What a difference 24 hours make. Yesterday, it looked like fans of Jericho might have been successful in their campaign to resurrect the canceled show. Today, it looks like they really are successful. Both Variety and the LA Times are reporting that CBS is in hurried negotiations with producers, writers and actors to resuscitate the show for an eight episode run, to return mid-season."The idea would not be to bring it back for eight and out, but to bring it back for eight with the hope that it would keep going," executive producer Carol Barbee told the LA Times. Barbee also said that when the fans initially responded to the cancellation, CBS suggested a two-hour movie to wrap up the series. But Barbee said 'no', because that wouldn't do justice to the series.
Barbee also makes an excellent point about the way networks are going to have to start looking at ratings. She says, they're going to need to consider online fan communities and online viewings and, "I think they have to understand that the Nielsens are not telling the story anymore." The networks need to find the coveted 18-49 demographic by going online. I thought they had figured that out by putting so many shows online, but apparently CBS wasn't taking that online community seriously.
**UPDATE: CBS officially announces Jericho is back... for seven episodes. The full letter is in comments (Thanks, Mark!)















Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
6-06-2007 @ 12:35PM
Andy said...
i personally.... absolutely love this.
i'm from the UK but i've been watching jericho as we get it over here [and we're about 14 episodes in] and i love it. and people say the last 11 are the better half of the series too.
so i was very upset when i read the show is cancelled, and am now very happy something i've been investing my time in will continue.
let's hope they're right.... 8 episodes i will take. but i hope the ratings etc will only be larger after all the press it has received and they can at least get up to a 13(?) mini season and season three can get a full order.
all behinds the nuts campaign: hurrah!
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6-06-2007 @ 1:08PM
stacy said...
I am so thrilled to hear that the NUTS campaign worked! Jericho got better and better as the season went on, and had a killer cliffhanger. It's nice to know that there will be some resolution, though I do feel it won't be the same without Gerald McRaney.
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6-06-2007 @ 1:18PM
Killer Hook said...
I'm so excited at this recent news. I want Jericho back for 8 episodes and more than that. I'd love to see a full 13 episode midseason order and then hopefully it'd also return after that. Long live Jericho!
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6-06-2007 @ 1:34PM
Tony B. said...
I am excited about this possiblity. If it becomes reality and "Jericho" comes back then be prepared to watch it every episode because they will look at the ratings closely. An effort such as we have seen will be rewarded if they see ratings success.
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6-06-2007 @ 1:42PM
iamhoff said...
I've never gotten this involved with a TV show where I'm calling the network's corporate people to beg, plead, cajole, and such. If it's 8 episodes to start, that's fine. We as the fans just need to keep the viewership up and keep letting CBS know that we're watching. 8 could lead to 13, and then to a full season 3. When it does come back, we have to watch. Otherwise, it would wind up being a wasted effort. Thanks to one and all who have been helping out with this effort. CBS has a Jericho wiki page (don't want to anger Weblogs by putting the URL in) that has a bunch of links and message boards for people to keep on top of things. Jericho Lives!!!!
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6-06-2007 @ 1:50PM
h8rain said...
I am in shock! I love the show and I am in awe. The nuts campaign was just...NUTS...but wow it seems to have worked. I hope this makes the network realize that the Nielson rating don't account for everyone that is or is not watching the show.
Anyone have stats on how many shows have been brought back from the dead?
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6-06-2007 @ 1:52PM
David said...
Oh god help us now.
Now every time some shit show with horrible ratings is canceled people will have another excuse to go "Well if Futurama, Family Guy, Firefly, and now Jericho could do it so can we!" Note I'm not calling any of those shows shit, well I don't like Jericho the acting is horrid and Family Guy does suck, but besides that I'm not calling them bad shows. :)
And a note to the Jericho writers.... Don't end the 8th episode with a cliff hanger!
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6-06-2007 @ 3:14PM
Nick said...
CBS wouldn't have had this problem if it had let them know and they could have made it a series finale sans cliffhanger. There's no way there's this much outrage if the cliffhanger is not there.
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6-06-2007 @ 3:48PM
Rocco Russo said...
#7
CBS wouldn't have had reason to cancel the show if they didn't put it on a 3 month hiatus...
seriously, how can a new show survive that?
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6-06-2007 @ 3:51PM
dtt said...
Great news!
However, what is considered a successful show nowdays anyway?
Jericho was averaging 5 million + viewers and episode towards the end -- against some pretty stiff competition....And if each of those 5 million would have sent a LB of nuts....that would have been a lot of Nuts.
No doupt in my mind that many of us were rabid fans...(It was "must watch" TV for me....Only other show(s) in that category was 24 and Lost. But so what -- say all "5 million" fans were crazy for the show.....at the end of the day it was still 5 million. Is 5 million good enough? (I know BSG would kill for 5 million....but it is on Sci-Fi.
What is stopping the cable networks like Sci-Fi from rescuing these shows with a built in cozy audience of 4 or 5 million that is considered a failure for the "big 4" -- but would be spectacular nbrs. for TNT, SCI-FI, etc?
I remember losing The Prentender and Freeks and Geeks to the ratings wars.....And was already bitter before the Jericho disaster...which was like the icing on the cake... And you can see by my other 2 "losses" that I don't watch a lot of TV......Since these were the only 3 shows that I have ever cared about that were cancelled :)
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6-06-2007 @ 4:45PM
Gordon Werner said...
what should happen is that for a discount on your cable bill ... your DVR/Cable Box should be able to report what you watched, and when you watched it. I'd gladly share that info if it would help the right shows stay on the air (the discount on the cable bill would of course be an excellent incentive to get people to participate)
The Nielson rating system has been broken for a long long time ... too many good shows have been cancelled only because those with the ratings box don't watch them.
