Journeyman - season 1 thread

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

The maker denied the show was expensive, and I believe him. A few cgi shots in each episode (a flash of light and ripple when he moved through time), and some cgi vintage billboards, etc. wouldn't cost much.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Yeah, the effects should have been on par with most action/drama shows, and if the time travel effect could a fortune, then they used the wrong CGI company.

As I recall, the only reason Studio 60 got a full season and the decency of a burnoff was because those episodes were so expensive that NBC needed to recoup their cost. After all, that cast was not cheap.

Still, now that the cancellation is all official, why can't WB go ahead and release the DVD now?

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

No, don't say it's official. Every time this thread is bumped, I'm hoping for a miracle.

I didn't watch a lot of TV until recently, so the loss of this show has been the biggest blow to me.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I was trying to hold out hope, but NBC's already announced it's fall lineup.

Although, once more I wonder why some shows can ever be shuffled over to cable if they don't cut it on network.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I would think the cost to film an occasional San Francisco sequence might have added some cost. But it was all shot at the studio backlot. (though one of the guys on the Vintage Mustang Forums reported that he saw them film some scenes up here in San Francisco) And if the cast of Studio 60 was so high, then this relatively unknown cast must have been much less.

I think the best we can take from the show is that it had a proper ending.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Period costumes, cars, props, etc. It all costs money. Just the extra time and effort to clear a practical location of, say, all post-1967 items and move in period details (like phone booths, enough pre-1967 cars, trucks, etc. cover up or change inappropriate logos in shop windows etc.) costs money. And while CGI costs have come down considerably, and CGI can often be the most cost-effective solution to a given production problem, it still isn't cheap.

Again, relative cost is the major factor. Cost per ratings point. If a show costs too much per ratings point earned it is too expensive, even if it only costs $100,000 an episode. If a show has a lower cost per ratings point it is worth keeping, even if it costs $2,000,000 a copy. And from the network's standpoint, it is its cost per ratings point, not the total cost of the show, that counts.

That will vary with the circumstances of the production and the deal between the network and the producing studio. If the show is produced "in house", the network (or its parent company) gets a piece of the DVD and syndication action. That can make a marginal show worth keeping. But if the show is produced by an outside studio (Journeyman was a Fox production) it all depends on the deal. If the network is paying the lion's share of the production costs its cost per ratings point is higher than if it is paying less and the studio (which will get the DVD and syndie money) is deficit financing the show and hoping to make a profit on the back-end.

That's why comparing one show to another is so pointless. If you don't have the ratings, the budgets and the contracts sitting in front of you it is impossible to determine whether the decision to keep or can any given show makes "sense".

But enough of that...

Did anyone else catch Katie (Gretchen Egolf) as a no-nonsense D.C. homicide detective on NCIS last night? Yet another reason to miss this show. I hope she tests well enough with the audience to be brought back as a recurring or regular character. They seemed to be setting up something between her and Tony which could be fun.

(Although up until now I've been hoping that they'd bring back Scottie Thompson as Tony's previous love interest, Dr. Jeanne Benoit)



Regards,

Joe

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

So you're saying the show may get canceled? No!!!

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I brought up Egolf in the NCIS thread, whether they are grooming her for a semi regular part or as a replacement for a cast member who may or may not be leaving.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Well, there is no way her homicide detective could replace the only character whose departure has been hinted at, so I suspect she could be a recurring character or a new regular who would just be added to the mix, as opposed to a replacement for someone.

Regards,

Joe

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

It has actually already been cancelled by NBC. Some people are hoping another network will pick it up, but the chances of that having are pretty miniscule.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Check out the ebay auction for Dan Vasser's screen-used Homeland Security file:
JOURNEYMAN - DAN VASSER'S SCREEN USED PROFILE - eBay (item 380015511448 end time Apr-15-08 10:15:00 PDT)

And look at the close up pic of the documents - the investigative agent's name is Jack Bristow (Alias). The rest of the page is typed up as if it were real, since nowadays people freeze frame such things and read them1

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Ain't It Cool News recently put up a Q&A with the Journeyman creator covering lots of issues - AICN EXCLUSIVE!!What Wasn't Hurling Dan Vasser Through Time?? Series Creator Kevin Falls Reveals The Secrets Of JOURNEYMAN!! -- Ain't It Cool News: The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news.

Neil

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Pretty interesting article. I actually had no idea that the writer of this was involved in Sports Night, which I also loved and was canceled too early (and he mentions Sorkin's most recent work in TV, Studio 60, which was in the same timeslot and fits that bill as well).

