Is it the premise, the overarching idea or vision upon which a story is based that pulls the viewer in, ignites his imagination, and makes his mind reel with possibilities and excitement? If the premise is unimaginative, or undefined, or trite can the other elements, even though brilliant, possibly make up for the lack?
Perhaps it is the plot. Well thought-out, tightly paced, intriguing, logically - or even illogically - advancing from one scene to the next - if the plot is too derivative, too familiar, or too ill-managed for even the most loyal viewer, can a captivating premise make the difference?
And if the characters are what drives a good story? Well-rounded, interesting, a relatable mix of heroes and villains and hero/villains, with feet of clay, and hearts of gold, that inspire love and inspire hate - these can be the element that draws people in or turns them away. In droves.
Language plays its part. Who speaks? How often? Is there a narrator - someone outside the story who informs the viewer? Are the words erudite or vulgar, common or aristocratic? Who does it speak to, and for whom does it speak?
Do not underestimate soundtrack. The right music builds tension, the wrong disrupts it. It sets the scene, reaching the viewer before any dialogue is spoken, before any character is introduced, before the world is defined.
Spectacle. The last of Aristotle's six elements of drama. Translate this to television and we are discussing special effects, staging, set design, lighting, costuming, and, although frequently overlooked, the all-important editing. Whether it is a space opera or a doctor show, there is to be spectacle.
Aristotle. Yes, he was Greek. Yes, he lived many years ago. No, current television writers, producers, and creators should not, for those reasons, consider his ideas passe, out of date, or 'irrelevant' to today's audiences. If they reviewed these basics, perhaps viewers would consider viewing their new offerings.
Case in point: Stargate: Universe
The newest offering in a television dynasty of success. SG-1 ran for ten years - an unbelievable and unparalleled feat. Atlantis had an impressive five year run, following in its footsteps: let us leave, for the purposes of this discussion, its untimely demise. Universe, in comparison, is the ugly stepchild. Unwelcome by one of the most loyal fandoms in sci-fi history, rationalized by its creators as the 'next step in Stargate's evolution,' and grasping desperately after the bereft fans of Battlestar Galactica. Unfortunately, it has no truck with Aristotle, claiming, as many failures have before, to 'know better,' to 'go beyond the expected,' and to 'realistically explore the darkness of the human spirit,' its creators have chosen their own less-traveled path with little regard for the fact that they travel it alone.
Premise: Neither imaginative nor interesting. A rag-tag, disconnected group of humans stuck on a derelict ship traveling the far universe under its own, failing, power trying to return home. Space: 1999 minus Barbara Bain and Martin Landau. Or perhaps Lost in Space without the robot. Not new, not edgy, not remotely innovative. The Stargate got them there - that is the only connection with this series' history, no matter how many times they try to inject a badly written Jack O'Neill.
Plot: Survival, with a side of deception. Evil military commanders. Hand wringing. One act of selfless sacrifice. But week-to-week, nothing really happens. They come near a planet, they look for necessary survival items (even the episode titles are all to do with the basic necessities of human life: Air, Water, Earth, etc.) and barely make it back to the ship in time. And the only enemies are the elements (or lack thereof) and the constant backbiting, infighting, and intrigues of the survivors themselves. And these are neither interesting nor appealing.
Characters: Here is the largest shortfall. The characters are lacking in any redeeming features. They copulate frequently, have adolescent tantrums, smile enigmatically, follow illegal orders, and have no concept whatsoever of teamwork. There is the standard ambiguous, all-knowing, all-smirking scientist, as well as the geeky sidekick. There is the tortured, reluctant commander. The finagling bureaucrat. The dangerous, volatile, rebel. I could go on. The cast is large, but largely one-dimensional, and that dimension leaves much to be desired. There is no sense of camaraderie, no goal past survival, no individual who rises above nor inspires loyalty or devotion. And since there is no hero, there is no hero's journey, no hero's fight against evil, no overcoming of the monster. Taken from Stargate's wealth of lovable characters, it is truly depressing.
Language: The characters do not engage each other; instead, they are mouthing lines that even they don't seem to believe. Words escape them that lift the eyebrow and throw the viewer out of the drama to wonder, what the heck? And not in a good way. Pacing is odd, timing is slow and overly stilted, long meaningful looks are exchanged.
Music: I apologize, but it has left so little an impression upon me that I cannot speak to it. Perhaps it is therefore unobtrusive and playing its part well. Faint praise indeed.
