# Sudden TV revamps **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [April 28, 2026, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626 "2026-04-28T18:33:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Smid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/838e76/32.png) [@Smid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smid)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/161 "2026-05-08T13:02:44Z")
There was probably a lot post September 11th revamps, but the one I remember was the Star Trek: Enterprise where bad things happened and all of a sudden anger and torture seemed valid. I guess that pretty much was the theme of 24 mostly in general: torture works. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/162 "2026-05-08T14:46:17Z")
> [@Smid](#): > > There was probably a lot post September 11th revamps, but the one I remember was the Star Trek: Enterprise where bad things happened and all of a sudden anger and torture seemed valid. I think that was in “Through a Mirror, Darkly,” which took place in the same parallel universe that was depicted in the _ **TOS** _ episode “Mirror, Mirror.” In both series, the “Imperial Starship Enterprise” was an instrument of the evil Terran Empire. (Imagine a future in which Nazi Germany won WWII and went on to perfect advanced technology.) Everyone on board the ship was a bloodthirsty pirate interested only in personal gain. I found the scene where they “interrogated” an Andorian crewman to be especially disturbing. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/163 "2026-05-08T15:08:29Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > There was an episode where Briggs went undercover in a mask/disguise, and the majority of the episode “Briggs” was played by the actor doing the undercover role. I think the actor was James Daly. Briggs almost gave himself away by smoking a cigarette without using a holder, as was the custom of the man he was impersonating. Daly went on to portray a doctor in the CBS series _ **Medical Center** _, so I found it ironic that he would eventually die of lung cancer, right after his performance in _ **Roots: The Next Generations** _. (He had flogged Camel cigarettes for the RJ Reynolds Company from 1958 to 1965.) He also played the incredibly old “Mr Flint” in the third season _ **Star Trek TOS** _ episode “Requiem for Methuselah.” Again, ironic. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/164 "2026-05-08T15:41:36Z")
> [@Smid](#): > > (Lister pregnant?). That’s the “mirror universe” episode, in which Dave and Arnold venture to an alternate universe and meet their female counterparts. In that universe, it’s the men who get pregnant; Dave somehow remains pregnant upon return to universe prime and gives birth to twin boys. Cat is extremely annoyed to find that his counterpart is a male dog. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/165 "2026-05-08T15:46:39Z")
> [@Smid](#): > > There was probably a lot post September 11th revamps, While I still believe 24 was purely a propaganda tool of the government, to get people used to “you’re with us or against us” and, as noted, “torture works”, (it was on Fox, the official propaganda arm of the republican government), NBC had planned a crossover episode of the three then current L&O shows where a major terrorist attack hits NYC, but they backed off after 9/11. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/166 "2026-05-08T16:33:32Z")
My recollection is that ‘24’ premiered not too long after 9/11, and people were freaked out about a TV show where terrorists bring down a passenger jet in the opening episode. But it became a huge hit. And to be fair, at that time Fox wasn’t the blatant right wing propaganda machine it is today. It was still a somewhat respectable news outlet. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/167 "2026-05-08T20:32:14Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > The 90s sitcom **Roc** aired a live episode in Season 1. That got such a good reception, they switched to broadcasting _every_ episode live in Season 2. IIRC, the show also took on a much more serious tone. It started dealing more with drug abuse, gang violence, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/168 "2026-05-08T20:44:54Z")
I think the eighth and final season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine was delayed because they had to address the concerns about racism and police brutality brought forward by the murder of George Floyd. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/169 "2026-05-08T21:28:39Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > And to be fair, at that time Fox wasn’t the blatant right wing propaganda machine it is today. It was still a somewhat respectable news outlet. And to be even more fair, Fox Television Network and Fox News Channel have always been more or less separate entities, which is one or the reasons you don’t see a “Fox News Evening News” or “Fox News Morning” on your local Fox TV station. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2026, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/170 "2026-05-14T22:21:43Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > _The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret_ blew up the entire **world** at the end of Season 2, so Season 3 retconned the first two seasons as Todd’s dream. Which sounds lame, but it was much more meta than that. After years of David Cross saying that he’d never have to play Todd Margaret again (even having Todd push The Button), he relented, but only if they came up with a really creative way to handle it. So a COMPLETELY different Todd starts to run into people who’d been in the show, and existentialism ensues. (I’m really just posting this for people who’ve wondered if it’s worth tracking down all the seasons. It’s difficult, but worth it.) ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626/171 "2026-05-15T00:15:11Z")
“Let’s Make a Deal” changed from a conventional game show into that parade of weirdness in short order, because the host chose the players from the audience (so attention-grabbing was essentially a “pre-game” game). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-tv-revamps/1029626.md?page=8)