Topher's Blog
on April 20, 2009
To anyone reading this welcome to the beta page for TomatoTV. That means that what you see here has most of the coding (what you can't see) in place, waiting for the design work (the stuff you can see). What is on this page is so far from what we'll end up with that I hesitated starting blog entries. As the Cupid one is time sensitive with the show premiering in only a few days I can hope this disclaimer is enough to let you know we are definitely in progress. Well enough, blog on...
1 comment
on April 20, 2009
For any of you that have hung out with me, you know the majority of the shows that I REALLY liked never made it past one season, or even half a season either because they were too smart, too much ahead of their time, too creative or didn’t fit into an easily defined category. Now being different isn't always being good. You need to look no further than Cop Rock for that litmus test. Of that list of 1 season 1ders, there is an even smaller list of shows that were wiped of the map. No DVD, no Sci-Fi channel run, no short life as cable re-runs. Nothing. More unwritten than forgotten, like the 1984's novel's main characters day job of eliminating names and stories out of the recorded histories. One of those unwritten is Calamity Jane cartoon on WB, and another was ABC's Cupid, until now.
Cupid was all of the above: a 1 Season 1der, very smart writing, the fun angle of the show would have fit better now than in the drama heavy climate it debut in and didn’t fit nicely into either the comedy or drama category. The writing was not just excellent; it was probably too smart and esoteric for TV at the time. I remember one line making a SAT like comparison between Zeus, the Manimal TV show and Kermit the frog all in one line.
The show's concept also had a strong one to explore, a well I call it in my writing, that could always draw content and depth from. The show asked the question of what is love? Is love emotional or logical? Is it compatibility lists of similar personality traits and interests or that spark of when you are with someone?
The show's plot was about as direct as the concept described above. A guy claims to be Cupid, the Greek god, that hasn't been doing a good job in the last several hundred years. He has to brush up on his skills without his powers, albeit forced to do so. He's been thrown to earth by Zeus to be mortal and has to match 100 couples up purely on his skill before he can go back to Olympus. You never know whether he's crazy or telling the truth. He’s obviously the emotional end of the "love" definition
On the opposite end is a shrink specializing in couples counseling. She’s all about the similar personality traits on lists. On reflection, she had the Eharmony thing down before there was Eharmony.
Thus the basic set up. She’s working with couples with her compatibility mind set, and Cupid seems to have hung out with Pan a bit too much and usually gets in her way using his more emotional methods.
It's on that short list that I haven't been able to find anywhere or find anyone that knew anything about it. Part of the reason was that if I remember right with only 12 or so episodes that ended up airing the airtime was moved twice.
You can then imagine my surprise when I logged onto the iTunes store and I didn't see an ad for the show I just told you about, but some free preview of the show with a different guy. Quite confused I had to check it out.
Apparently the same network that ran the original series is trying the formula again. And by “formula” I mean EXACTLY the same down to Cupid working at a bar and paring up with a shrink and the guy playing Cupid even looks and acts like the original guy. To bring it down to specifics the preview available had the same scenes form the pilot I saw years ago.
Don’t get me wrong I'd much rather have this option than some re-imagining. I'm just not used to networks having clear logical thinking. The idea of "Let's give the quality show another chance and what you pulled out of the vaults was great so let's not change it." is something I'm just not used too with networks where execs validate their job that week by how many tweaks they can add into a production.
I'm going to check into who worked on first show and this one to see if there is an explanation there. There's a reason why Cupid was dusted off and rewashed with so little adaption from the original, I just don’t know why yet.
If you want to watch a featurette and a preview of two scenes they are up on iTunes until I imagine it airs on Tuesday. You can download it free from iTunes.
I think that this time around it might have a definite possibility. The TV climate that inspired it originally was much more drama ridden. TV has gotten a bit more "up" recently with shows like Chuck, Reaper, Psych and even elements of Monk currently doing well as some new version of an hour-long comedy. Add to that the more usual sitcoms like Big Bang Theory and The Office now dominating as oppose to quite depressing Malcolm in the Middle just a few years ago.
Cupid might also be the medium point that works. Pushing Daisies was genius but it was another world you had to step into while Cupid needs no world building. It's happening here and now. The show doesn’t have the world the characters live in being any different than the one the watcher lives in. It's sad, but it's the same concept as to why I think Joss Whedon's Doll House could do well while his genius Firefly died stillborn. Me I love the world building: Firefly, Star Trek, Star Wars, Babylon 5, even Northern Exposure or Smallville and most recently Pushing Daisies.
