What do you think went wrong with the Birds of Prey TV series?

[samurainoir]

IMHO, Great Casting, intriguing premise, a decent pilot, and fantastic initial ratings. Plus fantastic source material to draw upon in the original comic books.

So what do you think went wrong with this series as it progressed? What would have "worked" better? Where would you liked to have seen it go instead?

[palitoy]

I watched every episode and I really didn't like how they retooled things from the successful comic series.

The meta human angle was overplayed, too much "X Men" in there, Black Canary's daughter was a dullard.

The Smallvile "no costume" rule didn't make sense in the CGI city where everyone has powers. Huntress didn't wear a mask yet she worked as a bartender in a busy club? What?

I thought Barbara was great, same with Huntress but didn't understand how she had powers.

The show had it's moments and I wanted to see it succeed but the episodes that really worked were not frequent enough.

[The Toyroom]

I thought Barbara was great, same with Huntress but didn't understand how she had powers.

Yeah both Batman and Catwoman are powerless, so how is it that they parented a "meta-human"?

[Raydeen1]

She was genetically engineered was she not? Either way, I only liked Barbara. I thought the rest stunk for the most part. My wife on the other hand, liked it quite a bit but she's not exactly a comic book fan so she can accept change much easier than I.

[Riffster]

Best episode was when they had Babs in costume as Batgirl

[toys2cool]

I liked it, the chick was so hot

[spamn]

I didn't like the Batman's missing mystery. I know it came about from a legal perspective, but I wish they could've done it differently. Like a Charlie's angels voice speaker, and meetings with an unnamed person who never shows. Then they can reference how they're allowed to operate with minimal interference and guidance from him.

Beyond that, I didn't like how they strayed so far from the book. Gail Simone writes with a lot of heart and the show just seemed to lack that.

[samurainoir]

Best episode was when they had Babs in costume as Batgirl
http://bruehoyt.com/superheroes/DC/b.../batmeyer3.jpg

I think Dina Meyer's brilliant in everything she appears in, and can't figure out why she isn't a bigger star. Lousy "B" grade projects?

She deserves better than hanging around Saw movies waiting for her turn to die. I'm shocked that one of the CSI's or whatever haven't snapped her up. She's certainly the "no nonsense tough investigator" type in enough film/tv.

[Earth 2 Chris]

I think a lot of it was because it hinged too much on the Huntress character, and she wasn't well developed. The writers seem stuck in the formula of having her be a hard-nose loner at the beginning of every episode, only to learn her lesson about teamwork at the end. Then she'd do it all again next week. The actress Ashely Scott was a bit weak too. Canary's daughter was dead weight. Dina Meyer was pitch perfect as Babs/Oracle though. She made it worth watching.

The whole premise made Batman look bad though.

Chris

[samurainoir]

Beyond that, I didn't like how they strayed so far from the book. Gail Simone writes with a lot of heart and the show just seemed to lack that.

What I love about Simone is her ability to capture female friendship in a way that the majority of male writers in mainstream comics (Peter David and Terry Moore being the exceptions) never seem to find the individual "voices" for.

The show really missed the boat when it came to that, plus Canary really didn't seem to have much chemistry with the other two, particularly since they are cast in a more maternalistic/sibling triangle relationship with her.

That episode with the "original" Black Canary, her mother, really showed promise. I can only imagine what the show would have been like if they went for an older more experienced Canary instead who could mirror the complex and more mature relationships the three have with each other in the comic book.

The Harley Quinn finale in the unaired episode that appeared only on the DVD also showed some missed potential.

I heard they were going to introduce a mysterious character referred to only as "Richard" if the show had continued.

[johnnystorm]

Too much tweaking with the original concept...Should have been Huntress & adult Black Canary going on missions sent by Oracle. More "Mission Impossible" undercover stuff, going against super-villain types of the Kingpin or Ras Al Ghul variety. Dump the unnecessary romance with the cop. Also the Batman/Catwoman angle was unnecessary, and only served to point out that Bats & Cats WEREN'T part of the show...so why bring it up? Contractually, it wasn't ever going to happen (them showing up), Would have been better to hint at Huntress' parentage.

[The Bat]

I wanted to like it, I really did....but just couldn't. I loved Dina Meyer as Babs....great casting. But the show was a missed opportunity.

[jwyblejr]

The biggest problem I had with it was trying to merge the current stuff with Golden Age stuff.

[fallensaviour]

I wanted to like it, I really did....but just couldn't. I loved Dina Meyer as Babs....great casting. But the show was a missed opportunity.

Same here.
I was bored very early on...

[samurainoir]

I believe they also had the rights to Starman around this time. I often wonder what would have happened if that had gotten off the ground rather than BoP.

Anyone seen Mercy Reef? I liked the pilot, but again I'm not too sure they could have sustained interest with the premise given the fact that you can only fight so much crime on the water (which I always thought was the downfall of Seahunt).