Okay, the other day I applauded Fox for giving Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles a pick up for the remainder of the 2008-2009 season. Even though the critics have been expecting more from the sci-fi series, Fox chose to stick with the show and give it a chance to evolve. Good for them!That said, the news today that NBC has given Knight Rider a full season order leaves me cold. That's an order for nine more episodes, and it strikes me as throwing good money after bad. Knight Rider has been struggling in the ratings and generally dissed by the critics. It hasn't earned a pick up to be perfectly frank.
So why would NBC give this remake of the 1980's action drama a vote of confidence? Well, it could be that it's considered one of NBC programming chief Ben Silverman's pet projects.
It's also likely that NBC is not sure what will work better in the Wednesday 8 p.m. time slot. Knight Rider is pretty much matching CBS's attempt to build a comedy hour with The New Adventures of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried, and ABC's delightful Pushing Daisies, which is also ratings-challenged.
Here's what I would like to see NBC do with Knight Rider: make it better! This is a show that made it in the '80s based on star power and some fun with a car. That car was not a transformer or a Batmobile, but it did have a great personality. Instead of worrying about the product endorsements, which seems to be job #1 at NBC Universal these days, put some work into developing the Knight Rider characters. It's a radical idea, but maybe it'll enliven this remake and make it worthy of a full season.
Mike Henry and Daryl Hall on a Cleveland Show Thanksgiving
The TV Squad Podcast: The Prisoner, '80s TV, soap news and more
Let's talk about spoilers ...
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-21-2008 @ 12:27PM
gwangi said...
When will the back 9 for Pushing Daisies be picked up. How can dreck like this survive and a terrific show like Daisies wither.
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 12:31PM
Dave said...
The quality of the show matters only as far as it pertains to ratings. Ratings = $
If they make money off Knight Rider, it will stay on the air. I'm sure they're getting paid for using the car they are using. (I don't know what kind it is since I'm not watching. Ford?) Once the bottom line tanks, goodbye KR.
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 1:37PM
Europa said...
When I saw this headline I litterally said out loud (at work mind you), "You have got to be kidding me?"
The ratings thing is right, Dave. If the old school test pattern got a 30 share and the all important 18-30 male demo it would get a full order and renewal for next season as well. :-/
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 11:09PM
Damiel said...
Who gets NBC?
They give 19 Episodes to this AWFUL Show?
Totally sucks
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 1:46PM
Cyantre said...
Three words: According to Jim
Nothing surprises me anymore when shows that shouldn't be on the air get picked up.
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 5:45PM
Fahad said...
WTF!
How does a crappy show like this get picked up but a shows like Studio 60 get cancelled.
Effing studio execs.
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 2:42PM
jaerisk said...
The only good thing about this show is Deanna Russo, because she's hot.
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 8:11PM
Usama said...
Yes, I said that from Day 1. Russo is the only reason I'd watch this show... unfortunately it's not enough.
I've only seen the movie and one episode but I know I won't watch the show. The car's personality is dead, the stories are lame, the jokes are lame, and the "special effects" are even more lame.
I loved this show as a kid and I had high hopes they could pull off a BSG-esque remake. What a disappointment. I don't care so much they picked the Mustang, but I hate the Ford commercials and the influence it has had on the show's voice actor choice.
Honestly it would have been so great if KITT wasn't so damn powerful and wasn't so docile. There's no chemistry between Michael and the car, which was half the fun when watching the old show.
10-21-2008 @ 9:47PM
sean said...
Well, i think product placement is key. In an age when ratings are down all over, dvr's are common, and bittorrent reigns supreme, show creaters need to look for a new revenue stream. Commercials aren't going to cut it anymore.
As long as ford is paying a fortune to nbc (i'm sure they are, they paid a fortune for the tv movie), it doesn't really matter what the ratings are.
Reply
10-21-2008 @ 4:10PM
Darren said...
They need to give KITT a much, much better voice and more personality. When he/it talks it boredom galore!
Reply
10-22-2008 @ 8:41PM
Patrick said...
