Journal Entry #1

Have you ever experienced losing something so important to you, and so ingrained in your existence that you couldn't imagine a life without it? For some people it's family, friends, changing circumstances in their lives. Possibly the disappearance of the nearby Taco Bell.

"Sliders" was a television show that I was watching right from day one, and it is an honor to be working on the current incarnation, which isn't really that current. It harkens back to the glory days of the show. The days of Quinn, Wade, Rembrandt, and Arturo. Four adventurers going through the multiverse, exploring the worlds they landed on but ultimately, trying to find their home. And that grabbed me. The characters were great. They were likable and had plenty of depth. Quinn had always been trying to emulate his father, and that had taken his friends away from everything they'd ever known. It was a mistake he had vowed to set right. Wade had been taken from everything that mattered to her, yet she was growing fond of journeying parallel worlds, and growing attracted to Quinn. Rembrandt had had plans, hopes, and dreams. All of it was lost to an adventure that suddenly gave his life meaning. He was exploring, helping others, and surrounded by three other people he didn't know well, but had grown to love. Professor Arturo had never gotten his due in his profession, and now he had been beaten to the punch by a college kid.

There was no way not to care about them.

And then it was all gone. Due to idiots in business suits over at FOX, a terrible executive producer who's experience consisted entirely of being fired a dozen times by his uncle, a lead actor stretched thin, and the loss of several cast members and quality writing, "Sliders" went downhill. The aforementioned producer destroyed the second chance "Sliders" had when picked up by the Sci-Fi Channel, despite the quality of the show improving a little.

And the loss of Jerry O'Connell was the hardest blow to the show, and ultimately killed it in the end. Without the star, the fifth season of the show would fail. That was the Sci-Fi Channel's expectation. So, they chose not to set aside any of their budget for a sixth season of "Sliders", putting their money elsewhere and fully expecting the fifth season to go down in smoke. After all, the star was gone. "Sliders" would be a ratings joke, sure to be defeated by even the TV Guide Channel.

And the reason Jerry O'Connell left the show is quite sad. The man is a very talented actor and director, but his performance in his final season was a joke. Jerry is surrounded by people that will tell him he's the reason behind any success he's had; that he's the real power behind any television show or movie he's involved in; they'll tell him whatever it is he wants to hear in the hopes that he'll pose naked for their magazine or something. And sadly, Jerry succumbed to that. I'd like to think he has the class to realize that and grow from it. He was quite certain the fifth season of "Sliders" would fail. He and the higher-ups at Sci-Fi.

They were wrong.

"Sliders" was one of Sci-Fi's top rated series. But high ratings, a solid fanbase, and a comitted fifth season cast didn't help. The Sci-Fi Channel couldn't afford to finance a sixth season. Good-bye, "Sliders". Farewells were said to the incredibly talented Robert Floyd and Cleavant Derricks, and the ever-alluring Kari Wuhrer and Tembi Locke.

This was it. The network that had given "Sliders" a second chance had slammed the lid down on it; locked it away and thrown away the key.

But we're back. Wow. "We" means "Sliders", when I say it.

This six part mini-series was pushed by Barry Diller himself, who agreed to have USA Networks fund it. "Sliders" is back, and USA Networks, Barry Diller, Bonnie Hammer, and even those guys at FOX are behind us. And we are proud to present the returns of the original cast!!

Jerry O'Connell, Sabrina Lloyd, Cleavant Derricks, and John Rhys-Davies will be returning for six episodes of interdimensional adventure, as will original creators Tracy Torme and Robert K. Weiss.

There were many things we wanted to do for this mini-series. It would provide an ending for "Sliders", at least for our original characters. The fans deserved it, and this mini-series would be it. However, seeing as how Sci-Fi was clutching quite tightly at the "Sliders" license, Tracy, Bob and I soon realized that despite this mini-series and the returns of the original cast, anything was possible. Robert Floyd and the others could very well return for a delayed sixth season. After all, Kari Wuhrer and Charlie O'Connell would be making cameos in the first episode of the series.

Nonetheless, we had to bring back Quinn, Wade, Remmy and Arturo in some way. With the cast committed, we set about trying to write a story for their returns. Our first idea was a "Heat Of The Moment" twist. We'd have it revealed that the sliders we've been watching for the last three years have been doubles of our heroes. It was seriously considered. After all, this script had been written by Tracy, but John's departure had caused it to be scrapped. Why couldn't elements of it be used, without involving the S5 cast?

In the end, we discarded this idea because we felt the fans deserved a better pay-off than a quick way out of the situation like that. Regardless of whether the fans liked the new developments in the show or not, they had watched them and it wasn't fair for us to just act as though three years of television had been a dream. Needless to say, this weeded out most of our suggested plots.

In the end, we chose "Redemption", in which for Quinn to bring back his friends, there will be a price. That's the way it should be. Death and loss shouldn't be considered lightweight factors, and overturning such things should be done with the gain offset by a loss. While that doesn't quite happen in the story, the point is, for it to happen, Quinn has to fight for what he wants and what he thinks is right. While three years of sliding have been reversed, they have affected Quinn. S3-5 isn't wiped from existence, however, but isolated so that if the S5 cast returns in the future, they would be able to tell their stories without contradicting the mini-series.

We've got many plans for the rest of this mini-series. We thought about doing the "Heat Of The Moment" story, but with five episodes to focus on the original cast, we wanted it to be about our characters, not doubles.

We did do many reversions on our sliders, however. While we felt that the "Redemption" story made the returns believable and a good story, there really was no way with other characters to set them right in that manner. So, Rembrandt will be an uncertain but devoted soul again, and the Professor will be a blustery but deeply insecure person with the reasoning being that it's 1997 again.

As for the Quinn/Wade romance, we felt that it was an important element of the show. However, Sabrina Lloyd didn't like that Wade had to be depicted in a wimpy way for it to work. But this time, it'll be different. Quinn, having lost his closest friends for two years before regaining them, will realize the presence of his friends won't be a given. They might not always be there for him.

And he might not have his chance with Wade.

It's going to be a fun ride; I hope you join us for six great episodes. And by the way, Quinn is the noisy kisser in "Last Days", one of my favourite episodes. I should know. In our fourth episode, we had to film that scene nine times so that the microphone wouldn't pick up too much noise... Oops. Gotta go.