Glen here...
Well, I see that Coaxial readers are more-or-less unified in their distrust and relative disdain towards ABC this week. A lotta cancellations of shows that were building a solid fanbase. Bad, bad, bad, stupid, stupid, stupid, move ABC people.
From the hundreds of e-mails I have gotten the last few days, you seem to have united a lot of very unhappy people a singular cause and attitude: there are now quite a few people out there who aren't willing to watch any new shoes on your network because they believe the shows will not be given a "fair chance" to succeed, and you'll pull the rug out from under them just as these shows become a staple of their weekly lives.
In essence, you've created a self-destructive loop here. You get pissed off by the perception no one is watching, yet your arbitrary and uninspired handling of ABC programming does not encourage people to *watch* your programming. Which keeps viewers from watching...which makes you angry...which makes more viewers not wanna watch...which makes you say "it's not worth it." In short, for all of your money and (alleged) industry savvy, you people couldn't be more wrong in your handling of both your programming and audience relations.
Alas, what I'm saying here really doesn't matter - because the numbers that *do* exist don't matter to you. The people voicing their commitment to a show don't matter to you - even if "the people" are more committed to the show than you are. And, what *really* doesn't matter to you is the long history of modern television, which finds many of the most popular shows of the last two decades were not hits when they first started airing - and went on to become legendary, long-running, award winning programs. That history doesn't matter to you either - because it's just too inconvenient to be visionary, too courageous to commit to something which doesn't provide instant gratification. It's too scary to take a few chances every now and then - even though those chances have been proven...historically...to work in the long run.
So none of this matters to you. It's really too bad, because we learn by doing. And all your learning now is how to look silly and almost childish in the eyes of a public who is ready to embrace that which you offer - if only you could find that public, and work with it.
As such, not only have you killed several of the *best* shoes of the season in your immature quest for instant gratification, you have probably pre-maturely murdered the mid-season series yet to air.
Congratulations. I thought only my ex-wife could fuck-up this badly.
Now, I may have just made a complete ass of myself: there's always the outside chance that ABC has some overwhelming logical rationale for being so ball-less with its programming. But damnit, it's how I feel at the moment and I just can't help it! Maybe there's a logical and good reason ABC doesn't have the spine to support shows which every seasibility says should work - when there's so much evidence to support the value of giving a series time.
If this is so, someone over there needs to speak up and say something - 'cause there are thousands (tens of thousands) of people out there who aren't very happy with ABC right now, there's even talk of an active boycott to slam ABC programming. We are open minded, and we want to learn - but there's a swelling sense that we...the viewers...are owed a more cogent explanation for the network's long-manifested behavior. But since none seems to be forthcoming, the only option we are left with is to leave. That's not in anyone's best interest. No matter what, the opinions I've voiced here I know to be shared by many folks - no matter how ill-educated or clumsily articulated my thoughts may be at the moment.
Now, I know there are many "Save Cupid" campaigns out there on the Internet right now. I linked to Chicago & Mancow's "Save Cupid Campaign yesterday, and here's another (more precise and pointed) site which is also trying to save Cupid. This is all fine and dandy, and I certainly encourage people to tell ABC exactly what you think about them right now (more politely that I have done here today, though).
HOWEVER - I've been digging around for two days, and here's what I have discovered. All indications are that ABC simply does not Care about what you are saying. All indications suggest the likelihood of ABC reviving Cupid are about as good as the chances of winged monkeys flying out of my butt.
THE GOOD NEWS: I have gotten some very strong indication that Cupid *is* being considered by other outlets. The most probable candidate at this point in time appears to be The WB. I am told many Powers That Be...at both a studio and network level...will be perusing video tapes over the next few weeks - and will likely be making some sort of determination about Cupid's fate within the same amount of time. There was a flighty and heavily veiled reference to Fox potentially picking up the show as well - but I can not vouch for the accuracy of the latter.
So, there is a good reason to be hopeful here. Doesn't mean any of this will ultimately pan out.
So, if the folks at The WB are reading this: WELL DONE!!! Thanks for considering revival of this show, and for having the courage and vision to continue along a path others could not see clearly enough to walk upon. And to the people at Fox (if my information is correct about your interest in Cupid) - between Buckaroo Banzai and this, you may actually become as cool and cutting edge as you've wanted to be for a long time now.
Finally, even though I genuinely sense ABC's disinterest in reviving Cupid is complete, I thought I'd share with you a message which was sent to one of my readers - in response to queries mailed in to their webmaster.
First, my reader's message (READER USED HIS REAL NAME IN THE ORIGINAL TEXT, I HAVE REMOVED IT FOR SECURITY REASONS).
Here's the message he sent:
From: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx To: http://abc.go.com/email_abc/index.html Sent: Wednesday, January 27, 1999 3:53 PM To: ABC Online Webmaster Subject: technical help Two things. One related to the other. The ABC message boards are down and there is no easy way to contact ABC (through the internet, don't even suggest snail mail) so this concern goes to the webmaster(s) of this site and their superiors. 1.)We (the TV/Internet community) find the timing of the message boards "revamping" to be extremely suspicious as it goes down right when ABC has decided to cancel two of the only worth while shows on television; Fantasy Island, and Cupid. We demand the return of the message board immeadiately or, failing that, an e-mail address to your viewer comments office (or similar department). 2.)The cancelation of Cupid was a mistake. (see above as to why I am mailing this to the webmaster) This show has managed to quietly gather a die-hard (and large) viewership and has all the makings of a mega-hit if treated properly. Remember that quirky, wierd, paranoid sci-fi show that Fox was getting ready to axe about five years ago? You know, the X-Files. Cupid has the same potential. If you kill it your commiting your network to suicide. The cancellation of Cupid, and now Vengance Unlimited (another show with mega-hit potential) has sparked some of the most intense comments I have ever seen. Get this guys, Star Trek fans reactions to their shows' attempted cancellations pale in comparison to the reactions coming from the internet community over Cupid. You are going to lose massive viewership if you allow this travesty to continue. Bring back Vengance Unlimited, Fantasy Island, and most importantly Cupid!!!!!! Thank you for your time, "The Goth" (codename inserted by Glen)
And here's what ABC sent back (note skirting the issue re: downed message boards):
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 17:17:56 -0500 From: ABC Online Webmaster
So there you have it, folks. Good luck, Cupid. Saty alive for all the series that couldn't...
