Spyder Games
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''Spyder Games'' was an American
television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
that was broadcast on
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
from June 18 to September 20, 2001. MTV's second and last foray into the
soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
format following the run of the anthology series '' Undressed'', the series was originally called ''Spyder Web'' in development.''Spyder Games'' - ChristianLaughlin.com
/ref> Originally intended for a 3 pm time slot, ''Spyder Games'' ultimately debuted at 7 pm because of its racy content. The final episodes, originally scheduled to air during the week of September 10, 2001, were postponed by a week because of continuous news coverage of the
September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...
, which MTV aired. The last episode was written as a cliffhanger, but MTV did not pick the series up for a second season. With the decline of the format, as of 2021, ''Spyder Games'' is the last new American soap opera to debut on a traditional, non-streaming broadcast or cable TV network.


Origins

In December 1998, MTV Series Development approached novelist and television writer
Christian McLaughlin Christian McLaughlin (born September 29, 1967 in Houlton, Maine) is a television writer, producer, and author. McLaughlin is a graduate of Radio-Television-Film at the University of Texas. He gained notoriety in his early twenties with the publi ...
and his writing partner
Valerie Ahern Valerie Ahern is an American television screenwriter and producer. She has written episodes for a number of television series since 1995 including ''The Young and the Restless'' (July 27, 2007 – November 29, 2007; April 4, 2008 – July 7, 2008) ...
about developing a soap opera targeting the network's 12- to 24-year-old
demographic Demography () is the statistical study of populations, especially human beings. Demographic analysis examines and measures the dimensions and dynamics of populations; it can cover whole societies or groups defined by criteria such as edu ...
. According to McLaughlin, "We wanted to do for soaps what ''
Scream Scream may refer to: *Screaming, a loud vocalization Amusement rides * Scream (Heide Park), a gyro drop tower in Soltau, Germany * Scream! (ride), a tower ride at Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Six Flags New England * Scream! (roller coaster), at ...
'' had done for horror films. That movie acknowledged and even spoofed the conventions and staples of
slasher film A slasher film is a genre of horror films involving a killer stalking and murdering a group of people, usually by use of bladed or sharp tools like knife, chainsaw, scalpel, etc. Although the term "slasher" may occasionally be used informally as a ...
s while never forgetting it was one ... We wanted to distill everything people loved about soaps — the impossibly hot young characters and deliciously suspenseful
melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...
— and eliminate all the things people hate: the glacial pace, the endless recaps and all that praying and crying." James Stanley and
Diane Messina Stanley Diane Messina Stanley (born 1946) is an American television writer and producer. Positions held ''Strong Medicine, Judging Amy, Knots Landing, The Young and the Restless (Breakdown Writer), Harper Valley P.T.A., House Calls, That's Life, Savann ...
helped the show's creators by serving as Story Consultants before it debuted.


Synopsis

The show centers on a wealthy
video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
-producing family and the unexpected murder of the patriarch, Boris Carlisle, who is in control of the company. A widower with four children (Natalia, Dmitri, Ivan and Sasha), Carlisle exhibits an irrational and unconcealed hatred (for apparently misogynistic reasons) for daughter Natalia, the sole Carlisle child interested in the success of the family's video game business, the titular Spyder Games. Carlsle instead places all of his interest and value in Dmitri, the oldest son, while second son Ivan's sensitivity is rewarded with Carlisle's barely concealed contempt. Youngest son Sasha, a teen much younger than his siblings, is superficially indulged. Dmitri becomes romantically involved with Daphne, a fashion designer, but through mistaken identity is deceived into having sex with Daphne's conniving employee Taylor. Concealing a trailer trash past while working secretly as a call girl, Taylor then supposedly becomes pregnant with Dmitri's child. Ivan marries Julie Whitmore, the daughter of another wealthy local businessman, but then reveals he is gay as he is undeniably attracted to Francisco, a male houseguest in the Carlisles' home and one-time flame of Natalia's. Sasha pursues a career as a serious musician but is frustrated at being typecast as a teen idol in the style of Aaron Carter; indifferent and easily distracted, he breaks the heart of Cherish, a high school classmate with a hard crush on him who is also his most loyal fan. Meanwhile, Natalia struggles to conduct business at Spyder Games, constantly opposed and undermined by her father, who demonstrates many unscrupulous behaviors, both personal and professional. A host of additional characters move in and out of the Carlisles' dealings, including private investigator Jeff Northcutt, Taylor's ex-convict brother Lyle and Natalia's creepily devoted lackey Todd. Eventually Sasha is revealed to be Natalia's son instead of brother, fathered by Ivan's wife Julie's father when Natalia was about thirteen years old. As the episodes progress, a mysterious series of events lead to Boris' murder and the discovery of his severed head in a freezer.


Cast and characters

* Shawn Batten as Natalia Carlisle * J.R. Cacia as Dmitri Carlisle *
Christina Chambers Christina Chambers (born October 24, 1969) is an American actress and model. Personal life Chambers was born in Alexandria, Virginia, into a family of academics, both parents holding doctorates (her father's in physics and her mother's in mathe ...
as Taylor Jones * Megalyn Echikunwoke as Cherish Pardee * Byron Field as Ivan Carlisle * Monica Serene Garnich as Julie Whitmore Carlisle * Robert Hutchinson as Sasha Carlisle * Enrique Murciano as Francisco Torres *
Nectar Rose Nectar Amber Rose is an American actress best known for playing the Gynoid Lenore in the science-fiction film '' Serenity'', a role that required her to maintain a single position for two days of filming. Her first appearance in a feature film w ...
as Daphne Wallace * Bryce Mouer as Lyle Jones *
Zay Harding Zavan Kerr "Zay" Harding (born November 1, 1974, Lihue, Hawaii) is an American television personality and actor, who may be best known as "Jeff Northcutt" on the MTV television serial, ''Spyder Games'', and as a host of the adventure travel telev ...
as Jeff Northcutt * Alisa Reyes as Rocio Conejo


Reception

''Spyder Games'' was criticized for numerous reasons, not the least of which were visibly impoverished production values and questionable quality of acting performances.


References


External links

*
''Spyder Games'' Behind the Scenes - ChristianLaughlin.com
{{MTVNetwork Shows American television soap operas MTV original programming MTV weekday shows 2001 American television series debuts 2001 American television series endings 2000s American drama television series English-language television shows Television series about dysfunctional families