Five Franchises That Didn't Know When to Quit

Someone once said that it is better to burn out than fade away. If only the producers in charge of these franchises had heeded that advice. So much pain and suffering could've been so easily avoided.

Doo Nyws: Awgüst 10, 2014

This Week: New Terminator Title – Not Dead Yet – Into the Woods Teaser – This Week in Casts – Joss Whedon Bio – The Imitation Game – Books on Screen – This Week in X-Cats

Great Expectations: The Return of Sci-Fi Friday

I don’t have a reputation for being the world’s most positive person. In fact, my friends have in the past accused me of having my very own “little black rain cloud.” But as the premiere of FOX’s new Friday night combo of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse approaches, I’ve been feeling like Little Mary Sunshine in a sea of Doubting Thomases!

Ever since FOX announced that these two shows would be partnered on Friday nights, critics and fans have been downright gloomy about their prospects:

“Friday is where shows go to die.”

“I don’t know why Joss even bothered getting into bed with FOX again. This show is as good as cancelled.”

“Guess we aren’t getting another season of Terminator.”

People can’t even mention the premiere of Dollhouse without cynically grumping that we’ll be lucky to get four episodes. That’s right. The first episode hasn’t even aired and people are already writing the series’ obituary.

Is the economy bringing everyone down? Or have years of genre TV fandom beaten folks to a pulp? Things are not right in the world when *I'm* the voice of positive thinking!

Why can't we look forward to these shows without fretting about their possible end? Why is it so hard to just enjoy the ride while it lasts? However short it is. Maybe Dollhouse will be awesome, but get crappy ratings and we only get a few episodes. Or maybe it won’t be any good at all. If so, let's cross that bridge when we come to it. In the meantime, can't we just hope for the best without preparing for the worst?

Don't get me wrong, I understand why people are gun shy. I’ve been burned by FOX before. Was I bummed that Wonderfalls only aired four episodes before being cancelled? Yes. Do I feel pretty bittersweet about only having 13 episodes of that fun and quirky series to continually enjoy? Yes. But at the same time, I'm so grateful for those 13. Same goes for shows like Firefly and Invasion. Yes, it sucks that these shows didn't get more time to shine---and I do at times feel pretty wistful about what could have been---but I will always be glad I got to spend time in those worlds. At least for a little while. And I like to approach new shows with that same hope for something great, even if it is short-lived.

I, for one, am eagerly anticipating the premiere of FOX’s Sci-Fi Friday. I understand ratings aren't likely to be stellar. But ratings expectations probably won't be as high either. I can’t wait to see what Joss has in store for us with Dollhouse---even if it does get cancelled after four episodes. And I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of Terminator, Season 2. Even if that’s all we ever get, at least we got to enjoy two seasons of some awesome ass-kicking and surprisingly character-focused storytelling. And for that, I'm grateful.

So how about some positive thinking?

Top ten sci-fi/genre romances... according to Dan

In honor of Valentine's Day, here are my top ten sci-fi/genre romances. I will admit this isn’t super comprehensive and it does contain spoilers about each show, but only in regards to relationships.