I was extremely surprised, when I read the AOL story that provided a list of cancelled shows.  Some of them came as a surprise, while others not so much.  While I’m sharing a complete list as of May 16th at 9:00AM, I though that I’d offer a few comments.

Sadness

• Brothers & Sisters: This was a show that really grew on me.  While the writing has been uneven and, truthfully, some of the recent seasons were lackluster, I really enjoyed the Nora/Brody, as well as the adventures of Scotty/Kevin becoming fathers.  This season also saw Sarah finally marrying Luc and Justin reuniting with his former flame, Tyler.  Nonetheless, with the Sarah/Luc wedding, it made for a satisfactory end to the show.
• Detroit 1-8-7: This, in my opinion, was one of the best shows on TV.  It started off very rocky (much of the Facebook criteria centered on incorrect cultural references, etc.), I felt that it became very interesting, as the characters began to develop.  Unfortunately, in light of the MI film/movie being in jeopardy, its finalized cancellation really wasn’t much of a surprise.  If you see no other episode, do yourself a favor and watch the season/series finale to see what ended up happening to Fitch.
• The Event: I was very surprised that I liked this show because I was never into Lost, which is the only show that I could remotely compare it to.  I do this only because this show was densely detailed.  It really grew on me. It will make my Monday nights a little more empty.
• Lie To Me: I really found this show extremely interesting, as it is loosely based on the work of body language study pioneer, Dr. Paul Ekman through Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth).  The show started off extremely interesting with the emphasis being on how certain “microexpressions” were tied to contemporary examples.  With time, I felt that the storylines meandered.  Truthfully, I quit watching it long ago.  I wouldn’t mind getting the first few seasons on DVD.  Oddly enough, Jennifer Beals, who played Lightman’s wife, ended up on another FOX series, The Chicago Code, which has also been cancelled.
• Smallville: I’m slightly saddened by this show’s end.  However, it’s been on for 10 seasons.  As the show explored Clark Kent’s youth in Smallville and his eventual assumption of the Superman mantle, I found myself tuning in and out throughout its run.  As a matter of fact, I have the series finale DVR’ed and have yet to watch it.  Don’t ruin it for me.

Relief

• Mr. Sunshine: I have no idea what the creators were smoking, when they thought that this show was a good idea.  Not even Matthew Perry’s dry wit could bring any sunshine to this disaster of a show.  Hell, I don’t even think that the songwriter that wrote its theme song was even trying.
• The Paul Reiser Show: Somebody forgot to invite Helen Hunt.

As the story said, business is business.  What I just don’t get is why the networks insist on pumping out TV shows without really giving them a chance to survive.  Even with my DVR and my busy schedule, it’s hard to keep up with my shows.  I suppose that it’s just a sign of the times.

 

Author: José A. Rodríguez