Spectacle: On a derelict ship that lacks lighting, lacks any excitement, that looks more like an abandoned factory from the 1940s than anything else, there is no spectacle. The costumes are dark, the lighting is dark, the characters are an uninteresting shade of gray; the only beauty is in the seldom seen FTL flight through space, which, as a very familiar scene to any Stargate fan, is so very welcome even in its unoriginal look.
I watched four episodes. I wanted to give it a chance. I'm done.
Turn back. There are no heroes here.
Wow it has been a long time since I logged on to here. Too long.
I have seen the pictures of gossip girl filming scenes for season 3 and I was so excited I had to come see what was happening. The tv.com community is always good for information. I intend to be far more active on here than I have been.
True Blood is gearing up to start in the UK, but I'm not sure whether to tune in. The advertising is innovative but I don't know if it's my thing, which is odd because I usually love vampire stories. What do any readers think?
Fran
So I got this little vid recomended and I thought why not let you guys get a chance to see it.
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=494727
For me it was love at first sight, hope you enjoy it to.
Viktor
Yesterday however, was most enjoyable - finally rid of Boston Legal, lots of sleep, plenty of ice cold cider, car back from the garage and more money in my Paypal account.
Also got CSI NY: Season 4 Part 1 on the way and House: Season 4 should arrive by the end of next month.
With the 40th blog entry done and dusted, I wonder how the Star Trek captains coped with this every day.
Well now that TV.com has their Fall thingy up, Ive compiled my list of shows I'll be watching. Oddly enough, my first blog post is about the same topic, and I posted it 51 weeks ago 
Anyways
Mondays I'll be tuning into Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles a 5, Prison Break at 6, Chuck at 8, and Heroes at 9. (This is of course due to the miracle of Satellite Television mixed with me living on the West Coast, so I can watch multiple shows on the same night.)
Tuesdays the list shortens a little, and gets a little more difficult, where I'll have to juggle watching Fringe, House, and Eli Stone, all of which air at the same time
Wednesday is so slow, that I have nothing to watch. I'll use it to catch up on my unwatched but recorded shows.
Thursday is another slow one, with only Smallville piquing my interests. (And not really, to be honest. I dunno if I'm going to be able to stick with it until the end, but I'm too invested into the series now to just quit watching it)
Fridays pick up a lttle, with Stargate Atlantis continuing, and Sanctuary starting in October. Mesa very excited!
Nothing on Saturday, but Sunday has The Simpsons at 5, Dexter at 6, Family guy at 9, and Entourage at 9:30.
Overall, pretty exciting but I wish there were more new series that interested me. The Midseason should pick it up big time with BSG's final 10 (Or 12, or whatever it is) Reaper, and of course Dollhouse.
This is my first post, and no one's going to read it, which is fine with me. Especially considering the fact that I am about to vent about a Chilean telenovela (soap opera) that doesn't appear on TV.com (since it isn't in the US).
I was SUCH a dedicated viewer. I didn't miss an episode of the 125 episodes. They were so good. You never got bored with the storyline, you were always interested, and the entire show went at such a fast pace.
Killing Colomba at the end of the last episode of the series is a complete lack of disrespect to the viewers. Was that really neccessary? The whole reason people watch novelas is because we want to suspend reality for a moment and believe in happy endings.
I feel like the writers spat in my face. You get attached to the characters and their lives and suddenly not only are they yanked away, but the kill off one of the lead characters (who was my favorite on the show).
I mean fine, great, so most of the supporting characters ended up with whoever they were supposed to be with (save Genaro and Olga Mia, but I don't really care about them anyway), but what's the point if the most important relationship is just killed (literally)? And what was with that? It wan't even believable! Women don't randomly die after giving birth, and at the very least, the doctors should've seen that something was wrong and tried to save her, but they didn't. And why would you just give up 2 minutes (literally) after giving birth? Fight!
If, say, the writers would've flashed foward a couple of years and at least given Ricky a new wife, then MAYBE it would be escusable, though that would not be acceptable either. The worst was that weird look that Ricky and Catalina exchanged when he dropped Alicia off at her place. What WAS that?
I am so angry, I can't even express it. I don't think I was ever this angry with a series finale (of any kind, and that includes all the American shows that got cancelled in the middle of a cliffhanger).
If the Chilean novelas are like this, it's a good thing I never watched one before, and I'm pretty sure I won't watch another. I think I'll stick to the Argentinean novelas. At least when they end everyone is happy - including the viewers.
