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2020-21 Season TV Cancellations/Pilots: Everything's Not Gonna Be Okay for Punky, Betty, Dickinson, or Sarah
- Thread starter mreddie
- Start date
- Entertainment OT
I think it's absolutely a worrying trend if normalized. For now it's somewhat acceptable because it is isolated to just the MCU series, but there is a real fear that is a slope that could get slippery REAL quick as studios look to further move the TV industry towards an IP-first model, like has already happened with film.
Why would Marvel want top-shelf writing talent? Why start now?
Marvel will change when/if viewers demand better content. As long as viewers are sated -or even elated - by the likes of Falcon & Winter Soldier's mediocrity, you'll get Feige's committee-driven output.
I'm not convinced anyone but Disney can pull it off yet. They have a special talent for making people ignore quality so long as some fan-service and a drip-feed of continuity are dished out.
Basically.
I'm not so sure about this part. There have been some botched attempts, but in theory other franchises could emulate it, albeit on a smaller scale. Especially when talking about TV series on a streamer all owned by the same studio versus various theatrical films (which come with different expectations).
We've seen via the MCU (and Star Wars) that people are caring more and more about "interconnectedness", "canon", and how an over-arching plot progresses rather than a particular story or character's progression and development. To me that is a worrying shift in viewer behavior. Coupled with the studios' shift towards an even greater focus on IP, I'm not feeling terribly optimistic about original genre storytelling in the near future.
Oh, don't get me wrong. They'll be trying! I'm just not convinced they can pull it off, much as so many have failed to do it with features. Part of it's the types of franchises, and part of it's Disney's branding power.
I think the more immediate concern is studios needing everything to be based on IP, even if it's nothing more than an article from a magazine. I see that strangling more writers right now than the threat of more Disney/Feige models.
The whole Marvel/Disney thing is especially interesting when you look at Agents of Shield. The Snap essentially doesn't occur is AoS continuity, because Feige/Marvel didn't trust the staff/cast enough to let them in on the secret whilst filming. And it is frustrating, because you either have to hand-wave away no-one mentioning it, or accept it's some weird mixture of canon and non-canon. And neither of those things makes it a worse show except when viewed in the wider MCU continuity.
Amazon continues to push into sports.
deadline.com
Amazon Prime Video, WNBA Set Exclusive, Multi-Year Streaming Deal; Coverage Starts May 29
Amazon and the WNBA announced a multi-year agreement giving Prime Video exclusive global streaming rights to 16 WNBA games per season,.
deadline.com
The LOTR series will now have the same number of female directors as GoT!
deadline.com
‘The Witcher’ Director Charlotte Brändström Joins Amazon’s ‘The Lord Of The Rings’ Series
‘The Witcher’ director to helm two episodes of big budget show.
deadline.com
Wednesday night's ratings:
http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/articles/the-sked-wednesday-network-scorecard-5-12-2021.html
http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/articles/the-sked-wednesday-network-scorecard-5-12-2021.html
Is there some kind of connection here that is totally less than obvious?
OP
OP
It's overly dramatic, to be honest. The show runner is clearly Kevin Feige and that makes sense for those properties since they are part of a greater arc of stories. So the conclusion that Marvel shows aren't like traditional shows is correct.
Disney+ itself has plenty of shows that aren't Marvel properties and have normal showrunners, like David E. Kelley's The Big Shot, or The Mighty Ducks Game Changers.
OP
OP
True but you think this would sway some people away or will the check and exposure be worth it since showrunners and the head writer take all the credit anyways?
I don't see how. TV has expanded so much, so fast that I see zero problem with changing the traditional model on a case by case basis where it makes sense. Are they going to get top-tier writers with this model? Probably not and I'm sure Marvel is 100% fine with that.
The thing is, Feige is not a showrunner. Or even a writer. He's an executive who is filling that role, rather than a writer.
The worry is that most people are content without top tier writing. So if top tier writers aren't needed, their work is simply not going to be produced, or produced with much less frequency... No great writer is going to let a studio or executive dictate exactly where they have to take a story. But studios, of course, always want more control over their product. Eventually it whittles down the writer's contribution until they're ultimately just worker bees doing the studio's bidding, rather than creating something they're passionate about.
Most network television has been getting away with that since the beginning.
Yes. It is not just confined to the MCU. 90% of what you find on network, or even Netflix, is fairly mediocre and bland. And a lot of it is popular regardless. It's a worrying trend. But executives coming in and taking control/diminishing the role of writers doesn't help the situation.
So it likes ... normal, showrunners always take most credit for success.
Right now MCU is very upfront about making tv series like making their movies. Since Feige controls all production so what exactly showrunners fit it here.
I'm a fan of MCU. I love it when they occasionally rise above but honestly in the end they are children entertainment.
So I understand that top tiers TV writer don't want to work with MCU, like Aaron Sorkin or Matthew Weiner (I want to mention because he goes in hiding since no one care about The Romanoffs LOL) ... and Marvel just dont fit. They can attract top talents for movies but right now tv is another realm.
Another thing, MCU is success as it is because smooth productions. Behind the scene of FATWS showed that it had a very rocky production. covid, earthquake, script changed... but they still came out (barely) on time.
They have like new 12 tv series ready for next years. For a studio just got into the game last year, it very terrified effective.
As the article pointed out, they dont need conflict like this happens in the middle of the production.
