EW Article

From Entertainment Weekly

11/9/01 (LINK)

Naval Gazing

By Allison Hope Weiner

In troubled times, American couch potatoes have turned to familiar television fare for solace. In its eighth season, for example, NBC's beloved ''Friends'' is off to its best start in years -- as is CBS' six-year-old ''Everybody Loves Raymond.'' And then there's ''JAG.'' This fall, CBS' square-as-a-semaphore military drama has shown a surprising resurgence. ''Jag'''s Sept. 25 season premiere snagged the second-highest ratings in its seven-year history and registered a 39 percent bump in the coveted 18–49 demographic over last year's. Plus, it repeatedly wins its Tuesday time slot, even beating Fox's hip college sitcom ''Undeclared.''

Why are viewers giving ''JAG'' an 18-share salute? Executive producer and creator Donald Bellisario credits the national wave of patriotism for part of the show's new strength. ''People are tuning in to get some insight into what the military is all about,'' he says. ''We show the positive and the negative, but we also give respect to those officers who lay it on the line.'' Lead actor David James Elliott, who portrays hunky lawyer Cmdr. Harmon Rabb in the Navy's Judge Advocate General's office, agrees. ''In the past, people thought the show was all about the military and just decided that they didn't like it,'' says Elliott. ''The fact that we're feeling more favorably about our military can only help.''

In fact, the Navy-supported series does seem to be benefiting from the current flag-waving mood. Unlike such CIA-backed shows as CBS' ''The Agency'' and ABC's ''Alias,'' which have shown disappointing ratings to date despite heavy promotion. ''The irony is that the show hasn't changed,'' says ''JAG'' coexecutive producer and head writer Stephen Zito. ''People have just figured out that we're here and they like what they're seeing.''

It wasn't always this easy. ''JAG'' debuted in 1995 on NBC, but was canceled after only a year. The series was picked up as a midseason replacement by then-third-place CBS, where it enjoyed solid ratings -- except for last season's stint against ABC's then-hot ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.''

Despite its success, the show has flown under the media radar. Bellisario recalls that a Nielsen chart in The Hollywood Reporter once shaded NBC's ''Mad About You'' as the ratings winner in the time slot -- though ''JAG'' posted better numbers that week. And he blames the ongoing lack of coverage on a mix of history and politics: ''The media's image of the military is probably left over from Vietnam. They assumed the show was jingoistic.'' So what changed their minds? ''September 11 made the difference,'' he says. ''I'm suddenly doing interviews every day.''

Now a fixture in the top 10, ''JAG'' faces the new challenge of depicting military life in the midst of a real-life war. ''Changes had to be made,'' says Zito. ''After 9/11, life is real serious.'' As a result, producers have toned down lighthearted stories -- like a comedic visit from the number-crunching inspector general -- and temporarily shelved a prospective romance between Elliott's Harmon and Lieut. Col. Sarah ''Mac'' MacKenzie (Catherine Bell).

For now, ''JAG'' is content to let the specifics of the war play out on the evening news. Still, producers have added brief scenes reflecting the current conflict. In one episode, Gunnery Sgt. Victor Galindez (Randy Vasquez) requests deployment to the front. In another, the forced landing of a U.S. spy plane in China becomes an even more delicate diplomatic situation because that country is an ally in the war on terrorism. Bellisario is planning future episodes that touch more directly on Operation Enduring Freedom, including one involving a mission in Afghanistan. ''You can't get away from it,'' says Zito. ''But the headlines change every day, minute by minute. One of our concerns is being overtaken by the headlines.''

One thing is certain: ''JAG'' has come a long way from its rocky first season. ''I remember NBC saying that they didn't think people would watch a military show,'' says Bellisario. ''Now it's all changed.''

Back to JAGNews


	From Entertainment Weekly 11/9/01 (LINK) Naval Gazing By Allison Hope Weiner In troubled times, American couch potatoes have turned to familiar television fare for solace. In its eighth season, for example, NBC's beloved ''Friends'' is off to its best start in years -- as is CBS' six-year-old ''Everybody Loves Raymond.'' And then there's ''JAG.'' This fall, CBS' square-as-a-semaphore military drama has shown a surprising resurgence. ''Jag'''s Sept. 25 season premiere snagged the second-highest ratings in its seven-year history and registered a 39 percent bump in the coveted 18–49 demographic over last year's. Plus, it repeatedly wins its Tuesday time slot, even beating Fox's hip college sitcom ''Undeclared.'' Why are viewers giving ''JAG'' an 18-share salute? Executive producer and creator Donald Bellisario credits the national wave of patriotism for part of the show's new strength. ''People are tuning in to get some insight into what the military is all about,'' he says. ''We show the positive and the negative, but we also give respect to those officers who lay it on the line.'' Lead actor David James Elliott, who portrays hunky lawyer Cmdr. Harmon Rabb in the Navy's Judge Advocate General's office, agrees. ''In the past, people thought the show was all about the military and just decided that they didn't like it,'' says Elliott. ''The fact that we're feeling more favorably about our military can only help.'' In fact, the Navy-supported series does seem to be benefiting from the current flag-waving mood. Unlike such CIA-backed shows as CBS' ''The Agency'' and ABC's ''Alias,'' which have shown disappointing ratings to date despite heavy promotion. ''The irony is that the show hasn't changed,'' says ''JAG'' coexecutive producer and head writer Stephen Zito. ''People have just figured out that we're here and they like what they're seeing.'' It wasn't always this easy. ''JAG'' debuted in 1995 on NBC, but was canceled after only a year. The series was picked up as a midseason replacement by then-third-place CBS, where it enjoyed solid ratings -- except for last season's stint against ABC's then-hot ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.'' Despite its success, the show has flown under the media radar. Bellisario recalls that a Nielsen chart in The Hollywood Reporter once shaded NBC's ''Mad About You'' as the ratings winner in the time slot -- though ''JAG'' posted better numbers that week. And he blames the ongoing lack of coverage on a mix of history and politics: ''The media's image of the military is probably left over from Vietnam. They assumed the show was jingoistic.'' So what changed their minds? ''September 11 made the difference,'' he says. ''I'm suddenly doing interviews every day.'' Now a fixture in the top 10, ''JAG'' faces the new challenge of depicting military life in the midst of a real-life war. ''Changes had to be made,'' says Zito. ''After 9/11, life is real serious.'' As a result, producers have toned down lighthearted stories -- like a comedic visit from the number-crunching inspector general -- and temporarily shelved a prospective romance between Elliott's Harmon and Lieut. Col. Sarah ''Mac'' MacKenzie (Catherine Bell). For now, ''JAG'' is content to let the specifics of the war play out on the evening news. Still, producers have added brief scenes reflecting the current conflict. In one episode, Gunnery Sgt. Victor Galindez (Randy Vasquez) requests deployment to the front. In another, the forced landing of a U.S. spy plane in China becomes an even more delicate diplomatic situation because that country is an ally in the war on terrorism. Bellisario is planning future episodes that touch more directly on Operation Enduring Freedom, including one involving a mission in Afghanistan. ''You can't get away from it,'' says Zito. ''But the headlines change every day, minute by minute. One of our concerns is being overtaken by the headlines.'' One thing is certain: ''JAG'' has come a long way from its rocky first season. ''I remember NBC saying that they didn't think people would watch a military show,'' says Bellisario. ''Now it's all changed.'' Back to JAGNews