S.O.S. Save Our Shows 2007!/USA TODAY article: Will 'Law & Order' lose its appeal?

[valsadie]

This April 11, 2007 article USA TODAY talks about how NBC has yet to renew both "Law & Order" and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," among other shows. It's still early-ish yet, so one or both could still be renewed, but it is a troubling sign that renewal decisions are still forthcoming. "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" was renewed earlier. You

Comments

The comments on my Save Our Show Survey

[valsadie]

I enjoy all three versions of "Law & Order" and remember watching the first episode of the original series in 1990. There have been a LOT of changes with the original and "Criminal Intent" series in the last couple of years, from the time slot moves to the multiple cast member replacements, and I think that everyone is still adjusting to all of these, both the show's fans and its creators. And while I've appreciated Dick Wolf seeing the value in both Milena Govich and Julianne Nicholson and adding them to the original and "CI" series, respectively, NBC was wrong for letting them be available due to canceling their series, "Conviction," which was really on the verge of becoming a very interesting show, that could have been that new second generation "Law & Order" that the network clearly desperately needs. They blew that. But they don't need to continue to be short-sighted and start canceling the "Law & Order" series, too. So what the original has less than ten million viewers on Fridays--are Friday series ratings even usually that high? Beyond that, and getting down to brass tacks, what about the rerun factor, the pure gold that "Law & Order" provides every single week to broadcast and cable television across the board? Why has no one written about the fact that, as the networks have just about completely given up on original programming on Saturday nights, that NBC, taking a page from the TNT and USA cable books and their highly-rated "L&O" syndication airings, now routinely provides its own "Law & Order" reruns on Saturday nights? If there are fewer "Law & Order" wells to draw from, just what will they air? NBC needs to face the fact that the three "Law & Order" series are not responsible for just three hours of programming per week; they're responsible for *five*! Finally, the thing I least understand, in the minds of the networks and advertisers, is that the huge baby boomer generation is yes, now older, but also wealthier and, quite frankly, is the generation that is most loyal to the television medium at this point, and have made it obvious that THEY are the people who LOVE the "Law & Order" series--who do they think watches the series those five, ten, and more (!) times per week, broadcast and cable? Why do something to antagonize and therefore lose that audience??

Re: The comments on my Save Our Show Survey

[bluepunchbuggie]

Wow. That comment is totally awesome....I really hope they send that to NBC. It's something they really, really need to see....

For some reason, they think the time spot would better go to something like.....Deal or No Deal or Fear Factor. Ugh.