I think most DC Comics fans saw this one coming...
According to a recent report first shown in EW.com and later featured in the Yahoo TV Blog, NBC has reportedly Cancelled the Wonder Woman TV Series Pilot [starring actress Adrianne Palicki] that they sponsored a few months ago after a pre-screening session that yielded mixed opinions from their execs - thus it will not be debuting later this year, in the Fall prime-time lineup. But I really don't think that this particular outcome should surprise writer David E. Kelley [the guy who wrote Boston Legal], and the guys at Warner Bros TV Studios.
According to the pitch, Wonder Woman was to be a CEO by day, an a crime fighter in a patriotic uniform by night. Sounds basic enough; but somehow, things just didn't come together that easily, when the script was presented. And even when filming of the premier episode began, it just turned out to be "a bit too fantasy based and animated to be accepted as serious reality".
Here's an excerpt from the main article at Yahoo:
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This spring, no pilot was more buzzy, controversial, or intensely scrutinized than "Wonder Woman." But evidently, buzz is not enough to overcome the stink of a misbegotten failure: This week, NBC declined to pick up the show.
The news comes as the networks prepare for their upfront presentations (where they unveil their fall schedules for advertisers). "Wonder Woman" would have seemed to be a sure thing: It was produced by David E. Kelley, whose TV successes with the network date back to "L.A. Law," and starred geek-bait stars like Cary Elwes and Elizabeth Hurley. But reports of its abysmal script (which was later rewritten, to slightly more positive effect) seem to have been borne out in a pilot episode NBC could not approve. The ongoing agita over the design of the title character's costume — which producers attempted to quell by announcing Wonder Woman would actually alternate three different looks — probably didn't help either.
"Wonder Woman" is not the only pilot NBC commissioned, and then (reportedly) rejected....
...fortunately for David E. Kelley, he has had some good news from NBC this week: It has picked up his surprise hit dramedy "Harry's Law" for a second season. Maybe he can write in a role for Adrianne Palicki, the would-have-been Wonder Woman: I see her as a sassy, very tall brunette paralegal, who never dresses in latex bustiers.
- Written by Tara Ariano, from The Set; Friday May 13, 2011
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Honestly I think that some comic ideas are just harder to interpret into live-action formats than others. For instance, how do you make a TV series about a guy like... Namor the Submariner?
He is Marvel's version of Aquaman... he walks about in green speedos covered with fish scales, and he has baby wings on his ankles. He can soar through the air like Superman, and he can out swim the fastest creatures in the sea.... now imagine that stalwart guy on your TV at 8:00pm every Monday night....
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You can check out the two previous Wonder Woman blog articles, to see some of the history of the live-action idea [dating back to last year] and how the very actress selected was rather questionable, per her look as an "Amazon warrior princess".
Wonder Woman new costume analysis, with comparisons to the sketched outfit for the proposed TV series: http://dsngsfm.blogspot.com/2011/04/more-on-wonder-woman-tv-series.html
Wonder Woman actress selection, including fan art by DSNG: http://dsngsfm.blogspot.com/2010/11/wonder-woman.html
Blog home page: http://dsngsfm.blogspot.com/