Last week, it was Men in Trees. Now the end has officially come for another ABC drama series. ABC has confirmed that October Road is over. The long and winding road is no more, so to speak. ABC has no room in the fall lineup, apparently, and a plan to move October Road and Men in Trees to Lifetime never panned out. So all the die-hard fans who've been writing the network and crafting petitions can give it up. No amount of peanuts or blood drives -- oh, wait, that was Jericho and Moonlight. The Roadies had a different tack; buy the DVD, donate it to a library to get more people watching and writing to ABC. Despite the sincere efforts, the network still chose to end the road and move on to a newer, different show.Posts with tag cancellation
October Road hits its end
Last week, it was Men in Trees. Now the end has officially come for another ABC drama series. ABC has confirmed that October Road is over. The long and winding road is no more, so to speak. ABC has no room in the fall lineup, apparently, and a plan to move October Road and Men in Trees to Lifetime never panned out. So all the die-hard fans who've been writing the network and crafting petitions can give it up. No amount of peanuts or blood drives -- oh, wait, that was Jericho and Moonlight. The Roadies had a different tack; buy the DVD, donate it to a library to get more people watching and writing to ABC. Despite the sincere efforts, the network still chose to end the road and move on to a newer, different show.Continue reading October Road hits its end
Men in Trees axed by ABC
I'd like to say I'm surprised by this, but I'm not. ABC has canceled Men in Trees. Despite being one of the genuinely sweet and funny comedy/dramas on the network -- one that's more rooted in reality than flights of whimsy and pretentiousness -- Men in Trees has struggled to find a home on ABC. It's been shuttled about from day to day, time slot to time slot, in and out of the line up so that it became a gypsy. How were you as a viewer to invest in the romantic adventure that Marin Frist was on in the wilds of Alaska when you weren't sure when the dang show was going to air? A failed attempt to put the show on Lifetime back in March spelled doom for the show. Gallery: Men in Trees - 5/5/08
Continue reading Men in Trees axed by ABC
The Contender is officially knocked out
The Contender, the boxing reality show that began life on NBC before being canceled and moving to ESPN for the last two seasons, has been canceled once more. Despite launching a few boxing careers -- and bringing us the fun of Sylvester Stallone air-boxing whenever he watched a fight during the first season -- the show's producers "couldn't come to terms" with ESPN for a fourth season. The producers expect the show to move to another network, which means that somehow boxing is still considered by someone as a viable form of entertainment. I mean, I know we're in a recession and all, but did the whole world get transported back to 1932, Island in the Sea of Time style when I wasn't looking?
The best part about the show's continued existence is that Greg Giraldo can continue performing his classic stand-up bit: "There's a new reality show out there now in which they get together a bunch of boxers and try to find the best one. Remember the show they used to have where they tried to do that? Yeah, it was called Boxing."
[via PopCandy]
All Isabelle wants for Festivus
Ah, Festivus! A time of year where we reflect on the months that have passed in TV land and what we would like to see happen in the future.As you will see, my "All I want for Festivus" list is tainted by the fact I live in Canada. Since I know there are a lot of Canadians reading TV Squad, I decided to not remove these items from my list as I know I'm not the only one out there wanting them.
Without further ado, here is what I wish Festivus Claus will bring me this year!
Continue reading All Isabelle wants for Festivus
Wedding Crashers crashes and burns
I always get depressed this time of the year because I know that along with the summer months come the end of all my favorite TV shows. In some cases, they go away forever and I am forced to replace them with lesser quality summer shows. This season, however, I received some truly happy news. Wedding Crashers has been canceled!
I am so over the so-called prank shows that pull the most harmless candy ass pranks. Shows like Wedding Crashers, Punk'd and Girls Behaving Badly are the modern version of Candid Camera. The difference is that Candid Camera did it first and in the early days of TV, it was truly groundbreaking. It is sad that fifty years later someone still thinks that practical jokes make for edgy TV.
Continue reading Wedding Crashers crashes and burns
Lauren Graham not sorry to see Gilmore Girls go
One of the big reasons why Gilmore Girls is not returning for an eighth season is because Warner Brothers and the CW reportedly could not come to terms on new contracts for both Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel. So, it's not a big surprise to hear that Graham is not sorry to see the show go gently into that good night.In fact, she told Newsweek as much in this week's issue. "I think it's the best decision for the show," she told the magazine. "One of the things Alexis and I wished could be different was the schedule, and it really can't be." (Update: Graham also spoke to TVGuide.com's Mike Ausiello about the show's end.)
