll be rooting for this show, though I have less faith in NBC than I do in FOX, which is saying alot.
The Office spinoff I think needs to be a "corporate office" show with Ryan. I think that makes the most sense. If it's about another regional branch, what would be the point? The corp office idea would have plenty of fodder to play with.
Knight Rider will last about as long as Bionic Women. Seriously, no one cares. They watched the TV movie to relive the old days for a night, it won't carry over.
I'm actually excited about NBC next year. I think it's because when I looked at the "shows not coming back thread", I was thrilled to see so many of the horrible game shows listed. I'm still sad about Las Vegas though. :(
i guess nbc likes being in 3rd or 4th place in the ratings because there new schedule will most likely put them there for sure nbc the boring network what a shame
Ah, Ben Silverman. A not too nice guy who clearly thinks tacky game shows and yet another round of re-makes are the way to re-build the mess that he has made at NBC. Of course, his boss Jeff Zucker seems to make a career of failing up so maybe it is appropriate that Bennie follow in his footsteps. No offense to fans of long in the tooth shows like ER and little watched crticial darlings like FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS but, at any other network, these shows would be long gone. NBC is desperate and renewals like these prove it. When your top-rated show is a piece of middling junk like DEAL OR NO DEAL and trash like THE BIGGEST LOSER and CELBRITY APPRENTICE draw bigger audiences than most of your low-rated scripted fare, something is really wrong. There is a reason why I watch primarily ABC and cable networks: that's where the good shows are. On ABC alone I have LOST, ELI STONE, BROTHERS & SISTERS, UGLY BETTY, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES, SAMANTHA WHO?, PUSHING DAISIES, PRIVATE PRACTICE and GREY'S ANATOMY. All smart, well-written shows that hit all of my emnotions and don't insult my intelligence. When I want a mental break I can always catch TOP MODEL or one of the endless PROJECT RUNWAY retreads Bravo keeps churning out. Perhaps when NBC is run by someone who doesn't "think we think" whatever things he mistakenly thinks we are thinking (whew!!) then the network might get back on track. Until then, I wish NBC nothing but continued failure. Ben Silverman, you are reaping all that you have sown.
Nobody was a bigger Knight Rider fan than me, but I don't think this show will do well. First off, the car uses too much CGI. Something is wrong when a show from 1983 has more believable effects than a show in 2008! Also Deanna Russo should be recast and they need to lose the geeky friend who suddenly joins the foundation as well as the unnecessary lesbian FBI agent. I still miss the Trans-Am, but I think they need to make the effects more believable and use turbo boost! Justin and Bruce Davison are great in their roles, but they need a stronger and prettier actress to play off of.