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Great news! There's more Chuck than we thought
NBC originally ordered 13 episodes for the third season of its sci-fi spy comedy Chuck, then added six more when it moved the season premiere to January from March 2010, and now star Zachary Levi reveals that the new eps will tell a completely new storyline.
"What worked out in our favor was that we didn't think we were going to do a back six," Levi said in a group interview on Saturday in Beverly Hills, Calif., where he was promoting Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel.
"We were only going to do 13, so the writers wrote an arc for 1-13," Levi added. "They were basically done writing them, and then the network said, 'Hey, we'd like to do six more,' and they're like, 'Well, great. We can't rework the first arc, so we'll just make these six stand alone.' They'll be based on the 13 that we do in the first part of the season, but it will be its own little mini-arc."
The six-episode mini-arc is a relief to Levi. He was worried that if they had to spread the 13-episode story over 19 episodes, the extra six eps would feel like filler.
"To be perfectly honest, I like 13 episodes," Levi said. "I like how cable does it. Thirteen episodes allows you to really make it lean and mean. You focus on those 13 episodes, and you make them all great, as opposed to the traditional 22-episode network season, which, if we're all being honest, there tends to be a couple episodes that are like the packing peanuts. They're the filler. 'We didn't really know what we were going to do this week, so everybody just vamp for a little while, and then we'll come back for an episode that really means something.'"
And it means they'll be on the air sooner, too, which isn't so bad. "Oh, I'm happy, yeah," Levi said. "All that stuff, anything that's outside of your hands, you just go, 'OK, whatever.' If it was still going to be still in March, then I'd be happy then, too. I'm just happy to be alive and happy to have a job."
Chuck returns Jan. 10 on NBC with a two-hour season premiere, starting at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
By Kryche at 1:13 PM ON 12/07/09
Haven't we known about the "back 6" for awhile now?
Anyway, I agree with him 100% about 13 episode seasons/story arcs. It works great for cable/BBC, I'm all for the networks following their lead. Especially now that USA network is taking over NBC's 10 PM timeslot for most of the week.
By Kermonk at 1:14 PM ON 12/07/09
Hey! Do pay attention a bit will you - that is OLD news (as in weeks) i thought we were up to 25 episodes now!
Humpf.
Oh well. As long as he gets to screw Sarah silly its all fine *g*
By Kermonk at 1:20 PM ON 12/07/09
Ok, having read missive, I gotta say I don't agree with Levi, its an excuse.
If you don't have talent to write for 22 you don't have for 13.
Now it can be a matter of time, but there is nothing magical about 13.
By islesfan at 1:22 PM ON 12/07/09
Wow, great news! Now, if I could just remember what channel NBC is on again...
By nate91111 at 1:23 PM ON 12/07/09
How is this good news???? Cancel asap
By Dave at 1:23 PM ON 12/07/09
That seems a little contradictory to me. There is nothing to keep a show from doing 2 11-episode arcs in a 22 episode season. Remember when Heroes had "volumes" that weren't constrained by season length? As for the "filler," that can result in fun little one-off episodes such as musicals.
As for the other posters, the news isn't the number of episodes but how they're handling the new back 6.
By Fudgins at 2:20 PM ON 12/07/09
Amen, Dave. There is no reason that 22 episodes means there needs to be "weak" episodes.
I would also say that with a show like Chuck it's less imporant for an Arc to last an entire 22 episodes. Not every episode needs to advance the overall "story". This is a show that lends itself easily to the "Crime-of-the-week" Sometimes an episode can just be an episode without advancing a convoluted plot line.
By martin at 2:41 PM ON 12/07/09
Chuck will be cancelled.My friends and I won't watch it anymore.It is a soap opera.There are new love interests in every season.
By tati at 3:14 PM ON 12/07/09
LOVE this show and am glad it's getting a full run this season :)
By Pityyou at 3:34 PM ON 12/07/09
lol 13 episode seasons are the future.
