NBC Cancellations

Ironside (TV series) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Canceled:

Welcome To The Family, a show about a Latino family that must get along with a white family because their kids are expecting a baby. The white daughter gets knocked up and her mother is also preggers. I watched the most recent episode with a special appearance by Eva Langoria. The show is not that funny and surprisingly not that racial or edgy, despite my description.

Ironside, a remake of the original Ironside except the main character is cool while Raymond Burr, the original was more tough and straight. I tried watching an episode but when Ironside found a gun because it was at eye level saying something like thanks to my wheel chair I  have a new perspective I knew it was poorly written.

Sean Saves the World and the Michael J. Fox show are still hanging on. I have not seen Sean's show but it looks like a typical sitcom. Michael's show is good as I saw the pilot and liked it better than Robin William's show but it is less shiny than Robin's show so it may not last.

Is it a coincident that the "ethnic" shows were canceled first? Probably not but I blame the writers since they are not yet writing for all types of voices.

Community is coming back praise be the lord.

So much for our Happy Endings...

While most of those canceled were justified the saddest was Happy Endings (ABC). The constantly changing time slot doomed any chance this show had for gaining a mainstream audience.

Another great comedy is gone but I have no doubt we will be seeing this cast around fr years. There is still a small chance TBS will pick it like they did with the awsome show Cougar Town.

Also the Kiefer Sutherland show Touch was also canceled. While a bit silly with the whole numbers hold secret magic plot it was still a good project to see Sutherland at his best.

Save Our Shows: 2013 Edition

Some of these show are on the drink of cancellation. While some most have been granted an extra season it still would be nice if more people can see them and appreciate great television.

Image source: YahooTV

Happy Endings: ABC Fridays 8PM & 8:30PM
Possibly the best comedy on TV right now. Unfortunately the constant time changes will lose the small audience it has. Originally up against New Girl on Tuesday it was switched to Sundays and now Fridays.  Damon Wayans Jr. had two pilots this and New Girl he choose to stay with this one. A brilliant choice for the comedy but New Girl is more popular. It is the reason I stopped watching New Girl since they were on at the same time I chose the funnier show which is Happy Endings. It is a show about friends and relationships but the comedy is multi-layered and you should watch it more than once to get every joke.


Parenthood: NBC Tuesday 10PM (EST unless otherwise noted)
They will be back as the critics and fans continue to support the show. The show centers around a close knit family that has minor problems but good writing makes every small ting a huge drama. Trust me it is worth watching even if a bit slow.

The Following: FOX Monday 9PM
Probably coming back. Former FBI agent must track a serial killers loyal followers. The show is made well and has great suspense. The problem it is on Mondays against my sitcoms and sci-fi shows. As the newest of all my shows it gets pushed to back of the TiVo list.

Community: NBC Thursday 8PM
Canceled. Due to its unfortunate time slot against Big Bang Theory it never has a chance. Still any adult college student would have related to this show on a deep level. Theshow could go crazy at times but it was always funny and brilliant. Zombies, crossovers with another networks show, and tons of smart refernces made this an A-list show.

Raising Hope: FOX Tuesday 8PM (moving to Fridays)
They are playing the moving game with this show meaning it might get axed soon. I have raved about this show before and I will continue to do so. It is a great comedy in line with Married with Children the difference is this family tends to be sweeter, less of cruel streak. Hope is the daughter of a serial killer and a not-smart guy she is raised by him and the entire Chance family. The ways the family gets into and out of trouble each week is to much and both well written and acted. Inside jokes are plenty with My Name is Earl and other little things from guest actors and regulars.

Finales, Cancellations, and Hiatuses

The funniest show on TV Don't Trust the B in Apartment 23 has no been officially canceled but has been pulled from the air. I throw any support I can to this show as I have chosen it over New Girl.

Ben & Kate is finally canceled.

Fridays has become less science ficitiony with the end of Fringe. The show ended with everything in the known universes well but the paradox created made no sense.

Haven finally showed the seasons last 2 episodes postponed due to the Sandy Hook shooting. Having dead kids in school was a critical scene in the show so it is obvious why it was postponed. The show ended  in turmoil with the fate of everyone unknown. Overall very compelling and let us hope it comes back in fall as promised.

Why Is Everyone Watching That?

Looking over other people's list of top show and wondering what are they thinking. I will use Entertainment Weekly's Best of 2012 list as an example but most of the critics list have the same shows. This issue and some great list but most I disagree with but I get their rationale.

#1 Homeland
Agreed. A slowly developing drama with no gimmicks. Well written and well acted.

#2 Breaking Bad
Agreed. Another well thought out show that is slowly developing to a real life conclusion.

#3 Louie
Disagree. While I enjoyed the two previous versions of Louie's shows this one is uneven and not funny. Uncomfortable is his style but it also should be funny, the balance is not right.

#4 Girls
Disagree. Again more uncomfortable than funny. These women have been compared to Sex and the City and yes they are equally reprehensible with how the live there lives.

#5 Mad Men
Agreed. Although I do not watch it seems great and epic.

#6 The Colbert Report
Agreed. I stopped watching it because I sleep early and my TiVo is often too full. That said from what few clips I have seen the show is still topical and funny.

#7 Parks and Recreation
Agreed. When there is nothing left to watch I often watch this show because it is funny and you can always jump into it without feeling lost or out of the loop.

#8 Justified
Disagree. I know nothing about the show and as a TV junkie that is not a good sign.

