Three of my shows down already

I sampled most of the new dramas and picked six I would watch for a
while. And here we are, a month and a half into the new season, and
Smith, Runaway and Kidnapped have already been cancelled. Admittedly,

Rob Jensen...

It's all your fault. 8^p

-- Rob

none of the cancelations seem very surprising to most people, though CBS
was pretty quick to pull the plug on Smith. Kudos to NBC for at least
running the entire 13-episode arc of Kidnapped. I watched Runaway only
because I liked Leslie Hope in the first season of 24.

Dano...

I expected Smith to crash and burn simply because vitually the same show was
tried and failed last season...Heist and Theif...both were far superior IMO,
though I admit I only gave Smith one shot...too much else I was interested
in...I watch too much TV as it is.

Are they going to have a real conclusion to Kidnapped? I didn't care for it
that much, but I would like some closure. If there won't be, I'd rather

jayembee...

The network told the producers to go with their "contingency plan" to
wrap the story up in 13 episodes. One assumes that this mean that the
producers had a rough outline for the arc to last a full 22 episodes
if the show was successful, and a series of escape routes along the
way so they could wrap it up sooner by dropping subplots and tightening
up the main plot. I'm going to guess that some subplots like Connie's
backstory are going bye-bye.

I'm also going to guess that the two-and-half-week gap between its
last Wednesday airing and its first Saturday airing are to give the
producers a chance to re-edit the episodes already in the can in
order to drop now-unnecessary subplot footage.

stop watching now. Even the star couldn't stay interested enough to finish,
I suppose I shouldn't either.

jayembee...

What are you referring to here? I haven't heard anything about any
of the cast members dropping out early. Are you perhaps confusing
this with Gale Harold being written out of VANISHED?

Shows I'm watching that haven't been cancelled yet are Jerico, The Nine,
and Justice. The latter is just fun while it lasts, but the first two
show potential, even if they're both flawed.

Lord Vader III...

Unfortunately, I think you're going to be lose 2 more pretty quickly
(The Nine & Justice).

Robin Miller...

Didn't Fox order three more eps of Justice? Truthfully, I wouldn't even

jayembee...

They ordered three more scripts. Not the same thing. It basically
means "We're not quite ready to throw in the towel, but we don't
want to fork over any more production money just yet. And if I
were you, I wouldn't plan on buying a new house anytime soon."

Robin Miller...

OK, thanks! I didn't realize there was that distinction.

jayembee...

For the life of me, I can't think of any series where the network
ordered more scripts for a series on the bubble and the series

videonovels...

.

Well I hope Justice survives. I like its original approach to the
courtroom drama. Instead of the usual sterility, it feels fresh &
exciting.

So far I've been lucky... none of the shows I picked are getting
canceled. I taped, but never watched Vanished & Runaway, so I didn't
waste any time. Jericho is still sticking around & so too is Ugly
Betty and Heroes.

survived in the long term. FOX had, at one point, ordered more
scripts for FIREFLY, which eventually went into production, but
the series was cancelled anyway.

I see a network ordering more scripts as just delaying the
inevitable.

notice if it were gone. But The Nine has several actors I like, and it's
an unusual theme for a show. I would/will be disappointed if that one
goes down too.

Dano...

Now there's another that I like, but where do they go with it over a long
time? Maybe they should produce more one season and out series on purpose.
Tell a story and end it. Hmmmm...they could call them mini-series maybe?

Donna B...

And, JERICHO just got a season long pick up if I recall.

Dano...

Those are all pretty good, I like The Nine the best of those.

FWIW, I tried, but didn't care for, Heroes, Shark and Six Degrees.

Dano...

I could live without Shark...it's OK, but enough of lawyers on TV. I love
the other two...even though there's a lawyer on Six Degrees too.

Is there an unusually small number of successful shows among this
season's new offerings? I really don't watch comedies or reality shows,
so I don't have the full picture...

Anthony Cerrato...

I was always gonna watch HEROES, STUDIO 60, and JERICHO, and
I thought I'd give THE NINE and SHARK a chance cause I liked
many of the actors...after a few eps and this weeks, I just
gave up on THE NINE--this weeks ep I just stopped the tape
in the middle and erased it! It has not generated much
excitement so far and one could guess at the mysteries that
are still to be revealed and they are pretty dull. SHARK I'm
still ambivalent on-- I dunno exactly why, maybe the
characters themselves (ditto for The Nine), but so far, for
all the good acting, it is pretty dull too...I'll probably
drop it next ep if there's no improvement.

HEROES, STUDIO 60, and JERICHO, have not disappointed one
bit, and I luv 'em. Oh, forgot 30 ROCK...it's funny (not
_that_ funny tho) and it makes the distinction between
comedy/drama very clear which is good...it's comedy--but,
Tracy is becoming a little annoying and I dunno if I wanna
watch The Tracy Show much longer...I thought Tina Fey was
gonna be the main character, no?
...tonyC

Donna B...

So far, most of the new hour long scripted shows - dramas & skiffy &
dramedies - are still on the air. Successful is yet to be seen. Some shows
have gotten full season orders already. Some have been cancelled or put on
hiatus or are having their front 13 (or however many) burned off. Most shows
are in the middle with their futures still unknown.

I think what's unusual this year is that there have been so many new
scripted hour long shows trotted out; so many of them are good; and it's
just a question of where they are & how they're promoted & if they can
justify their individual costs with their individual ratings.

Dano...

I think this is one of the best new crops in some time. Some of the good

jayembee...

Same here. I've given a shot to more new dramas this year than I've
done for a long time.

HEROES, STUDIO 60, JERICHO, and THE NINE are all solid for me, and
of those, only S60's future seems to be in doubt.

Of the second rank -- shows that I like so far, but am not entirely
sold on yet, or like, but won't miss terribly if they're cancelled --
only KIDNAPPED is (effectively) gone, though I don't expect VANISHED
to survive past midseason. Others in this group are BROTHERS & SISTERS,
MEN IN TREES, and SHARK.

Of the two shows I tried, and quickly ditched, SMITH is gone, and
JUSTICE seems to be barely hanging in there.

ones will inevitably fail because of competition more than lack of quality
IMO. I also like Studio 60...withholding judgment on 30 Rock (the sitcom
version of the same show).