Not a bad start, for a network show - Emergence (2019) Discussion

The plot sounds interesting enough, that is if turns out to be Sci-fi (gov/alien) and not something else.

reply

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8356) 5 years ago

I"m not sure why it would need to be government or alien stuff specifically to be sci-fi, but even under that narrow definition, it still looks to clearly be sci-fi.

We only have one ep so far, but if it's an accurate indicator of what we're going to get from the rest of the show, it looks to be a little bit of Stranger Things, The X-Files, Lost, and even a splash of Carrie, all rolled into one, slightly generic feeling network TV package.

I'm not totally sold on the show, but I'm intrigued enough to give it a few more episodes. Hopefully it will be good.

reply

[–] SolemnMime (174) 5 years ago

I wonder where else you could take the show if not down the "government/alien" direction. I mean it's clearly supernatural/telekinesis-like, so unless it follows along a more magical/mystical angle than just a more cliched alien/government experiment-like one, I can't think of other directions it would go off the top of my head at least (maybe the girl's neither alien nor the government's involved).

I guess if it does go elsewhere that would prove the show to be specifically unique to me as it went where I would've never guessed (others could probably say that too as it would be more unpredictable & possibly more appealing depending on how it proceeds).

reply

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

Yeah, it was interesting. I'm curious to see where they are going to go with it. I agree about the characters being likeable. I would rate the pilot a B.

reply

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8356) 5 years ago

A B sounds like like a reasonable score.

We'll just have to wait and see now if the show goes off a cliff, narratively. It's kind of reminding me of Manifest, and I enjoyed the pilot for that one as well, but then it became uninteresting almost immediately after and I bailed about halfway through the first season.

I think the biggest pitfall they're going to need to avoid is creating a sense within the viewer that they're just being strung along with a story that is going nowhere.

reply

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

sounds a bit like The Sinner.

reply

[–] chrisjdel (2714) 5 years ago

This is on ABC (Already Been Cancelled). The Crossing was the last straw for me, this network is the absolute worst of the bunch for insta-cancelling new shows. They're probably monitoring the numbers and if their audience drops more than 5% after the pilot's first commercial break, the plug is pulled. I'll wait until the season is over. If they renew it, I'll go back and watch. Not going to get drawn into another ABC show only to have them end it just as it starts really picking up steam.

With premium cable and streaming platforms the so-called "Big Three" from the old days has mostly been reduced to lowest common denominator programming. Cheap to make, not too cerebral for the average viewer, formula stuff, that's what they look for. Any show that doesn't fit the mold never lasts long. I don't know why producers of programming like this don't just go straight to Netflix or Amazon. If they pick up your creation, they'll at least give it a fair shake.

reply

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8356) 5 years ago

Funny you say that, because a friend of mine just sent me this article earlier today:

https://adage.com/article/media/premiere-week-ratings-tank-younger-viewers-turn-their-backs-new-tv-season/2203611

Certainly network television is in a crisis. Most of their shows suck, which is why when I run across one that seems halfway decent it's a noteworthy occasion.

I will say though that Fox, in my opinion, tends to be better than its competitors. There have been some Fox shows that I have genuinely liked, or at least liked for a while until the writers ran out of ideas. The first seasons of Sleepy Hollow and Wayward Pines, for instance, were excellent, and of course Fox was also responsible for The X-Files. And this fall they just premiered a new show called Prodigal Son which, while not great, doesn't seem to be half-bad so far.

But yeah, network TV is usually quite poor.

As for shows getting canceled, I tend not to worry about all that. I just enjoy the ride for as long as it lasts. It's been a long time since I last got upset because a show got canceled. I guess I don't get that invested in most shows anymore, sadly.

reply

[–] chrisjdel (2714) 5 years ago

Well that's the trick. You don't get too invested. It's still infuriating though, when they dangle something intriguing in front of you and then yank it away. It's obvious they don't really care about their viewers.

Streaming services - and to a slightly lesser extent premium cable channels like HBO - operate on a different business model. You provide a wide spread of material, including niche programming for every taste, and get lots of paid subscribers because no matter what someone likes there's plenty to choose from. They're less concerned about whether one individual show gets super high ratings. In fact, a certain amount of low rated programming that strongly appeals to a narrow audience helps them gather and keep that subscriber base.

