FC NOW: The Fast Company Weblog
May 2, 2005
FG Now
Last night, Fox aired the first new episode of Family Guy since February 2002. For the first time ever, a show that was canceled has come back years later due to home video (and cable reruns). This is a clear display how a new technology and a new medium, DVD, can affect an established medium like television. And how a great product can find a large audience, if just given the chance.
What this comeback clearly illustrates is that the consumer can have a direct affect on a big industry. And that industry can really benefit if they pay close attention to the consumer. It often seems that the entertainment industry doesn't pay attention. They make sequels to bad films, they create mediocre copy-cat TV shows, and they cancel critically-favored shows or kill long-awaited films in preproduction.
But maybe Family Guy will be the first of a series of comebacks. And it was an unlikely return. Between the mature subject matter and the sensitive climate ever since a certain Super Bowl half-time show, it was more likely that more 'extreme' or 'edgy' material would be canceled. Instead Family Guy rose from the ashes, years later. Let us hope such a trend continues and beloved shows start popping back up (or not canceled at all), for the sake of the public, and for the corporations' net profit.
Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at May 2, 2005 2:08 PM | Category: culture |
5 Comments
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Hmm, mediocre copy-cat TV shows? How about American Dad?
...speaking of extreme and edgy. I think it flopped for a reason.
Fox made a suprisingly ballsy move in bringing back FG. For all the incredibly wrong decisions they have made in programming over the years, they finally listened and got it right. FG's dvd sales/viewership show the power of the Long Tail and its ability to raise the deserving out of obscurity.
I was not just dvd sales...the FG was usually in the top ten of file swapping downloads. What if Fox developed a socially connected site for users to pay for file downloads? Instead of ignoring the medium (illegal digital downloads) why not strengthen it? Connect the user group and make that section of your audience that is invisible...visible?
Hey, mother, I come bearing a gift. I'll give you a hint. It's in my diaper and it's not a toaster.
I like Family Guy a lot but I wish they brought back FUTURAMA. That show is simply the best!