Remember when we thought that JJ Abrams’ new spy series Undercovers would probably end up killing NBC’s other spy series, the long-lived, oft-troubled Chuck? Well, it turns out that the Buy More crew has pulled a surprise upset with the announcement that it will get an additional 11 episodes this year, while Abrams’ new show is only getting a script order for 4.
With its newly-confirmed 24 episode fourth season – Two more than the expected (and rumored) amount – Chuck has turned into a truly unexpected success story for the network; not only has it survived two years of cancellation rumors, but for the last two years, it’s ended up having more episodes ordered by the network than anyone expected (Leading in part to last year’s two-arc structure; the final six episodes were added after NBC upped their order from 13 to 19 episodes).
Contrast that to Undercovers, which – despite much anticipation based as much on Abrams’ involvement as the show itself – has suffered from both disappointing ratings and reviews. It’s slick, yes, but apparently not the kind of slick that a lot of people want to watch… and, perhaps from NBC’s point of view, not worth the time, effort and money investment to build it as a long-term project. Taken on its own, an order for four new scripts isn’t a bad thing, but when other shows – including the similarly disappointing new show Chase – are getting full season orders at the same time, it doesn’t bode well. Maybe the show needs some nerd chic of its own. Perhaps they could visit a Buy More?
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Good News: New JJ Abrams Series! Bad News: Will Probably Kill Chuck