The Triumphant Return of Sarah Connor [OpEd]

Kyle Brady — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 07:05:08 +0000

…maybe.

Potentially legitimate rumors have surfaced that Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles will be returning to television, presumably with cries of joy from around the world, starting with a direct-to-DVD release prior to the next chapter in the Terminator movie saga, and a TV show potentially following – all starting some time in 2010 or 2011. The network sponsoring the direct-to-DVD process isn’t clear, although the WB was mentioned several times, not to mention the total silence on whether the TV show would appear on FOX. Either way, it seems that the important people in this dance listened to both the praise and wails of fans.

This news, if true, could prove to be a gamechanger for the future of television – TV networks that actually produce intelligent, thought-provoking, and deep shows that fans want, even if they don’t achieve the hyper-success of idiotic nonsense like American Idol. If the WB is the network for the future of Sarah Connor and her band of rebels, which includes one humanoid robot, FOX will be highly embarrassed should the show do well, but if FOX somehow manages to hold on to the baby they threw out the window, they will still have dirt on their face at the end of the day, and be subject to the emotionality of a rabid fanbase.

Even if the show continues thematically mostly on its own, despite rumors of being intertwined with the upcoming movies, TV as a whole will be all the better for it, and so will the Terminatorverse – Terminator: Salvation was a good action movie, and a halfway decent Terminator film, but it fell flat on the expectations of a smart and highly complex film that many hoped would have more in common with TTSCC than T3. The cast itself is critical component of the show's brilliance: Lena Headey is a much better Sarah than Linda Hamilton ever was, and Thomas Dekker has evolved from a whiny “emo” teenager into a very believable and intensely brilliant John – not to mention the characters played by Summer Glau, Brian Austin Greene, Richard T. Jones, and Garret Dillahunt that make a beautiful small-screen ensemble and help set the tone of the show.

Regardless of the acting prowess of Christian Bale, the simple fact is that barring an extreme change of pace and tone in the upcoming T5 movie, the Terminatorverse is likely to have a longer, smarter, and better future on television. All of that changes if the network behind the TTSCC decides to place demands on the writers, restrict the show’s budget, or act in other stereotypically ignorant behavior that is so often seen at FOX. However, if the show returns in “same or better” form than when it was canceled, fans will flock in droves to any network that cares to finance the triumphant return of Sarah Connor.

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Note: apologies on being a day late - on vacation and couldn't write this in time for early Monday.

Update (8/10/2009 12:20am PST): Reposted with permission at the Inquisitr.

Update (7/15/2009 11:10am PST): Another source confirms this, unrelated to the original by Lanie, courtesy of Lanie herself.

What’s Next for “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” [Self]

Kyle Brady — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:28:13 +0000

The word on the street is that "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" has been canceled. As much as this absolutely sucks and is in line with the entire history of anything good FOX has ever produced, it was semi-expected because FOX is a network that cares more about obscene big-ticket ratings than the value they put out.

The way I see it, TSCC as a collective has three options for their future:

Suck up to the FOX execs and hope things change at some point in the near future, maybe coming back in Spring '10. While this has happened in the past (Family Guy, anyone?), it's similar to betting all your money on the exact time and date Jesus returns for the Coming of the Apocalypse. I'm not saying it's (Jesus) ever happening, but still.

Find a bunch of money from a group of rich people, self-fund a full production of Season 3, and release it to DVD. I think this is a great idea, and would pave the way for the further collapse of the TV network paradigm, assuming they could raise enough money to continue the same level of writing, production, special effects, acting talent, etc. However, realistically, this is improbable. Unlikely, even. (Pink Panther nod!) We're talking about a huge amount of money spent from idea to DVD printing, and the series would sell for $50, at most, per copy. The number of copies sold would have to be astronomical to even break even.

Pull up the tent stakes from the FOX battleground, and shop the idea to other networks. TSCC has proven to have a nothing-if-not-loyal fanbase, just not with the gigantic numbers that could compete with brain-addling crap like American Idol that is so inexplicably popular among the low-to-average IQ range of American citizens. HBO and Showtime produce shows for a much smaller audience (comparatively), but seem to have no problem doing so, presumably because they produce revenue directly instead of being "OMG we need a larger audience!"-advertising dependent. Writers, acting talent, and everyone else could move over... as long as FOX will release the rights to its production, which is the biggest "if".

Option 3 is likely the one with the best outcome, and I really hope it happens. NBC could even potentially be approached for another season, since they have their fair share of violent "speculative fiction" shows already, and have a history of being more tolerant in ratings swings.

Here's the takeaway:

TSCC Crew, please talk to some other networks about immediately continuing production for their network, without any changes. We will follow you to your endpoint, even if it's FX.

FOX, give up the rights to the show's future. If you don't want to do another season, at least be reasonable about it, and let someone else who cares about the people that are considered their customers.

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Update (4/15/2009 2:50pm PST): Apparently TSCC's producers are saying it isn't canceled yet, and that the information floating around the 'net is faulty... and the "reporter" has a history of bad-mouthing TSCC. Let's hope.

Kyle Brady: Blog » FOX

The Triumphant Return of Sarah Connor [OpEd]

What’s Next for “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” [Self]