I know though that I am not the usual consumer that simply wants to watch and enjoy as opposed to be able to write a thesis on some part of the story. Most people simply don’t watch Northern Exposure and see the town social structure and character similarities to a medieval fiefdom.
In the new TV "up" climate or at least not depressing dramas I think Cupid might actually be able to fit in when it didn’t before.
Cupid premiers on ABC March 31st, 10 PM/9 PM Central.
Cupid was all of the above: a 1 Season 1der, very smart writing, the fun angle of the show would have fit better now than in the drama heavy climate it debut in and didn’t fit nicely into either the comedy or drama category. The writing was not just excellent; it was probably too smart and esoteric for TV at the time. I remember one line making a SAT like comparison between Zeus, the Manimal TV show and Kermit the frog all in one line.
The show's concept also had a strong one to explore, a well I call it in my writing, that could always draw content and depth from. The show asked the question of what is love? Is love emotional or logical? Is it compatibility lists of similar personality traits and interests or that spark of when you are with someone?
The show's plot was about as direct as the concept described above. A guy claims to be Cupid, the Greek god, that hasn't been doing a good job in the last several hundred years. He has to brush up on his skills without his powers, albeit forced to do so. He's been thrown to earth by Zeus to be mortal and has to match 100 couples up purely on his skill before he can go back to Olympus. You never know whether he's crazy or telling the truth. He’s obviously the emotional end of the "love" definition
On the opposite end is a shrink specializing in couples counseling. She’s all about the similar personality traits on lists. On reflection, she had the Eharmony thing down before there was Eharmony.
Thus the basic set up. She’s working with couples with her compatibility mind set, and Cupid seems to have hung out with Pan a bit too much and usually gets in her way using his more emotional methods.
It's on that short list that I haven't been able to find anywhere or find anyone that knew anything about it. Part of the reason was that if I remember right with only 12 or so episodes that ended up airing the airtime was moved twice.
You can then imagine my surprise when I logged onto the iTunes store and I didn't see an ad for the show I just told you about, but some free preview of the show with a different guy. Quite confused I had to check it out.
Apparently the same network that ran the original series is trying the formula again. And by “formula” I mean EXACTLY the same down to Cupid working at a bar and paring up with a shrink and the guy playing Cupid even looks and acts like the original guy. To bring it down to specifics the preview available had the same scenes form the pilot I saw years ago.
Don’t get me wrong I'd much rather have this option than some re-imagining. I'm just not used to networks having clear logical thinking. The idea of "Let's give the quality show another chance and what you pulled out of the vaults was great so let's not change it." is something I'm just not used too with networks where execs validate their job that week by how many tweaks they can add into a production.
I'm going to check into who worked on first show and this one to see if there is an explanation there. There's a reason why Cupid was dusted off and rewashed with so little adaption from the original, I just don’t know why yet.
If you want to watch a featurette and a preview of two scenes they are up on iTunes until I imagine it airs on Tuesday. You can download it free from iTunes.
I think that this time around it might have a definite possibility. The TV climate that inspired it originally was much more drama ridden. TV has gotten a bit more "up" recently with shows like Chuck, Reaper, Psych and even elements of Monk currently doing well as some new version of an hour-long comedy. Add to that the more usual sitcoms like Big Bang Theory and The Office now dominating as oppose to quite depressing Malcolm in the Middle just a few years ago.
Cupid might also be the medium point that works. Pushing Daisies was genius but it was another world you had to step into while Cupid needs no world building. It's happening here and now. The show doesn’t have the world the characters live in being any different than the one the watcher lives in. It's sad, but it's the same concept as to why I think Joss Whedon's Doll House could do well while his genius Firefly died stillborn. Me I love the world building: Firefly, Star Trek, Star Wars, Babylon 5, even Northern Exposure or Smallville and most recently Pushing Daisies.
I know though that I am not the usual consumer that simply wants to watch and enjoy as opposed to be able to write a thesis on some part of the story. Most people simply don’t watch Northern Exposure and see the town social structure and character similarities to a medieval fiefdom.
In the new TV "up" climate or at least not depressing dramas I think Cupid might actually be able to fit in when it didn’t before.
Cupid premiers on ABC March 31st, 10 PM/9 PM Central.
on January 19, 2009
The Tomato TV website is entering into the beta zone. Many changes will be seen around the site in the next few weeks.
