Quote from the New York Times:
"To fans of the WB's recently canceled Angel, the writer Tim Minear is known affectionately as The Tim Reaper: the master of the fatal plot twist." (The cited article can be found here.)
Also known for shows on FOX that get cancelled very quickly. In the space of five years, he produced Firefly (11 episodes aired), Wonderfalls (4 episodes aired), The Inside (6 episodes aired), and Drive (2007) (4 episodes aired). Then he became a consulting producer on Dollhouse, which actually got two seasons before it got canned. He then produced the critically beloved Terriers for FX, which attracted fewer viewers than the average high-school play. He worked on The Chicago Code, which was canceled by FOX after its 13 episode first season. He broke the curse with American Horror Story, on which he worked as an executive producer and which is a bona fide hit for FX. He's currently creator/showrunner of 9-1-1.
To his credit, he at least maintains a sense of humor about his bad luck: in addition to the article quote above, his Twitter handle is @CancelledAgain.
Tropes:
- Butt-Monkey: Many of his characters and judging by the length of his shows, himself.
- Deadpan Snarker: You can't work with Joss Whedon and Ryan Murphy without their snarkiness rubbing off on you.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After a decade of short-lived TV shows, he's producing American Horror Story, which has been running for eight seasons and counting.
- George Jetson Job Security: Shows he's involved in generally don't run for very long.
- Self-Deprecation: His Twitter handle is @CancelledAgain for a reason.
- Short-Runners: His name is generally associated with shows that don't last that long.