Can Ugly Betty Survive The Bench?
January 27, 2009 by Tom
The Ugly Betty fan community is still in shock over yesterday’s news of the show’s benching by ABC. Life does go on, and there will be more news to report later, but, of course, foremost on our minds is the fate of our favorite show.
It might be wishful thinking but I keep coming back to “benching does not equal cancelling”. An ABC representative insists, “…Betty is a solid performer and there is no question that it will definitely be back to complete its season, just without repeats.”
Then there’s this: EOnline’s Kristin spoke to ABC insiders, and says, “The Alphabet net is looking at more of a cable model when it comes to its programming and scheduling. ‘
McPherson is interested in reducing the number of reruns,’ one well-placed insider tells me, adding that Betty—after its dip in the ratings this season—seemed the best place to slot in Samantha [Who?] and Motherhood.”
Let’s take the ABC suits at their word. No, quit smirking – we have no other choice. 
Stick with me here. Let’s say Betty comes back at the end of sweeps, and runs through much of the summer. Can that work? Has it ever been tried by a broadcast network before?
I do know that shows (especially on cable) can have devoted followings during the summer. I know my family actually blocked out time this past summer to watch “Wipeout” and “I Survived a Japanese Gameshow” (we’re weird like that…).
What I do know is this. The ratings for Ugly Betty were not great for a Thursday night 8pm show leading into a mega-hit. But they weren’t bad enough to give the show the axe altogether, IMHO. The darling of Hollywood, 30 Rock, had 1.1 million fewer overall viewers than Betty last week. (But to be fair, it did better in the 18-49 demos).
There are still many questions. Let’s say Ugly Betty does well when it comes back (for arguments sake, let’s say it stays in the 7-8 million range; that’s pretty good for summer). If it is brought back for a 4th season, would that season start in September, or would Betty become one of those shows that begins in January (or later?)
I will stay on top of this, and let you know ANY news as soon as I get it. Also, remember – there are still at least 2 episodes that will air before the benching.
Image: Newscom
The only thing that has kept me optimistic is that I don’t think Samantha Who and Motherhood will last long. I’ve never watched Samantha Who and I don’t know anyone else who watches the show. I just don’t see it lasting. Motherhood also doesn’t sound like a great concept. Sometimes you can just tell if something unique and funny will last. I got that feeling with Friends, Will & Grace, King of Queens.
I felt the same way about Ugly Betty but the writers seemed to have lost their way after the writer’s strike and moving to NYC. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it! There were way to many changes made to the original concept of Ugly Betty that made me very uncomfortable.
I love that Ugly Betty is in NYC where I live but I thought it was a bad move for the show. In the process they had to get rid of some great characters who were based in LA. I also did not like Betty’s transformation into a city girl with mismatched designer clothes in Season 3. They strayed away so far from the great show they created in Season 1 and part of Season 2 (when they introduced Gio into the show because the romance with Henry was getting stale). I hope that they can figure out what to do and fix it by June. I personally think they should move back to L.A. at the end of the season even if it means paying higher taxes. Losing the show isn’t worth it.
Oh, and 30 Rock should be canceled. It’s a failure as a show and it is only kept on air because Tina Fey is all NBC has left. She is the most overrated comedian of my generation but she keeps winning awards. I seriously can’t wait for the day that Tina Fey and her show is taken off the air.
The ORIGINAL Beverly Hills 90210 did very poorly in the first season and was ALMOST cancelled.
FOX did something that no other network did at that time they aired NEW episodes of 90210 in the SUMMER and it became a HUGE hit!
If Ugly Betty DOES return in the Summer instead of late MAY and IF ABC promotes Ugly Betty like crazy: It COULD work.
I don’t blame The NYC move for Betty’s ratings/creative slump. Ugly Betty’s PILOT was filmed in NYC and the show was going to filmed in NYC if it weren’t for higher taxes.
Anyway, what I do blame is the simple things and I hope Silvo Horta reads this but I doubt it.
Here goes:
Betty is almost 25 years old and needs to grow up and start making changes in her life.
Betty has worked at MODE for almost 3 years now. You can’t tell me that between MODE and the fashion obsessed JUSTIN that Betty still hasn’t picked up some fashion tips?
