Date: Mon, 18 Apr 2005 09:57:39 -0700 (PDT)
From: Neil Ottenstein <nottenst at yahoo.com>
Subject: [WSFA] Re: Enterprise - the end is nigh!
To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at WSFA.org>
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at WSFA.org>

--- thaughey <thaughey at acnet.net> wrote:
> I believe Enterprise is falling prey to the cheap
> profits of reality
> TV.  Paramount doesn't want it.  UPN doesn't.  CBS
> doesn't.

It just doesn't get the ratings that such an expensive
show needs even for UPN.  UPN's ratings are pitiful
over all, but the costs of the series don't justify
keeping it in production apparently.

They also looked at the big dropoff in ratings from
the first episodes where they had poor stories.

If they had some of the writing from this season that
first season they probably wouldn't have had such a
dropoff.

>  If the series goes
> the last three years of its projected life there
> will probably be
> another series born to replace it (once financial
> tides shift on the
> network level).  If it ends prematurely, I believe
> that will be the end
> of the big budget SciFi series.

There is practically no chance that it will go beyond
this year.  The episodes and publicity say "the final
episodes."  That's it.  There is no more.

Paramount is hoping that if they let the franchise
rest for a few years then they might be able to get a
big audience at the beginning and perhaps even hold on
to them.

> If it dies, who's
> likely to want to
> shell out two million per episode in the future for
> a really
> well-scripted show chocked full of expensive special
> effects?  --Tom Haughey

What's the budget of some of the succesful genre or
near-genre shows on TV?  Lost, Alias, and 24?

Neil