24, writers guild and the strike

J_A · 2008-01-19 13:31:56

yes, each season has had a mid-season strong ep, starting from season 1 with the change of baddies from "That's right, we're watching you" to "Plan B, not Plan A recycled" . so as such, it wouldn't really interrupt anything as such. it would just be very painful to wait for that long. but like I said above, better that than having to wait till 2009 for the first new ep.

J_A · 2008-02-04 23:18:12

well, the rumor mill was very active this weekend - do you believe the strike is actually nearing an end?..

tonight, the last ep of LOST s3 aired here and I think prison break is finishing this thursday. I'm in a terrible need of new material and this strike is really really really a bad thing right now. I need it to end, I need production to resume and I need the stuff that is produced after the writers go back to work NOT to be crappy....

but consequences are bound to be more than just production delays. there will be less money per series, fewer pilots, even tighter budgets. I hope it doesn't mean that already successful shows like lost, pb or 24 will dramatically suffer in terms of not being able to meet the standards we've gotten used to due to budget cuts...

opinions?

hardy24 · 2008-02-05 12:29:01

The kinda good news on Lost is they had half a 16 episode 4th season filmed before the strike, which they started airing in america last week.

Prison break had 16 episodes of a third series in the can, which there just getting to the end of.

I read from an informed source that if the strike ends soon (within the next week/two weeks as predicted) then most established series (minus the heavily serialized stuff) so Grey's Anatomy, CSI, etc etc. would go back on air asap without jeopardising quality. A likely formula is that big ratings hitters which still had completed episodes waiting to air would go on first, airing all completed episodes before possibly taking a hiatus to a) give production a chance to catch up and b) to resume airing another show which has been off air since the strike.

Likely new untested shows would be held back and "re-launched" next season to actually give them a fighting chance, as likely viewers will simply be looking for there favourites to begin airing again once the strike finishes.

Lost will likely air the 8 episodes they have, take a break then return with the second 8 when they can, but hopefully sometime this season.

24, is something of a special case it would seem, no one is really sure.

Overall from what i've read networks do seem to have the best interests of it's shows at heart, they know a mis step now and a otherwise good product would be ruined, if too many fall victim then the medium to long term for the company starts to look shaky.

J_A · 2008-02-05 17:43:58

so are you saying that the 4th season of lost will be only 16 eps long? and do we know it is the last? I thought so. I just finished s3 here, the finale aired last night. I must say it was quite a weird ending. but the further the season went, the more I returned to being a jack fan

I hope the quality will stay the same, but the increased amount of money that will go to the writers will have to be scraped off somewhere else. but it'll likely be, like that article I came across yesterday said, in the number of pilots that are produced, and funding of new shows. I do think they probably know not to screw with the existing ones.

hardy24 · 2008-02-05 22:30:31

jack_addict wrote:

so are you saying that the 4th season of lost will be only 16 eps long? and do we know it is the last? I thought so. I just finished s3 here, the finale aired last night. I must say it was quite a weird ending. but the further the season went, the more I returned to being a jack fan

Yes, the 4th season will only be 16 episodes long, but no, it's not the last.

Sometime during production on series 3 the contracts for the executive producers where coming up for renewal, they told the network they would only stay on if they could nail down how long the show would run for. They didn't want the network demanding it run forever. So they agreed that the show would have a fourth, fifth and sixth seasons, but instead of 24 episodes, they would be 16 episodes each.

I quite liked the ending to series 3, I did kind of see it coming, but in a rare thing for a cliff hanger it didn't then become an anti climax, because it gets you thinking about how it fundamentally changes the show.

hardy24 · 2008-02-08 16:18:11

The latest on negotiations is that an informal agreement has been reached between both sides, which will be drafted into actual "language" by saturday sometime, when the WGA will email it to it's members. If the response is positive then they may put a temporary halt to the strike and send it's members back to work while the guild organises a formal vote on whether to accept the deal or not.

The next few days could be critical it sounds like, a lot more should be known after the weekend. With the possibility of writers returning to work as soon as tuesday or wednesday if everything goes right.

J_A · 2008-02-08 18:04:40

oh let's hope so! fingers crossed.

as for lost, no no no. i kinda thought they'd set an ending to the show around s4... it's become weirder and weirder during s3 and they have been revealing next to nothing. now if this simply dragging things out, I'm going to end up being disappointed eventually

hardy24 · 2008-02-09 11:41:28

On Lost, i've seen the first two episodes of series 4, and I can say it doesn't feel stretched out or padded in any way, it really feels as if we're into "the third act" if you will of the show, it'll simply take that many episodes (3x16) to do the end justice.

