I think Jericho fans opened up a Pandora's Box.
Months after that show's fans got CBS to reconsider their cancellation by sending tons of nuts to the network (inspired by a line Skeet Ulrich said in the final episode), Journeyman fans have started a campaign to send boxes of Rice-A-Roni to NBC in hopes of getting them to change their mind (the show hasn't been "officially" canceled, but it doesn't look good).
If you haven't watched the show before, the reason why fans are doing this is because in one episode, our hero Dan Vasser went back in time to 1987 and got trapped in a giant box of Rice-A-Roni.
OK, that's not true at all. Fans picked Rice-A-Roni, "the San Francisco Treat," because the show is set in San Francisco.
I like Journeyman. It certainly deserves to see another season more than other NBC shows, such as Bionic Woman, The Apprentice, or Deal Or No Deal. I wonder though if these quirky "save our show" mail campaigns will become predictable and passe' and the networks won't give them any real attention. Maybe the Jericho campaign was just the right time, the right place, and the right network.
I would advise anyone who likes The Biggest Loser to mail buckets of fat to NBC if they ever cancel that show.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
12-14-2007 @ 2:57PM
Tim said...
Oh give me a break! This is getting out of hand. Nuts didn't save Jericho, publicity about the nuts did - it was unique. This isn't unique, it's just silly (and won't grab much headlines).
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12-14-2007 @ 2:58PM
Tim said...
That doesn't mean I won't miss this show....I wish NBC would give it 1 more season.
12-14-2007 @ 3:38PM
Oreo said...
Give a show with horrid ratings, even by NBC's low standards, another season? That's just stupid.
And if anyone wants they can send some to me, I'm feeling sick and would love to have free box food. :)
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12-14-2007 @ 4:58PM
Phil Rogers said...
yeah You are Right , Never mind the quality , If the ratings are low just can it! I wish you were in charge of all the networks!
12-15-2007 @ 8:28PM
Tim said...
Yanking decent shows before they have a chance to find their feet and their audience is already a problem (on several networks).
12-14-2007 @ 5:25PM
jaerisk said...
the show deserves another season no doubt...but if they give Bionic Woman another chance and not this show; I'm going nuts.
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12-14-2007 @ 5:36PM
Akbar Fazil said...
Well, according to these guys http://spoilertv.blogspot.com/2007/12/bionic-woman-cancelled.html
Bionic Woman has been canceled. Would love to see some official word on both shows. Don't care about BW but would really like Journeyman to continue (if not on NBC let FOX take it to F/X)
12-14-2007 @ 5:37PM
Akbar Fazil said...
Phil, don't give Oreo any more ideas/power. He already thinks he knows what shows are good and bad and exactly how tv should be!
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12-14-2007 @ 7:34PM
bsgfan2003 said...
Oreo knows all ;) Who is going to win the Presidential election big O? - he'll tell us!
Journeyman is fine, but I must admit to mild vertigo myself when he disappeared when he was watching his son.
I did not know BW was kaput for sure, but I'm glad to hear it. What a waste.
12-14-2007 @ 9:02PM
bsgfan2003 said...
In the same sort of vein as Journeyman - Does anyone have the scuttlebut on the movie "Jumper"?
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12-15-2007 @ 12:24AM
Akbar Fazil said...
other than it comes out on 2/14 and it looks to be an interesting little scifi film not much else do I know BSG. Ive got the first book waiting to be read but after hearing the film changes a bit (with the authors approval iirc) I am going to wait to read until after i've seen the film.
12-15-2007 @ 4:04PM
jerichofan said...
I was part of the NUTS campaign to CBS to bring back Jericho. There were many aspects to the campaign that brought it back, the nuts was the aspect that stood out in news stories. However, it was a very well designed, executed and elaborate plan with multiple layers. The fans were organized, relentless, but most importantly, POLITE. We articulated ourselves clearly and professionally. Our fanbase is educated, modern and a little older -- but not a bunch of fanatics or geeks. We had accountants, lawyers, doctors, teachers, college students and professors. I think CBS respected out tenacity and that we were NOT GOING AWAY. They thought it would die down, but we kept getting stronger. We were in it for the long haul. Our campaign was about far more than one show. We were fighting for quality tv, and respect for the fans. Now, we fight for the writers of tv and movies. And so we have sent over 200,000 pencils to the networks to tell them that we support the writers.
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12-16-2007 @ 1:49AM
jake said...
Jericho had much higher ratings that journeyman had -- so they can send as much rice a roni as they want -- it won't make a difference. It unfortuanely had the best time slot that NBC has to offer -- after heroes and lost over half the audience.
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12-24-2007 @ 5:13PM
Rood said...
And that time slot is exactly what has done Journeyman's ratings the most damage. NBC keeps assuming that anything they put after Heroes should automatically be able to hold the lead-in audience, and if it doesn't, it must be the fault of the program itself, rather than the networks general ignorance of the kind of viewers their programs attract. You cannot put a serious drama after a flashy, live-action cartoon and expect the same audience to hang around. NBC has killed many a good show with just plain terrible scheduling decisions like this. If anything, Bionic Woman should have followed Heroes.
And it doesn't help that Journeyman, their most promising new program, got none of the perks of being repeated on other stations on other days and didn't get anywhere near the same level of promotion.
12-16-2007 @ 12:25PM
Dana J Adams said...
Ok rice a roni,I thought we should send them old cell phones,which they could donate to that charity I saw on tv looking for old,still functional phones for low income groups.At least I'm pretty sure there is such an organization.Journeyman is pretty much the only thing I watch on NBC,and is the most anticipated by me each week.I love this show and can accept that sometimes it doesn't make as much sense as it could.They spend a little more time on charactarization than on the science.
Dan's trips show that one man can make a difference,even if there is no as Ray Bradbury put it,"A Sound OF Thunder"(I think that's the correct title)
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12-16-2007 @ 8:08PM
BB said...
In addition to the Rice-A-Roni campaign, there is an online petition that has already over 5000 signatures. The deadline for signing it is the 19th:
http://www.petitiononline.com/jmf/petition.html
Also there is talk of planning a download day of episodes from Amazon.
p.s. For details on the Rice-A-Roni campaign:
http://savejourneyman.net/campaign/
and
savejourneyman.funurl.com
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12-19-2007 @ 12:25PM
Jeannie said...
I don't think Jericho fans were the first to ever send in food items or other such things to try and save a show. Fan campaigns like this have been going on for years. It's nothing new. Sometimes it works, other times it doesn't. Ultimately, I think the networks will do whatever they want, regardless of the fan outcry.
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12-19-2007 @ 3:05PM
BB said...
There are indications that NBC is taking note of the campaign. So keep the efforts up.
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12-19-2007 @ 3:06PM
BB said...
Also remember to tune in tonight's the last episode. 10 PM!
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12-20-2007 @ 2:19PM
Icemaan said...
Journeyman is a good series but I guess the network are just looking for rating reality shows. Makes you wonder about the mentality that kept Jerry Springer show on for so long.
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