Undeclared in danger of cancellation?
 

I got this email from the Freaks and Geeks newsletter:

"Dear Friends,

I hate to say it, but "Undeclared" may soon go the way of "Freaks and Geeks." Fox has asked us to shoot five less shows then they ordered from us this fall. That basically means instead of shooting nine episodes in addition to the thirteen we shot last year, we will be shooting four. Not a big show of confidence. This probably means that come spring they will pull us off for a mid-season replacement. Airing sporadically, a short order and then pulled in spring timeŠsure sounds like a "Freaks and Geeks" flashback to me.

If you care, now would be the time to write some letters to Fox and the media. Last time it didn¹t save "Freaks and Geeks" from the axe but it definitely kept us shooting the show a lot longer then if you didn¹t write. Thanks for all your support and if you are not into it, enjoy your day.

Best regards,
Judd Apatow"

Dang. I thought Fox would take more of a chance with this show than NBC ever would with F&G. Then again, I like F&G better than Undeclared. This show needs to be 60 minutes, IMO.

yeah, the show needs to be 60 minutes

That's a shame. This is a pretty good show, but they promoted it poorly. I never would have taken the time to watch a single episode based on those promos. Luckily word of mouth and lots of reruns of those first episodes helped me get interested. But to be fair, it's at a rough timeslot for me, and over time, I'll probably stop watching it.

das

Boy, that sucks. Undeclared is one of the few new shows that I actually find enjoyable! :(

This show is tied with 24 as my favorite new show of the season. This is one in a long list of shows that Fox made look like crap in the promos, but are actually quite good when you watch them. Why oh why do they insist on putting the punchlines to all the jokes in the commericials?

I disagree that the show needs to be 60 minutes. Hour long comedies simply don't work. The shows are perfectly timed as it is.

I hope not. The last 2 episodes were the best of the season so far.

it figures, take off one of the funniest shows this season and let a bunch of other mediocre crap live for another season. is undeclared really doing that bad in the ratings?

I'm sure it's really good and all, but I'm a college student living in a dorm, and the last thing I want to see is a show about college students living in dorms. It ain't nearly as fun as TV says it is, and I don't need the constant reminder.

Come on people! Would you really expect anything less from FOX?! This is the same network that cancelled Action, Harsh Realm, and Brisco County Jr., not to mention many, many other shows after very short runs. As a former employee of FOX I can honestly say that they are very stupid. Their programming decisions make no sense.

BTW: Not that I ever watched it, but has anyone else noticed how Pasadena has quietly slipped away to be replaced by encores of 24?

Another good show. This was the first good evening soap I have seen in years. And we kept seeing ads, "<I>Pasadena</I> will return in two weeks." Whatever ... it's been over a month.

das

Follow Up on Undeclared Cut Back
 

From Zap2it.com News Daily

"FOX Cuts Back 'Undeclared'
Fri, Dec 21, 2001 11:23 AM PDT

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - In order to make room for the midseason comedies "Greg the Bunny" and "Andy Richter Controls the Universe," FOX has cut back its order for the freshman comedy "Undeclared" to 17 episodes for the season, instead of the regular 22, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

FOX has already cut back orders for "Titus" and "Grounded for Life" from 22 episodes to 20 this season. The reason the orders were scaled back dates back to the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, coverage of which set back FOX's fall launch schedule.

The move raises questions about the future of "Undeclared," "Titus" and "Grounded." "Undeclared" creator Judd Apatow is having flashbacks to the fate of his former series, "Freaks and Geeks" for NBC. "Freaks" was given a partial pickup in that season, ending its run with only 18 episodes produced.

"I hate to say it, but 'Undeclared' may soon go the way of 'Freaks and Geeks,'" Apatow says in an e-mail sent out to fans of the series. "[The scaling back of the order] probably means that come spring, they will pull us off for a midseason replacement. Airing sporadically, a short order and then pulled in spring time."

Backed by strong critical acclaim, "Undeclared" premiered to strong ratings, winning its Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. timeslot among adults 18-49 the first three weeks on the air. While its numbers have slightly slipped, the show last week still pulled 7.5 million viewers, with a 4.0 rating/11 share among adults 18-49, which represents a 26 percent decline from its lead-in, "That '70s Show.""

Boo. Hiss.

This is really odd to me. Why wouldn't somebody who likes That 70's Show turn off Undeclared? They're both sitcoms about teens, and Undeclared is by far the funnier program. What gives?

It's only funnier for those of us who like their humor based on three-dimensional characters, and with no laugh tracks... :(

OMG! Last week's episode of the dormers vs. the fratboys was frikkin' hilarious!

Maybe I misunderstood this comment, but if you're trying to say that That 70s Show uses a laugh track you are wrong. They film in front of an audience.

I love both shows, 70's and undeclared...but I must say, that Undeclared has been pretty hit and miss, while 70's is very consistently funny.

The last episode of Undeclared was brilliant though...Brilliant!!!

Anyhow, I think 70's show is more familiar and funnier in general... I think i wouldn't appreciate Undeclared half as much if I wasn't in or been to University and lived in a dorm... very true to life... I think someone older or younger may not enjoy it's brand of humour as much... much more subtle....

MATT

not saying that older or younger people can't or don't enjoy it, i just think some of its humour is limited to those with certain reference points that some people in a general audience may not have.

I'll agree that part of what makes <I>Undeclared</I> funny is that it's fairly true to what goes on in dorm life, but I found their assessment of fraternity life funny, because it's the stereotype, not the reality.

das

Spoken like a true frat boy...

This show seems to pick up where Boy Meets World left off - I watched the Adam Sandler episode and bits of one of the first episodes, but I couldn't really get into it. I think the series could easily live on another cable network, but it's not ready for Fox (or Fox isn't ready for it - either way). It's kinda funny - I'm not trying to diss on it, don't get me wrong... but shows like this with people this young as the main cast don't last with the Nielson people who tend to be more interested in shows about adults. Ratings mean nothing and yet they mean everything... crazy times.

I should add that That 70's Show managed to catch a niche somehow that this show didn't. Probably because it reaches those who are that age now as well as people who remember being that age at around that time. :)

If you've read any of my posts, you'd see "true frat boy" is the worst possible description of me. :D But while I hated many of the fraternities at my alma mater for various reasons, few if any fit that stereotype. Maybe it's different at other universities, but in my experience, as someone who was VERY involved with all aspects of college life, working and living for 5 years in freshman dorms, I've seen absolutely everything. Anyway, I think they've nailed freshman dorm life perfectly. And what made the fraternity thing so funny (to me) is that they hit the stereotype so dead on. It's so far from the truth, but it's what people really think goes on, and to me, I thought it was great.

das

God, this is a hilarious show, the only "new" show I even am watching this season... it definitely deserves more of a chance than FOX is giving it, dammit! While I used to enjoy That '70s Sow I have to say this program has completely kicked its butt in terms of quality this year, I really hope it stays on the air. Petition anywhere?