So I just found out about "The Show About the Show" and it's the weirdest and most interesting thing I've seen in a while. I can't believe there hasn't been more talk about this... thing given how old it is. lol
www.nytimes.com
A Filmmaker Bared His Soul. It Ruined His Life. (Published 2019)
Caveh Zahedi’s abject, self-defeating, ethically questionable, maddeningly original approach to documentary.
The reality is that a good portion of the viewing populace is not going to be overly critical of the writing of the show. As others have said, this has been true for years if you just look at network TV.
To say this is some new trend is a bit of an overreaction, I think. I would think there's always going to be a market for upper-tier shows with quality writing and production. We're consistently seeing new shows on Amazon, Apple TV+, and even Hulu (to a lesser degree) where unique voices and writing shine.
But - who knows - maybe I'm wrong. Get back to me in 5-10 years when all the various Marvel/Star Wars shows are winning awards and unique/quality voices are being squashed and then we can talk.
To say this is some new trend is a bit of an overreaction, I think. I would think there's always going to be a market for upper-tier shows with quality writing and production. We're consistently seeing new shows on Amazon, Apple TV+, and even Hulu (to a lesser degree) where unique voices and writing shine.
But - who knows - maybe I'm wrong. Get back to me in 5-10 years when all the various Marvel/Star Wars shows are winning awards and unique/quality voices are being squashed and then we can talk.
Listening to Malcolm Spellman talk about his scepticism and then turning that opinion around makes me not care, especially not for cape shows.
The first phase of MCU was very by-the-numbers fill with writers and directors for hired.
I hope in the next few years they will have more experiences in making tv series and let writers take more risks.
I'd like to think they will but I don't have much hope for that (and I really enjoy the MCU). Too many requirements to keep the "interconnectedness" going and, I would assume, they want to keep this universe palatable for the general public at all times (four-quadrant appeal).
But - again - I could be very wrong.
Malcolm Spellman is not a "top tier writer". He is exactly the kind of writer Marvel looks for: Up and coming/young, still trying to advance their career-types... Which the studio can easily control and not have any debates with.
Don't get me wrong. I agree 100%. This isn't a recent trend. The recent, worrying part, which is kind of a slippery slope, is the studio/an executive replacing the showrunner role wholesale. What you get is literally a vision guided by the company rather than the creatives. (Not to mention it is all built on the backs of other creatives, in the comic book space, who rarely get their due and Marvel has similarly fucked over in the past). Marvel is essentially transferring their comic model to film and television wholesale. The problem is since they are one of the most successful operations in the industry, the rest will look to this and emulate it. Regardless of how successful those emulations are, it still takes creative control away from the creatives, and puts it in the hands of the studio. That is something I'm not excited about.
Thanks for providing more of an explanation. I understand the concern better now.
I mean, yes, pretty much. Same thing Fresh Prince did last year.
You've never listened to him speak. lol
Having the same two studio execs hands on with the show from development, through writing, and until it was done while not working on anything else sounds like it worked really well according to Spellman. This is all for a cape show that has a long history of what these characters are like and where they can go so no outside showrunner, no matter who they are, was ever going to have full control anyway. TBF this is all a bunch of pearl clutching over nothing until they start doing it to non-franchise productions.
Yeah, and like, lest people forget, Spellman and his wife were the ones eagerly teaming with Benioff and Weiss to write Confederate.
Pretty interesting article. I doubt it will ever happen, but would be curious to see a top 10 list for other platforms like Hulu or Amazon. Just to see how well legacy shows perform there or how a list changes when you don't release as many shows as Netflix does every week.
www.vulture.com
The Real Story Behind Netflix’s Top 10 Lists
And what the company is doing to them next.
www.vulture.com
ABC Renews American Idol, Shark Tank Plus 3 Other Unscripted Series
'American Idol,' 'Shark Tank' and three more unscripted series have been renewed at ABC — get details.
tvline.com
The problem with Netflix isn't personalized offerings. It's that it is exclusively algorithmic. Every single row of content in every point of the app is based on the algorithm. I am sure this is doing good for them based on their sub data. But for me it ultimately kills the service. It is impossible to discover new content. It is nigh impossible to discover new things. Once you are boxed in, that's it, the only way to break out is to delete your profile/account and start over completely, though you will soon find yourself in a new box.Pretty interesting article. I doubt it will ever happen, but would be curious to see a top 10 list for other platforms like Hulu or Amazon. Just to see how well legacy shows perform there or how a list changes when you don't release as many shows as Netflix does every week.
The Real Story Behind Netflix’s Top 10 Lists
And what the company is doing to them next.
If your tastes are broad and ecclectic, nothing is more fun than going to a "just added" list and getting a chronological list of everything on a service newest first. Netflix makes this impossible. The only way to somehow find something outside of your box is either the top ten list (which is manipulated and heavily skewed due to algorithmic targeting of everyone) or going through the search and searching randomly for actors or directors or even just random words... Although even the search results have algorithmic bs attached to them.
All in all I just wish they would have discovery methods that weren't AI driven. Either full on dumb lists by genre, or playlists made by actual humans. Because boxes get claustrophobic after a bit.
I completely agree with you.
And it drives me crazy that the first few movies/shows in nearly every row are things I've already seen. Why are they doing that??
OP
OP
No Bachelor renewal yet. I wonder why.ABC Renews American Idol, Shark Tank Plus 3 Other Unscripted Series
'American Idol,' 'Shark Tank' and three more unscripted series have been renewed at ABC — get details.
"Remember that thing you enjoyed? Watch it again and stay subbed."