If at First You Do Succeed, Write, Write Again

The prime-time lineups presented last spring were so rife with talk of spinoffs and “brand extensions” that a suspicious sort might have surmised the networks were marketing laundry detergent (“New Law & Order 2: With Stain-Fighting Action!”) instead of TV shows.

Burned by past efforts to be different and daring, programmers generally decided to go with more of the same. So “Law & Order” gave rise to “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” helped unearth “Angel,” and “Mo’Nique” moved in next to “Moesha.”

With equal determination, networks went back to producers of existing hits hoping they could do it again. As a result, David E. Kelley has four shows on the air bearing his name (five if you count “Ally,” Fox’s slimmed-down “Ally McBeal” reruns); “ER’s” John Wells and the “Friends” team are each behind a trio of series; and half a dozen other writer-producers are responsible for a pair of programs.

Next Monday marks the arrival of the last spinoff, “Time of Your Life,” which plants “Party of Five’s” Jennifer Love Hewitt in New York City, seeking her roots and finding another gorgeous young cast.

Not to put any pressure on the show or anything, but with Fox series wiping out faster than a surfer with an inner-ear infection, “Time of Your Life” could be that network’s last chance this fall to have a new program break through, a rather daunting weight to drop on the petite shoulders of Hewitt, a prime-time veteran at the ripe old age of 20.

Yet the real issue here is not so much star power but the wattage surrounding writer-producers, as TV executives have clearly determined established “show runners” are their best hedge against premature unemployment.

This emphasis on series “from the producers of . . .” raises the question of how well it’s working out asking writers--most of whom struggle their whole careers to stumble upon a single hit--to reprise that feat. Based on the new season, the strategy can be endorsed, if only in somewhat noncommittal terms.

One reason Fox coveted “Time of Your Life” is that it hails from Christopher Keyser and Amy Lippman, the duo who also created “Party of Five.” Having nurtured a premise about five orphaned kids into a symbol that teen dramas needn’t only be about hopeless crushes and haircuts, the pair have opted to reduce their involvement in that show, handing its daily supervision to others.

“We’ll talk about long-term stories. We’re not in the story room every day,” Keyser said.

“We’re certainly stepping back,” added Lippman, finishing his sentence, as you suspect the two have done since meeting at a playwriting class while attending Harvard.

This approach represents a departure from a new breed of “uber-show runners,” as Lippman put it, who not only oversee multiple shows but also write most of the episodes. Kelley--who pens nearly every episode of “The Practice” and “Ally McBeal”--is the poster boy for this phenomenon, joined recently by Aaron Sorkin, who has teamed with Wells on “The West Wing” while continuing his acclaimed if modestly rated ABC series “Sports Night.”

Dick Wolf, top cop of the “Law & Order” franchise, has stated that the proliferation of series with such creative pedigrees will ultimately be good news for viewers, a contention supported only in part by the new season.

“Stark Raving Mad,” from the producer of “Just Shoot Me,” had the word “bad” substituted in more than a few reviews. Most critics also concluded Kelley’s latest, “Snoops,” is at best Kelley Lite, with half the flavor of his regular series.

That said, “West Wing,” “Special Victims Unit,” Wells’ “Third Watch” and “Angel” have shown ample promise both commercially and creatively; moreover, there’s little evidence older siblings such as “ER” and “Buffy” have suffered much. That’s good news, because series can easily lose their way when producers split their focus by developing new shows or hand the keys to someone else.

Keyser and Lippman maintain that show runners need to devote themselves almost completely to a new project to establish its tone and style. To them, that means loosening the reins enough to let other writers steer the creative vision of a preexisting series.

“We are a constant presence on the set,” Lippman said regarding “Time of Your Life.” “I think it’s really important in the first year that the creators have a real presence. . . . You can do a lot of things sort of OK, but you can’t do multiple projects really well. Then you’re vulnerable to people saying you’re not keeping your eye on the ball.”

“I don’t know how you do more than one show well without trusting people,” Keyser added.

Many top writers are less prone to be trusting, however, because of a perceived dilution of the talent pool. With the expansion to six networks, it’s harder to assemble the kind of all-star writing teams producers like Norman Lear put together in the 1970s--when there were only three networks--to staff existing shows as they branched out to craft new ones.

Despite being urged to come up with a new series almost as soon as it became clear “Party of Five” would be around for a while, Keyser and Lippman stress that they haven’t undertaken the challenge lightly, perhaps in part because of their experience making “Significant Others,” a 1998 drama Fox canceled after just three telecasts.

If their star remains undiminished by that failure, it’s largely because when it comes to hits, television is a lot like baseball: Deliver one every three times at bat and you’ll wind up in the Hall of Fame.

Steven Bochco, who gave us the “Blues” (“Hill Street” and “NYPD,” that is) as well as “L.A. Law” and “Doogie Howser, M.D.,” has certainly had his share of strikeouts, too. So have Wolf, Wells and “The X-Files’ ” Chris Carter. Add “Dawson’s Creek” creator Kevin Williamson to the list with this season’s “Wasteland.”

Still, reciting the odds against success provides little comfort to writers. Unlike TV executives--who approach each project accepting the likelihood of failure--series creators inject more of themselves into giving birth to shows.

Perhaps that’s why Keyser would prefer not to fret about batting averages at this time of his life. “Our reputation rests on the quality of the work that we produce,” he said. “Our goal is not to produce a lot of things and hope one of them works.”

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Brian Lowry’s column appears on Tuesdays. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected].