By Jocelyn Lee

On paper, The Ultimatum looked like a sure hit. It starred MediaCorp's biggest stars Zoe Tay and Fann Wong.

It boasted high-production values - it was the first Channel 8 drama shot in high definition. The budget was befitting a blockbuster and the lavish sets included the use of speedboats and mansions.

The two biggest male leads on local television, Li Nanxing and Tay Ping Hui, lent their star power to the show.

Mostly, expectations were high because Tay, 41, and Fann, 38, were anchoring a serial together on Channel 8 for the first time in 14 years.

Their previous collaboration in 1995, The Golden Pillow, was a landmark drama which made a lasting impression on many Singaporeans to this day. Tay won Best Actress at the Star Awards in 1996 for that show.

Yet The Ultimatum, which ended its six-week run on Tuesday, has turned out to be the blockbuster that bombed.

It had a low average rating of 917,000 viewers over 30 episodes, faring worse than the previous three serials in the same 9pm prime-time slot.

Why the poor showing?

Industry insiders and viewers whom LifeStyle spoke to blame a weak plot and poor characterisation. Many feel that the melodramatic story, which involves mistaken identities, doppelgangers and gun fights, is cliched and far-fetched, making it difficult for them to relate to.

In the show, Fann is lawyer Fang Songqiao and Tay is Ye Yuchen, heiress of a big corporation. After they become good friends, Ye discovers that they were swopped after birth, making Fang the rightful heiress. To protect her position, Ye betrays Fang and they become enemies overnight.

Harking back to Cantonese melodramas of the 1960s, Ye literally goes crazy with rage and her character undergoes a drastic transformation from angel to mad woman.

Ms Soh Eng Phang, a 49-year-old housewife, says: 'I find it ridiculous that Zoe Tay's character, who was so caring towards her brother and mother at the start of the show, could have such a sudden change of attitude towards them, and went so far as to kill them towards the end. It's illogical.'

Indeed, the three shows preceding The Ultimatum featured way more down-to-earth characters engaged in humdrum, everyday activities such as going to school, playing table tennis and keeping house. Viewers could identify with the characters and the plotlines.

All three serials fared better than The Ultimatum despite starring mostly second- string artists, newcomers and veteran character actors.

My School Daze was about primary school children and their kiasu parents, and starred Chen Hanwei, Terence Cao and Rui En. It had an average of 986,000 viewers from April to May.

Table Of Glory was an idol drama which revolved around table tennis. Its stars, Joshua Ang and Dai Yangtian, are promising actors whose track records as marquee names are as yet unproven. It attracted an average of 1,016,000 viewers in April.

With a median 1,076,000 viewers, Housewives' Holiday, which aired in March, fared best of all three. The dramedy starred veteran actresses Hong Huifang, Xiang Yun and Ann Kok playing housewives with problems such as unfaithful husbands and nosey in-laws.

Obviously, viewers had no trouble identifying with such dramas dealing with real- life issues.

Housewife Tan Hui Mei, 46, says: 'The plots reflect everyday life. I feel that I can connect to the characters in those shows.'

Ms Chia Men Yiang, senior executive producer of the Chinese drama department in MediaCorp Studios, admits that the producers might have misjudged Singaporeans' appetite for the exotic.

She says: 'Naturally, our expectations were high for The Ultimatum, given the cast and the opulent sets. However, the story revolving around rich families amid lavish settings could have failed to strike a chord in local viewers who can better relate to dramas that deal with the everyday life of Singaporeans.'

She adds: 'On the other hand, our overseas markets see a strong demand for dramas such as The Ultimatum, which we sold to China, Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam even before its run ended here.'

What then would viewers in those countries make of The Ultimatum's other weaknesses, such as the liberal copying of plot points from other melodramas?

A major criticism was that the show had ripped off other drama series, but failed to match the high standards of the other shows.

Ms Kwan Seck Mui, an entertainment editor of local Chinese papers Shin Min Daily News and Lianhe Wanbao, says: 'The Ultimatum looked like it copied some recent epic dramas from Hong Kong, such as Moonlight Resonance (2008). But the scenes and the plot were not exciting enough.'

For example, documentary photographer Lu Qingwen, 25, says: 'The Ultimatum disappointed me because it was touted as a big luxurious show with many gambling scenes like The Unbeatables. Yet I didn't see many gambling scenes.'

Omy.sg online journalist Lai Wan Li adds: 'The love story between Felicia Chin and Zhang Zhenhuan's characters was way too similar to that in Korean drama Coffee Prince (2007).'

Fann says she was disappointed that the show did not meet the high expectations of viewers. But she adds: 'At the same time, I'm happy that viewers have matured over the past decade. With cable TV and the Internet, viewers have many other mediums that they can choose from and we can see that their viewing patterns have changed. It is something we can learn from.''

Indeed, it would seem that local viewers are maturing. No longer will they accept poorly scripted dramas on prime-time just because their favourite stars are in them.

Deliveryman Chong Boon Hao, 40, says: 'I like the actresses' acting but the plot did not hook me enough for me to keep watching it. If the script is not good, I'll just switch to watching cable TV.'

Local TV producers should consider The Ultimatum's poor ratings as, well, the viewers' ultimatum.

This story was first published in The Straits Times.

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