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EVERYONE’S ASKING: is this the year that “Heroes” is toast? Streaking to popularity in 2006 – with “LOST” in its prime and serial dramas all the rage – the comic-book saga looked set to revive the hopes of a struggling NBC. Jump to 2010, and the network is still struggling. As for its one-time flagship show, viewership for its February midseason finale dwindled to a miserable 4 million. What happened? Well, where “LOST” is often criticized as being a tease, never really giving enough to satisfy the viewer, “Heroes” perhaps cashed in too many dramatic chips in its (admittedly excellent) first season. People died, we thought. A story ran its course, we thought. And it was all pretty cool. But after that the only option was to recycle. And recycle NBC did, killing characters and reviving them, taking away powers, transferring powers, transferring them back – all of which turned the show into a confusing mess without a powerful central storyline. Also, it’s expensive to produce special effects and to keep around stars like Ali Larter, Hayden Panettiere, and Zachary Quinto. So we think it’s toast. However both the network and the creators will bend over backwards to ensure that the series receives a proper ending, if only to preserve DVD sales. That could make for a short six-episode run next year, which is a risk for the short sellers. Barring that, the once-great “Heroes” will fall at last. 2/18/10.
THE MARKET: Will “Heroes” be renewed by NBC? If the network approves another season, shares are worth $100. If it doesn’t, they’re worth $0. See TV confirmation guidelines.
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