Trio Trophy - Day Nine

Quick reminder, no new shows tomorrow.

From the Turn On bracket:

(1) Sports Night v. (17) Idiot Savants

Sports Night is pretty much the poster child for this tournament. Widely hailed for its sharp writing and strong ensemble cast, it mixed romance, sports and office politics into a cracking half hour. The show had an undeniable energy and, rare for a workplace comedy, actually found an entire office of unique individuals who loved what they did for a living.

What they did was put together a sports news show (also called Sports Night), with a pair of up and coming anchors in Dan Rydell and Casey McCall, and produced by the highly driven Dana Whittaker. She was assisted by Natalie Hurley, who was also the girlfriend of newly-hired researcher Jeremy Goodwin. Overseeing it all was managing editor Isaac Jaffee, a respected journalist who opted to run the show over retiring.

What they did not do very well was draw in viewers. Which mirrored the show's real-life situation as well. The continuing story line involving the show's parent network can be seen as a thinly-veiled reference to the real show's relationship with ABC. Considering how network brass were portrayed on the show, it's surprising that the real show lasted as long as it did.

Sports Night went down for the count after 45 episodes airing from 1998 to 2000. More than one competing network showed interest in the show, but Sorkin decided to end it so he could move on to The West Wing.

Several good clips here.

Idiot Savants defeated Gideon's Crossing 6-3 in the preliminary round.

(2) My So-Called Life v. (18) It's Your Move

My So Called Life set the stage for later shows that took a more complex look at being a teenages (like Freaks and Geeks), and served as a radical departure from the standard high school sitcom fare of wacky hijinx. The show followed Angela Chase (Clare Danes), a 15 year old living in suburban Pittsbugh who beings to drift from her long-time friends and towards kids like Rayanne (whose experimental nature once led to a drug overdose) and Rickie, who was both openly gay and abused by his uncle.

In addition to the issues brought up by this change, there were also various plot points regarding romance, as Angela found herself dealing with both a kind-of boyfriend she mostly ignored and her feelings for Jordan, whose dyslexia led to the assumption that he wasn't that bright. Of course, the show wouldn't be complete without intra-family strife, coming from Angela clashing with her parents, her parents clashing with each other, and her sister mostly being forgotten.

The show came from the Zwick/Herkovitz team, meaning that the show would faithfully mine their subjects for real conflict and emotion, but not translate to a wider audience (it didn't help that it aired in the very competitive Thursday at 8 pm timeslot). ABC was also concerned about how the show's appeal would translate into profit, and when you throw in Danes' reluctance to continue on the show, it was easy to see how ABC would cancel it after just 19 episodes in 1994 and '95. The show's rabid fanbase would continue to press for a renewal for years, to no avail.

Plenty o' clips here.

It's Your Move defeated American Gothic 7-2 in the preliminary round.
From the South of Sunset bracket:

(1) Police Squad! v. (17) Bakersfield PD

Police Squad! - in color - brought the wackiness of Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker to the small screen in a spoof of dramatic cop shows of the 1960s and '70s. Leslie Nielsen starred as Frank Drebin, who each week would investigate a crime with the help(?) of colleagues like Captain Ed Hocken and Officer Norberg. He'd often get additional help from the surprisingly well-informed Jimmy the Snitch and the child-endangering Dr. Ted Olson.

What really got people to notice the show, though, was the barrage of jokes, from broad visual gags to the mismatched title narration to Frank's weekly run in with local garbage cans. Each week also saw a different guest star killed off early in the episode, as well as a freeze-frame ending in which only the actors stopped moving.

While the quick pace and non-stop gaggery worked in movies like Airplane! it wasn't quite ready for TV, even if the series was widely hailed both for its humor and its inventive nature (and nominated for two Emmys to boot). Four of the six episodes filmed aired on ABC in 1982, with new fans added in reruns and three feature films.

Plenty of clips here.

Bakersfield PD defeated Skag 7-2 in the preliminary round.

(2) Max Headroom v. (18) QED

Max Headroom took viewers "20 minutes into the future," as it followed the exploits of Edison Carter, an investigative journalist whose reports helped to drive up the ratings of his employer, Network 23. The future of the show was a TV-driven dystopia where ratings were measured in real time and power lay in the hands of the networks and their corporate masters.

Max was Edison's brain downloaded into the Network 23 computer system after Edison suffered a serious injury, done by the network's CEO to see what Edison knew about the blipvert advertising technique. This cyber-character had his own agenda, and would help or hinder matters on a whim. Edison's real assistance came from his controller, Theora Jones, and the network's technical wizard/resident hacker, Bryce Lynch.

Max Headroom was the first cyberpunk TV show on US network television, which helped it gain an initial foothold among fans (as did Max's familiarity from advertising). It was also ahead of its time in discussing issues related to the media and privacy. Not surprisingly, ABC was a little skittish about the former, so it was pure coincidence that the show debuted for its first full season opposite Dallas and Miami Vice. Ratings dropped, and the show was canceled after 14 episodes in 1987 and '88.

Several of what appear to be full episodes can be found here.

QED defeated Relativity 7-2 in the preliminary round.