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o let me get this straight. After doing not great, but OK, on Friday night, then suddenly getting shifted to Tuesday night with hardly a whisper to let viewers know about the change, then not airing at all one week, Threshold was benched based on decreased numbers (to 6.5 million) for its first, and currently only, Tuesday-night airing, which was during Thanksgiving week, when folks were traveling and otherwise occupied? Well golly gee, at least CBS gave them a fair chance (?!?). I'm not saying Threshold couldn't use some tweaking, but that kind of network decision-making just leaves me shaking my head in puzzlement (not unlike yanking a show in the middle of a two-part episode or pulling a show without airing its much-anticipated series finale).
Perhaps Angel Cordero ("UPN Should Nab Night Stalker") was right in last week's letter, which theorized that "science fiction does not belong on the big three networks." CBS may not be impressed by 6.5 million viewers on a bad night, but it's a pretty sure bet the likes of UPN or The WB would be positively giddy with those numbers.
Lisa Thompson
[address withheld by request]
've seen way too many sci-fi shows I've loved disappear into the ether without a proper conclusion, let alone a proper run. I don't want to see that happen with Threshold, knowing some of what was to happen by the end of the season they'll now never finish.
If there were a way to contact the powers that be, I'd suggest releasing the already-produced episodes to DVD. Depending upon sales, they could then consider producing a disc of three or four episodes direct to DVD the way some movies are. If this goes well, continue the series direct to DVD at least to wrap up the season for those loyal followers out there who read what was to come. They could even try and figure out a satisfying conclusion to the series if this idea doesn't pan out.
Thank you for letting me vent.
M.E. Knightwatch
MichaelEMead(at)webtv.net
can't agree more with Kevin Jackson ("Firefly Flew Under Radar"). Joss Whedon's show was absolutely butchered by the Fox network—I watched the first episode broadcast, which turned out to be, I think, the third episode in the show's continuity. Fox thought airing this episode instead of the actual pilot episode would be a good idea because there was more action in it. It was a terrible idea—I had no idea about the show's background or who the characters were. Why would I care about the action they're involved in if I don't know who they are or why they're doing it? Too many people were just dropped into the show with no anchor and stopped watching (assuming they even bothered in the first place). How many people would have understood what was going on in a show like Battlestar Galactica or Farscape without some background on the characters and the history, usually gleaned in the first one or two hours of programming? Firefly had an even steeper learning curve, and Fox cut the curve up into chunks and rearranged them as they thought fit.
I finally decided to give the show another chance by renting the series DVD collection. It was utterly amazing television, engaging, witty, funny, with a dark but hopeful edge—just plain good. All of my friends who've watched it are similarly impressed, and it has nothing to do with the show being science fiction—it was just well written, well acted and well executed. I'm starting to think Fox wouldn't know good television if it bit them on the back end. (I have yet to watch an entire episode of American Idol, and doubt I ever will).
The movie Serenity was a stellar sequel to the show as well, and answered some intriguing questions about the characters and the universe they live in while still leaving enough open to warrant further exploration. I was saddened by some of the plot choices, but not because they were bad choices—I don't want to give away the story, but there's parts of the movie that are heartbreaking in a good way, entertaining while jerking for those tears. ...
If ever there was a show ripe for revival on a small broadcast or cable network, this is that show. It has a solid, hardcore fan base, and Mr. Whedon's managed so far to make an awful lot of good TV with Firefly in a shortened season without a bank-breaking budget—and most importantly, there are still many stories to be told there, stories viewers want to see.
Do the head honchos at the SCI FI Channel ever read these things?
Don Boyer
scifi(at)tatooine.org
entlemen: I quote from a recent book review [Learning the World, or, A Scientific Romance]: "the transcendent enormity of a human-made ship." That is not what "enormity" means, and just because [Science Fiction Weekly] and the review's author [F. Brett Cox] think differently doesn't make it so.
She is the only English language we have; treat her kindly.
Alan Kornheiser
akornhis(at)optonline.net
Reviewer F. Brett Cox responds:
The Miriam-Webster Online Dictionary offers four definitions of "enormity," the third of which is "the quality or state of being huge." The entry also contains the following usage note:
"Enormity, some people insist, is improperly used to denote large size. They insist on enormousness for this meaning, and would limit enormity to the meaning 'great wickedness.' Those who urge such a limitation may not recognize the subtlety with which enormity is actually used. It regularly denotes a considerable departure from the expected or normal [they awakened; they sat up; and then the enormity of their situation burst upon them. "How did the fire start?" —John Steinbeck]. When used to denote large size, either literal or figurative, it usually suggests something so large as to seem overwhelming [no intermediate zone of study. Either the enormity of the desert or the sight of a tiny flower —Paul Theroux] [the enormity of the task of teachers in slum schools —J.B. Conant] ..."
I am therefore satisfied that my use of the word "enormity" in the quoted sentence is perfectly correct.
Best,
Brett
have had the luxury of viewing quite a few rewarding bonus features on DVD editions of paranormal thrillers, including The Exorcist and The Sixth Sense. I have now just included another to this category: The Skeleton Key. Exploring Hoodoo/Voodoo, Making The Perfect Gumbo, Blues In The Bayou, Plantation Life, A House Called Felicity, John Hurt's story, Gena's Love Spell and the one I was most intrigued by: Kate Hudson's Ghost Story are all rewarding reasons to view this new DVD edition. As the director of K-PAX, Iain Softley insured his talent for keeping the audience guessing until the very end. Now Mr. Softley is most deserving of this thriller's reputation for arguably the best twist ending since The Sixth Sense. Should there be a sequel to The Skeleton Key, I hope Mr. Softley directs it. Five stars is my rating.
Michael Anthony Basil
mike.basil(at)sympatico.ca
can sympathize with the person who said that they accidentally found a show that they liked and then found out it was going to be canceled. The same thing happened to me when I found Tremors. I really like the show and could kick myself for not keeping my recordings. Now I will probably never see it unless it comes out on DVD. I do have an idea, though: Since canceled shows won't be on DVD, would it be possible to take a day or two every couple of months to show canceled shows that were popular to some degree? Maybe that sounds stupid, but what can I say? It's always nice to dream.
J.V. Brown
jvbrown(at)sbcglobal.net
ost of the anguished screams seem to be coming from librarians who omit the fact that science-fiction fandom was delivered in the Caesarian section of the public library. Yes, my DVD library is extensive, but I still read, and so do 9/10ths of cable TV subscribers. We get one more book and three more Potter movies and the rest of our lives to discover/rediscover Heinlein, Bradbury, Asimov, ad infinitum, plus new writers yet to approach the podium.
Bill the Bard's Much Ado about Nothing will never be replaced by a commercial insert surpassing the original comment.
As for an additional charge for SCI FI News via Internet, my cable bill is high enough, and due to greedy gas hikes I am going to have to downgrade my subscription to avoid pneumonia this winter: So forget hikes or forget me.
J. Packard
jpackard1(at)charter.net
already know the new season of Battlestar Galactica is made, but it would been nice to see a reinvention of the Borellian Nomen. Yes, the new series brings the human drama to series, but to see the Nomen in the new series would be something though. They are among my favorite groups in old series. I don't know how you would bring them, though; perhaps expand on the culture and the warrior code and the dreaded laser bolos. I know you could do a lot with them, though. But, just a thought: You could do a samurai/greek warrior, a la Troy/Last Samurai take on them. Anyway, just a suggestion.
Joseph T. Kowalski
jedimage_joe(at)yahoo.com
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