What the?!?

They cancelled Farscape?!? Oh, those frelling bastards. This makes me very, very, very unhappy. Update: Ok, it will probably amount to naught, but a campaign has begun, and I did send off a few strongly-worded letters this morning to Sci-Fi (if a show as bad as The Pretender can be brought back this way, it seems Farscape at least deserves the opportunity.) In case any one of the handful of readers here also cares to get involved, I’m reposting the letter writing guide I put up at AICN:

1) Be Polite. Which doesn’t mean don’t be angry, disappointed, emphatic, pleading, and/or strong in your choice of words. It means no swearing, no personal threats or threats to the company (OTHER than to say you’ll no longer be watching them.) Remember what [Farscape creator David] Kemper said about [Sci-Fi Channel President] Bonnie Hunter – if he’s not angry at her, you shouldn’t be.
2) Be “Normal.” Sci-Fi expects the fanboy/fangirl conventioners to be pissed and will write them off as acceptable losses. So it may help to disguise oneself (if necessary) as an average (upscale) consumer, deeply disappointed by the loss of the show. The type of person who wouldn’t normally watch science-fiction but was enthralled by Farscape.
3) Mention Critical Acclaim. Refer to both the Saturn awards and that oft-repeated TV Guide quote, “the best science-fiction series on TV” – Sci-Fi used it in almost all of their Farscape promos, so there’s no harm in hoisting them by their own petard. Plus, it’s true. (“TV’s best space series” [USA Today] and “The Year’s Best in TV” [Newsday] are also worth mentioning.)
4) It’s Not Just the Cancellation, It’s the Cliffhanger. It is a double disservice to fans and the show in that, in its current state, it will never be resolved. (Think Dale Cooper in the Black Lodge.)
5) Farscape gave Sci-Fi Legitimacy and Ratings. Before that first wave of Friday prime shows, Sci-Fi was Dark Shadows 24-7. Farscape was an early hit for the network and the first show to ever give the fledgling network respectability. As such, it deserves a more honorable sendout.
6) Crumbs Do Matter. If you’re participating in the “Crackers DO Matter” campaign and sending some form of crackers to Sci-Fi (I didn’t), make sure (a) they are sealed in a bag of some sort and (b) very well marked. This is most assuredly not the week to be sending unmarked powdery substances to Rockefeller Center.
7) This Decision Will Impact Sci-Fi’s Ratings. Admit to enjoying a few of the other shows on the network (or future shows – I mentioned anticipation of the forthcoming Children of Dune film.) Say that you will boycott these programs AND the network as a result of this decision.
8) You Will Also Boycott Farscape Reruns. I think [other posters are] probably right about the Sci-Fi plan…it’s to make all future money on re-runs of the first 88 episodes. Say that you will not watch them on Sci-Fi in protest.
9) Keep It Succinct, And Spell-Check. As I said before, the less fanboy and more professional the letter seems, the more Sci-Fi will have to wonder about the type of demographic who wrote it.
10) If Sci-Fi doesn’t save Farscape, they have no business calling themselves the “Sci-Fi” channel. Nuff said.

Hope that helps. Now lets go get the frellers.

Second Update: It can’t hurt to hit ’em in the pocketbook and contact Sci-Fi’s corporate sponsors as well (scroll to the bottom for contact info.) If nothing else, I get to hone my strongly-worded-letter-writing for the next few weeks.

5 thoughts on “What the?!?”

  1. Please keep Farscape on the air. If you’re going to cancel a show, please don’t cancel the one that so many people love and that has helped your network. Some people like me can’t always watch when it’s on so we tape it and that’s probably why it’s not showing the ratings you think it should, but they’re still great ratings for a channel that doesn’t get broadcast everywhere and please believe me, people who can watch do watch and people who can’t, beg people that can to help them so they can. Sorry if I sound redundant but sometimes persistence pays off. I wasn’t even a fan of the Sci-Fi genre until I saw this show. I was hooked from then on and it even got me to watch other Sci-Fi shows like Stargate, Night Visions, and the Outer Limits. Sadly, though, I won’t be able to watch these anymore because I’ll feel the emotional void of not having the best of all of them and that is Farscape. Please reconsider your decision. Thank you.

