Telephemera

ALAN BOON DELVES INTO THE TELEVISION ARCHIVES TO UNEARTH ANOTHER LONG-FORGOTTEN CURIO...

- ALAN BOON

GOOD VS EVIL

The vast majority of shows lost to the mists of time – for good reasons and bad – are one season affairs, and it’s a rare thing indeed that makes it to its second season and still retains that forgotten gem status. Imagine, though, that such a show not only changed networks between seasons but also underwent an – albeit subtle – change of name, and, in reality, was just one season, cut into two; that’s grounds for Telephemera, and that’s Good vs Evil.

Created by Joshua and Jonas Pate, who made a splash at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival with their debut movie The Grave, Good vs Evil is the story of two agents of the Corps, an organisation working under the auspices of Heaven, tasked with finding people who have made Faustian deals with Morlocks, agents of Hell.

GvsE – as it was originally titled – debuted on July 21st, 1999 as part of rebranding exercise for the USA Network and given a huge media push, supported by the network’s president of programming, Steven Chao. Chao included a personal letter with the show’s media kits, sent out to reviewers, stating, “When I started at USA Networks a little over one year ago, I promised to bring viewers innovative, creative, and compelling new television series. My goal was to develop concepts that stand apart from the standard fare. With that said, it gives me great pride to introduce to you a series that fulfils these intentions - GvsE.”