For NBC, "The Firm" was something of a disaster. It garnered the network a lot of bad press, and seemed to reinforce the popular conception that NBC was producing low-quality programming. For example, the bloggers of Warming Glow recently brought up the series in their article "12 Reasons NBC is a Last-Place Network," where "The Firm" was ranked as reason number 10 .
But perhaps there is a chance for NBC to learn from its mistakes. Here are four simple lessons the execs at NBC should take away from their experience with "The Firm."
Don't Use Dated Source Material
"The Firm" may have been a star vehicle for Tom Cruise, and a best-seller for Grisham...but that was well over a decade ago. As the Warming Glow article linked above puts it, "it's a perfect example of why NBC has occasionally fallen behind Univision, ratings-wise: it's a boring-looking drama about lawyers with no stars, based on a movie that came out 19 years ago, based on a book that came out 21 years ago."
Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like NBC has learned that lesson: they are currently developing a pilot called "Mockingbird Lane," a remake of the classic show "The Munsters," while another pilot called "Do No Harm" seems to be grounded in the Jekyll and Hyde mythos. In an age where TV fans can more readily watch old TV shows, remakes seem like an increasingly poor idea. Today's TV fan wants unique, distinctive programming.
Some Projects Need Big Names
Josh Lucas seems like a nice guy, but whether by fault of his acting or poor directing, he seemed to lack both the charm and gravitas to take on a starring role of the project. Some projects just need a big name star to draw in viewers, particularly a mid-season replacement at a 10 pm slot. Good news: NBC may have learned their lesson here. One notable pilot in development now is "Downwardly Mobile," starring Roseanne Barr and John Goodman.
Hook Your Viewers From Episode One
You don't need to have a crazy mystery at the heart of a show to build viewership, but there needs to be something to make viewers want to tune in again. And sadly, nothing about the show's bloated premiere event hooked viewers. Make their pulses race, or tug at their heart strings: anything to get viewers to feel a connection with your program.
Give Characters Depth and Logic
One Huffington Post reviewer hit the nail on the head: the main reason the show failed was down to its characters. "If Mitch and his relationship with his wife and associates were compelling, we might forgive the plot holes and logic lapses...There are a lot of dumb or half-baked ideas in the pilot...despite having angered a Mob family years ago, Mitch and his family left the witness protection program and went back to using their real names (idiot move of the century, genius)."
Every TV show that succeeds does so because audiences can relate to the characters. If NBC's shows going forward have likeable, realistic characters, then maybe the network has a bright future after all.
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