The Greys

After the first couple of episodes of FlashForward I came to the conclusion that most of the characters were complete idiots. Now that I’ve watched the whole series, I can honestly say that my opinion of the characters hasn’t changed much: they’re still idiots.

That said, by the time it finished, I was actually quite enjoying it. Certainly enough that I’m annoyed that yet another ambitious plotline has been cut short before it really had a chance to get going. After its mid-season hiatus the show returned stronger and more compelling than before. The intertwining paths of the characters became more convoluted (in a good way), and they’d finally realised that their futures weren’t set in stone. That still didn’t stop any of them being idiots, especially in the last episode as they all inexorably followed paths that almost deliberately led to their flash forwards coming true – even when that wasn’t a good thing.

But now its over. No second series. No answers to the many outstanding questions. No incentive for me to ever watch another drama with a long-term storyline ever again. That’s the saddest thing about FlashForward’s cancellation: not the fact that it’s joined the long ranks of prematurely cancelled shows, but that it asked for an investment from the viewer that will never be repaid. Please stop doing that. Whomever it is who commissions these things, please treat the viewer with a bit more respect.

I’ve suggested in the past that the commission for a programme should include a contingency fund to allow for an extra episode or two to be produced post-cancellation in order to tie up the loose ends. I fear that unless something like that happens viewers will just become less and less inclined to start watching programmes with an ongoing dramatic narrative. That, in turn, just makes it even less likely that such programmes will be commissioned in the first place, and that really would be a shame, not just for the viewers, but for our culture as a whole.