The mayor_of_tv has an interesting paragraph in a recent posting of his about what spinoffs folks would like to see (I’ve added context in []):
Sawyer [from “Lost”], Lex [Luthor, from “Smallville”] and Claire [from “Heroes”] are vaguely more intriguing [as characters to serve as a basis for a spinoff](though Lex’d never happen, since Michael Rosenbaum has finally bolted from the show so he can grow his hair out again). “Lex’s Lair” might be a fun show, essaying the further development of a sociopath, but there was a show that tried this, “Profit” (starring, coincidentally, “Heroes”‘ Adrian Pasdar), and, good as it was, no one watched it. And what would Claire’s spin-off show be? Claire breaks free of the worldwide conspiracy, locates a high school where she can be a cheerleader but never quite fits in, and still finds herself battling evil? Again, already been done: It was called “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” And Sawyer’s penchant for being a selfish Southern con man who dispenses annoying nicknames to everyone is President Bush’s shtick.
So I’ll pose his question to you: If you could pick a character in a TV show and build a spinoff series around them, who would it be?
[My answer, by the way: Especially as they are disappearing this season, I’d like to see a spinoff series revolving around Heylia and Conrad on Sho’s “Weeds”. If one is talking broadcast TV, that’s a lot harder. Perhaps a spinoff of “Big Bang Theory” exploring the life of the female scientist (Leslie Winkel, played by Sara Gilbert) that has shown up periodically.]