Betty doesn’t have to be “PERFECT” like Wilhemina and Amanda but she could change up her wardrobe to be BOTH FASHIONABLE and CREATIVE.
GET RID OF THE BRACES!
Betty CAN KEEP her GLASSES just like her B they are Betty’s TRADEMARK: THE BRACES MUST GO!
Ugly Betty fans no matter what FANBASE/COUPLING you want for Betty from what I have read ALL agree about ditching the BRACES.
TV Guide interviewed a dentist and he said that the braces should have been gone by now.
If Betty does have to wear something on her teeth let her wear a RETAINER for a little while.
DO SOMETHING with Betty’s HAIR!
If Betty has to keep her BANGS that’s fine at least TRIM Betty’s hair.
Is it just me or is Betty’s wavy hair getting a bit on people’s nerves?
The last 2 seasons it looked straight, trimmed and healthy.
This season it looks wavy and limp.
Giving Betty a trim would make Betty’s hair look healthier and it will a key factor in her make over which is bound to happen.
ENOUGH with The FLASHY guest stars!
OK, every sitcom has GUEST STARS but Ugly Betty like Will & Grace makes the show about the GUEST STAR and 1/2 the time the role doesn’t live up to it’s hype. Christian Syriano [Sorry, about the spelling] and Nikki Blonsky ring a bell, anyone?
Don’t even get me started on Lohan.
BETTY”S LOVE LIFE:
We lost Henry.
We lost Gio.
We got Jesse. Is Jesse even popular? I get mixed reactions on the web.
Betty needs to stop focusing on her LOVE LIFE and focus on her career.
BETTY’S LIFE with La Famila Suarez:
Betty moved into her own apartment and Amanda as Betty’s roomie was the ICING on the cake. Betty and Amanda make a great pair and it turned FRENEMIES into FRIENDS.
Betty has ALWAYS been there for her family and ALWAYS will be no matter where she is.
Betty didn’t move to EUROPE or TUSCON she moved what maybe 20 or 30 minutes away?
Betty is still in New York and she is just a phone call away.
Betty SHOULD move BACK HOME but…
It should only be until Ignacio and Hilda make the adjustments that is needed in order for Ignacio to recover from his heart attack.
And let’s talk about Christina for a minute…
Christina became inseminated with Wilhelmina’s spawn last January I know REAL TIME vs. REEL TIME applies to TV all the time but I thought for sure Christina would have given birth last November.
The last time Christina was on December she was 7 months pregnant which means she should give birth in February.
Will Christina have the baby before Ugly Betty goes off?
IF not this is the LONGEST pregnancy EVER!
I LOVE Ugly Betty and want it to stay on the air.
I hope Ugly Betty fans and Silvo Horta can see that in my rantings.
THANK YOU TOM for all the hard work you put into Ugly Bety news: YOU ROCK!
angel25- that list you came up with is incrediably long but you touched upon every issue that needs addressing on this show silvio. thanks for sharing that with us. someone should email this to ABC and persuade silvio to read this, because he and the other writers need to do something to sustain this show’s shelf life.
i don’t want this show to get cancelled with an unresolved ending to go with it- i want UB to remain on air and we expect more interesting storylines and situations occurring. silvio has to listen to us and do something to fix this problem because i am saddened to see it struggling as it is. despite my love for season 3 so far, they have to go out with all guns blazing and think big and to surprise us all with something interesting but fresh and exciting at the same time.
Here’s what Michael Urie had to say about ‘the bench.’
“BETTY’S NOT CANCELED:
come on, really? Here are the facts:
We are going to finish shooting our original 3rd season order – 24
episodes (currently on 16).
At the end of March, we’re going off the air for a while, at a time
when we would normally be on for a few weeks, off for a few,
confusing and angering fans with repeats.
In June, we come back, and finish the last 6 episodes of the season
without interruption!
This has been done with lots of ABC shows over time, like LOST and
Desperate Housewives. We’ve got great real estate on Thursday nights
at 8pm, and the network wants to share it with other shows! It makes
sense.