Continue reading Lauren Graham not sorry to see Gilmore Girls go
Ian McShane on Deadwood's early grave
Brace yourself, Deadwood fans. In an interview with ComingSoon.net, Ian McShane reveals that the cast and crew is still waiting for word on whether or not the two Deadwood movies will be made. "Today they say yes, they will be done, but who knows what they'll say tomorrow. I've got a feeling in me that it's not completely dead in some way, but who knows what they could do it?"As you may recall, Deadwood was nixed by HBO because of their supposed enthusiasm for Milch's next project John from Cincinnati. HBO offered Milch six episodes to wrap the series up. He refused, opting instead for two two-hour films that he felt might let him bring the series to a proper close.
Continue reading Ian McShane on Deadwood's early grave
More Studio 60 episodes ordered
Good news for Studio 60 fans. Despite persistent rumors of the show's forthcoming cancellation by NBC, a "back nine" has been ordered - meaning that nine more episodes will be produced to finish out the season. Whether the show makes it past a first season remains to be seen, but it will be given a shot to build an audience.While I appreciate a literate show and Mr. Sorkin's banterfests, I think a handful of problems persist over at Studio 60. Starting with, does anyone really care about the Harriet-Matt relationship? I'd much rather see "Josh Lyman" and "the guy from Friends" at the core of the show. They've got better chemistry, and the show is much more fun when they're on the screen together.
Continue reading More Studio 60 episodes ordered
Justice and Happy Hour going on early hiatus
And here we go. If you work on a network television series, one of the worst things you can hear is that your show is going 'on hiatus'. Sure, every once in a while that just means that the show is taking a little break. But more often than not it's the PC way for executives to tell you that the ratings numbers suck out loud and you need to start looking for a new gig. With that in mind, Fox has placed Justice and Happy Hour on an early hiatus. Early because it was expected that most of the network's shows would get a little break when the baseball playoffs take over the schedule. But Happy Hour and Justice will be starting their break early, being replaced by repeats of 'Til Death and House.
Right now, the Fox website says that Happy Hour will return Nov.2, with no word on when Justice is supposed to resume. Of course, this makes the TV Squad contest to pick the first show to get canceled a whole big ball of fun. We'll have to wait and see if these shows are officially canceled. Stay tuned.
[ Thanks Porchalnd ]
How does Fred Goss REALLY feel?
Want to know how Fred Goss REALLY feels about the cancellation of Sons & Daughters? Well, you could check out his blog on ABC.com -- while it's still up -- but you could just skip that and check out the blog he has set up on his MySpace page, where he's a bit more vocal about his situation. While he's upset that S&D is gone, he is still happy for the opportunity and informs readers that he and partner Nick Holly are developing shows for Touchstone. So, it's not like he burns any bridges here. But let's just say that he's not a big fan of According to Jim.
Goodbye Heist
Well, that happened a lot quicker than I expected.Heist, the stylish NBC robbery drama, has already been axed by the network, Michael Ausiello is reporting at his site (hey, Ausiello has a site? Cool.).
Come on, this was a limited-run show anyway, why not let it play out? I caught a couple of eps, and while I was bugged by Dougray Scott's accent, I thought it was a rather fun, clever show, and I certainly wanted to see what happened next. But I guess NBC needs the hour for another episode of Deal Or No Deal.
[UPDATE: Writer/creator Mark Cullen confirms the cancellation in a comment below.]
The Book of Daniel: Axed!
Well, they say nothing lasts forever, and they were right.
NBC's The Book of Daniel has been cancelled, effective immediately. The Friday 10
pm slot will be occupied this week by a rerun of a Law and Order episode. No word yet on what the network
will do to permanently fill the slot.
I have mixed feelings on this situation. IMHO, the episodes were filled with way too many subplots and that the writers and producers were more interested in trying to get away with things rather than developing a story. However, I also thought the show could have evolved into something, given more time. Of course, ratings are everything, and this show didn't have them, plain and simple.
I wonder if The Book of Daniel will be "resurrected" on a cable network, a la HBO or Showtime. It might just find a home and a loyal, albeit smaller, audience if that happens.
Celebrate the 4th by watching television!
Stargate Atlantis season five - An early look
Saving Grace season two: An early look
