Matlock and Murder, She Wrote were hits in the 80s and 90s but largely derided by the industry for appealing to an older demographic at a time when the broadcast industry literally treated anyone over the age of 54 as if they didn't exist. Today, the median age of the broadcast TV viewer is over 64 - so it seems rather than try to chase a young demographic who go elsewhere for entertainment, CBS seems to have realized who their audience is and how to cater to them. Not a strategy for long-term success in what may be a sunset industry, but at least enough to win the ratings right now. 

When my parents were alive, they were avid viewers of Matlock, Murder She Wrote, Father Dowling Mysteries and Murdoch Mysteries. They would probably have enjoyed the new Matlock as well. Personally, I had no interest in any of  them.

Hansa wrote:

I predict this means a "Murder, She Wrote" reboot is in the cards.

Are any of the Golden Girls still on the bright side of the turf?  One of them might be available.
 

Where's the reboot of All in the family, where Archie Bunker is now Angie Bunker, a Black woman who does not like white people, 
Or how about Gilligans Island of the Walking Dead where seven people are stranded on an island of zombies.
Or The Man From AUNTIE about a trans gender super spy who has a North Korean partner?
Or Mission Impossible, where there's a new hero each episode who gets captured by the enemy and killed while the US Secretary disavows all knowledge of their actions.
Send me to the pitch room now.


 

Last edited by newsguy1 (October 25, 2024 11:30 am)

If they did I missed that one... glad I think like (the old) Mad Magazine.
I do remember they did "Clodumbo"  and (Make Us Sickby, MD".

In the promos I've seen, the character is shown saying something to the effect of "My name is Matlock, like that TV show".

It's a clever way of separating the two and does two things; it establishes the show and character as its own entity, and lets the show runners do what they want with the character without besmirching the legacy of its forerunner.

Last edited by Binson Echorec (October 25, 2024 2:44 pm)

Binson Echorec wrote:

In the promos I've seen, the character is shown saying something to the effect of "My name is Matlock, like that TV show".

Yes. That's sprinkled throughout the first episode. The second episode even makes some meta references to the old series jumping networks and the number of seasons there were (and years it ran) as something the Bates character should know. Also, the original show's theme music is heard in the first episode on someone's phone.

Bates did "Harry's Law" for David E. Kelley over a decade ago where she played an attorney and I thought that a fun outing.