Two things are clear to me after watching a new clip from next week's ep of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. First, the show isn't shying away from its recent dive into nerds-only territory. Second, Derek Reese is about to snap. The clip builds on the bizarre conversation Derek (Brian Austin Green) had with Jesse (Stephanie Chaves-Jacobsen) last week about time travel. He suggested that they might have each come from two different cyborg-infested future realities. (Yeah, like I said, it's nerdy). Now, Derek seems more paranoid than ever while talking to John (Thomas Dekker) about the mysterious three dots. We already know that Derek tried to kill himself once before. Is he headed for another breakdown? Monday can't come soon enough.
The last few episodes of Sarah Connor have been some of the best genre TV I've seen all year. It's a shame that the show probably won't be renewed for a third season. I know I'm being pessimistic here, but the writing seems to be on the wall.
Initially, I thought Fox's decision to pair the show up with Joss Whedon's Dollhouse on Fridays next year was good news. As a sci-fi fan who has nothing better to do than watch TV on Friday nights, I was looking forward to catching these two shows back-to-back. A few minutes later, the harsh reality sunk in -- Sarah Connor and Dollhouse have been given the Friday night death slot.
The Dollhouse production problems are no big secret, and it's likely that Fox has little to no confidence that the show will be able to attract a large audience. Sarah Connor has already proven that it can't sustain a large audience. So, it makes sense that Fox would pair these two up and send them out on Fridays, where TV shows go to die. Still, I'll keep watching. I'm sure Whedon will deliver something great with Dollhouse, despite all the behind-the-scenes drama, and Sarah Connor has created a rich and complex mythology that builds on what we saw in the Terminator movies. I'm hooked.
Check out the clip from next Monday's ep, "Strange Things Happen at the One Two Point."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-21-2008 @ 11:07PM
Cyantre said...
Hopefully these two shows will end the curse of the Friday night death slot. After all, Ghost Whisper on CBS has been doing quite well on Friday night.
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11-22-2008 @ 11:20AM
MWM said...
I don't get it. How is it that mediocre shows like Prison Break get 4 seasons! but shows like TSCC get axed so early?
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11-22-2008 @ 11:20AM
Modwild said...
If they start to fail then the damned CW needs to pick them the hell up! No more stupid crap shows when someone could have a modest advertising-supported success on a night that they now have NOTHING. I'm sick of shows I like going bye-bye. From an HR perspective, I KNOW it costs a lot of money to start from scratch and finance from there, as well. Step up mediocre channels; step up!
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11-22-2008 @ 11:20AM
Nome d'net said...
I really hope you are right steveo and Cyantre, but don't forget BSG is on a niche network, not on a top tier network, and CBS has an above 50 stay at home market (for the most part) Those viewers aren't going anywhere. It's too bad SciFi Channel didn't develop the chronicles. It would have flourished there for years. But for the sake of all good television enthusiasts out there-I hope you all are right.
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11-22-2008 @ 11:20AM
steveo said...
BSG hasn't died on Friday nights...
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11-22-2008 @ 11:47PM
Tony said...
He's going to snap when CBS cancels the show.
I used to be a big fan but the show got less about the action and more about Sarah's parenting woes. I won't miss it at all.
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11-22-2008 @ 11:58PM
bruce said...
The reason TSCC can't hold a large audience is because the show is far more deep, intellectual, and complex than the movies were, and when the average jack**** - the type of cretin who made Jeff Dunham's prop comedy christmas special the most-watched show ever on Comedy Central - realized that TSCC was not going to be based on the "evil terminator of the week" concept, they quickly lost interest. Of course I'd have no interest if the show were a terminator of the week show and I'm in the minority of intelligent TV viewers... so FOX is screwed catering to me. Appealing to the least intelligent people is always a design for success on TV, and it's the business model that built FOX up to be the 4th national network.
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11-23-2008 @ 3:43PM
ProgGrrl said...
I realize that BSG, being on a basic cable station, is not under the same pressures to make ratings as high as DH & TSCC (not to mention the fact that Sci Fi's budget for BSG is probably WAAAAY lower than either of these shows).
Nevertheless I am praying that this new Friday Sci Fi block might turn out to be good ratings news for ALL THREE shows. Since it's creating an irresistible 3-hour nerdfest on Fridays next Feb. ::fingers crossed::
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11-24-2008 @ 9:22AM
Eric H said...
I am hoping we might be able to snag another season because of the upcoming film, I mean they can't risk canceling a show that could really grow because of a new move, and hell its got Christian Bale, that has to give TtSCC some hope right?
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11-28-2008 @ 11:15PM
Ann said...
Seriously? They want to cancel Terminator? I was definitely skeptical at first. But this has really developed into one of the best shows on TV. If they are worried about the viewership they have right now, just wait until the new Terminator movie with Christian Bale comes out. I guarantee that interest is going to skyrocket. And, why would you want to waste all the time and money that went into developing this, when you're just going to have to do the same thing for some new show? You've got a ready-made brand right here, and its no Knight-Rider-garbage. Let it play out.
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