When exactly did we start lusting after sci-fi mystery shows with such a vengeance? That's the question I'm asking myself after reading the news about ABC's Flash Forward, a drama pilot starring Courtney B. Vance (pictured) and Jack Davenport. The show is based on Robert J. Sawyer's sci-fi novel and follows the chaos that ensues after everyone in the world blacks out for 2 minutes and 17 seconds. Oh, and everyone has a mysterious vision of the future that changes their lives forever.
See, I'm the perfect viewer for this show, because I'm already formulating ideas about what might have caused the chaos (aliens in a time-warp) and what the vision of the future means (aliens cross-breeding with humans). I love these kinds of weird-mystery shows where you have to figure out what's going on and what it all means.
But you have to wonder how the network suits can keep coming up with stories to keep us happy. With The X-Files, Lost, Fringe, Heroes and dozens of other sci-fi shows, hasn't everything already been done already? How will they keep switching it up? What can they possibly bring to the table that we haven't already seen?
Yeah, that's a lot of questions, but I really do wonder when we'll get to the point of enough-is-enough, and all we'll want to watch is The Waltons and Little House on the Prairie. Until then, I'll be the perfect network viewer, waiting to see what Flash Forward is all about.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-02-2008 @ 11:33AM
theJohnnyspot said...
Why bother with another intellegent, well written and interesting show when ABC will simply cancel it when we are hooked. Yep, still pissed about "Pushing Daisies," "Eli Stone" and "DSM!" And no, I WON't get over it.
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12-02-2008 @ 9:03PM
Michael said...
Don't forget Traveler
12-02-2008 @ 11:46AM
John Howard said...
"With The X-Files, Lost, Fringe, Heroes and dozens of other sci-fi shows, hasn't everything already been done already?"
Uh, this question is a joke, right?
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12-02-2008 @ 12:20PM
Kim said...
I'll never get sick of shows that stretch my brain but the same can't be said for the general viewing audience. They want their episodes tied up in a neat little package (CSI style) or, at best, the ongoing "mystery" of who will be the next person kicked off/out of the island/house/stage. Then, of course, there's the other end of the spectrum. I think there's quite a few viewers who are frankly too critical of shows that attempt to engage our brains. They expect a masterpiece each and every episode or they are not satisfied. The net result is that I fear that this genre is doomed except for a few shining stars.
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12-02-2008 @ 12:57PM
izikavazo said...
Surely ABC has realized that sci-fi/thriller shows don't lead out of Lost very well. After people watch Lost they need something slower. Going from one insane mystery to another is exhausting. You would have thought that Invasion, Daybreak, and The Nine would have been enough to convince ABC.
Oh well.
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12-02-2008 @ 1:11PM
Brian said...
It's too bad because Daybreak & Invasion were good shows.
I didn't watch the Nine, but it was probably pretty good as well.
I just hope this doesn't squeeze out Life on Mars, as that show has been good so far, and deserves to stay in the lineup.
12-03-2008 @ 11:22PM
compuguy1088 said...
Daybreak was unique, but with them killing the show...there was some loose ends.
The Nine was an interesting concept, but near the end of its life, the storyline based on its premise became complex and stretched to far...
12-02-2008 @ 12:55PM
Tony said...
Not only that but viewers like the 1 hour episodes each week where they can figure out the illness or the killer and get all excited because they figured it out. Rather than being challenged by a long story line arc that involves you remembering past stories and characters. It's all very frustrating. I think Lost is the last of these shows to work well for network TV. Cable TV is the only place where a show like this can be given the opportunity to sustain an intelligent audience for a long period of time. I'll tune in but I can't feel strong that a show like this could survive the axe the network will use when the show doesn't retain more than 50% of the Dancing with The Stars audience or some other lame reality or procedural that people flock to like mice to cheese.
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12-02-2008 @ 2:32PM
Benjh said...
If this is well written, it can be really good. It sounds very promising.
If course, if this turns out to be the new Nine (Ten?), it could really suck. Flash forward to next year, and the answer is....?
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12-02-2008 @ 3:09PM
Modwild said...
I just want to add that I read the book and I LOVED it! Sawyer has a very unique take on Sci-Fi, and the characters are very understandable. I'm actually quite excited about this.
One of his books, Calculating God, actually made me rethink some things about religion...a Sc-Fi book for craps sake!
Pick it up for Christmas! Then decide if the series seems like a good pick (I say YES!).
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12-02-2008 @ 3:33PM
Jason said...
Why doesn't Sci Fi channel grab more interesting shows like this one? Surely the people at Sci Fi would be more open-minded to help a show like this last more than 13 episodes, unlike ABC.
Or USA? Or FX? Or ..... anyone besides ABC?
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12-02-2008 @ 4:12PM
Jimmy said...
Read the book before you start worrying about aliens causing the blackout. One of the great things about Sawyer's books is that they're grounded in real science. The "mystery" behind the flash-forward is a scientific one.
I'm definitely on board for this series, but I'll only give it a few episodes and if it looks like they're going to deviate too much from the novel on which it's based then I'm tuning out. You can't take a novel of a few hundred pages and stretch it out over several seasons without really deviating some from the original material, but if they try something stupid, like aliens for example, then I'll be done with it.
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