<p>The following was published in TV Guide online today. Thoughts?
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Question: I'm curious — have you ever seen a fandom as bitterly and vocally divided as the Person of Interest fandom currently is? It feels like the Classic Coke vs. New Coke battle to me. No one (including me) is willing to compromise, and no one seems happy. Part of it is the death of Carter (it was a horrible mistake vs. it was necessary, let it go); part is the new direction of the show (episodic vs. serial); part is the new take of the characters (Crazy-Evil-Root vs. Reformed-Helper-Shoot-in-the-Kneecaps-Root); part is the new focus (ordinary people vs. the Battle of the Machines). It seems to come down to the fact that the people who loved Seasons 1 and 2 have hated Seasons 3 and 4, and vice-versa. Whether the episode is episodic or arc-based, half the fandom is angry about it. The show is finally getting critical attention and acclaim, but the ratings slip further every week. Given the deep and bitter divide, do you think there's any hope for a reconciliation that will turn the ratings around? Can this fandom (and show) be saved? — Linda O
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Matt Roush: From a purely critical point of view (as opposed to worrying about fandom in-fighting, which is a rabbit hole I try always to avoid), if Person of Interest weren't so polarizing, it would be a lot less interesting to me. I have always admired this show for not playing it safe, and while I hope the Samaritan arc will be contained to this season and the team moves on from their current exile to some new modus operandi next year — although I love the new HQ in the abandoned subway car — I'm excited by a show that continues to evolve as dramatically as POI does. Ratings are relative (see earlier question), and POI in what had been a very problematic Tuesday time period isn't a disaster, as something so off-brand might be expected to be (though I'm not surprised it trails the more mainstream Chicago Fire). So to me, the question here isn't about reconciling the fan base that still can't get over Carter's death (old news — and good news is that Taraji P. Henson is back later this season in a new Fox drama called Empire, which I'll be getting an early look at later this month) and who can't embrace Shaw (my current favorite) and Root for the roles they're now playing. It's about an audience's willingness to keep going on the ride with a show that I still look very forward to each week, because it's so different and unexpected. That said, I rather enjoyed last week's more conventional episode that felt like a classic "follow the number and save the kids" caper.
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http://www.tvguide.com/News/Ask-Matt-Twin-Peaks-Person-Interest-Greys-Anatomy-NCIS-Blackish-Arrow-1088199.aspx
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