Something is Missing from One Day at a Time

It has been over one year since Netflix belted out the 3rd season of reboot One Day at a Time, followed by a dramatic cancellation.  And now a heralded revival on Pop TV, the network airing many favorites on cable.  The only drawback: a significant presence is gone from the online version fans are certain to notice.  Fans of the ensemble best not fret, as all of the principles are intact.  The opening credits featuring Gloria Estefan, however, have been squashed to a title card.  Estefan updated the prior series' title theme "This is It" (sang by Polly Cutter) with Cuban flare to popular demands.

Due to television constraints of needing to condense episodes to 21 minutes of air time (to ram in as many irritating commercials as possible), showrunners needed to make a cut somewhere.  Rather than trimming story and air time, they are foregoing the opening, which is 50 seconds.  Artistically this is a blow to the character of the series and its roots, but an economical decision at best.  In the 1970's and 80's when the original graced our screens, every show had opening, mid-bumper ad closing credits.  This was indeed a different era than today as broadcast networks struggle to appease advertisers able to pay lower ad rates.

Online platforms such as Netflix are granted an ode of luxury of features such as opening and closing title songs, airing over standardized 21 (or even 30) minute episode constraints.  Having subscriptions forgoes the needs for commercials, which is not the case for Pop TV.  And if disheartened fans miss the opening title, go look it up on YouTube and enjoy the fact that the show isn't loss into the abyss of 2019 casualties.  Unlike fellow cancelled series Santa Clarita Diet and others, One Day at a Time was outsourced from Sony, the parent company of several networks such as CBS, MTV, Paramount and Pop.  Netflix's contract was stringent and left few outlets for survival, and yet One Day at a Time managed to locate a hub on Pop! 

Revivals and network/streaming jumps are growing rare as unicorns with succeeding, so count the blessings One Day at a Time is able to grace viewers for another 13 episodes (and hopefully dozens more if the show jells).  To follow up on ODAAT's ratings, tune in Wednesdays for this site's broadcast cable ratings.  Writer Rebecca Bunch has a fond spot for this series, so mentions and reports are guaranteed.

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