# Will these (TV)pilots fly or crash?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-these-tv-pilots-fly-or-crash/614952>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [March 6, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-these-tv-pilots-fly-or-crash/614952 "2012-03-06T18:42:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-these-tv-pilots-fly-or-crash/614952/41 "2012-03-09T00:12:39Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> Logline: A bizarre twist of fate pulls a man who’s spent 20 years as the editor of a skeptics magazine into one of the most compelling conspiracies in human history.

This could be interesting, but I suspect it would be awful. I hate the way hollywood writes token skeptics. “OH I’M JUST TOO CLOSE MINDED TO BELIEVE THAT GHOSTS ARE REAL, PLEASE SHOW ME HE ERRORS OF MY WAYS, HERO”.

Last Resort sounds like it could be an interesting miniseries, if it was made in a grim, almost battlestar galactica sort of way. I love me some submarine fiction. Not sure how you could make that into a series though.

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**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-these-tv-pilots-fly-or-crash/614952/42 "2012-03-09T01:42:37Z")

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This description of Last Resort from io9 makes it sound a lot more sci-fi and more interesting:

> [@](#):
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> In a nutshell: A nuclear submarine is equipped with a brand new prototype that allows it to move undetected, without any kind of magnetic signature — a kind of “cloaking device,” if you will. But when the sub receives orders to fire its missiles at Pakistan through non-standard channels, its captain decides to disobey. Soon, the sub’s crew is divided and its captain’s authority in question, while World War III is breaking out back on land. The submarine hides out at a small island called Sainte Maria, whose local dicator, “Mayor” Julian Serrat, doesn’t appreciate these new arrivals trying to take over his island. It stars Terminator 2’s Robert Patrick, plus Scott Speedman, Dichen Lachman, Andre Braugher and Autumn Reeser.

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**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-these-tv-pilots-fly-or-crash/614952/43 "2012-03-09T22:32:49Z")

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Every show sounds so familiar, like we’re reading about new shows from 1998.

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**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\
**Post date:** [March 10, 2012, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-these-tv-pilots-fly-or-crash/614952/44 "2012-03-10T00:14:22Z")

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> [@Rushgeekgirl](#):
>
> Every show sounds so familiar, like we’re reading about new shows from 1998.

They were saying the same thing in 1988. And probably in 1888.

Based on the one sentence description and cast:  
American Judy: Critics & execs like Judy Greer; America does not. I personally find Ken Marino really annoying in large doses. Makes it to the fall schedule, doesn’t make it to spring.

Counter Culture: With that cast (and producer & director), I could see it on CBS, not ABC. Possibly paired with “Last Man Standing” which also doesn’t really seem to belong on ABC.

Dusty Goes to Awesometown - no. no he’s not.

How to Live With Your Parents for the Rest of Your Life - going to be picked up. Could work well on Wednesday nights.

Malibu Country - People really love her, and her last show ran for 5 or 6 seasons and didn’t actually suck. I could also see this with “Last Man Standing” for people who miss mid-90s sitcoms

Only Fools and Horses - I really hate the british version of the show, and I don’t think it translates well, and every member of that cast is a lot on their own, much less altogether, so unless someone is doing some major re-tooling for an American audience, it isn’t going to work.

Prairie Dogs - picked up as a mid-season replacement.

The Smart One - building a series around Portia de Rossi being the _ugly_ sister? Really? On the other hand, she and Jean Smart are really funny. Picked up. Summer burn off theater.

Untitled Fogelman - no

Untitled Kari Lizer - Her last project (New Adventures of Old Christine) had a much more solid & well known cast. This, not so much. Not picked up.

Untitled Mandy Moore - 5 years ago, maybe. Now, no.

White Van Man - sounds like an afterschool special gone horribly wrong. No.

666 Park Avenue - very possibly. Where they’ve got “The River” now.

Americana - good cast, and there’s going to be a hole in the schedule when Desperate Housewives is gone. yes.

Beauty and the Beast - no.

Devious Maids - maybe… Marc Cherry knows what he’s doing with soap operas. And Univision has amazing numbers that ABC would be wise to take note of. Probably picked up.

Gilded Lilys - going to be picked up (ABC isn’t going to say no to Shonda) but probably not going to last.

Gotham - picked up because everyone loves the supernatural. Dead by spring.

Last Resort - no.

Nashville - not on ABC. The CW might be able to make that work - but not with that cast.

Penoza - No.

Scruples - Seriously? That book is 25 years old and wasn’t good then. Even I’m saying that one is too dated to work.

Untitled Roland Emmerich drama - no.

Zero Hour - Someone, someone is going to realize that there’s no there there and ABC has enough shows with actual content that they don’t need a Flash Forward, The Event piece of dreck.

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