The perils of 'Once and Again'

By Virginia Rohan

"Once and Again" may soon be part of that long chapter of TV history that begins, "Once upon a time... "

Even the producers of the critically acclaimed ABC ratings struggler, which returns to the lineup tonight, seem to accept the probability that their family drama will be canceled.

In a letter to critics that accompanied preview episodes, Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz wrote, "As you probably know (although in this case, why should you be different from the rest of the viewing public), our show will be moving to Monday nights at 10 p.m. beginning March 4. This is either a last valiant attempt to save us, or else the network's version of a Valhalla."

The series is about Lily Sammler (Sela Ward) and her husband, Rick (Billy Campbell). Both previously married and with children, they are trying to blend their families.

Tonight's episode, "Falling in Place," mainly deals with how Rick's kids are dealing with the recovery of their mother (Susanna Thompson), who was hit by a car and is in the hospital. (Zwick plays Dr. Rosenfeld.)

The second episode, "Gay-Straight Alliance," beautifully examines the issue of how teenagers struggle with their sexuality.

Both episodes - directed by Eric Stoltz, who plays a teacher in next week's episode - are very good. But then, quality was never the problem with "Once and Again." And I strongly suspect that those who love the show will love it more than ever now, and those who don't never will.

Nonetheless, the passionate fans of "Once and Again" are out to save the show. They have united to issue a challenge to ABC executives in an ad slated to appear in today's Variety. (The show's fans, who had previously raised money to place a $2,800 ad in The Hollywood Reporter, raised another $3,300 for today's ad.).Their goal is to get ABC to renew the show for a fourth season, give it a good and stable time slot, and promote it more aggressively.

"Once and Again" fans have also been bombarding the network and media outlets with calls, letters, and e-mails and circulating an online petition (www.petitiononline.com/oanda/petitition.html) that had close to 10,000 signatures as of Friday.

More information about the campaign, the series, or its characters can be found on the Web sites: www.angelfire.com/tv/onceagain, www.oandafans.com, and www.saveoanda.com. __ Northjersey.com (March 4, 2002)

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