Sunday, February 14, 2016

THE BOOK OF LIFE - PART 16

Been a bit distracted so I realized that two series have aired three episodes, so before a new wave of Network premieres hits the "airwaves" let's quickly enter DC'S LEGENDS OF TOMORROW and LUCIFER into The Book of Life. Good news for both I believe.

First here are the possible fates of new shows:

BUY THE DELI PLATTER AND PAY A SHIVA CALL (stick a fork in it, it's done)
WILL CELEBRATE THEIR B'NAI MITZVAH (will get to 13 on the air)
LET'S GO TO A BRIS (the order will be snipped)
SET A PLACE AT THE SEDER TABLE (should finish full the season)
SEE YOU AT NEXT YEAR'S KOL NIDRE SERVICE (there's a second season)

I'm pretty sure no official decision has been announced yet but I expect to see both shows at next year's Kol Nidre service or later for TuBiShvat, Purim or Passover.

DC'sLOT is a no brainer as the CW continues to expand its DC Universe and I don't think we've seen the end of this expansion. As I have said on several occasions Network TV is a business of failure and the goal of network executives is to reduce the cost of failure and buy into success. Law and Order, NCIS and Dick Wolf's Chicago are all examples of increasing the chances of success in a series. For those who say this is uninspired programming my response is that the more you can program hours of a schedule with limited downside the more likely you are to keep something on the air that would often get cancelled. During the Must-See-TV years "Homicide: Life on the Street" was allowed to live on Friday nights for several years because so much of our schedule was so successful both in ratings and revenue.
So kudos to the CW for building out this Universe and, hopefully this will allow them to leave "Crazy Ex Girlfriend" and "Jane the Virgin" alone on Monday nights. I would like that.

I'm pretty sure we will also be seeing LUCIFER at next year's Kol Nidre service. Whereas the odds of DC'sLOT succeeding is built on being part of a successful franchise, LUCIFER's successful start come from two factors. 
Yeah scheduling still matters and putting the show behind "The X Files" followed by a stint behind "Gotham" goes a long way towards propping up LUCIFER's ratings until it can hopefully build its own audience.
The other way that LUCIFER has increased its chance of success is by adhering to one of the most tried and true procedural formats: the He's a She's a.....
"Bones" "Rosewood" "Castle" "Limitless" "Elementary" "Sleepy Hollow" "iZombie" "Grimm"  all follow this tried and true formula of a two person lead where one character is a member of law enforcement who is aided by a partner with a "super" power i.e they have a skill which aides in solving the crime of the week. Generally the partners are male/female. It doesn't work all the time (see the horrific Minority Report) but if it's cast well, incorporates some humor and a dollop of sexual tension these puppies can run for several seasons.
Good leadin and a tried and true formula should keep LUCIFER around for a while even though it is a Warner Brothers show. With the success of "Gotham" (which, between you and me, returns with a string of really solid episodes.....AND PEE WEE!!!!!!!!) I have a feeling there will be a bit of horse trading going on between the outside studio and FOX.

Again sorry of the delay but with new stuff on the horizon I want to make sure that the Book was updated before I have to go out for some deli platters.

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