Doesn’t mean the end of Betty.”
http://hypeworthy.typepad.com/michael_urie/2009/01/bettys-not-canceled.html
Although the ratings have never been stellar, “Ugly Betty” is one of the few shows (possibly the only show) to hold its own against “Survivor”. I’m sure that must count for something.
As for “30 Rock”, I know that some of you don’t like it (or hate it, in fact), but I love it and think that it’s one of the best comedies ever. Its survival has nothing to do with “Ugly Betty”, so there’s really no reason to waste your energy wishing other people ill.
I didn’t start watching “Samantha Who?” until a few months ago and really enjoy it, so I’ll still watch it, even though I’ll be a little bitter over the fact that its displacing our Betty.
I think that what Michael Urie has said may very well be accurate. ABC really might just be eliminating the schedule shuffling and rerun factor. Fingers crossed!
As for the calls for Betty to lose the braces, gain a fashionista’s sense of style, and do something with her hair just because it’s unrealistic for her to stay the same… remember that this is TV and these are traits of her character. Also, the title of the show. If you take the “ugly” out of “Ugly Betty” it won’t make much sense. I’ve known plenty of people who have been exposed to fashionable people and who know a good haircut from a bad one, but they still don’t update their own personal looks This is not uncommon. For as many people there are out there who want Betty to stop being “ugly”, there are just as many who don’t want her to get a makeover, at least not any time soon.
Of course, with any TV show (as with anything else in life) there will always be things that people would like to see done differently, but it is impossible to give everybody everything that they want. Sometimes you just have to let people create what they want to create. Then you can either choose to go along with the ride or choose to get off at the next stop.
sirlizard- ‘ As for the calls for Betty to lose the braces, gain a fashionista’s sense of style, and do something with her hair just because it’s unrealistic for her to stay the same… remember that this is TV and these are traits of her character. Also, the title of the show. If you take the “ugly” out of “Ugly Betty” it won’t make much sense. I’ve known plenty of people who have been exposed to fashionable people and who know a good haircut from a bad one, but they still don’t update their own personal looks This is not uncommon. For as many people there are out there who want Betty to stop being “ugly”, there are just as many who don’t want her to get a makeover, at least not any time soon.’
i think that if and when betty gets a major overhaul in her appearence and she becomes prettier, then that would summon the end of the show. yes betty should change her looks each season but not completely, just gradually. and besides, this show as sirlizard has said is ‘ugly betty’- once she becomes ‘pretty betty’, then there wouldn’t be much left to watch afterwards because well, everything has been done before.
I never said it had to be done all at once that ruins the fun but it can be done gradually.
The reason I bring up the braces and the clothes is because from what I’ve seen on the web and in magazines those are the 2 things that most critics and Betty fans seem to complain about.
The hair is just my opinion.
BIG NEWS FROM AUSIELLO: It looks like Ugly Betty MIGHT get a 4th season!
Ew.com Ausiello Q&A: Spoilers and HOPE for a 4th Season of Ugly Betty?
« on: Today at 10:49:28 PM » Quote Modify Remove
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http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2009/01/ask-ausiello–3.html
Michael Ausiello just released his transcript of his Tuesday night Q&A session.
It looks like Ugly Betty MIGHT make it to a 4th season afterall. I sure HOPE he’s right.
Ausiello also posted OK re-posted an old Ugly Betty spoiler but with some NEW details.
“Question: Bottom-line the Ugly Betty situation for us. How dire is it? — Gordon
Ausiello: Not nearly as dire as I first thought. Shortly after my story posted, several very trustworthy ABC insiders came forward to assure me that the perception is much worse than the reality in this case. The reality, they say, is it’s highly unlikely that Betty will be forced to close out its third season in June, as the network’s ominously worded press release seemed to suggest. And regarding next season, two of the three sources I queried seemed very confident that Betty would be back next season. The third one ignored that part of my question and proceeded to pump me for scoop on House. Bottom line: Phew.
Question: Please give us some scoop on Ugly Betty. Will Betty have any romance in the near future? — Jeni
Ausiello: Do you consider Feb. 19 to be in the near future? ‘Cause that’s when Daniel Eric Gold debuts as Betty’s new love interest, Matt. Word is the YETI hottie is concealing a major secret, and it’s not that he’s loaded (although he isn’t terribly forthcoming about that bit, either).”
angel25- yeah, she’s had those braces for a LONG time- they need to be rid of by no;, as for the clothes, some of it needs to go as well, but some of it needs to stay too. as for the hair, i like to see more wavy and have some volume to it- it looks too straight and boring right now.
