Sunday three: Dr. House can't save SNL (but Beck rocks); ciao Studio 60; no show, big fic?

[tzikeh]

1) Saturday Night Live: the sorrow and the pity.

This marks the first time I've ever fast-forwarded through something with Hugh Laurie in it. And I don't mean fast-forwarding through the stuff he wasn't in to get to the stuff he was in - I mean fast-forwarding *through sketches with Hugh Laurie in them* because it was just. too. painful.

None of the sketches were funny, not even the ones Hugh was in (though he did get a true laugh when he couldn't get a pair of prop glasses on his face, and said "Good thing they're just an affectation, really" or something like that, and discarded them). He was in a double bind: the sketches were so bad he couldn't save them, and when he made his own jokes they were to smart for the room.

At least the people at SNL were smart enough to give him a solo act besides the opening monologue (something they generally don't do for the host). He played the guitar and harmonica and sang a protest song of his own composition. It was funnier than everything else in the show put together.

Beck was AWESOME.

I'm going to find a torrent for two reasons - a) the interstitial cards they made of Hugh are so much going to be lj icons for me, and b) Beck's performance of "Clap Hands" was worth tuni... okay, no, it wasn't. But I'm glad I saw it and I want to keep a copy of it.

(NB: for those of you with the "guy with long legs in heels" kink, you may want to find the torrent because there is a sketch in which Hugh wears a micro-mini and heels. While he spends most of the sketch sitting, he does stand up at the end and is very tall and leggy. I couldn't tell you what the sketch was about because the opening lines were SO PAINFUL that I had to fast-forward.)

Oh, and of course NBC cut away from the "goodbye" shot the *second* Borat went down on his knees to blow Hugh.

2) Bye-bye, Studio 60.

I wanted to *love* it. I really, really did. But now, IMO, good riddance to bad rubbish (and quite frankly, let Aaron Sorkin go have his cyclonic self-destructo-meltdown somewhere besides in front of eight million people per week). I went in with nothing but high hopes and... well, as Tom Servo said to Crow T. Robot - "You take everything good and... you RIP MY HEART OUT!"

BUT!

Because the Matt and Danny pairing has taken off like crazy, I ask of you all this question -

3) Which, do you think, is the biggest fandom out there for a show something with the *smallest* aired episodes amount of canon? (Edited because duh, Phantom Menace)

Can anyone think of a program which aired for no more than five or six episodes, yet has a thriving fandom with thousands of pieces of fanfiction? My guess is that Studio 60 is about to become that fandom, and I'm wondering if there even exists a niche to be conquered. Are there massive fanfiction archives for shows which were cancelled this early into their runs?

Comments

[boniblithe.livejournal.com]

Firefly only had 9 aired eps, right?

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

Twelve.

[saturnalia.livejournal.com]

I think there were nine eps originally aired on Fox, but thirteen eps actually made and released on DVD. Or something like that- in any case, they didn't make it through all 13 episodes before it was pulled off-air.

Firefly

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

Fifteen were made, twelve aired. The three unaired episodes were included on the dvds.

Airing schedule of Firefly.

Great icon, btw!

Re: Firefly

[saturnalia.livejournal.com]

*facepalm* I knew there were a few unaired episodes, but I must've got the actual numbers mixed up. Oh well.

Thanks! I got it from policepenguin; they have some pretty fantastic Lost and Heroes icons going over at fandomoncrack.

[mecurtin.livejournal.com]

I think Firefly wins. Studio60 will never approach it, because (a) it has no fantastic element, and (b) it doesn't have as many great characters. Every one of the main Firefly characters is worth having as a Muse; this is *not* the case for S60.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure why you're so emphatic here about something "winning" - nothing has to "win" or "lose" - or why you've phrased your opinions as statements of fact ([e]very one of the main Firefly characters is worth having as a Muse; this is *not* the case for S60). In your *opinion*, every character on Firefly is worth having as a Muse and those on Studio 60 are not, but in someone else's opinion the opposite could be true, couldn't it? I don't like many of the characters on Studio 60, but that doesn't mean that they might not inspire others.

I don't think any of us can tell now what will be true in x years in fandom. And I don't think it matters if there is a fantastic element w/r/t a fandom becoming huge; you just have to look to the buddy-show fandoms for proof of that.

[mecurtin.livejournal.com]

"Winning" in the sense of "having a higher fic/aired ep ratio".

My statement about the Muse-ability of the FF characters compared to S60 is not my personal opinion, but my observation: one characteristic of FF fandom is that all seven main characters have devotees. The people who like S60 seem much less diverse in their preferences -- the great majority of the squee has been about liking Matt and/or Danny.

Now that I think about it, though, I take it back. Limited canon with a single burning OTP can launch an unbelievable amount of fic -- see the TPM discussion below (though the rules are different for movies, since none of them have many hours of canon by TV standards). If future fans judge Matt/Danny to be sufficiently inspiring, the fandom might get to be pretty good-sized on that basis alone.

