Is the CW making a mistake of MELROSIAN proportions? That’s the question we find ourselves pondering since last week’s announcement that had the perennial fifth place network unveil NIKITA (a reboot of the 90’s action-thriller LA FEMME NIKITA) as the centerpiece of their Fall 2010 Schedule.
Now, don’t get us wrong. On a personal level, we can’t wait to watch Hong Kong superstar Maggie Q (Mission Impossible III, Live Free or Die Hard) kick some serious bad guy butt, not to mention look forward to welcoming her supporting cast of small screen favorites such as ER’s Shane West and THE OC’s Melinda Clarke back into our living room on a weekly basis. That said, it’s hard to ignore the CW’s not so stellar track record when it comes to tapping into cash cows that were once iconic 90’s series.
Think back if you will to this time last year when CW President Dawn Ostroff was busy basking in the glow having just green-lit the much-anticipated MELROSE PLACE reboot. Of course, as Homer Simpson so accurately once put it, “In theory, Communism works. In theory.” Thus, what opened with a splashy murder mystery surrounding the death of one Sydney Andrews ended with a whimper as the once thought of sure-fire hit quickly fizzled on account of audience indifference.
Suffice to say, if MELROSE PLACE’s disappointing ratings were any indication, the CW’s core demographic of women 18-34 tend to only care about one of two things: (1) Really good looking vampires/ demon hunters (See: THE VAMPIRE DIARIES and SUPERNATURAL). Or (2), equally good looking high-school/ college-aged students (see: 90210, GOSSIP GIRL and LIFE UNEXPECTED).
Which brings us to the slightly awkward albeit painfully obvious question: Is history about to repeat itself, or are we simply undervaluing the appeal of a girl-fight between thirty-something Maggie Q and forty-something Melinda Clarke? Stay tuned. 