Let me add another "If Knight Rider can get a full season, then why can ___?" Journeyman, anyone?
Reply
10-22-2008 @ 12:31AM
buddyglenn said...
I have seen all of the episodes of “Knight Rider” so far. It’s getting a little better in storyline, but not by that much. I really would like to see the show do well. I keep rooting for it each week to have a strong episode.
I don’t mind that the new Kitt can morph into other vehicles; I just wish it could be done more realistically. I know that sounds stupid, but do it like when the Transformers become real or when each part of the Power Rangers can become that big robot. The parts of the car or body form the shape. Last week’s episode, Kitt becomes a van or a truck is a little too much because of size and lengthed. Kitt becoming a police car was OK, because it could be the car’s shape expanded.
My biggest complaint is the shooting of the action shots with the actors. The driving or talking in the car looks so fake (“Dukes of Hazzard” did a better job 30 years ago). Very lousy CGI, especially now in this computer-rendering society. When “Firefly” (a favorite show of mine) shot the crew in a shuttle or Serenity, it looked more real – because of lighting and angles of camera – you felt that they were really flying, even though we all knew it wasn’t happening. On “Knight Rider,” you can tell Mike isn’t driving at all. It takes away from the action. When David Hasselhoff drove the original Kitt, the crew shot the driving scenes, for the most part, in a moving car with camera rigs attached to the side. This current team doesn’t get much sun at all because they are pretty much inside a studio.
Please don’t get me started on Kitt’s abilities to handle medical emergencies via his glove compartment. Oh please.
A little more believability and some fantasy would make “Knight Rider” better. Also, having The Hoff on a couple of the back nine episodes would bring ratings for the show, too.
Just my take.
Reply
10-22-2008 @ 9:49AM
Wayne Dunham said...
I can't believe there are stories about how Chuck and a few others are on the bubble as far as ratings go when drek like Knight Rider is getting a full ride?
WTF?? Have viewers brains all turned to mush with too much "reality" TV? While Knight Rider has some awesome eye candy the show itself is one of the worst pieces of crap since, well EVER.
Chuck is funny and has characters you can actually care about. Knight Rider has a nice looking car that makes you want to get a sledge hammer out every time is "speaks" and has 0 characters you might EVER care about.
Why do great shows like this have struggles getting ratings when horrendous shows like Popularity Contest (Survivor:Lamesville), American Idol (the William Hung type audition shows are the only ones worth watching), drone ON and ON and ON?
All I can say is AAAARRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!
Reply
10-22-2008 @ 12:20PM
Nathanael B said...
Wow, "ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?" is right. One look at the pilot and I thought this would be canceled ASAP. While I appreciate a network giving a show a chance and not killing it after a few episodes, this shouldn't have even been on the air in the first place. (Seriously, NBC now has 3 spy shows: Chuck, KR, and My Own Worst Enemy. Chuck is awesome, Enemy is okay, but KR is insanely lame)
Reply
10-23-2008 @ 12:53PM
Eric said...
They had better give Life a full season too, if they can hand out full seasons to crap shows like this. Life is a much better show, with more interesting characters and a story that keeps you coming back for more, but they already stuck it on Friday night to die. In my opinion Chuck and Life are the best shows on NBC right now, but I'm not one of the out of touch nielsen ratings household, so my choice of quality shows doesn't count.
Reply
10-25-2008 @ 11:50PM
Tom said...
Oh my God! This show sucks! S-U-C-K-S! They went the totally wrong direction with it. The stories seem, not like they are nostalgic for the 80's, but rather were written for the 80's series and stuck in a drawer to later be found and used as the basis for this crap show. I've seen about 20 minutes of two separate shows, and I've seen enough. NBC is putting out some of the most unbelievable crap, and this is by far the worst. What would this network have if not for "The Office?" I checked out "My Own Worst Enemy," it was ok, but it felt like it had this icky NBC-film all over it. I don't know who is in charge over there, but they are going down in flames (or is it a flaming bag of crap they are leaving on our doorsteps?) Did I mention the Knight Rider Sucks!?
Reply