The switch in clothes strategy from having her be somebody whose clothes were colorful but not fashionable to somebody whose clothes were clownish and overreaching was never given a rationale. Just overnight her wardrobe changed in a way that was very irritating. Bringing in a flashy parade of guest stars is not going to save them. This is a jump-the-shark strategy for a lot of shows on the skids, so it just smacks of desperation. When will TV producers learn that by-and-large people tune in to see what’s happening to characters they’ve come to love, not characters they don’t know, just because they’re played by faces that are big in the tabloids. Season one had a number of story arcs that kept the suspense building and the momentum going. Starting with the abrupt truncating of the Gio-Betty relationship, which had such a hugh buildup, UB this year has had a number of storylines that were introduced and just as quickly petered out. Hilda’s unpopular dalliance with a married man, Daniel’s son, who suddenly turned out not to be his son, the annoying Betty-Kimmie rivalry, Marc-Cliff, etc. I’m not particularly invested in the Daniel-Molly-Connor-Willi thing, because I figure it will be gone in a couple weeks (and because Molly is boring). The only story line with legs is the Yeti one, but that is really more a new arena (though a welcome one) than a story arc. In season 1, we had some major mysteries going on. So far there is nothing like that in Season 3. And of course it’s going to be hard for them to come up with any love interest that doesn’t pale in comparison with Gio, who still has an amazingly strong and committed following despite only having made one appearance this season (not counting the 2 seconds at the beginning of the first show).
livia- ‘Season one had a number of story arcs that kept the suspense building and the momentum going. Starting with the abrupt truncating of the Gio-Betty relationship, which had such a hugh buildup’
the gio and betty relationship didn’t occur until earlier on in season 2, not season 1.
‘(and because Molly is boring)’- i agree with you on this one
…’And of course it’s going to be hard for them to come up with any love interest that doesn’t pale in comparison with Gio, who still has an amazingly strong and committed following despite only having made one appearance this season (not counting the 2 seconds at the beginning of the first show).’
you seem to be mistaken if you think everyone who watches this show are predominantly getty and gio fans. because of that storyline, the other characters in season 2 were sidelined and put on the backburner in favour of the getty romance. i watch this show for other reasons, and mainly for amanda and marc.
Liu- Livia’s statement about Gio and Betty was part of a bigger sentence…
“Starting with the abrupt truncating of the Gio-Betty relationship, which had such a huge buildup, UB this year has had a number of storylines that were introduced and just as quickly petered out.”
I don’t think she meant for it it to sound like the Gio/Betty thing was in Season 1.
Am I the only one who was not surprised to see that Betty was being sidelined? Disappointed overall, and I mean to some extent the show in general this season, but definitely not surprised.
For many reasons, I’m not going to go into the source of my disappointments because it would take forever, which I dont have time for, and because the majority of grievances have been voiced already, including some from Angel25’s list.
I just don’t have a vested interest in the show this season like I was expecting I would, and to me, that’s disappointing. I was a sporadic watcher at best during both Seasons 1 & 2 due to academic obligations, but I really liked the show. I was eager to watch the shows I had missed on ABC.com, especially after Gio was introduced. I began having time to watch the show regularly this season on my TV, and was expecting the satisfaction that would come from that, but they’re very hit or miss to me- some of them I really like. Some of them bore me to tears, last week included, honestly. (SOTVOANB) And some things just seem like another lifetime ago (Lindsay who?).
Every week I think, Well I’ll give it another chance… but they’re continuing to fall flat in my estimation. And now that Bones is on during the same time, it wasn’t even hard to go back to my ABC.com UB routine. Even my husband’s 80 year old grandmother who used to watch the show has told me this season is just not that good.
During Seasons 1 and most of 2, Betty had ‘it’. UB had ‘it’. I don’t know where it went, or maybe I’ve just inexplicably become blind, but I don’t see ‘it’ anymore when I tune in.
I really hope that a sabbatical for the show will bring back some of the magic.