While they haven't yet made an announcement about other on-the-bubble shows, including Medium, Law & Order, and of course, Chuck, NBC's Ben Silverman has confirmed that Life has indeed been canceled. Life is just the latest victim of the Writers' Strike curse: ABC's Pushing Daisies, Eli Stone, and Dirty Sexy Money are among some of the other series that had their freshman seasons interrupted by the strike that began in November of 07, and won't live to see a third season.
Other second season shows, including the aforementioned Chuck, along with ABC's Samantha Who? and FOX's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles are currently on the bubble. The CW's Gossip Girl is one of the few shows that premiered during the 07-08 season that is definitely going to make it to the 09-10 one.
The strike spooked the networks and advertisers, and we're obviously feeling the effects now, over a year after it ended. What it boils down to is a lot of great shows are suffering-- and Ben Silverman is a dick.
Chuck and Life are both strong shows stuck in crappy timeslots. Chuck is in the impossible Monday at 8 slot, up against House, The Big Bang Theory/How I Met Your Mother, and Gossip Girl. Life, on the other hand, performed well enough on Friday nights that it took Lipstick Jungle's place when it tanked on Wednesdays. It did all right, but when Lost came up against it, Life didn't have a chance.
Life was one of my favorite shows on television. It had the comfort of a procedural, but kept you interested with Charlie Crews' over-arching mystery of who framed him, without being infuriating as Lost can often be. The acting and writing were both top notch, and well, Damian Lewis is super-hot.
In the end, I would bet that Chuck is going to come back, thanks in no small part to its rabid fan base. While a lot of you gave Isabelle hell for not including Life on her list of Ten shows that should be renewed, Life's fan base didn't quite mobilize in the way Chuck's did.
Perhaps if Damian Lewis made people some subs, Life might have survived. In the end though, while I still contend that Ben Silverman is, in fact, a dick, maybe the numbers just weren't there. Regardless, I'm ordering my fruit basket of mourning right now.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
5-04-2009 @ 4:49PM
Fran said...
Life was a great show and one of my favorites, so it seems logical that it would be cancelled. What else is new? Believe it or not, people, there are other things to do besides watch tv. When will we learn?
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5-04-2009 @ 6:09PM
MacGuffin said...
I liked it right away. Damian Lewis was terrific. Sarah Shahi was also good casting, too, but she played down her good looks too much.
Not sure if I would blame the writer's strike for me not coming back or the fact that the show lost its way with boring story lines for its demise.
5-05-2009 @ 7:25AM
Hashbrown Hunter said...
One of the best things about Sarah Shahi's character Dani Reese was that they DID downplay her beauty. Sure, she looks amazing, but her character wasn't meant to be that. I'm glad they portrayed Reese in a much stronger character role than most women on most procedural shows are.
6-01-2009 @ 3:19PM
jody said...
My husband, friends and I loved "Life". With so much drivel on TV now (lame reality shows and programs so convoluted no one can follow them), "Life" was great! NBC wasn't our favorite station anyway - it now looks like we'll be watching even less NBC.
5-04-2009 @ 4:49PM
G said...
While I'm sad, I do feel that the show had a rather complete season finale. I feel like I can move on without wondering about open threads too much.
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5-04-2009 @ 5:38PM
David said...
Exactly. Life was one of my favorite shows, like many others here. But it wrapped up all its important loose ends, and in a very satisfying way.
5-04-2009 @ 4:53PM
Matt said...
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!
you bastards, you put it against LOST and then question why it doesn't do well. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
Heroes gets worse while Life gets better and Heroes is the one renewed. You give me a fantastic Life season finale while the Heroes finale happens behind a closed door?? Ahhh, AHHH, AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
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5-04-2009 @ 5:00PM
Justin said...
The numbers were there early in the season when it was airing Mondays and Fridays. Then they shifted it to just Fridays and then moved it against Lost on Wednesday. NBC killed the show--it's as if they wanted it to crash and burn.
