First off i would like to thank the academy for something.

O yeah, i would like to thank FOX for making such a funny spy drama. If you miss The Good Guys then Chaos might just be something you would enjoy.

I would like to scold CBS for putting it on a such a sure-to-fail time of week and season. Normally this is where i would give a little rant about how clearly the network had no interest in the show going forward a la NBC & LOLA but CBS did promote Chaos. I just missed every single bit of it because i watch anything but CBS during the college basketball playoffs.  Friday at 8pm is not really a ‘featured new show’ time slot. The ratings were bad. CBS pulled Chaos. I still bitch at them for messing with Flashpoint in Canada as a result of the failure of Chaos but that is another story i write about all the time. This is about Chaos.

CBS said the show would come back. They were honest. There were 2 episodes on 28 May and then one each of the subsequent Saturdays through yesterday. Next week there are 2 episodes and then one each of the three Saturdays after that to complete the series.  It all sounds reasonable. Fans should probably be grateful CBS isn’t putting on repeats of something else instead.

Part of why Chaos was cancelled is probably due to the episodes that were broadcast prior to cancellation. There was no continuity. The show really felt like it was jumping all over the place and outside of the main story of the week the background interactions seemed inconsistent and confusing. Of course that will turn people off. But it was CBS trying to put forward ‘the best episodes’ to hook an audience. Backfired.

But it  didn’t stop there. When the show came back for its burn off it got worse. How does a network expect you to follow a show when the broadcast order is 1 4 7 9 5 3 6 2 ? ? ? ? ?. Exactly. Only those really, really enjoying it are going to stick around for their fix while everyone else will move on to something less frustrating to enjoy. Last night the second episode was finally broadcast; now it is possible to sit down and enjoy the show in the correct order and better appreciate and understand how it was supposed to be viewed.

1ASM79 : Chaos.s01e01.HTDV.XviD-LOL.avi
1ASM01 : Chaos.S01E08.HDTV.XviD-LOL.avi
1ASM02 : Chaos.S01E06.HDTV.XviD-LOL.avi
1ASM03 : Chaos.S01E02.HDTV.XviD-LOL.avi
1ASM04 : chaos.s01e05.hdtv.xvid-2hd.avi
1ASM05 : chaos.107.hdtv-lol.avi
1ASM06 : chaos.103.hdtv-lol.avi
1ASM07 : not yet broadcast
1ASM08 : Chaos.S01E04.HDTV.XviD-2HD.avi

There are 5 episodes to go:

• 25 June – “Defending Sophia” – When a U.S. ally is assassinated on the eve of her country’s presidential election, the ODS travel abroad only to discover that her death was staged.  They vow to keep her safe from her own government so she can participate in the election.
• 25 June – “Glory Days” – When the CIA uncovers a private security contractor’s attempts to place moles in US embassies, they turn to a legendary former agent to aid in the investigation, not knowing if he still has the skills to succeed in the spy game.  Bruce Boxleitner (“Tron: Legacy”) guest stars as former spy Ray Bishop.
• 2 July – “Deep Cover Band” – The team is sent to Germany to bring home a rogue agent, but they soon learn that not only is he still a loyal spy, he’s also uncovered an underground drug ring and needs their help to take it down.
• 9 July – “Mincemeat” – When a Middle Eastern dictator on his deathbed must choose a successor, the CIA sends the CHAOS agents in undercover to convince him to keep his violent son from taking power.
• 16 July – “Proof of Life” – When the ODS discovers that a former team member who was presumed dead is actually alive and being held hostage, they embark on a rogue mission to Panama to rescue him, knowing that they might not make it home.

In case you missed it or would just like to compare, here is version 4 of the the pilot script with the new ending from 15 January 2010 (no idea what the old ending was). If you want to get a review of the script there is one from tvscriptdude.blogspot.com from 14 February 2010.