From: zegeekgirl	Date: April 27th, 2014 03:56 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

Networks tend not to respond very well to boycott responses when fans are disappointed about stuff like this; if there's some attempt to keep it positive, results can be better. And actually, it's probably Kudos in this case who would be the ones to spearhead finding a way to continue the show now that Sky have dumped it. Problem is, with the cast released from their contracts now it would be that much harder to regroup everyone.

A lot of people on Twitter were citing the rescue of Ripper Street as a recent success story. There are SO many factors that go into decisions like these though, and it's important to point out that Amazon are the ones who really stepped up to ensure that show continued, not the BBC. It would be lovely if Kudos could get an online partner interested in underwriting new episodes of The Smoke, but again there are factors to consider. (Ripper Street also had the advantage of having already been introduced to a U.S. audience via BBC America; The Smoke hasn't been picked up for U.S. distribution yet.)

(p.s. I get that "killed" is in quotation marks, but remember Jamie's characters have a bad habit of actually dying... let's at least celebrate that Kev didn't! ;) )

Edited at 2014-04-27 04:17 pm (UTC)

	From: zegeekgirl	Date: April 27th, 2014 04:11 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

I hear what you're saying but if I'm honest the LAST venue I'd want to see pick up the show is ITV. ;) Too many bad memories of scheduling nightmares and lack of information from LOUK's run! I will admit they are in a much different place now having since had big hits like Downton Abbey and Broadchurch and they seem to be committed to better dramas too, but I'd still be interested in other options. (Also though they are fine with some degree of adult situations and language, I feel like they would have to cut back on the stronger content of The Smoke quite a bit if it were picked up by ITV.)

This is the key thing we should probably address if we're talking about any theoretical rescue by another channel: The budget. I would bet heavily on the notion that The Smoke's budget - in particular the fire sequences - are why Sky balked, coupled with them possibly having unrealistic expectations about viewing figures. And the scale and intensity of the production's fires is something that was SO heavily touted before and during the show's run, it's probably something that Kudos were hoping to be able to continue if the show moved forward. But honestly? It's about the characters, dammit. The fire sequences WERE dazzling, and the staging of Kev's accident in the first episode in particular was utterly nerve-wracking and spectacular. But if it's a choice between losing the show entirely or finding a way to scale back the infernos? The show was SO SO much more than the production values. I would happily watch The Smoke with more, longer character-driven set pieces and less Blackwall Tunnel explosions. The soul of the show is those characters.

Edited at 2014-04-27 04:53 pm (UTC)

	From: zegeekgirl	Date: April 27th, 2014 04:38 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

It does seem less likely, though you never know; Hulu have recently picked up a LOT of UK shows for US viewers, even ones that didn't continue past one series.

I do encourage everyone to seek out the UK DVD release, by the way; one no longer really has to have a region-free DVD player to watch it. Most computer and laptop DVD drives can be easily, legally modified to watch pretty much anything, and there is software that can help too. :)

	From: zegeekgirl	Date: April 27th, 2014 08:08 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

That's a panel show though, isn't it? That's the problem; in the grand scheme of things, panel shows cost very little to make. Hence they are more likely to be renewed for many, many series than a drama or even an quality sitcom. :(

(And I like panel shows. Certain ones, anyway; I go out of my way to find new episodes of QI, and I look forward to the Big Fat Quiz of the Year every year. But as with most non-scripted TV, it's gotten a little out of control now...)

	From: zegeekgirl	Date: April 27th, 2014 08:54 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

Yeah, I'm not sure exactly when that page went up but the Google alert for it landed in my inbox at just before midnight East Coast time, 5am GMT. No tweets, FB posts or other social media duplication of the announcement, just that.

They've also since edited down their statement, which is a little odd. (Was no one available to approve the first edit? Oh, right, it was SUNDAY MORNING!)

It has to be re-iterated that while the show was on the air, Sky did a terrific job of putting it in front of viewers online and trying to engage the audience. Their handling of the cancellation is pretty flimsy though.

