Who's running the show?

Big news from two (or maybe two and a half) TV geniuses last week that directly, and indirectly, affect a couple of my TiVo season pass veterans:

The news: Gilmore Girls creator/mastermind Amy Sherman-Palladino won’t be returning to the show next season, and neither will her husband/cohort Daniel Palladino. They walked away from a reported $5 million one-season deal partly because they wanted a two-season deal instead. That was a problem for producer Warner Bros. Television because the cast (including Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel) only have deals in place for one more season. And many people believe that season will be the last.

Why this is bad: Over the past six seasons the Palladinos wrote about 90 of Gilmore’s 131 episodes, and also directed a significant number. There’s no question Amy is the driving force behind the show, and its most celebrated and unique qualities—the rapid-fire, impressively witty dialogue; the complex family relationships; the finely tuned mix of comedy and drama—came directly from her. If Gilmore really is entering its final season (which is a huge if, especially considering it’s sure to be a major player in the launch of the CW next year and the new network will obviously be eager to keep its "hits") it will be downright wrong to not have Amy there to end the show on her terms. Whether we should blame the Palladinos or Warner Bros. for all of this is debatable, but you can read the couple’s side of the story in this lengthy TV Guide interview (warning: there’s a big fat season finale spoiler in the middle of the interview). Also, the newly appointed showrunner, David Rosenthal, is generating some, um, controversy of his own.

Why this is good: The current season hasn’t exactly been one of the Girls’ strongest. Lukewarm (yeah, pun intended) chemistry between the central couples, audience-punishing story developments (Lorelai and Rory’s prolonged estrangement, Luke’s annoying daughter, Logan’s stubborn refusal to die) and a lack of interesting new characters have made the show feel a bit stale when just a year ago it was at a creative zenith. So maybe a fresh perspective will actually help (maybe one that isn’t so intent on torturing key characters with forced obstacles). And while creating something on the level of Gilmore can be difficult to duplicate I wouldn’t put it past the Palladinos to come up with a brilliant new show sometime over the next few seasons (how about a sharp romantic comedy with a well-written ensemble of quirky characters, a la Cheers?).

Bottom line: Enjoy the Palladino-run Gilmore while it lasts (three more episodes, starting tonight). While I think it’s very possible the show will be around for longer than just one more season (depending heavily on how Lauren and Alexis adapt to life without the Palladinos, and how much money they’re offered for season 8) it’s unlikely Gilmore will ever be truly great again—even if Graham has pledged to do her part for quality control. Let's just hope for really good.

Meanwhile...

The news: The man behind Alias, Felicity and Lost—J.J. Abrams—has set the follow up project to his upcoming feature debut, Mission: Impossible III, and the choice is another big franchise project: the 11th film in the Star Trek series. Reportedly it will focus on the early days of characters like Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock, detailing how they met and what happened on their first mission.

Why this is good: Following disasterous box office for the tenth film and ratings so miserable they forced Star Trek: Enterprise off the air after four seasons (rather than seven, like all previous Trek spin-offs), it looked like Trek was dead. But [insert warp speed joke here] this deal means the franchise is back in a big way. And a fresh way. Abrams will write the script with Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman, who also wrote MI:3 and many episodes of Alias (from seasons one through three). In recent years Trek has been overshadowed in the sci-fi world by the empty hype surrounding Star Wars and the astonishing quality of the Battlestar Galactica revival. But the concept remains a good one and Abrams seems like just the guy to oversee a compelling reinvention.

Why this is bad: Well let’s forget for a moment that Orci & Kurtzman have several questionable writing credits (including The Island, ew!) and focus on Abrams. I’m saying all of this before seeing MI:3 but two things come to mind. First it’s inevitable but still kind of sad that with his bigscreen career heating up there will be less time for him to focus on small screen output. Maybe it’s just perception but J.J.’s shows tend to be better with him around. And as for his feature career I find it a little disappointing that he’s moving from one franchise to another. Maybe it’s smart to build up a track record (and work on mass appeal properties, unlike the cult appeal mistake Joss Whedon made) but it’s still a bit hard to truly make your mark, quality-wise, with the third or eleventh film in a franchise property. Of course it can be done.

Bottom line: We have to face the fact that J.J. has pretty much left TV behind for the time being, and hopefully his output in the film world will turn out to be equally rewarding.