But I still predict S60 fandom can never grow truly huge, because it's not a sf/fantasy show and so is unlikely to attract the critical mass of fannish people.

[wisdomeagle]

I'm here from metafandom and am confused. Which two of Firefly's nine title-credits-characters are not "main"? (I assume one is Book, but I'm honestly puzzled about the other. Wash?)

[mecurtin.livejournal.com]

What this proves is that when I have a bad head cold I can't count on my fingers. I think probably I put Zoe&Wash on the same finger (like you do) and then wasn't really counting Book.

Anyway -- Joss writes lots of characters! Lots! And they're all interesting! And you know, with guns. And spaceships.

[wisdomeagle]

Counting Zoe-and-Wash as one character is totally legit. ::g::

Mmmm, guns and spaceships and Firefly. ♥

[aerye.livejournal.com]

That's a good question because right now I'm not at all inclined to abandon the stories and would love to see us, as fans, play out the promise in the show. But off the top of my head I can't think of anything with more than six (except, aren't there a couple more scheduled?).

AND, okay, the long legs and heels thing had me. I don't remember anything but his amazingly gorgeous legs and the cute thing where he had to yank the skirt down over his bits at the end...but the legs were worth tun...okay, it wasn't.

::g::

[aerye.livejournal.com]

Um. Less than six. ::g::

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

were worth tun...okay, it wasn't.

The new "pastede on yey"? I say YES! *g*

[batdina.livejournal.com]

Somehow I think TPM has to fit in here somewhere. At least as a kissing cousin or something.

[yahtzee63.livejournal.com]

Dude, yes. Two hours of canon = A HUNDRED JILLION FANFICS WITH SOULBONDING.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

AIE! Yeah. Soulbond: The cockroach of TPM tropes.

[ravenclaw-devi.livejournal.com]

It's funny because it's true.

(here via metafandom, yada yada)

[yahtzee63.livejournal.com]

There's probably some British shows for which this is true, given that a very successful run in the U.K. can consist of six episodes. I can't name any offhand.

I would be surprised if "Studio 60" fandom seriously takes off, but if so, like "Firefly," I strongly suspect the fan creations will be superior to the show itself.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

:nod: I think you're right about the British shows, but I do wonder about the sheer number of fannish creations based on them. I'm curious to see what kind of fun things I find out in this thread.

I wasn't trying to make this into a Studio 60 vs Firefly thing (and I know you're not either!) - Firefly just happened to be the first fandom mentioned in the comments. But here's what I think - both shows came from two writers who had huge cult-like followings (and I am not using that in a bad way, for lo I was/am in both of their cults), both had two previous, high-quality tv shows, and both had a third show that simply didn't go. So, in terms of that *specific* situation, I'm curious.

But I am also hoping to discover stuff I don't know like "X show had four aired episodes and we've been writing fanfiction about it since 1973" or something.

[mmebahorel.livejournal.com]

I think that British series generally shouldn't be counted just because so many of them work in short series arcs. If you put all the seasons of, say, Wire in the Blood together, you *might* have one season of a typical US tv show. As a result of that structure, many British series with small numbers of episodes are actually complete, while American series with small numbers of episodes almost never are.

(Sorkin's problem is that Studio 60 is entirely meta; Whedon's problem is that half the audience was going WTF due to all the Mandarin and distinct lack of Chinese people. I don't mind the meta, but it needs to be distributed across the season, not put in every bloody episode. Also, he needs a freer form - I think Sports Night and Studio 60 both could have benefited from a 45 minute run time. Sports Night always ran a bit too short, but Studio 60 runs a bit too long. I still can't figure out how he managed pacing on West Wing because I never felt the time issue with that show.)

Six weeks without a shop accident, and now THIS!

[luminosity]

I tuned into SNL last night for the first time in forever because Hugh *AND* Beck were on it. Beck and his puppets were faboo, IMO, and HL's song was great, but the rest of it was why I don't watch SNL anymore. To say it was godawful is an insult to godawfulness.

Re: Six weeks without a shop accident, and now THIS!

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

*dies at your subject line*

And yes, Beck, the puppets, and Hugh's song. That's it. Man, not to go all fangirly, but Laurie has said repeatedly that he really wanted to be a rock star, and it was interesting that he first wanted to shake hands with and talk to Beck, and then his band members, and not the cast. I mean, I'm *totally* making this up, but I still enjoyed it. I was half-hoping Beck would ask him to jam. ;)

[taffimai.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad someone's putting S60 out of it misery.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

:nod: It's sad. I wanted so much from it. Alas.

[taffimai.livejournal.com]

I know, me too. What Aaron needs is a good show-runner, someone to tell him when he has his head up his ass. Alas, it's the one thing that he'll never accept.