Edited at 2014-04-27 08:56 pm (UTC)

	From: asta77	Date: April 29th, 2014 03:06 am (UTC)		(Link Me)
	Re: Americanization of British TV programming

You can correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Sky rely on ad revenue? Because then they are going to be concerned about ratings since ratings determine, in large part, what they can charge for ads. From what I gathered, 'The Smoke' was doing well for Sky in that time slot compared to what aired at the same time previously. But maybe what they were making in ad revenue wasn't enough to support the cost of the show. I don't know. And I'm in no way defending Sky's decision to cancel the show, but, as much as we all hate commercials, right now, they are a necessary in evil in that, without them, many shows wouldn't be on the air.

	From: zegeekgirl	Date: April 29th, 2014 02:36 am (UTC)		(Link Me)

It's true, grievous crotch injury isn't something you see depicted all that often, let alone more than once over the course of a series. I'd still argue that with context brought into play, much MUCH worse stuff gets depicted on TV over here. (A lot of the torture Theon went through on Game of Thrones last season, for example; and Kev's injuries in The Smoke at least had a crucial role in the plot. Most of those Theon scenes were dragged out and didn't advance his storyline at all.)

This underlines a certain point though, which is that for American networks, virtually anything depicting "the downstairs area" as it were (particularly for men) is restricted to premium channels like HBO and Showtime. Which don't pick up foreign series much if ever, they're more interested in developing their own programming. Some basic cable nets have stretched a lot of boundaries, but not that far, and I can't see how you'd air The Smoke and edit out THAT shot in the first episode. It's the lynchpin of Kev's entire character arc. That leaves streaming options, which is what I was rooting for all along. Netflix aired The Fall without any cuts last year, and there's some very extreme content in that, difficult to watch but crucial to the plot and the tone of the show.

	From: zegeekgirl	Date: April 30th, 2014 03:35 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

Well, to be fair its been less than a week since the news was dropped. And on a Sunday morning no less. based on the Twitter reactions a lot of people are still finding out and many viewers still might not know.

If someone starts a petition, I am sure us related fan sites and maybe even some cast members might signal boost! But for some reasons I already outlined plus others, Ripper Street is a tough comparison. That show had two full series' run, with a fan base on both sides of the pond who had a strong network to mobilize. The Smoke hasn't been picked up anywhere else yet so its online presence is smaller. Plus, if you read the details of the Amazon deal, that Tiger Aspect (who produce Ripper Street) were in discussion with them came out a week after the cancellation news landed. I would be very surprised if that doesn't mean that they were already trying to find someone to pick up the show before they were officially cancelled.

	From: asta77	Date: May 1st, 2014 02:34 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

The big and likely insurmountable problem with any fan campaign is, unlike other shows that have been saved, the contracts of all the cast, crew and writers have expired. People are already looking to their next project and it would be extremely difficult to reunite everyone. And with pilots still being cast in the states, my guess is Jamie has already been looking for his next gig. As much as he loved working on 'The Smoke', the reality of the industry is when your contract is up you immediately start looking to see what else is available to you. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't land a regular series role this season, we see him popping up in guest starring roles soonish.

	From: zegeekgirl	Date: May 1st, 2014 09:12 pm (UTC)		(Link Me)

Follow up with Kudos on Twitter if you don't get an email response; can't hurt. If they don't reply, though, they likely don't have any viable options.

He hasn't missed out on pilot season, as Asta indicated above; it's well underway, but there are a lot of shows still casting at the moment. Plus so many shows are launching at various points throughout the year these days, opportunities might still be available for a while yet. (Marvel has *four* series launching on Netflix over the next couple of years that all remain to be cast. I would give pretty much anything for them to cast Jamie as Daredevil, though I'm not betting the farm on it or anything. Heh.)

Of course, ideally I think as fans we'd all love to see him in a lead role that offered as rich a challenge for him as The Smoke did, but we probably shouldn't dismiss guest roles as "horrid", either. It would depend entirely on the role and the show; plenty of shows could offer juicy guest arcs that could run a few episodes or even a whole season. He's definitely done some guest shots in the past that weren't all that challenging to what he's capable of as an actor (He was delightful in Body of Proof, but mostly that required him to be beautiful and charming. Which he can do in his sleep, blindfolded ;) ). But he's done some really interesting ones too.