I definitely think that this is one of those shows that people would've had to given it too much of a chance though. As in, I liked it, but for many of the 'mainstream viewers' it might have taken until the very last few episodes to appreciate it, which is obviously more of a chance than most give. I'm sure it is better than many of the returning shows as well, but when has that ever dictated anything.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I am so bummed that this show was cancelled. At least the last episode gave some answers and closure to the show.

Any word if this show will be coming to dvd???

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

The article says as of yet there are no plans to bring it to dvd, so you might have to search the internet.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I do think Falls is a kind of inspired choice to run the American Lalola (or whatever the American version will be called - I can't think of two Anglo-sounding names that you can do the same thing with). One of the occasionally frustrating things about Journeyman, for me at least, was that he was often using a big idea to tell small stories, but that seems like exactly what Lalola will need.

He also seems unusually up front about how much improvising goes on in a series, too. Most show-runners tend to imply a much more solid master plan, implying that deviations are either the result of network interference or seeing what happens with performances, and while Falls cites a little of that, he seems more ready to admit that a lot of his ideas were pretty vague.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Isn't there already another show where some guy goes back to the 70's or something like that?

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I am not sure of the name. But, its a remake of a British show. He is a cop from today who goes back in time to the 70's and is a cop there. I heard they just reshot the pilot.


On a side note. I just saw that "Lipstick Jungle" is coming back for a 2nd season. Which didn't do that great last year. Yet, they don't even give Journeyman a chance. No wonder people don't invest in shows. They know the studios will cancel them. Also, I mentioned this somewhere in the 18 pages. But, NBC hardly promoted the show. I remember seeing promos for Monday nights lineup. They would mention Chuck and Heroes and hardly ever Journeyman. Plus, it was up against CSI:Miami.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Life on Mars.

The Brit original was great. I have zero expectations for the American remake, although the fact that David E. Kelley is no longer involved can only be a good thing.

M.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

They have already reworked most of the cast. I have been quite upset with the critics who have called UK Life on Mars, "Journeyman done right." The shows were completely different with different premises. It is as if they just read a two line synopsis and didn't watch either show.

Neil

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I completely agree. Just to take an obvious example (and I'm giving nothing away here), Life on Mars always left open the possibility that there was, in fact, no time travel and that the entire experience was an intensely vivid hallucination. Indeed, this element is critical to certain episodes, and it's part of the lead-in to every episode after the pilot.

M.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

You can't legitimately say "they did this for A, they should do it for B" like creative works are interchangeable product; it just doesn't work that way. Lipstick Jungle may be cheaper to produce, it's produced by corporate sibling Universal rather than Fox, it's one of the few shows on NBC's schedule targeted toward women, there may be more ways to tinker with the premise to try to gain a new audience. The circumstances for one show are different from those for others.

As to the rest... There are no good timeslots for a new show, and people who don't watch shows they have a reasonable expectation of liking because of fear that they'll be canceled deserve all the lack of entertainment they get.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Thanks. My fingers get tired typing variants of your post in I don't-know-how-many-threads.

Much as I dislike quoting myself, I may just make this part of my signature:


Regards,

Joe

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Ha. I've noticed you guys are very, very similar in your inside baseball posts, and now you've noticed it as well!

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

NeilO - Thanks for the link. It was an interesting read.

I am still baffled as to why ABC is taking a chance on Life on Mars, a show on BBC whose entire run was only 12 episodes. I'm not sure the U.S. version of the show will last that many episodes.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Jason, Can't you just let me be bitter?

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Well, to be fair, the BBC has a different system; it generally focuses on ordering shows in small batches that can be overseen by a much smaller group, whereas American networks are looking for a reliable 22 episodes a year. There's a lot to recommend about the UK system, since it can often lead to more consistent quality and a more cohesive creative vision, although the bulk a US network produces has its upside, too.

Anyway, 12 episodes isn't an indication of failure, but possibly success (it did get a second-series order), with the creator resolving the stories on his own terms.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

I watched the UK Life and Mars and didn't care for it. Though Journeyman started out kinda cookie cutter and people turned out, it grew into a nice Sci Fi show that was getting better as the weeks went on.
Is it true there is no DVD release expected?

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

The lack of DVD does not make sense in light of the alleged fan support that got the final two episodes on the air.

Not trying to make a broad generalization, but if there was enough demand for thost last two, then the studio should see enough demand to release DVDs.

Besides, Fox put Firefly - a much more confusing-to-outsider show that cannot be summed up in one sentence - out on DVD, and look what happened with that.

Re: Journeyman - season 1 thread

Dan Vasser is to busy to do anymore Journeyman.


Dylan (2008) (in production) .... Dylan Thomas
Catwalk (2009) (pre-production) .... The detective
Bunraku (2009) (filming) .... Killer #2


Made of Honor (2008) .... Colin McMurray