  3. I am willing to forget about the 1st 88 Farscape episodes. I saw them, I know the story line. I love the cast and the quality of the writers and crew for Farscape.

    If you guys want to put out a DVD of the month to continue the story, I will put out the $22+ dollars each month to buy it. Let’s start a whole new way to get quality shows. Make a movie. I’ll go to the theatre and take along at least 20 other fans of the show with me. We’ll all buy the large popcorns and soft drinks. Let’s leave the network big dogs in our dust!

    I’m tired of getting ignored and having to beg for a show back every time they screw us over. Are we not worthy of quality programming?

  4. Please keep Farscape alive. There is no reason to take Farscape off the air, It has good ratings, women love it and you just can’t stop production on a popular show in mid air. Is SCI FI planning to run Pumkinhead for the millionth time or other horror shows in its place? This is the SCIFI channel! Lets keep science fiction where it belings and keep Farscape instead of letting it go for more trivial series. –Matt Sweet

  5. Cancel Farscape?! D’oh! How could my beloved Sci-fi Channel do such a thing?! It’s obviously about what all coporations care about. Not their consumers, nor the quality of their product. It’s all about the money. The Almighty Dollar.
    Although I do understand that the Sci-fi Channel is a business and businesses must make money to survive, Farscape is without a doubt their best show and one of the best on tv. I was so jazzed when, after my cable being out for four months, I found that Stargate SG-1 was now on Sci-Fi and airing just before Farscape. My two favorite shows on the same channel, one right after the other? It was sweet undeed.
    But that sweetness was short-lived. No more Farscape… one of the few shows that I actually watch on television (or record while I attend school full-time every weeknight while working full-time 6 or more days a week)… as much as I would love to be home every Friday at 10pm, I usually don’t get home from classes until well after 11pm every night. Even though I get up for work every day at 5:30 am (yes, I work all weekend, but that’s the software retail business), I stay up late to watch my recorded Stargate SG-1 and Farscape. I often watch it once or twice more before recording over it for the next edition of my once cherished “Sci-Fi Friday”.
    Am I a bit obsessed? Certainly so. A fanatic? Sure. I’m a ‘Scaper through and through. I’ve probably lost more sleep in the last month surfing the ‘Net and learning and doing what I can to save Farscape than anything else.
    Yes, it can be argued that it’s just a show and indeed that’s what it is. But it’s the number one rated sci-fi show ever (it dropped from a 1.9 to a 1.2 rating. Big deal! Most shows are lucky to fare above a 0.7), brought the USA Network’s Sci-Fi Channel legitimacy, and united a vast international audience in their love for this simple little “show”. It’s an escape from reality because those of us who keep these networks in operation work hard for our money and deserve this escape into adventures that none of us will ever see. Face it. Reality is great (and I do indeed live in the real world, not in a fictional wonderland), but most of reality is unpleasant. We all deserve our escape… er… Farscape.
    In closing, I salute the cast, crew, writers, directors, producers, and even the executives who brought this show its “…weird, amazing… psychotic life…in Technicolor…” to quote Ben Browder. I wish to thank them all for their part in keeping myself and the rest of the fans enthralled and thoroughly entertained each and every week. Finally, I extend the same to my fellow viewers who are fighting to save Farscape. I’ll send whatever money I can afford to legitimate funds to save the show. With an Associates Degree in Computer Graphics, I can contribute artwork, designs, and work on web pages if I can find the time. Although my current website is down (www.dragonstudiosonline.com) due to a massive Flash redesign, stop by and drop me an e-mail. The only page up is a coming soon page with an e-mail link.
    With any luck, UPN might pick Farscape up. Maybe put it on the same night as Buffy or Enterprise… that would be sweet, too…
    Keep the faith. Keep our escape alive. Save farscape.

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