Revenge BTS: Let's Pull Back the Curtain

BlueMoon wrote:
 Plus, this season, more and more of the characters will be having intimate relationships. It's actually becoming kind of incestuous. 

My theory on this is due to the widely successful season 2 of ABC show Scandal. I watched season 1 (which was 7 shows IIRC) and absolutely loved it! I started watching season 2 but some of the storylines were hard for me to get through. Several episodes issued a viewer discretion warning before airing. They ramped up the sex and some of it was manipulation. Plus creator Shonda Rimes wrote the show as having 2 mini seasons within one. There was a storyline that lasted the first half of the season wrapping up w/an ending that segued into a different storyline for the 2nd half of the season. The ratings went up consistently.

Now word comes that Revenge is going sexy (using sex for revenge, manipulation) and new showrunner stated in an interview that season 3 has been structured as 2 seasons w/a mini-season in between. Episodes 1 - 10 will lead up to Emily's wedding. Episode 11 will reveal the shooter (the winter finale). We take a small break. Come back in January to air 3 explosive episode (his words not mine), the mini-season which will set up the new storyline for the last 8 episodes to air when it returns in March. In contrast to season 2 where one storyline played throughout the entire season. The initiative was spoken of up until the finale when it was finally revealed they didn't actually exist!   Jack and co. had a different SL w/the Ryan brothers that only lasted during the first half of the season and wrapped up quite nicely while bringing them into the bigger story. But let's be honest, I would say the majority of Jack's fans aren't interested in Jack outside of Emily, so even though the SL had a good structure it wasn't the draw.

 

BlueMoon wrote:
Fans are fickle, and if the writers were to change the storyline every time a viewer made a comment about it, the story wouldn't go anywhere. It is good, though, that the writers have a way to monitor the show's ratings. Social media has changed everything to "immediate."

Excellent point! Because if it was up to the fans, Emily & Nolan would be lovers, Emily & Victoria would team up to take down Conrad, Nolan would be Patrick, Aiden would be dead, Jack would be dead, Daniel would be dead, etc.......You get the point.


I started this thread so we wouldn't clutter the spoiler thread since these comments don't actually relate to spoilers.

Okay.  But I just posted a response to blue on the other thread.  LOL.

No problem. Bottomline, the show cannot let the fans hold them hostage for every little grievance. They have ways of knowing what's affecting ratings and what's not, mainly focus groups (a small subset of the target viewing audience).

One thing I like about Shonda Rhimes (who at one time had 3 shows appearing on ABC), is she doesn't let the fans dictate the storyline. She is full steam ahead with her vision and the fans can come along for the ride or not. But she seems to have a good understanding of what her fans want even if they don't know they want it. She does not cowtow to their every little complaint (which are usually threats to stop watching if so and so is killed off/leave or a certain couple doesn't get together). Most of the times those threats are idle.

I understand what you're saying, miecies.  BUT if core fans are abandoning the show in droves, you gotta know something's wrong with what you're doing.  Didn't the ratings nosedive in S2?

I agree that they can't cave to every little individual whim but I'm glad Shonda is getting the show back on track.  Tells me they had a flood of discontented fans - not just a few who were upset with the AI debacle.

Personally?  If they'd continued with AI, I would've bailed.

singlyme wrote:I understand what you're saying, miecies.  BUT if core fans are abandoning the show in droves, you gotta know something's wrong with what you're doing.  Didn't the ratings nosedive in S2?

I agree that they can't cave to every little individual whim but I'm glad Shonda is getting the show back on track.  Tells me they had a flood of discontented fans - not just a few who were upset with the AI debacle.

Personally?  If they'd continued with AI, I would've bailed.

Yes they did but not due to Ashley possibly not sleeping with Conrad. They left because of AI and felt that everything was more complicated. The studios took note of THAT and made a change,  a big one actually, removing the creator Mike Kelley. Mike Kelley refused to take the show off the initiative path even though it was hurting ratings. Instead of yielding to a minor audience cry related to a small subplot (Ashley cheating on Daniel w/Conrad) he should have been focused on getting rid of AI. He listened to the wrong audience complaint and it cost him his job. Plus he fought for a change that was never going to happen for a sophmore show on a major network like ABC. But that's another post. LOL!


Sunil Nayar is the new showrunner for Revenge and he seems poised to bring the show back to basics like Mike Kelley promised but never made good on. And Sunil is doing it w/o sacrificing viable characters. He's removed AI but left an element that some of the audience was griping about, mainly Aiden. Whether people liked it or not Aiden played too big a part in Emily's life for his story to end w/his death at Daniel's hand. The way Sunil has positioned Aiden for the new season is a brilliant move and plays directly into the main story, Emily taking down the Graysons. He removed the biggest threat to ratings but didn't acquiesce to a minor "perceived threat". For as many people that hated Aiden there were just as many that loved him but the distaste for the AI plot was almost unanimous among audience and critics.


Shonda Rimes is actually the showrunner for Grey's Anatomy, Scandal and the now defunct Private Practice (ran for 6 seasons). I just used her as an example of a showrunner who knows how to properly gadge audience discontent to the point of not sacrificing her story/characters but yet keeping the studio happy (high ratings)

Okay.  So it's Sunil who's running Revenge - and he's a HE.  Gotcha.  *I'm SO confused*  LOL

LOL! Just prepare to watch what I believe is a comeback for Revenge.