You may not know much about Legend of the Seeker, a syndicated fantasy adventure television show filmed in New Zealand, but its ardent corps of dedicated fans can tell you every episode name, who guest-starred, and what the plots of all the episodes are. Like many popular television shows in the past, Legend of the Seeker has touched many hearts.
If that’s the case, then why has the show reportedly been cancelled? That’s a good question. Many fingers are pointed at the Tribune Station Group, which has a notorious reputation for mis-scheduling and pre-empting fantasy and scifi television shows across its haphazard network. Tribune has been involved in the failure of several popular television series over the past 10 years. One has to ask why Tribune keeps picking up shows it apparently has no intention of committing to.
But that is neither here nor there. Now Entertainment Weekly and E! Online both claim to have heard from unnamed insiders that Disney’s ABC Domestic Television group has decided to pull the plug on the show after only two seasons because no one can step up to the plate with a distribution agreement. SyFy apparently passed on the opportunity after running a Legend of the Seeker marathon that pulled in low ratings.
Given the dismal support this show has drawn from people who earn their livings by promoting television shows, what can the fans do? According to the SF-Fandom blog, there are still many options left. Fans have already launched an online petition to save the Seeker that has garnered thousands of signatures.
ABC executives should be taking notice. Twitter was abuzz all day long with complaints, laments, and rallying cries as Seeker fans wove to and fro amid rumors. One Website even started a new online promotion campaign for the show as part of a planned online PR push by Slam Internet, Inc. — a media company that promotes movies and television shows online.
Curious heads spun about in the face of these conflicting reports: why start a new promotion for a show that was just cancelled? One person associated with the production suggested it was over and then did an about face, proclaiming “Nothing official has been said yet”.
There is no knowing what tomorrow brings, but if ABC really does cancel the show it may be the fans who have the last word: they could announce boycotts of key ABC sponsors to punish the network for failing to work a deal that keeps the show alive.
