"But...we've already shot the episodes...why would they cancel us?"

The summer space series Defying Gravity is a show that I have been enjoying quite a bit over the past few weeks.  However, despite my love of this series, and its centering on the lives of these astronaut's exploring our solar system, it seems that none of the rest of you are watching it...at all.  News broke a few days ago that Canada's CTV will be moving the series to Friday night's in Canada, which seems to be a dreaded sci-fi dumping ground.  So what will ABC do with this great little series?  Your guess is as good as mine (and the folks over at TVbythenumbers).

For those of you that are fans of the show, hold strong, because the show hasn't been canceled yet.  The good news is that the entire first season (12 episodes) has already been filmed, so at the very least it seems like we'll get to see it on DVD if ABC cancels it.  However, the terrible ratings can't be ignored, and normally you'd have to assume ABC would move it somewhere else in its schedule.  Saturdays would be a good place to park it for another few weeks, which is a similar strategy that NBC followed with Kings this summer when it aired the remainder of its first season.  The only problem is that College Football will be starting back up before Defying Gravity ends, so Saturdays seem less likely.  Friday are already out of the question for ABC, because the reruns they're showing Friday night are already beating the new episodes of Defying Gravity (I know, I told you the ratings were bad!).  For us fans out here we can only hope that ABC will hold fast and keep Defying Gravity on Sunday night's until the first season has played out.  But regardless of whether we finish watching it on ABC, or on DVD sometime in the future, you can be sure you won't be seeing a season 2 of this show.

Source: TVbythenumbers

Defying Gravity Gets New CTV Timeslot in Canada

On Sunday, August 2 at 9 pm EST ABC will premiere it's new summer filler series, Defying Gravity which stars Ron Livingston and Laura Harris.  But this new series is no filler, and just might be the best new show I've seen all summer.  We'll save the full review for later, and instead focus on giving you a first look at Defying Gravity, and to hopefully make you want to tune in for its two-hour premiere on August 2.

ABC says

Four women and four men hurtle through space with nothing to do for six years and eight billion miles, except maybe solve a powerful and awesome mystery. Maybe, just maybe, some of them will even hook up. How cool is that?

Defying Gravity is a sexy, provocative thriller set in the very near future against the backdrop of our solar system, in which the eight astronauts from five countries undertake a mysterious six-year international space mission on the spaceship Antares.

They can't run from karma, however, as their past actions reveal intimate and interconnected relationships that have a strange effect on the present. As the astronauts travel towards Venus, we travel into their past with flashbacks to earlier years from the grueling selection and training process. What could have happened?

Maybe there is something to this fate thing after all.

This is a great summary of the show, but non-sci-fi buffs should take note, this is not your typical, other-worldly science fiction.  Defying Gravity takes place in a very near future, with everyday people like you and me.  You should also note that central to this story is the relationship of its characters and the mysterious force at play behind the scenes, and not on time travel, crazy science, or some long lost colony from Earth's past.

Defying Gravity is a serial show, with each episode further building on the previous one.  Each episode focuses on daily life aboard the Antares, while also flashing back to various moments in the character's pasts in a way similar to the flashbacks on Lost.  But don't confuse Defying Gravity as a Lost knock-off, because it's not.  They simply utilize the same story-telling device as Lost has made famous (see our original preview article here)

Below are four clips for the upcoming premiere episode, to give you a taste of what you're in store for come August 2.  There is also a link to a gallery of promotional images from the show at the bottom of the article.

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View the Defying Gravity Promo gallery.

A First Look at "Defying Gravity" (Video)

Get ready sci-fi fans, ABC has a special little treat for us, and its coming before the end of the summer!  ABC has just purchased 13 episodes of a new sci-fi drama called Defying Gravity that stars Ron Livingston (Office Space), Laura Harris (Dead Like Me), Christina Cox (The Chronicles of Riddick, Blood Ties), Malik Yoba (New York Undercover) and Florentine Lahme (ABC miniseries Impact).  All 13 episodes have already been shot, and will also air on Canada's CTV, Germany's ProSieben and the BBC.  So what's this new sci-fi drama about?  According to The Hollywood Reporter:

Gravity,  is set in the near future and revolves around eight astronauts from five countries who undertake a mysterious six-year mission through the solar system.

The FtvS-produced series, slated to air on ABC this summer, is a co-venture with Vancouver-based Omni Film Prods., whose Brian Hamilton and Michael Chechik also exec produce.

"Since we originally pitched "Gravity" to the international marketplace as 'Gray's Anatomy' in space, getting the series on the network that has 'Grey's' and makes the most successful sci-fi show on TV in 'Lost' is a good fit," FtvS executive vp David Madden said. He describes the show as "having a sci-fi premise but being told in a female-friendly way."

Wait, what did he just say?  They're comparing a new sci-fi drama to Grey's Anatomy?  Now I have to admit, I'm a bit nervous about this one.  Still, its science fiction and it's on in the summer, so you can bet your astronaut loving arse that I'll be watching this one.  There are also reports that if the show is successful enough it could get picked up for an additional season as well.  So keep your fingers crossed and stay tuned for an upcoming release date for Defying Gravity.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

ABC is 'Defying Gravity' With New Summer Series