I'm through with 'em. They can't run a network and I can't believe GE is so dumb to let all of this continue. Wait, of course I can--the dumb are running corporations all across America.
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5-05-2009 @ 7:51AM
willy the impeached said...
All you need to know about how stupid GE is can be summarized in two words: Ben Silverman. He must have photos of someone doing something very bad cause otherwise his continued employment is more confusing than Lost is to a two year old chicken.
5-04-2009 @ 5:10PM
Ryanne said...
Nooo!!! Please logon to twitter.com and tweet #bringbacklife also let twitter.com/USA_Network know that Life would be a perfect fit for their network.
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5-04-2009 @ 5:17PM
Kona Gallagher said...
I absolutely agree. I've been saying for months that Life would be perfect for USA. It would fit in great with any number of their shows. CI, Burn Notice, etc. The fact that they didn't at least try to do that is beyond comprehension to me.
5-04-2009 @ 5:25PM
Argus said...
I can't imagine that Life has a terrifically large budget either... While I love Life, I was also quite happy with its season finale, and so won't mourn it the way I will mourn Chuck if it isn't renewed. (Watch Chuck vs. The Colonel tonight at 8:00 on NBC.com!)
5-04-2009 @ 5:55PM
fay said...
I loved Life. I wrote NBC and told them it was one of the best shows on the air. I told all my friends about it. I wrote about it.....what else can we do..
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5-05-2009 @ 8:52PM
Just the Facts said...
I hate NBC! Chuck and Life are no-brainers to bring back, but we all know that Zucker has no brain. I will not watch any new shows from NBC (can't miss the office), because I know that if they are good and I get hooked, NBC will cancell it.
I'm not buying GE products any more either.
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5-04-2009 @ 6:38PM
VP said...
The problem with a lot of the shows at NBC is the fact that they are on NBC. Put Life on CBS next to NCIS and it will get 16 million eyeballs. Isn't that what Mentalist is in a way: A quirky detective show?
A lot of people are disillusioned with the crap NBC puts out and they don't even gives the good shows a chance. Heroes still has those ratings only because it premiered to tremendous hype. If it came out last year it would have been one and done too.
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5-04-2009 @ 6:55PM
mg said...
"Life" is a terrific show. While the season finale was fantastic, enough was left open for another season. Canceling "Life" is a bad decision (likewise with "Pushing Daisies"). The cast, characters, and storylines leave me wanting more. Count me in on the mourning fruit basket.
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5-04-2009 @ 8:16PM
Riley Freeman said...
yea heroes was one of the worst shows this year i found it completely boring. life was a great show and i was so interested where it could go. but stupid nbc as usual.
but i know they kept heroes cuz it has more potential ah well what u gonna do. all the networks do this stupid crap so its not like u can band against one
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5-04-2009 @ 9:03PM
JD said...
THANKS NBC, You have what five cop shows where the only difference is the suffix. And you put on of them on cable. I never watched any of them. Life IS a GREAT show, Journeyman WAS a great show. But some reason you cancel them and keeping putting on Law and Order.
NBC I'm done with watching ANY NEW show you put out. Southland was one I was going to try, but I know you'll just cancel the damn thing. We have done the same thing to any original show on SciFi, you keep bringing crap from other countries trying to pull it off as new and original. GMAFB!!!
Life was perfect in it's 10pm Wednesday slot, what a bunch of dillholes you are.
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5-05-2009 @ 2:43AM
bc said...
The quality of Life and Journeyman does not negate the quality of Law and Order and Law and Order: Criminal Intent.
5-04-2009 @ 9:21PM
Morjana Coffman said...
No wonder NBC is dead last in the ratings for Broadcast Networks.
They cancel a super series like Life, yet they're picking up these shows for next year: TWO medical series! Trauma and Mercy; a family drama, Parenthood; and two comedies, 100 Questions.
Tsk. tsk, tsk!
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