Arrested Development season 3 thread (1 Viewer)

[TravisR]

It's not just Fox, it's network TV in general. Personally, I think Fox has given AD every chance possible but as you said, the people who rather watch junk than quality.

If AD was able to move to HBO, I think a good amount of their fans would watch it there. If they could even get half of the five million people who watched it on Monday to watch on HBO, it would be a hit for HBO (2 million viewers on network is a disaster, 2 million viewers on cable is a hit). Too bad that will probably never happen.

 

[Paul_Stachniak]

Hell, moving AD to FX would save it.

 

[Tony Kwong]

i didnt think that a DVD release before the 3 season was such a big deal as the the Fox network reran the complete season 2 during the summer.

 

[Jeff_Standley]

Well if it comes to it, I hope some other realizes the potential of AD and picks it up.
Has that ever happened before?

Also I think the 2nd season of AD coming out before season could have only helped. Remember, AD was shown on friday nights, the worst day for TV shows.

 

[Jason Seaver]

I think fans of House and 24 (which is densely plotted and requires the audience to pay attention even if the events are unlikely in the extreme) would disagree. As far as broadcast TV is concerned, I don't think Arrested Development could have shown up on any other network.

Fox is, as always, a double-edged sword - they will run absolutely anything for four weeks, on either end of the quality spectrum.

 

[Paul_Stachniak]

You'll never convince me that 24 is intelligent. That last season got so STUPID by mid season I couldn't watch it anymore. And don't get me started on Seaosn 3. But I digress, this is about AD.

House... I've enjoyed, so I'll give you that. But everyone loves a medical drama. Comedy is much harder to sell without pop and fart jokes.

 

[Ravi K]

Yes, the season three premiere was hilarious. I laughed so hard.

I've done my best to get people to watch it, and have converted a few people to it since I lent them my season 1 DVDs. None of them have Nielsen boxes, though. It absolutely hurts when nobody's watching great shows like this. I will vote with my dollars by buying season two on DVD in October.

Shows like Arrested Development (and Police Squad!) where you really have to pay attention to enjoy it and not just have it on while you kind of watch won't enjoy the mass success of shows that, while possibly funny, telegraph the jokes at you with the writing and the laugh track.

It's not easy for a show to take its time to develop its writing and/or an audience these days. If it doesn't have a good opening or good ratings in the next few episodes, its not likely to get renewed. Like someone mentioned, Seinfeld took a few seasons to start gaining an audience, but I doubt that any network would give it as much time today to do so. Fox will at least give shows like Arrested Development and Wonderfalls a start, even if they don't last too long. I can't imagine NBC or ABC airing Arrested Development. But Fox also has American Idol, one of those British nanny shows, and some other crap that I don't watch.

I sincerely hope that this is not the last season of Arrested Development. If the writers have managed to keep the writing of such a manic show so witty and funny for two seasons, they are something special. If given a chance, they might be able to sustain that quality for 5 or 6 seasons. I wouldn't want it to go on any more than that, since George Michael and Maeby are important to the show, and they eventually have to go to college.

A friend of mine best summed up 24: Not great, but never boring. AD and 24 are the only shows that I watch religiously. I catch Malcolm in the Middle and King of the Hill when I can. I catch Curb Your Enthusiasm on DVD, since I don't have HBO. I heard good things about Lost around mid-season, but I didn't want to start watching then, so I'll watch it on DVD.

 

[ScottH]

I've never in my life known anyone with a Nielsen box, or known anyone who knew someone that had one.

 

[LarryDavenport]

Let's face it. Most people are stupid. Neilsen people doubley so.

 

[JamesED]

Same as Scott, I've never known someone who knew someone with a box.

 

[TravisR]

At least with TV viewing, most people are stupid. So most Nielsen families are bound to be stupid too

 

[GuruAskew]

In all fairness, this show is very intimidating to new viewers. Imagine watching the season premiere with no previous knowledge of the show. Literally about 40-60% of the jokes would go completely over your head. Fox should have released Season 2 on DVD before Season 3 premiered. I never would have been able to "jump on" during Season 2 if I didn't have access to Season 1 beforehand.

 

[Jason Seaver]

I don't think that it's intimidating at all - or at least, it shouldn't be. It doesn't start with a clip package, and Ron Howard helpfully provides any information you may need in the narration. It's dense and contains a lot of recurring jokes, but if you don't get something, it's roughly a 15 second wait to get to a joke you will get, with no awkward pause while the canned laughter makes you feel like a fool.

 

[GeorgePaul]

You might want to spellcheck a post like that before you hit the submit button.

 

[Jeff_Standley]

 

[Steve Felix]

Brilliant as usual.

Practically everyone I know watches and loves AD. It's about our only common ground; I usually experience the same cultural disconnect as Brent.

I guess lacking a sense of humor themselves, the bulk of the country needs to be told when to laugh. (Condescending, I know, but the ratings compared to Two and a Half Men are shocking.) It may be futile but I did sense an increased effort to explain jokes this episode. The narrator was interjecting help where I think he'd have been quiet last season.

"Mission accomplished!"

 

[Marc Bax]

Well all we can do now is hope the NFL doubleheader had something to do with the ratings debacle. I agree 100% that the DVD should have been out before hand, certainly wouldn't have hurt. Let's just try and get the most enjoyment out of season 3 that we possibly can. I know the looming threat of cancellation is a huge bummer and something that we should never have to worry about (if only America had a sense of humor and an attention span) but all the more reason to savor every new episode. "I kind of feel like the boy that found the severed hand", priceless.

 

[LarryDavenport]

GeorgePaul, I take it you are one of them. BTW, I am often on kidney dialysis when I post so am typing with my free hand. OK?

 

[brentl]

Did anyone notice the "hand" was blurred out?

Brent

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I was a little worried when the whole family was doing the chicken dance that they were going down the Simpsons route of joke killing, but the remainder of the episode ventured into relatively new territory.