When it was announced last week that Saturday morning cartoons would become a thing of the past, I started think about what this means for television as a whole. There’s no doubt that the way we watch television is shifting, gravitating towards a more on-demand model touted by Netflix or Hulu.
This morning marked the conclusion of a childhood staple as The CW aired it’s final block of animated programming before moving towards a more live action educational slate of programming. Other networks had already removed their lineups, such as Fox in 2008 and ABC in 2012. Cable still holds the reins, but even that has changed considerably since the peak of a network lineup.
Now the reason I’m even talking about it is what this could mean for television in the future. Who cares about kids, am I right? But when you see the foundations of what we know about television starting to crack and shake a bit, it gets your mind wandering. Timing isn’t really everything any more when it comes to television and a good deal of people are already watching shows after they air via their DVRs and online. Could primetime become a relic like Saturday morning cartoons?
Who knows? What I do know is that Saturday morning used to be a memorable time when I was a certain age. Shows that we’re now looking back on with nostalgic glee and trying to remake into movies and updated versions were common. The Tick, Batman and the Power Rangers all took a hold on Saturdays, and now we’re seeing interest revolve back around. In the case of Batman, is there ever going to be someone other than Kevin Conroy who can voice the caped crusader with the same reverence? Would the same had happened if we didn’t get the original animated series on Fox?
The concerns you always hear about a la carte cable subscriptions or streaming only options with television is the notion that shows might not be given a proper chance in a realm where choice is king and attention spans are shorter. I can’t say I agree, especially with things like Amazon pilot season proving to be a success. There are ways around it and ways to grow.
It’s sad to see Saturday mornings move away from what we know, but I’m hopeful that it holds something great in the cards for the way we watch TV. Kids are usually a good indicator for where we will try to move things, usually to make money, so who knows. We might be able to pump new seasons directly into our brains in twenty years. That’s if ISIS doesn’t murder us all with Ebola, of course.
(Via Gizmodo / Cinema Blend)