[randomblade.livejournal.com]

Jumping on that bandwagon. Much like Lucas, so much better when forced to work to the exacting standards of... ANYONE OTHER THAN THE GINORMOUS EGO.

[beck-liz.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I wanted to enjoy Hugh on SNL last night, but I ended up being so glad I'd set it to record and didn't start watching until a half hour in. So I was able to fast-forward through 85% of it. Even the Hugh sketches, which was disappointing.

I had just taken Studio 60 out of my weekly recording list when I heard the news, so I'm not surprised and rather relieved.

[kimberlyfdr.livejournal.com]

This marks the first time I've ever fast-forwarded through something with Hugh Laurie in it.

I thought I was the only one! Hugh is funny...the sketches didn't allow for that talent to be properly showcased. And the old Laurie song was definitely a highlight. I was trying to remember if it was one he did on Fry/Laurie. I know I've seen him perform it somewhere before.

[bethbethbeth.livejournal.com]

I was literally covering my eyes through some of the SNL sketches, because...wow, it made me realize how very true to life the S60 sketches have been (i.e., totally dreadful). And about that, god...could I have wanted to love Studio 60 any more than I did? I don't think so. I was all squeeing the first week, and then the second week came and I was already wary, and then the third week came and...I knew the end was nigh.

(And I think nothing will match TPM, so what about "longest running show that should be fannish, yet barely even got a drabble?" *g*)

[ratcreature]

I don't think TPM counts as standalone. It had a whole universe as backdrop: the original trilogy, novels, comics...

[bethbethbeth.livejournal.com]

Good point, actually.

You make an excellent point.

[randomblade.livejournal.com]

That background universe is interesting in terms of Fic, because it means that canon, the two hour films, could be extended backwards onto solid ground, or selectively treated with reference to the other quasi-canonical material...

Hum

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

longest running show that should be fannish, yet barely even got a drabble?

The Wire.

Just sayin' . ;)

[basingstoke.livejournal.com]

Dude, the Wire is MURDER to write. I've tried. I get intimidated and overwhelmed *trying to get a gay man in the sack with a dude.* That's, like... the training wheels of slasherdom.

And I haven't really seen a lot of fannishness about studio 60, really. Maybe I'm not looking in the right place? It lost me with the second ep, so. :/

[musesfool.livejournal.com]

The Wire is... god, -he Wire is so good I mostly don't feel it *needs* fic, at least, and I've seen people discussing it on my flist this season, though I have all the eps saved and haven't watched yet.

That doesn't mean I still don't want angsty brotherly-yet-antagonistic Stringer/Avon slash.

[mecurtin.livejournal.com]

The Wire is

(a) too good to inspire much fic (not enough to fix)

(b) again, not F/SF.

[mecurtin.livejournal.com]

Of SF & fantasy shows, the long-running but *comparatively* underficced ones are, IMO:

1. Farscape and Babylon 5 -- too good for fic.

2. Andromeda -- too bad for fic.

It's the middling-quality shows that get the most fic per episode, IMO, and I think that's because canon has to be good enough to draw fans in, but with holes that fans want to fill.

[klia.livejournal.com]

I wanted to watch HL on SNL, but I just... couldn't. The last time I tuned in, when Peter Sarsgaard hosted, I was totally traumatized. I mean, one 10-minute sketch consisted of people making fun of his name ("Sarsgaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrd!"), and another was him as a Target manager on break, standing around, not helping customers... oh my GOD, SNL is the lamest show that was ever lame. *stabs*

As for shows with very little canon, right now, Torchwood has aired 2 eps, and there are already vids and stories. Which, again... *stabs*

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

SNL is flat-out horrible. When someone with the comedy chops of Hugh Laurie can't make it funny, it's time to pack up and go.

[cesperanza.livejournal.com]

Dude, if you get footage of Beck and his puppets, please please drop me a line1

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

I *totally* will. And OMG LYLE WAGGONER! I had such a crush....

[cesperanza.livejournal.com]

You and me both! It's so sad; I wonder how much of my sexuality was made weird by early crushes on Lyle Waggoner and Adam West?? Oh, and these guys *points up*.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

Alan Alllllda.

Though for me it was a progressive pub crawl through Han Solo, Superman, and Remington Steele.

[kismeteve.livejournal.com]

He was in a double bind: the sketches were so bad he couldn't save them, and when he made his own jokes they were to smart for the room.

I felt so bad for Hugh. He was giving it all he had, but the sketches were just too lame to salvage.

The only sad thing about S60' imminent cancellation is that I will no longer have Matt Perry being awesome on my tv every week. Alas.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

The only sad thing about S60' imminent cancellation is that I will no longer have Matt Perry being awesome on my tv every week.

Now, that I will miss indeed. If there's one good thing that might come out of this show, it's that MP really got to show off his chops and stretch in ways that Friends never let him.

I hope this is a nice springboard for him.