Looking at it big picture, that means series 1, 2 and 3 add up to the first 60% of the story.

J_A · 2008-02-09 22:32:34

i've heard they're doing flashforwards now instead of the flashbacks and thus making things even more confusing... lol. well. seeing that 2x24 = 3x16, I see it's the same end result as doing two longer seasons. I suppose it was the result of those negotiations you've mentioned. instead of having just 5, that way they get 6. it's just a little odd, but hey.

hardy24 · 2008-02-09 23:21:13

Well, there actually doing both flashforwards and flashbacks, depending upon the character. So far it hasn't been at all hard to figure out if there doing forwards or back,

From the sounds of it, 3x16 instead of 2x24 has been a good compromise, the network is happy to have another year of the show, and the producers don't feel as if they've given anything away because they've got 48 episodes worth of story left to tell, doesn't matter to them if it's 2 seasons or 3.

The only people to really lose out is us probably, when they turn round and try to sell us a dvd with 16 episodes on it for the same price they would have sold a 24 episode season for.

J_A · 2008-02-10 11:31:43

yeah you may be right. that would be a shame. i don't plan on buying the DVDs anyway, but I understand that for those who do it will be a losing situation

J_A · 2008-02-10 20:52:44

the latest on negotiations, LA times says work could resume tomorrow. bad news for 24. it sounds like we won't be seeing anything new this season. not confirmed, and not yet decided, but it doesn't sound good. see for yourself

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-work8feb08,0,7184930,full.story

Only about 10 to 20 prime-time network programs are likely to return this spring with fresh episodes, including some of TV's biggest hits, such as "Grey's Anatomy" on ABC and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" on CBS. Some viewers might not see new episodes of their favorites until fall -- at the earliest. Shows with complex plots, large casts and complicated production elements, such as NBC's "Heroes" and Fox's "24," are expected to roll over to next season.

-----

Howard Gordon, the show runner for "24" on Fox, said he has been busy contacting his writing staff.

He said production could feasibly resume six weeks after the writers boot up their laptops. But the drama's unique storytelling device, with each of the 24 one-hour episodes equaling a day in the life of terrorist-fighter Jack Bauer, has complicated matters.

"24" typically runs from January to May, but Fox delayed the premiere indefinitely rather than airing an incomplete season consisting of eight episodes that were on hand.

Fox has not decided when the show will return, Gordon said, but is considering three scenarios: airing 12 episodes as soon as possible and returning in the fall for the last 12, running all 24 episodes in the fall or waiting to premiere in January 2009.

***

here's a list of networks, their shows and the expected outcomes of the strike... 24 is listed as "probably not returning until next season"

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-striketvgrid-html,0,7606966.htmlstory

and that's the news for tonight

hardy24 · 2008-02-11 08:29:06

Yeah, i'd say the only way we'd get any new 24 this season is if they aired a 12 episode half season.

From what I know about the ongoing strike, WGA members with producer duties will be allowed to return to work to do those duties starting monday. Full writing staff may not be back until wednesday.

J_A · 2008-02-11 09:10:04

yes i heard the same thsi morning on the radio. they're supposed to vote for or against that contract today, and from wednesday, things should return to "normal", as much as that is possible.

one other thing that article above said was that the studios were rethinking their "seasons" and were thinking about changing things so they premiere shows throughout the year instead of what they used to do now - so if that is true, then I wonder why they couldn't just premiere 24 whenever they're ready. just a thought...

hardy24 · 2008-02-11 09:52:06

jack_addict wrote:

one other thing that article above said was that the studios were rethinking their "seasons" and were thinking about changing things so they premiere shows throughout the year instead of what they used to do now - so if that is true, then I wonder why they couldn't just premiere 24 whenever they're ready. just a thought...

Yes, maybe, the big problem is that TV ratings massively decline in between June and early August in the U.S.

I reckon, that if the ending of the strike goes as planned, then they could easily produce another 4 episodes to add to the 8 already in the can and air them between march and may. Then air the second half from september.

Just an idea.

