Published at 11:53 AM on August 15, 2008

By Sean Gandert

NBC web series Gemini Division to star Rosario Dawson

Online shows like Quarterlife or the stuff they put up on Channel 101 can be new and exciting, but ultimately they lack a certain something that network television has. That certain something is money. But it looks like change is afoot, paradigms are shifting, etc. NBC announced recently that it's producing a straight-to-web television show to be released in a series of easy, bite-sized episodes better fitting to their format.

Gemini Division will be premiering Monday on NBC.com, SciFi.com and a load of other places for free (including the Xbox Live store, if you'd prefer to watch it on television). Each episode will only last four or five minutes, with Fridays stringing all the bits together into a single normal-ish length episode. If you remember Conan O'Brien's parody of 24 from a few years back, it will probably play out like that. The entirety of the series has been plotted out to 50 miniature episodes.

The show will star Rosario Dawson as "a street wise and tough-as-nails New York cop forced to live dual lives." When her boyfriend is killed, she vows to avenge his death by hunting down his murderers, who happen to be involved in some sort of international conspiracy. The series will also feature computer generated/rotoscoped backgrounds for some reason, that reason probably being because they look cool.

Of course, this isn't the first time a network has tried something like this. CBS created Wallstrip and ABC produced Squeegees, but have you heard of either of them? Neither had we, which is indicative of the success these things have had before. NBC's effort has a fairly high-profile star, advertising already lined up, and, despite the potential cheesiness of its plot, at least the possibility of something good coming out.

Or it could fail again. According to a press release on the show, NBC is hoping to show its support by "letting the viewers dictate the show's social-media strategy," which shows an unfortunate focus on marketing rather than the quality of the actual show itself. Past Internet successes, from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog to the website Funny or Die, have won out due to their quality, not their marketing. Only time will tell whether this show will flop like its predecessors or be the first successful web show of its kind.

Related links:
Review: Grindhouse
Advertising Age: Can this Sci-fi series boldly go where no other has gone?
GeminiDivision.com

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