11/05/24
February 05, 2004
Citing NFL Objections, ESPN shuts down: Playmakers.
NFL replies, "It was an ESPN decision and now we can all move on."
posted by forksclovetofu to culture at 01:09 PM - 17 comments
I think they should do a series on the NBA next.
posted by garfield at 01:45 PM on February 05, 2004
think they should do a series on the NBA next. I can just see Sheed's character rolling up a fat blunt and smoking it in the locker room. Then we'd have the Kobe character rape a hotel worker, then a guard on the Texas team skips out on a game to watch the Super Bowl, etc., etc., etc. I thought the format was basically a soap opera, except shown at night and with more men actors. No thank you. Put more NBA and college games on instead.
posted by dusted at 01:56 PM on February 05, 2004
Put more NBA and college games on instead. More Hockey, too!
posted by garfield at 02:21 PM on February 05, 2004
I saw this this morning on Sportscenter. Whe she was reading the copy, Linda Cohn looked like she had a mouthful of horse dung. I don't buy the whole "we made the decision on our own" thing, and I don't think anyone else does either.
posted by wfrazerjr at 02:30 PM on February 05, 2004
Linda Cohn always looks like she has a mouthful of horse dung, fraze.
posted by dusted at 02:49 PM on February 05, 2004
86, forgive my transgression I'm about to commit, but this week the NFL has lost some its luster. It's still the best product out there, but could its aura of invincibility be fading?
posted by garfield at 02:50 PM on February 05, 2004
Fading? Curse you. It was one of the best Super Bowls of all time and it isn't their fault all people want to talk about is nipple-rings and Timberlake. And about that talk, how long do we think it will last? This story has a shelf life of ... Oh wait, it's over now. And we're left with a thrilling championship game that drew record numbers and left the NFL pockets lined with boatloads of cash. Football is fine.
posted by 86 at 03:11 PM on February 05, 2004
I found it too cliche, with every negative stereotype of NFL players crammed into one locker room. 86 - I don't really think that's a fair criticism...or maybe it is but then I ask what else would you expect? In the West Wing, the Bartlett Administration goes through every conceivable political crisis in existence, in E.R. the Doctor's have to face every possible crazy event that goes on in an emergency room, and the school in Boston Public has got to be the most dangerous, crazy, controversial, sex obsessed public school in the U.S. Playmaker's is a drama after all, and nobody would watch it if all the episodes featured players volunteering at the United Way and going home daily to their wife and 1.5 kids. I really, really enjoyed the show, I thought there pretty good characters and a few moments of brilliance. I also appreciated how the show did not back down from controversial topics like when a guy outed a gay member of the team and when one player lied about his involvement in a murder which sent his buddy to jail. I hope the show will stick around in one form or another, because I don't like the NFL controlling ancillary products like that.
posted by vito90 at 03:22 PM on February 05, 2004
I hear it wasn't a bad show. But really, please, why was it on ESPN and not HBO? If they need filler, get soccer, or road rally racing, or any of the other cool things they show on European sports TV instead of the ridiculous crap (cold pizza?) we get on ESPN these days.
posted by tieguy at 03:47 PM on February 05, 2004
Exactly, tieguy. I watch ESPN to see sporting events and sports highlights, not drama and variety shows.
posted by dusted at 03:56 PM on February 05, 2004
Has ESPN jumped the shark?
posted by garfield at 04:17 PM on February 05, 2004
I think it jumped the shark shortly after all their anchors became convinced that they were more important and/or more interesting than the sports that they covered. So, basically, it's been a while...
posted by tieguy at 04:42 PM on February 05, 2004
This Page 3 thing is adding to rumors of shark aerial acrobatery.
posted by jeffmshaw at 04:48 PM on February 05, 2004
Not to mention Cold Pizza...
posted by billsaysthis at 05:03 PM on February 05, 2004
what's the hottie's name on that show? KiKi Hoover or something....that's precious, ain't it?
posted by garfield at 05:15 PM on February 05, 2004
Kiki Hoover? That's not "precious". That's porny.
posted by Scott Carefoot at 06:34 PM on February 07, 2004
Personally, I never really enjoyed the show. I found it too cliche, with every negative stereotype of NFL players crammed into one locker room. I understand why the league was upset with the presentation and I can understand why they would put pressure on ESPN to cut it.