MovieChat Forums > Nothing Sacred (1997) Discussion > Most unfairly judged show ever!

Most unfairly judged show ever!

posted 20 years ago by Ant_Lan
6 replies | jump to latest

I myself come from a very conservative family, and I fell in love with that show instantly. My mother was working in a sanctuary at the time, and used to screen the show to her employers who were all really passionnate about it.

So I was really PISSED that so many people protested the show without watching it. It did not 'Destroy' religion as so many people try to keep it, but tried to instead to restore faith in it. It tackled questions that the Churche's detractor have been asking themsleves for eons, and tried to answer them from a passionate churche's point of view. If anything, it MILDLY aimed at raising the level of discussion about religion in this puritan part of the world. And it was darn good TV drama, from the writing to the heartwarming performances.

I have searched high and low to find ratings for the show's original airing. To my knowledge, it wasn't yanked because of it, but because of the anger-blinded mob that 2 years later would try to crucify Kevin Smith for making a genuinely funny and harmless movie.

Honestly, I don,t think I ever followed an ABC series after that. I hope Disney will at least have the guts to put it out on DVD, for art's sake.

[–] RoIn100 19 years ago

I agree. I still miss this show deeply and still am annoyed that so many of the people who were involved in protesting the show never bothered to even watch it but just took the word of groups that were using it as a fundraiser in their direct mail appeals.

As for the ratings, they were always very poor. ABC first put the show on in the fall of 1997 at 8:00 on Thursdays against "Friends" which was the death slot for any network show. In January, with little or no promotion, they moved it to Saturday nights at 8:00 where it ran for two weeks before being yanked for the February sweeps period. It returned, again with little or no promotion letting people know, at 9:00 Saturday nights for two weeks in March and was then abruptly canceled due to low ratings leaving no less than five completed episodes unaired and despite airing a "next week on Nothing Sacred" spot after the last episode they broadcast and despite insisting during the show's entire run that they would give it a FULL season. The controversy, ultimately, probably had very little to do with the show's demise -- after all, controversy sells and allowed "NYPD Blue" to run for 11 years. It was ABC indifference to this gem of a show, its failure to properly promote it, it's moving it around the schedule with little or no notice (15 episodes in 3 different time slots) and its failure to live up to its word in giving it a full season that killed it off. I have never watched another ABC series in the 7 1/2 years this show has been off the air.

Despite the fact that the show aired on ABC Disney is not the one who hold the DVD rights. Those belong to Fox who actually produced the show which has been on the air (in reruns) in Canada, Europe, South Africa, and Australia but not the US.

[–] Ant_Lan 19 years ago

That actually makes a lot of sense. Controversy DOES sell more, usually. I knew that ratings weren't good, but shows like Seinfeld and Cheers were given a chance. However if Fox was involved, with ABC, no wonder it got canceled.
A cable channel probably would've exploited the nature of the show and ensuing controversy to much greater avail, ala 'Queer as Folk' or 'Oz'.

Still...Fox's bottom line is money. I'm a little surprised they didn't try to squeeze their investment back with a DVD set.
Ah well...guess 'The Simple Life' has priority....

Holy Kleenex, Batman! It was right under our nose and we blew it!

[–] fairytail3982 19 years ago

I agree. The "St. Tom's" of the series reminds me of my own St. Tom's, a very social justice-minded Catholic parish. We have been the subject of many a local controversy, not the least of which is having a woman (nun) pastor who is the boss of the chaplain (priest).

I came to this site hoping to find information on buying a DVD of the show, but apparently it has not been released. Does anyone know of a campaign to petition for the release of the series including the unaired episodes on DVD?

[–] Ant_Lan 19 years ago

Hey Fairy..
the only way I found on the net to put pressure is via www.tvshowsondvd.com...you can vote for the shows you feel should come out on DVD, and see statistics on how other users have voted. They've had some level of success with top-ranking shows. Unfortunately, NOthing Sacred doesn't score very high.

Holy Kleenex, Batman! It was right under our nose and we blew it!

[–] silverphoenix215 16 years ago

I loved this show! I do think it was unfairly judged. But I knew by the second episode it wasn't going to make it into a second season. Too controversial. I'm a lapsed Catholic and the show was hitting some red-hot nails. Then there was all the behind the scenes scheduling crap that I just found out about.

Don't let another wonderful show fade [your choice of favorite]. Make your voice heard at www.heynielsen.com. Viewers saved Moonlight from going up in flames. Looks like it'll get another season because fans spoke up.

I also believe the average person wants fairly mindless entertainment. Look at the proliferation of "reality shows". Enough said. I'll go to the TV DVD site and put in my two cents.

Remember the Golden Rule: treat others as you would want to be treated.

[–] svenmoo2 17 years ago

I loved this show and I'm still trying to find any way of seeing the never-before-aired episodes, including the Easter episode I heard was amazing.

Is there a way of obtaining the show from Belgium if it's being aired over there?