'JAG' Sails into the Sunset
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) With the episode airing Friday, April 29, CBS' venerable military drama "JAG" ends its two-network, 10-season, 227-episode run. As befitting a series that served its network and fans well, the moment was prepared for.
Speaking about a week before the cancellation was announced on April 4, co-executive producer Charles Floyd Johnson says, "We wrote about three endings. I'm not sure which one's going to make it on the air. Truthfully, we have one ending that we like a lot, that I think we might go with regardless."
"JAG" -- short for the U.S. Navy's Judge Advocate General Corps -- premiered on NBC in September 1995, starring Canadian actor David James Elliott as Cmdr. Harmon Rabb Jr. Forced to abandon a career as a fighter pilot because of night blindness (later corrected by surgery), he became a Navy lawyer. In season two, he was paired with lawyer Lt. Col. Sarah "Mac" MacKenzie (Catherine Bell, who played a different character in a first season episode).
After one season, NBC axed the show created by Donald Bellisario, himself an ex-Marine. In swooped CBS programming chief Les Moonves, who grabbed "JAG" and installed it on Fridays as a midseason replacement in January 1997. The following fall, it moved to Tuesdays, where it stayed until the fall of 2003, when it moved back to Fridays to make room for a spinoff, "NCIS."
"In my opening days at CBS," Moonves says in a statement, "we needed to rebuild. We needed compelling, well-produced shows that would appeal to a wide audience. `JAG' was one of the first shows to fill that void.
"When we moved it to Tuesday nights in 1997, it played a key role in CBS' positive sea change in the ratings war. Since then, 'JAG' has been one of the cornerstones of our schedule and a very influential part of the network's turnaround."
"We've had an amazing run," says Bellisario in the same statement, "particularly for a series that was once canceled. Over the last 10 years, we have had an opportunity to shine a spotlight on our armed forces and call attention to issues of significant importance to our country as well as the men and women who serve it.
"I want to acknowledge the amazing team responsible for 'JAG,' most of whom have been with us for the entire run. The cast, writers, producers, directors, editors and crew have earned, as it is signaled in the Navy, a 'Bravo Zulu' for their outstanding work.
"We owe a special thanks to the United States Navy and Marine Corps for their cooperation, to CBS and Paramount for being great partners, and to our fans who have been waiting for nearly a decade to see if Harm and Mac get together. To them I say, 'Fair winds and following seas.'"
Regarding Harm and Mac, the same release says, "The unmistakable chemistry between them has been held at bay for professional reasons, but in the final episode, due to a bombshell dropped by Gen. Cresswell, they are forced to face those feelings once and for all."
"JAG" has experienced a ratings decline since leaving Tuesdays, where it averaged more than 13 million viewers over the 2002-03 season. At this time last year on Fridays, it averaged about 11.6 million, which dropped this year to 9.8 million. While these are not inconsiderable numbers by network terms, especially on a Friday, the difficulty for "JAG" is in who and how old these viewers are.
A good percentage of "JAG" viewers are not in the attractive 18-49 demographic -- or the even more attractive 18-34 -- that advertisers purport to love so much. Bellisario made a bid for the future and for younger viewers in March with an episode called "JAG: San Diego." It showcased a new, sunny vision for the series and the talents of recent cast addition Chris Beetem as the young hotshot Lt. Gregory Vukovic. But CBS didn't bite.
Speaking the day after shooting ended, Bell says, "If the end does come ... it's so weird. We wrapped last night, and it was sad. We were all hugging and sobbing. Last night, it was just hitting me, 'If we don't come back, how incredible.' I've spent a quarter of my life on this amazing show that did so well, a part of history. It's a great feeling.
"I actually called Les Moonves, because of how tired I was of not knowing. All the rumors started on set one day; they'd heard this and heard that. I called him, and he said, 'You know, we haven't even started looking at the new shows. We'll wait and see how they do.' If they have a ton of great new shows, then odds are we won't come back."
Only this fall's ratings will show if Moonves' gamble pays off. Fans, if they like, may now turn their attention to petitioning Paramount Studios, which produces "JAG," to put the series out on DVD. It already airs in syndication on USA Network and the Hallmark Channel.
"It's possible if the demand is great," Johnson says. "Paramount Video gets a lot of requests as well, so they know the demand for it. But whenever we send all the things over that we get from our fans, they just say, 'We're discussing it.'"
As for missing her military uniform, Bell says, "It was great wearing it, but that's one of those questions where, of course, there's mixed feelings. Of course I'll miss it. I did wear it every day for, God, nine years."
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Der Schock zum Ende der Folge der einen kleinen Cliffhanger daraus macht sitzt auch. Mac wird wohl eine schwerwiegendere Krankheit wie Krebs oder sowas haben. Ihre Frage ob Harm immer für sie da sein würde zielte wohl auch darauf hinaus sich absichern zu können um nicht alleine mit der Diagnose dazustehen. Was denn nun genau mit ihr los ist werden wir allerdings erst in der nächsten und leider, wie seit kurzem bekannt, auch letzten Staffeln sehen. Nach dem jahrelangen Warten und dem Folgenmarathon der letzten Monate macht es mir nichts aus noch ein bisschen auf die letzten neuen Folgen zu warten.
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