This is why America's looserist home videos is still on and FireFly was cancelled ... never mind Greg the Bunny, Wonderfalls, The Tick, Arrested Development ... etc ...
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6-06-2007 @ 4:55PM
Frederick said...
This is both good and bad news. Obviously, the return of Jericho is a good thing, but am I the only one who thinks not having it return until mid-season will do to the ratings what the 3-month hiatus did, and possibly worse?
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6-06-2007 @ 5:44PM
Marc Wenning said...
It's official the show is coming back!!!!!
Below is a message from CBS Entertainment.
June 6, 2007
To the Fans of Jericho:
Wow!
Over the past few weeks you have put forth an impressive and probably unprecedented display of passion in support of a prime time television series. You got our attention; your emails and collective voice have been heard.
As a result, CBS has ordered seven episodes of “Jericho” for mid-season next year. In success, there is the potential for more. But, for there to be more “Jericho,” we will need more viewers.
A loyal and passionate community has clearly formed around the show. But that community needs to grow. It needs to grow on the CBS Television Network, as well as on the many digital platforms where we make the show available.
We will count on you to rally around the show, to recruit new viewers with the same grass-roots energy, intensity and volume you have displayed in recent weeks.
At this time, I cannot tell you the specific date or time period that “Jericho” will return to our schedule. However, in the interim, we are working on several initiatives to help introduce the show to new audiences. This includes re-broadcasting “Jericho” on CBS this summer, streaming episodes and clips from these episodes across the CBS Audience Network (online), releasing the first season DVD on September 25 and continuing the story of Jericho in the digital world until the new episodes return. We will let you know specifics when we have them so you can pass them on.
On behalf of everyone at CBS, thank you for expressing your support of “Jericho” in such an extraordinary manner. Your protest was creative, sustained and very thoughtful and respectful in tone. You made a difference.
Sincerely,
Nina Tassler
President, CBS Entertainment
P.S. Please stop sending us nuts :)
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6-06-2007 @ 6:44PM
John said...
I don't care if it's back for 8 episodes, a 2 hour movie, or 3 whole seasons.
All I want is the loose ends to actually be tied up in a similar fashion to how they were loosened in the first place (iow, no book, no graphic novel, no radio play. Give me the same production values [such as they were]). Finish the story. That's all I want.
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6-06-2007 @ 7:23PM
WhizGidget said...
Whoohooo! The fans rallied and you have results - the same thing happened with 'Farscape' so that we could have an ending (even if it was a "movie event") to that series.
Now if only we could do the same with 'Studio 60'....
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6-06-2007 @ 7:55PM
M said...
See my take on Jericho and other save the show campaigns at http://mytvmusings.com/2007/06/06/save-the-show-campaigns/
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6-06-2007 @ 8:24PM
Michael said...
Actually, I think that having it return as a midseason replacement is probably a pretty good thing. Let's look at the reasons why for a second:
1. All the new show failures will have already occurred and the networks will already have finished moving the schedule around. This means that CBS can find the optimum spot for Jericho and we can actually count on it staying put in one place.
2. Several other returning shows are also coming on board later than this fall - LOST, 24, Medium and Criminal Minds to name a few. This means the series premieres won't have to fight against everything else starting up at the same time. When the show starts up, CBS can really make a big deal about it and it won't get lost in the shuffle.
3. No hiatus and no repeats. As we all know from last season, this was (almost) the kiss of death for them this year. With eight shows already approved, that gives Jericho a good running start to keep going. Again, the shows after the hiatus were definitely some of the best of the bunch.
4. Grass roots. Yeah, this is definitely a factor. After all the work that's been done already, none of us are going to assume that it couldn't happen again. It sounds like CBS is going to help out with an early release of the DVD and then really push the season with reruns over the summer. I know I'll be pushing all my friends that missed it the first time to catch up and be on board for Season 2. Again, it worked for both Heroes this year and then BSG each season its made its way back for a new season. Both shows have a strong base and I'm sure Jericho can expect the same.
Congrats to all! Welcome back!!!
http://www.myspace.com/scoobarama
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6-06-2007 @ 11:25PM
Scott said...
Wow. It's stunning to think that CBS actually listened to the loyal "Jericho" viewers and admitted its mistake. CBS, which has so many "CSI" shows and "Survivor" that it really doesn't need to bother.
I only hope that the new 7 episodes continue the string of very good episodes that closed out "Jericho's" now first season, and we don't return to the middling shows that it began with. Personally, I would've been happy with a 2-hour movie, especially with Gerald McRaney out of the picture.
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6-07-2007 @ 1:04AM
Mel said...
:D
It's midnight now, and I must say this is a great way to start my day! Never seen the show, but I'm just really happy that fans have been able to accomplish this. Great news everybody! I never want any shows to be canceled, but if something happens like this again in the future, I hope this kind of success can be replicated.
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6-07-2007 @ 6:37AM
Mark said...
Could tvsquad institute the same policy that engadget has done - and completely ban the idiotic "here's my blog, come visit" posts with some fluff commentary to somehow "justify" it all. These comments seem to populate every post on tvsquad and it's getting absolutely ridiculous. Even if you just put a ban in for the most frequent offenders, it'd be really appreciated.
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