Okay, guys, sorry if this thread exists elsewhere - I searched for it I did. Someone in the newest Lost discussion mentioned something about this, and it’s a subject that I find interesting.
So, does anyone have a favorite tv show that was cancelled right when things were getting good?
My pet peeves: Strange Luck, Journeyman, Raines, and New Amsterdam.
I liked Raines. It hadn’t even made it to it’s prime yet, but it was good.
I was LOVING Life when it got the axe. They did a good job of mostly resolving the main story which is a credit to the writing team when they found out they were likely going to be cancelled.
Deadwood and Freaks & Geeks are my picks for the best shows that didn’t get to go out on their own terms, although they may not be fitting for this thread.
I would have loved more seasons of Pushing Daisies.
DEADWOOD
ROME
CARNIVALE
Those are the top three “killed too soon” shows of all time IMHO
It was glorious from the beginning but the winner of this thread is Arrested Development.
My personal agony though was Chicago Hope. ER had nothing on Elizondo, Patinkin, Harmon, Berg, Arkin, et al.
Oh look, another Raines fan! I thought I was the only guy who loved that show.
Life is probably the most recent example that hurts, but I’m kind of glad the show ended when it did, cause I would have been pissed if Crewes and Reese got together as a couple. (Obligatory “Damien Lewis for Law & Order: LA” mention.)
Freaks & Geeks has the benefit of a finale that goes both ways, but I would have liked to have seen the ‘Neal Becomes Judd Apatow When His Parents Split Up’ storyline.
You know what’s worse than being a Deadwood fan pissed off it got cancelled after three seasons? Being a Deadwood fan AND a John From Cinncinatti fan, like me.
Deadwood, Rome, John From Cincinnati, and Kings are at the top of my list. Kings is the best thing that NBC has aired in years and they fucked it in every way imaginable. I hope they boot Zucker in the worst way possible.
Firefly, Life, Deadwood.
ETA: Gah, almost forgot one of my most recent ones, Better off Ted.
I’d be remiss if I left out one of my personal favorite shows of all time:
Quote:
| Originally Posted by RathBandu View Post You know what’s worse than being a Deadwood fan pissed off it got cancelled after three seasons? Being a Deadwood fan AND a John From Cinncinatti fan, like me. |
Yeah, I know that pain. I hope you didn’t discover Kings. That’s pretty much a third strike on that front.
Sports Night. Second season wasn’t as good as the first but it ended on a high note and then… splat.
I think I watched half of the first episode of Kings, and I was like “this is pretty good but I don’t have the time for it right now” (it was when I was watching the majority of stuff on iTunes and could only pick a couple shows a week to download), but I’ve been thinking about watching the DVD.
NBC is the winner of this thread, it seems – Kings, Raines, Life, all NBC shows.
Sports Night, I almost mentioned, but that show could have gone to Showtime if Sorkin wasn’t busy with West Wing, so I wouldn’t say it was “cut down.” (This is also why Josh Charles hates his breathing guts.)
Quote:
| Originally Posted by RathBandu View Post Sports Night, I almost mentioned, but that show could have gone to Showtime if Sorkin wasn’t busy with West Wing, so I wouldn’t say it was “cut down.” (This is also why Josh Charles hates his breathing guts.) |
Josh Charles is obviously irrational. It’s not fair to have Sorkin write two damned good seasons for you, give you a chance, and then turn around and hate the guy just because he wouldn’t follow you to SHOWTIME circa 1999. Showtime in 1999. Charles “hates” Sorkin for giving another concept a fair shot on a network watched by millions of people instead ?
Kings was absolutely fantastic, so were Carnivale, Deadwood and American Gothic. Arrested Development was mentioned higher up, but oddly enough I think of it as pretty complete.
All I have to say is that you’ve bagged Jeff Goldbloom to star in your television show and you don’t even give it ONE SEASON??
Not to mention he was pitch perfect for that role. PERFECT.
Quote:
| Originally Posted by Evi View Post Kings was absolutely fantastic, so were Carnivale, Deadwood and American Gothic. Arrested Development was mentioned higher up, but oddly enough I think of it as pretty complete. |
+one million for american gothic!
That show was awesome until they had to rush to wrap everything up.
Just try and foster a sense of detachment when watching Kings. Its development is really, really close to the first season of Deadwood. It starts off on a shaky but promising note and then just ascends to greatness. For me, “The Sabbath Queen” is the point at which is transitions from a really, really good show to a great one and it’s near the end of the middle section of the season.
That’s not the only reason. There was a New Yorker article about Sorkin/Sports Night that described an incident on set where Sorkin (a stickler for dialogue) gave Charles a line reading, and Charles said “I don’t tell you how to write, you don’t tell me how to act,” which Sorkin took offense to, and there was a big to-do.
(Also, the second season of Sports Night ran concurrently with the first season of West Wing, so it wasn’t like he had an unproven commodity when he chose to stick with West Wing.)
I mean, if I were Josh Charles, and I was doing the best work of my career, and I had an opportunity to continue doing that work on a show I loved with people I worked well with, and that opportunity didn’t happen because of this other show, yes, I might be a little annoyed.
Quote:
| Originally Posted by RathBandu View Post I mean, if I were Josh Charles, and I was doing the best work of my career, and I had an opportunity to continue doing that work on a show I loved with people I worked well with, and that opportunity didn’t happen because of this other show, yes, I might be a little annoyed. |
Yes, me too. I wouldn’t “hate Sorkin’s guts” though.
Anyway, interesting to read about the behind the scenes stuff thanks
Oh, another one I would have liked to have more of: Dead Like Me.