Revisiting TV from the 2000s can be a mixed bag, even if the series you’re watching is one you enjoyed in the heyday of the oughts. After rewatching one of my favorites from the decade, I found myself frustrated for a surprising reason. Seventeen years after its original airing, rewatching FlashForward, an ABC series that only made it through one season before cancellation, still feels exciting and fresh. The series itself, which was based on the 1999 novel of the same name by Robert J. Sawyer, worked well as it moved through its first season but remains fully incomplete.
The high-concept sci-fi thriller focused on a global blackout that caused a ripple effect, giving people a look six months into the future. With viewers at the time looking for a successor to Lost, which captivated audiences throughout the 2000s, it seemed like FlashForward was going to be an exciting show that incorporated time travel in a more straightforward way than the J.J. Abrams mystery series. An ambitious project, FlashForward had a great cast in place and made it clear that there was a plan for the narrative as it continued forward. Instead, unfortunately, ABC’s FlashForward became a cautionary tale.
While rewatching the series can remind viewers of what it looks like to tell an ambitious story on network TV, where it’s now a far more difficult feat to take risks, revisiting FlashForward is also a deeply frustrating experience. Now an example of untapped potential, FlashForward was a major loss.
Key Insights on FlashForward’s One-Season Journey
FlashForward holds up as a sci-fi series, especially one that came on the heels of Lost, which is still lauded as one of the best network sci-fi mysteries of all time. While the 2009 ABC series wasn’t yet comparable to its predecessor, FlashForward is an entertaining show with a fascinating premise. After nearly the entire world blacks out and sees 137 seconds of the world six months into the future, the issues that crop up from character to character mixed with the larger narrative of what exactly happened create an interesting dichotomy.
FlashForward avoids many of the obvious pitfalls of 2000s media as well. Rather than feeling dated visually or struggling in its mix of episodic and serialized storytelling, the series is highly bingeable and often feels like a modern show. Unfortunately, however, the series leaves off on a mysterious note and doesn’t have any payoff. While FlashForward wasn’t sure of its status going into the 2010 season, the show chose to leave off on more of a cliffhanger than not; when it was canceled, the story was left entirely unfinished. Despite being a fun watch, FlashForward is disappointing in a way that isn’t fixable.
Could FlashForward Have Been TV’s ‘New Lost’?
Although the shows weren’t in the same sub-genre of sci-fi, both FlashForward and Lost shared a similar enough premise and the allure of a large weaving mystery, which led to them being compared in the media. Throughout Lost’s run, it became a water cooler topic, finding its way into conversations all over the world and establishing itself as appointment TV. While there were moments in Lost that pushed viewers away or left critics scratching their heads, the series had the opportunity to finish its story and establish its lore throughout each season.
FlashForward, unfortunately, didn’t find itself with that opportunity despite having all the makings of network TV’s new golden sci-fi show. Adopting a similar global perspective and centering on an event that was mysterious but finite, FlashForward had all the tools to blossom into something much larger. While it had a fanbase that enjoyed the story, its first season wasn’t enough of a hit for ABC to renew it. The unfinished nature of FlashForward is what makes it frustrating rather than the show itself. Knowing that its story remains unfinished makes FlashForward an inventive series that I’ll forever be frustrated by.
