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Time For A U-Turn: Where "Empire" Went Wrong

The thrill is gone.

Inflated TV ratings aside, Empire fans are not showing love for the Lyon family like they did last season.

In fact, that's where the show went wrong: the "plot twist" of Lucious revealing that he didn't have ALS. From there, the show has been transforming into a cheap gospel stage play. (Cookie is now Karen Clark Sheard; Lucious is Sinbad; and Jamal is one of Steve Harvey's children.) 

All in all, the characters' road map is leading the show down the road to cancellation.  

What Can The Writers Do?
* Beg Fox Executives To Ditch Demographics And Pursue Stories
Fox executives are busy trying to cater to a multicultural audience instead of tell good stories. I don't watch "Empire" for the diversity; I watch "Empire" for the story of an American family which happens to be diverse.

The celebrity cameos are distracting and the storyline seems disjointed. We are 4 episodes into Season 2 and they are just getting around to Vernon's disappearance? Did Tyler Perry join the writing staff?

*Lay Back On The Flashbacks 
Too much backstory is not a good story.  Writers tend to go off on a tangent instead of dealing with the issues at hand. I don't need to know the family history of mental illness to understand Lucious and Andre's relationship.

Less is more. 

*Be Humble
Arrogance caused the writing team to lose its mojo. You are only as good as your last show. The writers need to go back to basics and outline a great story. Now, it seems as if they are writing anything to pander to viewers with low intelligence.

Unfortunately, it doesn't take much to entertain people these days. That's why the writers probably won't change.

 

Post a Comment

4 Comments

  1. ................but people aren't being entertained. The ratings are continuously dwindling and we fans are continuously complaining.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The writers have to do what number-crazy executives at Fox tell them to do.
      That's the problem with letting demographics play too big of a role in a writing strategy and story arc. The goal is to please the current set of eyeballs instead of trying to attract new ones. Empire's greedy strategy of appealing to "everyone" is causing them to burn the candle at both ends.

      Delete
  2. I agree with you on most points except (1) I have no problem with seeing the flashback of Lucious' mom "baptising" him in the bathtub when he cussed at her, it explained why he abruptly left Andre's baptism. (2) People aren't being entertained by the show anymore. The ratings are continuing to drop and fans and critics are continuing to complain.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for your reply. I value ALL viewpoints as long as they are presented respectfully.

      Delete
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