Squeegees

Disney was reportedly reining things in due to the writers’ strike; the company didn’t want to be viewed as overly opportunistic.  Now, with the strike resolved but scripted television not entirely back on the air, this seems like a good moment for the development to be taking place.

Fair warning: since the first episode of "Squeegees" hasn’t become available just yet, we can’t honestly say whether it’s good or not.  Trailers have created a reasonable amount of buzz, though, and anyone who wants to keep an eye on things can do so at either ABC.com or YouTube.

Moving forward, Stage 9 may do something with the highly anticipated series "Trenches."  Its producer, Shane Felux, has already won the respect of the "Star Wars" crowd, and on his blog, wrote yesterday, "So Stage 9 comes out and is official now.  First ‘Squeegees’ then ‘Trenches’ .. maybe.. at some point.. just watch ‘Squeegees’ and keep sending me love."

Take the promo for "Trenches" as an example of Stage 9′s work.  Andrew Wallenstein calls it "pretty remarkable as low-budget recreations of intergalactic warfare go; believe it or not, it was shot in a quarry in Virginia."  Granted, a 60-second preview can’t say too much about the writing, acting, and so on, yet "Trenches" certainly looks cool enough.

Unfortunately, Wallenstein states, "Disney’s ABC has indefinitely postponed the debut of a unit charged with launching original online series. . . .  Disney isn’t saying why Stage 9 is being put on the back burner, but sources indicate the parent company does not want to risk inflaming the guilds with a venture intended to grab digital revenue – a sore point in strike negotiations."

This article will in no way turn into a criticism of the writers’ strike – it is what it is, and its effects are what they are.  Still, it’s interesting to note that the strike is having a negative impact on Stage 9′s online content, when so many onlookers predicted that online videos would flourish as a result.

This development could even alter predictions that the writers’ strike will boost online advertising.