How Television Networks Can Give Shows a Chance to Succeed

Written by John Edward Betancourt

What a brutal week when it comes to television since we have seen one series after another disappear from the airwaves as the networks continue to wield the cancellation stick with impunity, dropping shows from the lineup that are either so-so performers to outright fan favorites. But there was some good news from this past week's cancellation fiesta, the fact that Supergirl survived the madness by getting its second season order, after months of speculation.

Granted it had to move to the CW to get it, but what matters more is that the series will continue, while the news was less than positive for fans of Castle and Agent Carter. Both of these beloved series found themselves on the chopping block and well...while we could discuss the merits of why these shows needed a second chance, we won't be doing that today. The bottom line is that both shows deserved a better send off and truthfully ABC made a horrible mistake in shutting down Peggy Carter's adventures and the severity and ugliness of the moves this year got me to thinking...there has to be a better way to handle renewals for our favorite shows.

You see, TV works on a strange model. Essentially, every show out there is basically coasting along on a year to year basis. The big ones get their renewal notices earlier in the season, but freshman shows or shows on the bubble continue their life on the edge, waiting until this time of year to find out if the cast and crew have jobs and this is no doubt a brutal part to the business. While I understand that hey, ratings are king and that's simply how it's done...some stories require a little more time to find their footing and working year to year tends to hurt the creative process. So...with that in mind, why not try something new?

Perhaps it is time that every single network out there do what seems like the impossible, and give every single new television show that goes from pilot to series order...a three or four year deal to do their thing. That would allow at last, for a multi year arc to be plotted out in the writer's room and allow for actors to truly dig into their characters and focus on their growth; and more importantly for us the viewer, it wouldn't leave us hanging, and obviously it allows for the executives at the network and the people behind the scenes to put a little more care into these stories so they come out of the gate stronger. Plus, to protect the business side of things as well, there could be a clause that allows for cancellation in the second year if the show is an unmitigated ratings and critical disaster.  

Either way, something has to change. The way the system is set up right now is simply not working. There's an incredible focus on ratings over story and that simply needs to stop. A concept like a three season order would have allowed for Agent Carter to say goodbye to the fans properly with a third and final season and imagine how many other shows out there we would have closure with if such an idea existed out in Los Angeles. Sure the idea may be imperfect and I'm sure there are lots of details to hammer out that I'm unaware of, but imagine how incredible television shows would become if given the chance to tell a proper story. 

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