j123vt_99

The Best TV Shows That Never Were
ABC Aug 16 08:00pm Add to My Calendar
Special/Other, 60 Mins.
Actors Dennis Franz, Tom Selleck, Linda Hamilton, Keanu Reeves and Stockard Channing; ``Ethel Is an Elephant''; ``Fuzzbucket''; ``The Ultimate Importer.''


Director(s): Steve Gerbson.
Producer(s): Steve Gerbson, Lee Goldberg, William Rabkin.
Writer(s): Lee Goldberg, William Rabkin.

Original Airdate: August 16, 2004.


Anyone know anything about this?

Charlie Goose

I'm assuming it's just a bunch of really bad pilots that never made it to regular series. TRIO does this often.

dstrauss

Hey, one of these days, maybe I'll actually get a chance to see George R.R. Martin's "Doorways," which was "Sliders" done by people who knew something about alternate history and had an IQ over 40.

Wallet Boy

Just saw it, pretty funny actually. The one where Peter Boyle gets reincarnated as a talking bulldog had to take the cake. I was laughing pretty hard at that one.

cineman

I'm glad I stumbled across this show, it was pretty damn funny.

Wow Marvel Comics had some real crap made of their properties before Bryan Singer and Sam Raimi came along.

I had no idea there was a Daredevil pilot (starring Rex Smith!!!!). They also featured a beer-swilling The Mighty Thor and Generation X with a guy I assume is supposed to be Banshee, whose constant "I'm yelling" face and hideous broken irish accent give him away.

And as I'm sure you know, this is the stuff that didn't make it!!!
(Captain America and Dr. Strange, anyone???)

Quatermass

What about that "Wishman" which was a shameless ripoff on ET with a really disturbing looking critter. I hope they do another one of these shows.

Which Button?

I thought two of the shows Bermuda Triangle and The People looked pretty good. I'd like to see the whole thing.

The show with the kid dieing and becoming his toy was so hillarious who thought of that show?

shawagg

Maybe now that the WB isn't using test audiances we'll get to pass judgement on a pilot on 30min not 15 sec.

I could do without the narrator. Maybe the shows were stupid and maybe they weren't.

Just think, what if the narrator said, "And this is a show about nothing and that's were it went-- no where!" "And check out these Dinosaurs, look at that stupid thing!"

Didn't fox turn that GenX show into a 2hr movie.

That Ryan Stilles show sounded cool, I actually laughed.

And that show with the two cops who talk alot and do little action stuff. Isn't that just like the basis for Moonighting and The Job (FU ABC for canceling THe Job!!).

SPiRAL

I think it was the actor who plays Seinfeld's dad, but I could be wrong.

shawagg

Peter Boyle is the Dad on Everyone loves Raymond.

Matthew Chmiel

I wish I would've known about this earlier, I would've tuned in.

shawagg

What was up with the narrator? He had a total hard on for K.Reeves!

butler

The Daredevil and Thor "pilots" were part of the Incredible Hulk TV movies that aired around 1989-1990.


Daredevil was pure crap with LOTR's John Rhys-Davies as the Kingpin.

Thor wasn't half bad...not great but fun in its own right.

Charlie Goose

He wasn't the reincarnated bulldog, but he was dressed as a dog in one unbelievable pilot.

The one that really took the cake is the kid who comes back as a toy dinosaur robot, which grows to giant size to fight crime. How does shit like that even get made?

A few of them didn't look so bad. The Robert Goulet sitcom was pretty funny, I probably would've watched it.

redskull47

Believe it or not, I actually saw a couple of these shows. I remember watching "The People"--the one with the "Amish" space aliens. I was under the impression it was just a tv movie, not a pilot. I don't remember a whole lot about it, but I do remember the scene with the flying kids. Odd that it's stuck with me all these years.

And God help me, I also saw the pilot with the people in dog suits. Hard to believe that thing came from Norman Lear!!! I'd forgotten that it starred Barney Martin (Seinfeld's tv dad!). I remember there were lots of innuendos about how the 2 main characters weren't married but had had dozens of kids together (hardee har har). The best part about it was the theme song--one line of the lyrics went "Remember DOG spelled backward, is G-O-D God!" I was horrified, yet I couldn't look away.

Shannon Nutt

Wouldn't everyone like to see a "Fuzzbucket Vs. Wishman" movie now?!

Seriously though, I think I would have enjoyed "The Chameleon" series - and "Assignment: Earth" didn't need to be lumped in with the rest of this dreck either - that could have made an interesting series in the 60s/early 70s.

Mopower

Just as long as they both get killed in it.

Which Button?

The show Poochinski reminded me of a show that was done here in Canada called Dog House about a cop who dies and comes back to life as a dog named Digby and moves in with his sister's family and watches over them.

potvin48

"I love you too Fuzzbucket".

Oh man, what crap!

iggystar

I found out about this show at 8:57!!!!!

mthiel

I saw Condor years ago in the 1980s on ABC. Don't remember if it was good or bad.
I saw parts of I-Man years ago in the late 1980s or early 90s on ABC. Don't remember if it was good or bad.
I saw Generation X in 1995/6 on Fox. Bad.
The should have featured the Justice League pilot.

I will bet you a million dollars if Buffy or Now and Again never got past their respective pilots, those shows would have been featured.

I thought the Peter Boyle series looked bad, but the toy robot show had me think, "WTF?"

Also, did anyone else notice there were other semi-famous/character actors in some of those pilots, like Richard Lynch and Dan O'Herlihy?

Josh-da-man

"Faith" with Eliza Dushku.

guywall

Watching this made me realize, dvdtalkers should write a pilot. How about a cop who dies and comes back as a dog fights crime with his nephew who was killed and comes back as a toy dinosaur? That would be great.

Das, you could come up with several pilots since you know everything that is on TV these days anyway!

Tommy Ceez

Knowing everthing that is currently on TV should DISQUALIFY you from writing a pilot.

auntiewinnie

I saw it too, and thought that while it was hardly the greatest program in the history of tv, it could have worked as a series. In any event, it was much better than David Hasselhoff as Nick Fury.