J_A · 2008-02-11 21:36:48

I wouldn't have a problem with it, the only thing I would have a problem with would be two separate storylines, both of which start and end in 12 hours. that would be stretching it too far, at times that the credibility of the show is declining anyway (i.e. how many things can happen within 24h - but hey, look here, now we have twice as much in 2 x 12h ). fingers crossed all ends well.

jeez, are we the only ones keeping this forum alive?...

hardy24 · 2008-02-11 22:51:02

jack_addict wrote:

I wouldn't have a problem with it, the only thing I would have a problem with would be two separate storylines, both of which start and end in 12 hours. that would be stretching it too far, at times that the credibility of the show is declining anyway (i.e. how many things can happen within 24h - but hey, look here, now we have twice as much in 2 x 12h ). fingers crossed all ends well.

I do know what you mean about the "divide" if you will, but I still believe it could work very well, as I see it a "break" in the storyline is inevitable, the only slight disadvantage is that now the writers are pinned down to where that break is.

jeez, are we the only ones keeping this forum alive?...

Apparently so, perhaps we should poke Steve in the hope of getting his first hour of s7 out of him.

J_A · 2008-02-11 23:16:26

hardy24 wrote:

I do know what you mean about the "divide" if you will, but I still believe it could work very well, as I see it a "break" in the storyline is inevitable, the only slight disadvantage is that now the writers are pinned down to where that break is.

a break, yes, if what you mean by that is what we've had since s1, but if the storylines were not connected at all, I suppose it would be a matter of how they pull it off, it just might not feel like 24 anymore. I dunno. wait and see, I guess.

Apparently so, perhaps we should poke Steve in the hope of getting his first hour of s7 out of him.

I'm all for poking! . I shall be texting him tonight!

J_A · 2008-02-11 23:19:55

poked him! LOL

Steveb · 2008-02-13 00:34:52

Alright alright I've been duly poked! :-)

I'm currently in rehearsals all day everyday so have been away from the computer, other than to sporadically check emails. The show runs until friday so I'll will post my s7 on saturday. Deal?

As for the end to the strike etc. In many respects airing the first half of the season would be good as they can gauge fan response and then alter the second half accordingly (in theory at least.) This does bring up its own problems in that 24 has always worked best watching it straight through and a mid-season break will be detrimental to that, but given the current feeling towards the show I think it's probably a safer thing to do- providing, as you said J_A, that the show isn't split into two 12 hour series.

hardy24 · 2008-02-13 08:32:49

The Strike Is Now Officially Over!!!, All WGA members are back to work today. Hopefully news on how 24 will return to the air will shortly be forthcoming.

J_A · 2008-02-14 23:22:11

Steveb wrote:

Alright alright I've been duly poked! :-)

. my pleasure, mate!

I'm currently in rehearsals all day everyday so have been away from the computer, other than to sporadically check emails. The show runs until friday so I'll will post my s7 on saturday. Deal?

fine by me. you see, with all this strike / delay stuff going on, all we have are the things *we* write !

As for the end to the strike etc. In many respects airing the first half of the season would be good as they can gauge fan response and then alter the second half accordingly (in theory at least.) This does bring up its own problems in that 24 has always worked best watching it straight through and a mid-season break will be detrimental to that, but given the current feeling towards the show I think it's probably a safer thing to do- providing, as you said J_A, that the show isn't split into two 12 hour series.

yea I think so, too. it would be more detrimental to the show to give it a 19 month break imo. - unless - with the time pressure (slightly) off - they managed to actually rise from the (almost) dead and make this into a season worthy of mentioning in the 24 hall of fame. IF that is possible.

another question here. Joel Surnow has left the show - as dan posted the other day. what are your feelings there? mine is that he's seen it's a sinking ship or doesn't like where it's going and is jumping off it before it stops being a positive entry in your CV... I mean, the guy is the father of the show. this sounds like he doesn't believe in it anymore.

Steveb · 2008-02-15 00:17:34

I think it's an interesting decision, but everyone has to move on. As long as whoever they bring in to replace him is good at the job I don't necessarily mind. He's had a strong tenure on 24 and has created some really good stuff, but the other guys in charge are more than capable of holding the reins.

hardy24 · 2008-02-15 09:51:23

I think there simply becomes a point at which people wish to move on to a new project. And fact his the other co-creator Bob Cochran is still on staff, plus a whole host of other people.

J_A · 2008-02-16 18:14:54

it's a matter of seeing the glass as half full or half empty maybe...

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