Men of a Certain Age: "The Pickup"

Season 2, Episode 8

A fantastic setup to plots that may or may not pan out

The Failed Pilot Project Case File #3: Firefly

With special guest episode “The Train Job”

The Killing: "Missing"

Season 1, Episode 11

Oh, come on! We’re this close to the end!

Doctor Who: "The Almost People"

Season 6, Episode 6

The second part fails to live up to the intellectual expectations

Men of a Certain Age: "The Great Escape"

Season 2, Episode 7

Never have I been so glad to see a group of aging males

The Failed Pilot Project Case File #2: Angel

Part of the reason for analyzing the pilots for this project in the order that I did – apart from making sure that I could deal with obvious issues of how one person's approach to pilots changes over time – was that by putting Buffy and Angel back-to-back, it opens the floor to speak about pitch pilots. Pitch pilots, as their name implies, are meant solely to pitch a show to various networks; they serve as a quick snapshot of what the show is about. Not all pilots are pitched to  a wide swath of networks; it’s also very common for a network to work with a writer/producer to develop a series, and go straight into filming a full pilot that will often work as the first episode. These pilots are often known as “put pilots”, those that come attached with a financial penalty to the network of the pilot isn’t picked up, thus almost guaranteeing a pick up. But pitch pilots, without such financial backing, have to temper their expectations. As such, pitch pilots tend to run under ten minutes in length, and they favor tone over story, a characteristic that can get shows into trouble during the early runs if nobody’s careful.

The Killing: "I'll Let You Know When I Get There"

Season 1, Episode 10

Counting down the episodes until the finale

Schedule Updated

As the traditional TV season ended last night, it is now time to shake things up here at the blog with a whole new schedule for the summer, found here. Since we still have a few more weeks until most shows premiere, you still have time to vote for any other shows you want covered this summer; just leave a comment below.

Cougar Town: "Something Good Coming"

Season 2, Episodes 21 & 22

How to use a special locale effectively

Modern Family: "The One That Got Away"

Season 2, Episode 24

A finale to match the rest of the season

The Failed Pilot Project Case File #1: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

“It sucks on ass.”

-Joss Whedon, on the original pilot

Between the original pitch to the networks and the time that they air on TV, pilots almost always undergo some sort of change. Sometimes the changes are larger – like those pilots that will be covered here – but often times they’re much smaller, like recasting a role, or re-filming a few scenes in order to change the tone slightly. Not all pilots get changed, mind you – especially at the cable level – but it happens enough that it should be considered a general rule of thumb. Knowing what changes happen between the original and aired versions of a pilot is something of interest to many TV critics, as it plays into this discussion of the art vs. business dialectic within the television industry. But what are we to make of a pilot that’s not meant to air, that is only meant to sell the series to the network, with the implication that the first episode aired will vary greatly from what’s in the pilot? Enter the unaired pilot for Buffy the Vampire Slayer. 

Glee: "New York"

Season 2, Episode 22

Those New York lights are quite distracting

The Chicago Code: "Mike Royko's Revenge"

Season 1, Episode 13

A convoluted finale wrecks the show’s reputation

The Killing: "Undertow"

Season 1, Episode 9

As most of the story falls apart, a few dysfunctional elements actually start to work

SNL: "Justin Timberlake/Lady Gaga"

Season 36, Episode 22

A fine example of a regular episode, a so-so season finale

Doctor Who: "The Rebel Flesh"

Season 6, Episode 5

The first half of a two parter is better with ideas than story

Parks and Rec: "The Bubble"/"Lil' Sebastian"

Season 3, Episodes 15 & 16

A strong outing for Ben and Leslie; everything else plays second banana.

The Office: "Search Committee"

Season 7, Episodes 25 & 26

A new set of potential bosses, the same old problems

Cougar Town: "Free Fallin'"

Season 2, Episode 20

A comedic look at moral ambiguity

Modern Family: "See You Next Fall"

Season 2, Episode 23

Do the ends justify the means?