The only ones not doing it these days are the big 4 networks (and CW), and even NBC is starting to toy with the idea. And guess who is becoming increasingly irrelevant in the TV landscape? Yep, the same ones sticking to 22 episode seasons.
Just like shows use to be 30+ episodes and were cut to 26 and then 22 - 24, they are now going down to 13 - 19 and eventually the standard season length for just about every show will be 13 episodes.
It's certainly no coincidence that cable is beating the snot out of the networks in quality these days in large part due to shorter run seasons allowing for tighter storytelling and giving the creative people a chance to recharge their batteries without burning them out every season.
It's also laughable to think that a writer who prefers 13 episodes doesn't have the talent for 22, if that were the case, then every writer in hollywood would be talentless since there has never been a writer in the history of television that could consistently, week after week deliver top notch episodes for 22+ weeks a year. And if there has been, the networks have never highered them or put one of their shows on the air.
By Pityyou at 3:38 PM ON 12/07/09
Which is why they have writing teams, that ruin the single vision of the show and offer up episodes written by the "b" writers.
I'd rather have 13 episodes written by the show creator than 22 episodes written by multiple people of varying quality.
By wordwalker at 4:08 PM ON 12/07/09
Almost all of your best writers started off as "b" writers. Working in teams allows them to stretch and grow while being exposed to different ideas.
Having said that, there are some teams that have grown clear out of left field, into the bleachers, ending up in some out of the way parking lot. Only a few pf those have ever found there way back to the playing field.
As I have stated in this forum before, 10 - 12 weeks on the air followed by another show for the same period before returning allows the actors and writers to see what works and come back with something that will keep the viewers interested.
By TinCan at 4:09 PM ON 12/07/09
If 13 are better than 22 why don't we root for 6 episodes per season. Let's be real the 22 versus 13 is an economic issue it has nothing to do with quality.
By beakernx01 at 4:45 PM ON 12/07/09
The 13 episode seasons used on cable shows seem to be just about right. This is especially useful in procedural shows, like Psych, Burn Notice, where each episode is stand alone, with perhaps a "b" plot running through the season. The various crime procedurals just seem to be running out of ways to murder people. I also remember the days of "clip" shows, mostly on syndicated genre shows, where you'd have one or two episodes a season that was just a replay of clips from past episodes wrapped in some lame plot requiring the flashbacks. Better to have 13 solid episodes, preferably with as few breaks as possible in the schedule, than to spread 22 episodes across 8 or 9 months.
By Kryche at 4:59 PM ON 12/07/09
@As I have stated in this forum before, 10 - 12 weeks on the air followed by another show for the same period before returning allows the actors and writers to see what works and come back with something that will keep the viewers interested.
Also known as a hiatus between seasons.
@If 13 are better than 22 why don't we root for 6 episodes per season. Let's be real the 22 versus 13 is an economic issue it has nothing to do with quality.
Because 13 episodes is long enough to tell a great serialized story without padding it with filler, and giving enough episodes to be satisfying? Besides, it's not like some shows don't do 6 episodes. BBCAmerica's Being Human being a great example of a great show with 6 episodes it's first season.
And I agree 100% beakernx01.
By Tarc at 7:06 PM ON 12/07/09
Let's get real - most 22 epsiode (the new version of the old standard 26 episode) seasons do have filler, and plenty of it. Six and thirteen episode TV seasons are generally viewed as far more successful in the TV industry all over the world (aside from - partly - the US). Honestly, it's great for the writers because they must stay tightly focused on the story. After all, there is a reason that shows like Lost and Supernatural have *asked* for finite series lengths. You can tell the story and just the story, not get distracted, and save them time and resources, and the audience time and interest. Filler shows are most often very weak and forgettable. Why waste their money and my time and enthusiasm?
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Tarc:
Let's get real - most 22 epsiode (the new version of the old standard 26 episode) seasons do have filler, and plent...More »