When you're putting something opposite a reality or competition show that gets lots of people in front of the tube (even if none of them are super-excited) it's almost certain to fail in the old Nielsen game. The mediocrity of network TV exists because of pressures pushing it in that direction. You're right though, Fox at least shows some willingness to take risks and give a show the chance to accumulate fans before summarily pulling it off the air.

reply

[–] Ron2011 (907) 5 years ago

So far after two episodes I like the show. I like the characters, as some have said they're likeable and the acting is good. I'm curious to find out more of Piper's story, which is of course the main part of the show.

reply

[–] Keelai (32190) 5 years ago

X-Files was dead last in the ratings when it first came on but Fox was patient and didn't cancel it. I celebrated when it slowly moved up. Networks have no longer have patience to allow a show to find an audience.

reply

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8356) 5 years ago

I think that the networks are probably very close to panic mode, as their ratings are in free fall with cable and streaming services stealing more and more of their viewership. These days if they don't get big ratings fast I think they freak out.

Your post inspired me to look up the X-Files ratings:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_X-Files#Nielsen_ratings

As you can see, their "low rated" first season averaged over 11 million viewers. Today those would be considered superb numbers for a network show. Just to compare it to another Fox show that aired semi-recently, Sleepy Hollow was considered one of the hottest television shows in 2013 and it only averaged a little over 8 million viewers per episode. By the second season that number was down to just over six million.

And I know that overall network viewership has continued to decline in the six years since that show aired.

reply

[–] Keelai (32190) 5 years ago

X-Files 105 rating is a season average. It was dead last for its first few weeks on air. At the time, I was taping the show because I assumed it would be cancelled and I wanted to rewatch it in the future. I was very happy when it moved to second from dead last. LOL. After that it continued its slow move upward through positive word of mouth.

sleepy Hollow started off great but the new direction, new creative team and bad writing doomed it. After a while, even I gave up and stopped watching.

Viewers watch network shows in various ways including streaming services, on demand, and DVDs. Networks, cable stations and streaming services are owned by the same corporations. They're diversifying in order to continue to make money.

reply

[–] sslssg (28821) 5 years ago

I grapple with that. But then if everyone holds off we are guaranteeing they cancel it. 😢

reply

[–] chrisjdel (2714) 5 years ago

I suppose that's true. And against my own better judgment I watched the first two episodes on demand (hopefully they count those). A promising start. If the writers and producers know exactly where they want to go and have the backstory all mapped out it could be quite good. That doesn't mean ABC won't kill it anyway. Their track record, even just looking at the past few years, is pretty dismal, including some shows that should've gotten a season 2 based solely on the raw numbers yet didn't. My expectations of them are low.

reply

[–] sslssg (28821) 5 years ago

I know I've been left so disappointed with shows that ended season one on a cliffhanger and we never, ever, get closure. I totally get where you are coming from.

reply

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8356) 5 years ago

You know, when I was young and foolish, I always assumed that TV shows were already mapped out start to finish before they went into production. It only made sense to me that before the executives were even approached, the creator knew exactly where the story was going.

I think that this is still often the case with cable shows, but of course now I have learned that network TV is only loosely plotted so as to go on indefinitely.

reply

[–] chrisjdel (2714) 5 years ago

Many times the creators either don't know in any detail where they're ultimately going, or they finish the story they intended to tell and the network makes them continue - because the ratings are still good. Predictably enough, there tends to be a sharp drop in quality after that. Or you get a show like Lost, which led us through mysteries within mysteries and deep connections between everything and everyone. The setup was grand but not done with a definite resolution in mind so they wrote themselves into a corner.

This show apparently has a three year story arc already mapped out. Whether they get to tell it all remains to be seen. I'm hopeful Netflix or Amazon Prime will pick it up if ABC cancels it. Unfortunately for the old Big Networks it's the very mediocrity of most of their programming (designed to cast the widest possible demographic net) that's driving the exodus of viewers. They're trying to move into the future with the business model of the past. Good luck with that!

reply

[–] Keelai (32190) 5 years ago

Absolutely true. They end shows without solving the cliffhanger.

reply

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8356) 5 years ago

It really seems to me that any time they do that they would at least have the decency to wrap up the story for fans with a feature-length episode/TV movie.

reply