THE BEGINNING OF THE RISE... THEN FALL OF UGLY BETTY- PART 2
By Waiching
Following on from the achievement of season 1, which was in many respects astounding, the next 2 seasons of Ugly Betty were supposedly the platform, in which they would build on the many positives of the first series and hence, further propel the show onwards and upwards.
Season 2 was the most celeb-filled season ever- almost everyone or anyone, who was famous at the time was on there- Bow Wow, Victoria Beckham, Omarion, Gabrielle Union, Gene Simmons, Naomi Campbell. Unfortunately, it was more of a case of figuring out which famous person would appear on Ugly Betty, as opposed to the quality of the writing. Or be it lack of. Majority of the guest stars I could care less about.
It also had the ongoing Betty/Gio/Henry storyline - which again divided fans of the show; you had your Gettys (Gio and Betty), Benrys (Betty and Henry), as well as those who didn't care much for either and were neutral about the whole thing.
Season 2 was trashed by the critics but loved by many Betty fans; Seasons 3 & 4 were PRAISED by the critics, yet the third was trashed by fans and the fourth suffered declining figures.
In fact, the deteriorating figures for the show began during the middle/ second quarter of Season 2 all the way throughout the final 2 seasons, although when season 3 peaked at around 8, 9 million it was still relatively good, though this was far from 15 million + Season 1 attracted in 2006-07. Creatively, one could say Seasons 2 and 3 were the worst periods for the show compared to the first seasons.
The 2007-08 Writers Strike in U.S meant that the second seasons had to be halted and then resumed in may.
I for one was one of the very few fans of season 3 and I enjoyed it a lot- it wasn't the best season ever, but I personally felt back then the writers upped their game after what had happened in season 2 and in spite of the hiccups and the severe backlash by Betty fans- most of which later gave up on the show completely, Season 3 wasn't the massive failure that was previously echoed.
Season 3 had its flaws- one of them being the criticism levelled at the writers and Silvio Horta for turning Betty into an regressive, at times childish and naive character - in contrast to the enthusiasm and confidence of Season 1 Betty. It had some not so good episodes BUT when I look back on it, from the other characters point of view, alas Marc, Amanda, Daniel, Wilhelmina, it has been really successful in unravelling and delving into the personalities and the way they act and come across to us as people who were not so one-dimensional. It helped given they all had separate story lines- and yet they still managed to be on screen together for numerous periods.
Not like Season 2, when the characters were being separated from each other and the lack of interaction showed. Season 2 was about Marc, Amanda, Daniel, Willie etc. looking out for themselves and only themselves- which I rather disliked.
I find it interesting yet sad at the same time whenever I watch the 'Becoming Ugly' Featurette on the season 1 DVD set. Interesting in the sense of what the creators, producers had planned for the show and talking about how wonderful and meaningful the first series was and how it set standards. But sad, in the sense that I do feel as if Silvio Horta etc. during subsequent seasons of the show, moved away from its roots and didn't go about it in a way that did justice to this wonderful tale of a person, who changes inside and outside and how her influence changes other people.
Whatever happened to executive producers Teri Weinberg, Ben Silverman who appeared in the Becoming Ugly documentary since season 1? Well, for one Ben eventually left ABC for NBC and things didn't work out for him so he left and created his own company. (He is still listed as one of the executive producers to this day) And Teri co-executive produced 45 episodes of Ugly Betty (from all of season 1 & 2 and 15 from season 3 up to A Mother Of A Problem). She later went on to do The Office, The Tudors and Kath & Kim to name.
But of course ABC didn't give the show enough time for it to blossom and for the show and its writers, actors to showcase what they still had up their sleeves. They moved Ugly Betty from Thursday nights when it was doing so well to Friday nights, and then onto Wednesday nights- the scheduling by ABC was chaotic, messy and all over the place. Some fans even insisted that they couldn't find the show when it was in Season 4 because ABC kept changing the timeslots and they knew nothing about it.
Ultimately, it put paid to the awful figures and thus, the show got cancelled.
With all due respects, Season 4 has had so much praise and acclaim from critics and fans. As most fans have said, the show would not have been cancelled if it had stayed on Thursday nights in U.S at 8.00pm. The show would've then been eligible for syndication, the figures would've still be in the 8 million mark at most, Ugly Betty would've been renewed for a 5th Season, and ABC would've been happy. Us fans would've been happy and the cast would've been happy too.
I still think season 4 has improved so much and I prefer the second half over the first 10 episodes- to be truthful, the early half of this season didn't do much for me, particularly as I was and am a fan of Marc and Amanda and from a comical aspect, Season 4 was rather disappointing in terms of those 2 characters. I and everyone else wanted to see more of them and from them together, but they had their own separate story-lines- which was good, but we missed them a lot this season.
Do I think four seasons is enough for Ugly Betty? For me, no- I'd be happy if it ended on season 5- which is the minimum I would've accepted, but Ugly Betty should've lasted as far as 8 seasons. I don't think one can really judge the potential of a TV show when it has had such a short run that Ugly Betty has had because I don't think its potential has been fulfilled at that point. I don't believe that four seasons is reflective for a show with an enormous international fan base that it has. It deserved more and the fans deserved more too.
The show lost its way sometimes after the first season and yet withstanding all the hate, criticism from other people, it still carried on and on until ABC finally called it quits with Ugly Betty.
The U.S may have fallen out of love with the show over the course of 4 years (sadly), but globally, Ugly Betty still has a huge following and its because of that huge overseas fan-base that it has had such a broad appeal and effect on people.
I'm going to miss this show a lot- it has been one of the very few shows I've become a fan of in recent years and through it, I've formed friendships on-line with other fans of Ugly Betty. There are also a small list of celebrities who I'd love to have seen appear, but of whom haven't been on. which would've been great- had it happened.
Fans will take a lot from this show but for me, it's that you shouldn't judge people on the outside, as it's what's inside that matters the most. I just wished though that there was more to this show that we have yet to see because believe me, there would've been plenty more where it came from. Plus, it's such a shame ABC never appreciated it as they did during the beginning; as the show continued, they lost interest in Betty, thus focusing on the likes of Greys Anatomy, Lost etc, whilst treating Ugly Betty as its forgotten step-child. And thus, cared more about the show obtaining 10 million viewers and garnering revenue every week, then they ever did for the show.
But for the 4 -year run it had, Ugly Betty- with one of the best castings in TV ever- will undoubtedly be remembered as one of those shows which partly defined the 00s, in the same way that the likes of Friends did in the 90s and Fame in the 80s.
Ugly Betty was far from an Ugly show- it was, ground-breaking, funny, sad and dramatic. It was truly amazing.
America Ferrera, Michael Urie, Becki Newton and co, you will all be missed, but thank you for the wonderful memories. :-)
0 comments:
Post a Comment