FOX TV's Sorry Track Record with Science Fiction

Image from source, Topless Robot

(Yes, The Tick was a super-hero parody, but super-heroes are sci-fi in my book.)

I've been a fan of sci-fi (SyFy, if you prefer) ever since I was little. When I had to pick elective literature courses in high school I opted for "Mystery & Suspense," and "Science Fiction." Luckily for me, I grew up in the age of sci-fi movies, both cheesy (Logan's Run) and superb (Star Wars). On TV, there was The Six Million Dollar Man, The Bionic Woman, Wonder Woman, Battlestar Galactica, The Incredible Hulk and many other sci-fi/fantasy shows.

As I got older, I never lost my affinity for sci-fi. And every so often, the TV powers that be would tantalize me with a new offering. I'd excitedly watch from episode one, only to have the show yanked from the schedule two, six, thirteen episodes. If I'd get really lucky, I'd a full season, or possibly a second, usually aborted somewhere in the middle of season two. Sometimes the show deserved it (V, Manimal, M.A.N.T.I.S., Misfits of Science, the new Bionic Woman) More often than not though, if the program was good, and I was really getting into it right as it was cancelled, FOX was the network that dropped the axe. Damn that Rupert Murdoch!

Now, I have to give FOX credit for putting them on in the first place. And there have been rare exceptions like The X-Files. Currently, FOX has renewed two very good shows with sci-fi elements, Fringe and Dollhouse. As grateful as I am for that, however, I cannot forgive them for cancelling Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles after an insanely good run of episodes. I don't care what the excuse is, that show was just too cool to die. Here is the original promo for that show. Tell me this show wasn't made of awesome.

The article below is not focused solely on the sci-fi genre, but it is heavily represented.

[Excerpt]

The 20 Greatest Shows Canceled By Fox Before Their Time

I'm going to come right out and say it; The Fox Network is the f***ing devil. How many times in the last 20 years has this story repeated itself? Fox greenlights an awesome show. Many viewers love it and practically become obsessed with the show. Fox then cancels the series after a handful of episodes because the ratings did not climb fast enough for the impatient, small-minded execs at Fox. Imagine if a classic, long-running show like Seinfeld had aired on Fox (which actually almost happened) instead of another network. . . .

Read more at: Topless Robot

Movies I Can't Wait to See: Tron: Legacy

The original Tron was a pretty influential movie, pop-culture wise. Being computer animated in the early 80s (on TRS-80s and Texas Instruments calculators?) they did a pretty good job. But I think it was actually the video game versions--both in arcades and on the blocky, schlocky Atari 2600--that cemented it. There were, after all, no video stores or down loadable movies back then. So, it will be interesting to see what they can do with it now. And I'm glad to see that Jeff Bridges is back.

Fall TV Season: V (I Can't Wait!)

Image from EW

I got excited for the remake of Bionic Woman, and was let down. I watched with zero expectations when they remade Knight Rider, and had that zero met. I got really excited about the Terminator series, and was rewarded with one-and-a-half seasons of great TV, only to have it yanked away.

So you would think that when I heard that V, the classic science fiction TV mini-series/series from the eighties, was coming back to television, I'd be wary. And I am. But I'm also excited. V and V: The Final Battle were two of the most enjoyable events in sci-fi TV for me when they originally aired. The follow-up series only lasted a year, probably due to low budgets and the dreary story-telling of dramas of that era.

But the underlying storyline of all of them was compelling, and could be dynamite if done correctly. V started with a fleet of huge motherships arriving from outer space (ripped off later in Independence Day), containing a contingent of aliens promising help for all that ailed the human race. They were greeted warmly by the populace, and seemed on the surface to be all that they said. "The Visitors are our Friends," was their propaganda message, and it hid their true motives: to enslave and/or eat us all! Oh, and to steal our water.

Top that off with the fact that they were lizards under their (unconvincing in retrospect) human skins, and ate live rodents whole, and you got a whole 'nother level of creepy. The cast was great, with the evil Diana (Jane Badler), the good alien Willie (Robert Englund), the leaders of the resistance Mike (Marc Singer) and Juliette (Faye Grant). While modern special effects can fix the flaws of the 80s series, I don't know if they'll be able to match the cast. But I'll be watching, that I'm sure of.

New Star Trek Movie Trailer

I told you already, I'm having difficulty finding interesting things to post about. Thankfully, there are interesting things if you look hard enough. Like this new trailer for the new Star Trek movie.

I'm excited about this quasi-"reboot" of the series, having been a fan of every new Trek installment. I even liked Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Enterprise, the two that fans like to complain about. After Enterprise and the last movie, Star Trek: Nemesis, the franchise seemed to peter out. Maybe going back to the roots of the original show is just the ticket to get it going again. But, I have to wait for May?