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Just learned something wild about how shows get canceled
I was reading this article last night about network TV and found out that over 60% of new shows don't make it past their first season. Like that's a huge number of pilots and whole seasons that just get scrapped. I always figured most shows at least got a season 2 to find their footing. Does anyone else get annoyed knowing you're probably wasting time getting invested in something new?
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nathankim14d ago
Waste my time? I'm still recovering from getting attached to a cancelled show pilot.
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violag8015d ago
Sixty percent?! That is CRAZY. I mean I knew shows got canned fast but that number is WAY higher than I thought. That must be thousands of hours of TV that just disappear into thin air. I get so mad when I finish a season of something new and then find out it got axed. Like all that time and emotional investment just gone because some network exec didn't like the ratings after 13 episodes. It honestly makes me want to wait until a show has at least three seasons before I even start it now.
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Why is everyone looking at this from just the viewer side? The real problem is how networks set these shows up to fail in the first place. They dump 20 million into a pilot, give it a terrible time slot, barely promote it, then act shocked when nobody watches. Plus they never let a show breathe and build an audience like streaming does. They kill stuff after 5 episodes before word of mouth even has time to spread. It's not just bad luck or low ratings, it's a broken system where they'd rather gamble on the next shiny thing than commit to what they already have.
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henry_ross15d ago
Wait, has nobody here had a friend get burned by this? My buddy got super into this show called "The Overlook" or something like that. It was this weird sci-fi thing that only got like 6 episodes before they pulled the plug. He was so pissed he ranted to me for like an hour about it. He even made a whole Google doc breaking down where the story was obviously headed. The worst part is he refuses to start any new show now unless it's already got at least two full seasons under its belt.
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