#9 The Good Wife
Disagree. I tried watching it but it just feels like a typical serial drama. Nothing is special about it.

#10 Nashville
Disagree. Watched bits and pieces and while very true to life the whole country theme is not compelling.

#11 Parenthood
Agreed. A well acted drama that tends to get a bit whiny. These people have it all but ten to get hung up on the little annoyances of life, just like real people.

#12 Luck
Disagree. Gambling shows are never fun to watch and with all the dead horses around this one it just failed at every level.

#13 Fringe
Agreed. One of the few sci-fi shows left on TV and it does what great shows often do, that is leaves you asking questions and thinking about what you just saw.

#14 Sons of Anarchy
Disagree. Violence for the sake of storylines just never appealed to me. Maybe there is more to the sow but I just do not see it.

#15 Archer
Disagree. Adult themed cartoons are usually not funny or clever and this one is no different.

#16 The Walking Dead
Agreed. Should be higher on the list as the entire show is top notch. Great acting, great writing, great, scenery, and very compelling.

#17 Southland
Disagree. Another show I know little to nothing about and seeing how I watch too much TV that is not a good sign.

#18 Hunted
Disagree. See my previous opinion.

#19 NY Med
Agreed. Reality show that takes place in a hospital. It is compelling and filmed more like a documentary than a altered-overly-produced "reality" show.

#20 Bent
Disagree. Seriously never heard of this show until I read this list.

 
Sure not seeing the show should invalidate my opinion but half of a TV shows purpose is to bring new fans in. If you cannot even have a TV obsessed person like me to watch then the show is not worth it.

Postponed Part 2

Due to the shooting in Connecticut some more shows were cancelled or postponed or modified.

The Simpsons was not shown, at least not on the east coast.

Family Guy and American Dad were both pulled and older episodes were shown instead.

Homeland aired a disclaimer the due to the Connecticut incident the episode may be a bit harsh. They were right since the bombing on the show led to a scene where 200bodies were lined upped at a hanger waiting to be processed.

On The View some good advice was given, of course not by the women of the show but their special guests.
--Pre-1970 asylums and institutions dominated the country now unfortunately we can only hold the mentally ill for 72 hours.
--1 out every 100 people use to be in an asylum.
--Blaming others is a key to spotting a future mad-killer. (The FBI should look at the number of bloggers dedicated to hating Obama.) 

Nothing new so stop blaming TV and video games.

Bath School bomber killed 38 children and 6 adults after killing is wife that same morning on May 18, 1927.

And Good Riddance

So TV continues to be less than thrilling but they are making room by canceling a bunch stuff. I will give my opinion on each and why they tossed. I do this in hope that someone listens and adjusts how they write.

"Are You There, Chelsea?" (NBC)
--The horrible and evil Chelsea Handler is played by sweetie Laura Prepon. No surprise a person with no redeeming qualities cannot get an audience. Hopefully Prepon will not get tarnished by this and will continue to work.

"Ringer" (The CW)

--I watched the pilot and it was one of the worst acting and special effects for a network I ever seen. I could no get into the storyline since everything else was so bad it was distracting.

"Alcatraz" (Fox)

--Lost the prison years. Everything was good except the lack of answers. The time traveling criminals were never shocked that they were in the future. Add to that they became super-villains. Stop making simple show complicated and then refuse to give answers. Giving wrong clues does not make the show clever it makes the show unwatchable.

"Harry's Law" (NBC)

--This was a good law show with great acting and good story lines. The problem was that everyone had too much attitude but I can see if this show had another season they would have mellowed out a bit.

"Pan Am" (ABC)

--2010s attitudes in the 1960s. Nothing realistic or nostalgic about this time and the people on this show.

"Awake" (NBC)

--Great acting and almost unique premise (BBC's Life on Mars and Canada's The Odyssey did it bettter). Trying to avoid the sci-fi label they made this show more of a medical drama. Hints of something bigger going on kept popping up but again with no resolution.

"Breaking In" (Fox)

--Never saw it was Megan Mullally being her same character on some other show.

"Bent" (NBC)

--??? what was this? I guess I'll never find out.

"GCB" (ABC)

--No!

I liked this show although thinking that all the women went to school together was completely ridiculous. I hope to Leslie Bibb in some other comedy soon. 

"The Secret Circle" (The CW)

--Teen witches that take life too serious. Typical teen melodrama no big loss.

"A Gifted Man" (CBS)

--A doctor sees his dead wife. She in turn tries to make him a better person. Like Ghost Whisperer expect just one ghost and less bouncy.

"Missing" (ABC)

--CIA agent tracking down her son that was kidnapped. Sounds great except Ashley Judd's head was so enormus that it became distracting and impossible to watch. Sorry but having a person fit the role is part of a TV show.

"The Finder" (Fox)

--Bones awful spin-off about a guy who finds anything if he tries. The premise was silly but the execution was worse. The cast was cool but that was not enough to get over the weak premise.

"Best Friends Forever" (NBC)

--Kind of sort of heard about this but not really.

"I Hate My Teenage Daughter" (Fox)

--Ads for this show were so annoying I think they stopped after two weeks. Never saw it but it looked low class and not funny.

"The Firm" (NBC)

--John Grisham was rolling in his grave when this unnecessary continuation of his great book and movie was announced. Leave the man alone he's dead.

"The River" (ABC)

--A ghost story and magic mixes with reality TV except scripted. In other words to many genres mixed together and no clear escape. The fact that everyone on the boat was not absolutely shocked by the supernatural made things unrealistic beyond the norm.