Say what you will about cable–high monthly rates, sometimes poor or nonexistent, reception–it nonetheless knows how to treat its product, which helps the fans of that product.
Some cable networks have no problem showing loyalty to the shows they place on the air,a practice not often mirrored by network television, slave that it is to the almighty Nielsen ratings system.
A great example of cable loyalty is Showtime’s “Stargate: SG-1,” a science fiction series that has its second-season premiere Friday at 9 p.m. Based on “Stargate,” the hit movie about planet-hopping explorers, and featuring popular “MacGyver” star Richard Dean Anderson, the series initially was in the midst of a two-season, 44-episode commitment from Showtime.
Pleased with the popularityand quality of the show, the network increased its commitment by two additional seasons, for a total of 88 episodes.
Contrast that with the usual 13-episode commitment to many network series, and it’s no wonder cable is more appealing to a lot of TV producers. Cable isn’t as concerned with ratings as the networks, so it is in a better position to offer longer deals.
The promise of a full season is a great lure, and two seasons is a bonus. It gives producers a chance to better plot how a series is going to develop with greater creativity, without the threat of cancellation hanging over their heads.
Some networks have followed cable’s lead in bestowing long-term commitments to a few shows. The returning “Homicide: Life on the Street” just finished a two-year pact with NBC, for example. Most viewers would agree that if only more shows were deemed worthy, fans could feel some measure of stability.
Friday’s new episode gives ample reason why “Stargate” will be around for a while. The episode is a fast-paced, action-packed resolution to last season’s finale, where the SG-1 team is on a warship belonging to a hostile alien race, the Goaulds, which is about to attack Earth. Showtime replays the two-part finale starting at 7 p.m., with a “making of” special on the series airing at 8:30 p.m.
– Dusty: Arguably one of the best television writers of his time was Rod Serling of “The Twilight Zone.” So anything adapted from a Serling story is bound to be compelling, and in many ways “A Town Turned to Dust,” a new movie premiering Saturday at 8 p.m. on the Sci-Fi Channel, is just that. It’s unfortunate the production couldn’t match the script.
Distracting, artificially-colored skylines, amateurish-looking photography, and drab sets take away from the movie, a tale of racism that Serling originally based on the true story of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old African-American from Chicago who was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 for whistling at a white woman. The movie is dedicated to his memory.
Serling, whose “Town” was adapted by CBS’ “Playhouse 90” in 1958, set his piece in 1870. This being the Sci-Fi Channel, the new “Town” is played hundreds of years in the future.
But it works. It’s sad how timeless bigotry seems to be.
Earth has been ravaged and is being mined for scrap metal while its former inhabitants are living on an asteroid. In the town of Carbon, workers, known as the Dwellers, subjugate the Native Americans, called Drivers, who work alongside them.
Town boss Jerry Paul (“Beauty & the Beast’s” Ron Perlman in an ugly, effective performance) falsely accuses one of the Native Americans–who has a close relationship with Paul’s wife (Barbara Jane Reams)–of raping her, and whips the town into a lynching frenzy.
It’s all caught on tape by a journalist (Gabriel Olds) doing a piece on the Drivers. Trying, and failing, to keep the peace is the town’s alcoholic sheriff (Stephen Lang), who bends to Paul’s rule.
The performances are all fine, but the story of “Town” barely manages to rise above its less-than-stellar production.
– Where’s the remote: “Biography” set to music is the best description of MTV’s “BIOrhythm,” a new documentary series starting Tuesday at 9:30 p.m. The narrationless series examines a personality’s life in his or her own words, and features interviews, on-screen words that keep the storytelling flowing, film clips, videos and a constant stream of pop, rock, hip-hop and other songs. A strong edition on late rap star Tupac Shakur kicks off the series.
A list of upcoming profile subjects on “BIOrhythm” proves to be an eclectic one, featuring Madonna, Princess Diana, Michael Jackson, Marilyn Manson, Queen Latifah and Martin Luther King among others. MTV has a vibrant show on its hands, but the network should experiment with expanding it to an hour. The Tupac episode seems rushed to get details in.
– The American Film Institute’s 100 greatest movies of all time created quite a bit of controversy when it was released last week. But there doesn’t seem to be any question that most of the films on the list are pretty good. With that in mind, TNT launches “AFI’s 100 Years” Tuesday at 9 p.m. Narrated by actor James Woods, the series will look at those flicks and certain genres associated with them, with heroic loners up first.
