
Are you enjoying Smith? Too bad! CBS has decided to shelve it. The Ray Liotta drama has been doing so-so in the ratings, and it looks like CBS doesn't want to take any more chances with it.
There's no official word on the move yet, but expect something official later today. In fact, check out the web site. There are still some links to get to the show's page, but it's gone from both drop down menus!
As I mentioned in my reviews, the show has started to go downhill from an intriguing pilot. Maybe CBS saw something in the upcoming episodes that said, "hey, let's dump this for now and put something else on"?
Update: Yup, it's gone.















Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
10-06-2006 @ 3:25PM
Andrew Liptak said...
That gets me annoyed - I was really digging the show, and I thought it had a lot of promise. I wish that they'd give it a little more time.
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10-06-2006 @ 3:32PM
Karen said...
Man, first "Kidnapped" and then this? Are no networks interested at ALL in anything but immediate results?
Granted, "Smith" isn't nearly as interesting or compelling a show as "Kidnapped" (which is just pure quality from every angle), but it's certainly better than a host of other shows that are allowed to linger on.
Who is going to want to pitch shows in the future if no network is going to give them a chance to develop and build an audience?
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10-06-2006 @ 3:39PM
The Corsair said...
I watched the first episode and liked it, but, considering all the other good new shows out this year, I had to really pick and choose. So I stopped watching. I had a feeling it would go away, though.
I really don't understand how networks can dump shows after only a few episodes. Seems like a big waste of money. Or maybe what happens is the initial investment of shooting thirteen episodes is the price you pay to see if it gets big ratings. But still, can't they give some shows a little more time?
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10-06-2006 @ 3:43PM
Fred said...
The ever quickening trigger finger for cancellation is getting ridiculous.
That said, I'm not too brokenhearted over this. I enjoyed the show, liked Liotta's character, was really intrigued by the unfolding back-stories of the two female leads, but I really couldn't shake the feeling that I'd seen a lot of this before -- and better, if also not perfect -- with "Thief."
But geez. Networks don't even pretending to look like they're trying anymore. If it doesn't win its timeslot the first night, and every night, then obviously nobody's interested.
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10-06-2006 @ 3:51PM
mike said...
took it off tivo just last night. good timing.
wanted to like this show. just couldn't. Still, why pull it so quickly?
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10-06-2006 @ 3:57PM
SamMalone said...
Ohhh, what week did I guess in the First Cancelled contest? And ironically I was enjoying this show.
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10-06-2006 @ 4:12PM
Eric C. said...
Shelving it after three episodes is flipping ridiculous. Flippin CBS.. and it was a great show on top of that. Besides, you'd figure CBS could use something that doesn't have a CSI in it.
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10-06-2006 @ 4:43PM
Jonathan said...
Stupid trigger happy networks! God give them at LEAST till after the holidays to pull the plug. It's insanely ridiculous! As someone else said i'm not THAT angry at the pull more as i'm angry at the situation! Every fall there's like 20 new shows and 3 months after they air 3/4 of them get cancelled! It's crazy, and we're stuck with 12 CSIs and 8 Law And Orders and every other insipid reality show. Expect to get a 4th and 5th CSI spin-off next fall; CSI:Montana and CSI:Arkensas. Alot of americans have the attention span of a freakin goldfish, if it's not a 'one-episode-story' show they don't want to watch. Okay im done venting. I enjoyed Smith, it wasnt awesome but it was fun, same with Kidnapped! As long as they don't touch Heroes, which got a whole season! YES!
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10-06-2006 @ 5:16PM
Geoffrey M. said...
I cant believe CBS did that....it was original new show just other new ones. I getting more into the characters but they ruined it for me. I having feeling there gonna end up showing repeats of the Amazing Race instead.
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10-06-2006 @ 5:22PM
Navstar said...
There was too much competition from the other networks -- and, let's face it - -just too many new shows overall.
I expect Six Degrees to bite it next.
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10-06-2006 @ 5:40PM
Shannon said...
Did it do that bad? I just cant believe they dont even give it time to build a fan base. Jeez, Didnt Seinfeld or something have TERRIBLE early ratings?
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10-06-2006 @ 6:01PM
Michelle said...
Wow. I really liked Smith, that's too bad. They finally make a show worth watching then they give it the boot. Morons!
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10-06-2006 @ 9:16PM
Erica said...
Who won the cancellation pool???
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10-06-2006 @ 8:00PM
Sy said...
Call me crazy but for a show to be successful, the audience should have empathy for the main characters. I watched the first show and thought it was well made but I can't empathize with criminals. I guess the producers were gunning the lucrative criminal demographics. It was a bomb waiting to happen no matter how technically well produced the show was. Unless there are extenuating circumstances (Prison Break),most people don't follow criminals throughout a tv season.
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10-06-2006 @ 11:15PM
Dave said...
#13 I agree. Having seen the pilot I could never root for these guys. I mean for their first heist meeting they all pull up in rich cars that I could only dream of getting. Stealing only made them more filthy rich than they were.
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10-07-2006 @ 5:08AM
Brent McKee said...
There's a definite irony here. "Smith" and "Kidnapped" were both originally scheduled for the same Tuesday night time slot opposite "Boston Legal" before NBC juggled their entire line up to schedule "our new shows in time periods where we believe they'll succeed and will be supporting them with robust marketing campaigns and the full resources of the network."
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10-08-2006 @ 1:30AM
kip said...
They should change the time of the show. This is a great show. Canclling is not the option. Pulling the trigger on this is a bad idea. Move it to Sunday to go after mazing race as there is nothing other than football that occupies that slot right now with grays having moved.
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10-09-2006 @ 8:58PM
alex said...
Okay, I've tried a number of new shows this season, and this was easily the best of the lot. Is it me, or has TV just become mediocre?
I totally disagree that it was downhill after the pilot. By the second episode you got to meet the secondary characters pull off their own heist. And by the 3rd show, you'll feeling the heat of supporting characters and side plots, as they draw towards the main characters.
If there was anything weak about Smith, it was the main character played by Ray Liotta, which I hate to say, because I respect him as an actor, and have loved several of his movies.
But despite any flaws, I think CBS made a mistake by not giving this show a chance. I know several of us at work have been following this series, and it's about the only water cooler show we have. But Lost has started again, so we're all watching that.
If another network is smart, they'd pick this up and put it on a better night in another time slot. Or hopefully someone will wake up and release this on DVD.
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10-11-2006 @ 1:04AM
Erik Hanson said...
Yet another reason why shows like these with "no audience" could and should find a perfect home with IPTV and/or BitTorrent. I have been enjoying the series so far, and with no warning, they decide to replace it with... yet another CSI rerun? Oh boy, that's programming genius! Why not release it online? Let the niche market that enjoys it (quite a few just from the commenters on this blog!) get whatever episodes have already been recorded, and perhaps make a minor buck off the show. Just because a series doesn't get into the top 10 ratings doesn't mean it is total junk and should be discarded like it never existed. Sad times, but I guess we should be used to it after all the other cancelled-before-their-time shows we could probably list: Firefly? Angel? Alias? et al.
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10-12-2006 @ 1:55AM
Catherine Macapugay said...
Want Smith back? Put your comments up on CBS' site.
www.cbs.com and click on "feedback" at the bottom
of the home page.
Let's see if they respond.
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