The Riches was one of those shows that suffered from the p-word: potential. With an interesting story -- a family of Travelers settle into a stolen life as an upper-middle-class suburban family -- and excellent acting performances from Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver, the show had the same breakout potential as any of FX's other dramas.But the show's potential was never realized, either creatively or in the ratings. The show always had trouble balancing dark comedy and intense drama, and it strained to make the audience care about the Malloys, who were dealing with the consequences of stealing the American Dream. At the end of its aborted second season, FX had not committed either way to bringing the show back. Well, now we know: Mike Ausiello of EW confirmed yesterday that The Riches has been cancelled.
As you can tell, I'm not surprised by this. The show's dark turn last year took away the light touches that made this show watchable. Hopefully Izzard and especially Driver -- she was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her performance on the show -- use this as a jump-off point for more long-term TV careers. Both had a presence on the screen that I'd love to see more of over the next few years.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-08-2008 @ 9:47AM
Steve said...
It will be missed, but it was good while it lasted.
Not sure if another season would have been good or bad.
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10-12-2008 @ 1:02AM
Jaqui said...
Dammit, none of the really good shows last anymore
10-08-2008 @ 11:11AM
Oneiroi said...
My problem was that they weren't putting them up on Hulu fast enough. They waited a week or longer.
I quickly started falling behind and soon didn't even know when it was on. I also thought they were another victim of the writer's strike which made some of the season awkward.
But I did like the show a lot. Oh well.
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10-08-2008 @ 11:15AM
khamel said...
i canceled the riches at the start of the second season. i wanted to like it, just not enough there to keep me watching.
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10-08-2008 @ 12:12PM
Sa1tyChristm4s said...
sorry to hear that would fit nicely on HBO or Showtime. They are always looking for high quality programing. HBO is in need it right now other than its Entourage and True Blood comb.
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10-08-2008 @ 12:34PM
ac said...
Damnit! I know the ratings were bad and it had a sophmore slump but I hate it when shows I watch are cancelled after having a damn cliffhanger.
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10-08-2008 @ 3:13PM
John Frost said...
Argh. I really wish they'd let this go for at least another half season to tie-up the loose ends... can we at least get a graphic novel?
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10-08-2008 @ 3:22PM
David Holtzinger said...
I enjoyed The Riches, especially Eddie Izzard. In fact I've the last five episodes DVRed and have been waiting to watch them just prior to the beginning of season 3. Guess I won't be waiting any longer. The good shows always get dumped and the crap rises to the top. Like CBS cutting Moonlight and keeping CSI:Miami, which has got to be the most poorly written show on TV.
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10-08-2008 @ 5:07PM
Skapig said...
Such a shame. It wasn't cancelled right away at the abrupt end of season 2, so there was hope. FX is usually pretty tight-lipped between seasons. What really screwed it was the strike and then Driver's pregnancy (not mentioned) which kept things up in the air.
I enjoyed the show a great deal. Strong cast. Nice concept. Great balance of dark comedy and drama. Season 2 did try to pack a bit too much in to a short time frame, but it stayed interesting.
In a landscape filled with so much garbage, it's sad to see a program like this go.
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10-09-2008 @ 11:32AM
bkdealer said...
I thought this was a very good show with great actors and writings. I did prefer the more humorous 1st season to the darker 2nd season, though.
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10-09-2008 @ 3:47PM
GL said...
damn
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10-09-2008 @ 5:46PM
thelma wiesman said...
what are you thinking ? a great show hopefully a nother network will pick the riches up ////////////disapointed in you rethink this a fan
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10-14-2008 @ 11:14AM
Brian C said...
Too bad, this was one of the few shows I tuned in for regularly. It would be great if some other network picked it up, like HBO or Showtime or something, cause it would lose its edge if it went to a network channel.
I'm afraid this is gone forever with the kids on the show (well, I guess just the youngest child) growing up. The second season already had growth spurt issues to deal with. By the time any glimmer of hope in resurrection surfaces I bet he'd be far too old to pick up where they left off. RIP
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1-04-2009 @ 12:42AM
blah blah blah i can explain blah blah blah said...
Mini Driver was a hideous addition to the cast. She has very limited expression of emotions, let alone intellect. She show anger and some whining in an annoying high pitched, grating screech. Look at her past movies. OMG the same thing all the time. She has a predictable behavior of whining, anger and stupid crying.
The daughter might as well have been deleted all together. Cael had some potential until he become suddenly super stupid.
The youngest son is great and an under developed character.
Eddie is totally great. Pity the writers kept on adding "...I can explain....blah blah blah"
Potential - indeed. Gosh, I should write for some of these shows.
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