Theory on why Fox cancelled Firefly
POSTED BY: killerbrain
UPDATED: Friday, December 2, 2005 07:25
VIEWED: 9026
PAGE 2 of 4
Personally, I think such a theory, though somewhat plausible, is rather improbable. I know that we're still pissed that the show got axed, but don't go all paranoid-conspiracy over it.
I mean, this is FOX we're talking about. A network that had developed a reputation for launching sci-fi or genre shows, usually on Friday nights, and then cancelling them promptly if they do not become huge hits right out of the gate. This a reputation they had earned long before Firefly was twinkling in Joss' eye.
Now, if FOX was known for supporting genre shows with dedicated fanbases, but struggling ratings, you might have a case.
I am of the belief that FOX network would air the "George W. Bush is an Idiot" variety hour if they knew it was going to bring in the cash.
"Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle."
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Its about the money this was an expencive show FOX has an unholy reputation for cutting shows that do poorly on the first series. It dosent matter how good the story is or how good its potential if it dont make them money they ant intrested.
Thats my 2 cents
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Fox is part of the military-industrial complex, don't you see?? They feed the propaganda machine that feeds the war that feeds the company that makes the bullets that feed into the machine guns to kill little babies! My God! Bush probably planned the whole thing, just to be a sourpuss. I'm sure Dick Cheney had something to do with it, too. And Elvis. Yeah; Elvis! I'm sure he's culpable in all this.
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Edit: oops, forgot to use [[]sarcasm[]] [[]/sarcasm[]]
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Re-edit: I wish Haken had a eyes-rolling emoticon.
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I wish I had a magical wish-granting plank.
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Sure, it dies because it was put on Friday nights.
But they put it there why? Because they wanted it to die. They had already given up on it. They were just going through the motions.
This isn't just any show-- this is from Joss Whedon, who had proven himself. Put your full might behind it and it was going to be a winner.
They had a choice. They can make or break a new show with its time slot and promotion. They killed it. It wasn't because it sucked. It was because something about it must have rubbed them the wrong way. It's about rebels who hate their superpower (The Alliance). Airing during the run-up to the Iraq war. A run-up run by our superpower (good ol' US of A). Runned-up with significant help from Fox news. Do the math.
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Oh. My. God. I've seen some ridiculous threads in my time here at FFF.net, but this takes the cake.
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I wish I had a magical wish-granting plank.
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I don't think we should be asking "Why did Fox cancel Firefly?", I think we should be asking "Why didn't people watch this show? Or why didn't they like it?". Well I know a lot of that is down to Fox's poor poor advertisement campaign and support etc.
I think a large factor is that people just dont like good fiction anymore. Reality TV has taken over. And its just getting more and more insane (not to mention crap.) so insane that in fact...reality TV will destroy itself given enough time.
Then fiction will be back in fashion!
PsychicRiver
"Two by two, hands of blue." 
"We'll take care of each other. I'll knit!"
"I swallowed a bug."
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Hey gang, I am brand spanking new to this website. I got to reading some of the threads here and felt the need to talk too.
I must say how angry I am that I wasn't aware that this series even exsisted until after the movie came out. I LOVE the sci-fi genre, and when a new series comes out, I will ALWAYS watch it to see if it's going to be something I'll like. Now, I watch plenty on Fox, and NOT ONCE did I happen to catch a preview or commercial on this while it was supposedly being advertised by this network. That in and of itself should prove that it was not properly advertised, if I, of all people, missed this. I thoroughly enjoyed the film, and I've got a friend that has bought the Firefly DVD's and I'm borrowing them to watch the series. I love the show and I sure hope that there are talks out there to revive it!!!
I think everyone here has a good point about why this show didn't make it right away. The advertising was not what it should have been, and I'm quite sure that it was not properly advertised because it did not fit an agenda of Fox execs. I do hope the DVD sales go through the roof so that we can show these people they've made a terrible mistake with cancelling the show. Didn't the movie to relatively well at the box office? I don't remember if it ever made it to #1, but I remember reading that it was in the top 5 for a couple of weeks and the reviews it got were good. /keeping fingers crossed that something good comes of all of this.
I'm definitely going to keep reading up on this site. I'm fast becoming a fan of this show, and I hate that I am such a late fan!!!
Psolaris
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Quote:
Originally posted by Causal:
Oh. My. God. I've seen some ridiculous threads in my time here at FFF.net, but this takes the cake.
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I wish I had a magical wish-granting plank.
I agree, absolutely ridiculous!! (Lady Ridicule, smite me down. I fear you not!)
But have you seen Outfoxed? I'm not lookin' to fight here, I'm just sayin' ...
Ask Dr. Science ... he knows more than you do.
"I have a Master's degree ... in science!"
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I'm amazed by all the people who complain that the show/movie wasn't advertised. (Not taking shots at anyone in particular, just the overall trend)
I think it just comes down to when you watch, what you watch, and plain luck of the draw.
Personally, I saw lots of commercials for Firefly before it began. I also saw a lot of coverage on line on variouse movie/TV sites (like Aint-it-cool-news, who's TV editor, Hercules, has been thumping the Firefly drum good and hard for years now).
I also saw quite a few commercials for Serenity. I even caught one durring the season premiere of The Simpsons. It got to a point where I'd seen the commercial enough times that I eventually stopped even paying attention to them (I tend to have the TV on when on the computer, and at the beginning would always turn to watch when I heard "Hands and knees and heads bowed down!").
Now, the quality of these commercials is where I think TPTB fell through. After having seen the movie, I really doubt that "Do you want to run this ship? - Yeah! - Well, you can't" was the most compelling clip to end all the spots with.
"Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle."
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Quote:
Originally posted by Storymark:
After having seen the movie, I really doubt that "Do you want to run this ship? - Yeah! - Well, you can't" was the most compelling clip to end all the spots with.
I think that was Universal sort of desperately throwing in a tag meant to say, essentially, "Look, look! It's not uber-geeky! It's hip, and funny, too!" I can almost envision the PR people: what is this movie, anyway? Is it sci-fi? Action? Adventure? Comedy? Horror? Western? This doesn't fit any of my movie-advertising formulas...
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I wish I had a magical wish-granting plank.
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