If it's crap... We'll tell you

PLEASE! Help Save My Favorite Show---Oops, Too Late.

I’ve always watched a lot of TV, but now that we’ve started the LEOG podcasts I watch A WHOLE HELLUVA LOT of TV.

That’s why it’s been so stressful these last couple weeks as every time I scan my usual websites or pick up Entertainment Weekly I’m hit with an article on how shows like Heroes, Chuck, My Own Worst Enemy, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, etc. are taking a dive in the ratings and just might get the axe. These are the shows that I DVR every week and struggle to watch in my dwindling spare time. The shows that I already have a heavy emotionally investment in
…and from what I’ve learned from past history, at least ONE OF THEM IS ABOUT TO DIE!

Invariably, every fall there’s a new TV show that I fall in love with which gets canceled within half a season. With the comedies I’m not surprised that most Nielsen families don’t share my sense of humor, but when the plug gets pulled on the action/ adventure/ dramas it hurts. Especially in this post-Sopranos era where most are built around continuing storylines. The networks hooks you then leave you hanging with no concern for offering closure.
Anyone else still carrying baggage from the premature cancellation of “Profit” starring Adrian Pasdar from Heroes?

In more recent years it’s been like clockwork:
2004 - 2005:
Chris O’Donnell's big comeback show, “Head Cases”

Despite co-starring two actors that normally annoy me to no end (Adam Goldberg, Richard Kind) I fell in love with show…for all of the TWO episodes that aired before Fox cancelled it! (Damn, that’s even less than that “Cavemen” show)

2005 - 2006:
The Ray Liotta led heist thriller series“Smith”

It was pretty much just a sexier version of the Andre Braugher F/X show, “Thief” and made it five episodes before biting the dust.

2006 - 2007
At first I wasn’t happy about LOST getting a midseason fill-in with “Daybreak”, but it was Taye Diggs stuck in Groundhog’s Day time loop.

You don’t just start a show like that unless you KNOW you’re gonna finish it. Come on!!

2007- 2008 it would’ve been the new “Bionic Woman” but that show was such a sorry waste of potential even I was glad to hear it wasn’t coming back.

As for 2008- 2009 the suspense of “which show will buy the farm first?” was ended last week when it was leaked that NBC has already decided not to renew “My Own Worst Enemy”.

Yeah, I know. When you see an ad for about a show featuring Christian Slater and the words “own worst enemy” you can’t help but think it’s a spinoff of VH-1’s “Celebrity Rehab”, but it is was the coolest spy series I’ve seen since “Alias”

The series follows the life of American secret agent Edward Albright and his cover alias, Henry Spivey who has no knowledge of his double life. Albright, played by Christian Slater, is implanted with a chip that allows his handlers to physically switch Albright's personality to that of his alias. However, in the pilot episode, there is a malfunction which starts Albright's personalities switching at random, revealing his secret life to his alias. It’s something he has to keep secret, lest the agency he works for would have him terminated. Another great angle to this is that “Henry” is a full realized personality and the two identities know of each other and communicate by leaving messages or videos.

I would urge you watch all of the nine episodes produced and try to get a letter campaign going…but I know that’d go nowhere. Besides, most of you are just too hooked on “Dancing With the Stars”
*sigh*

Okay, enough with the lost causes. Did I tell you about this other show I love?

It’s called “Life”

Tags: adrian, bionic, christian, enemy, heroes, leog, liotta, nbc, pasdar, ray

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Comment by -n8 on November 18, 2008 at 9:43am: I Love Life. Both Life, and the show Life.

Season 2 is a little more flabby than SEason 1 (which being 13 episodes long due to the writer's strike, it made best use of a shorter season. That was an efficient, substantial but also LEAN season that kept my attention fixed.) but it's still damned solid.

And the actress playing Det. Reese? DAMN. She is hot as hell.

Comment by Jordan Cobb on November 18, 2008 at 9:17am: Leon I LOVE Life! I want it to stay on the air!!!!!

Comment by Meh. on November 18, 2008 at 5:50am: How about the series called StandOff? Or Vanished? Both aired on FOX for a while, then they just took it off.

Comment by matty on November 18, 2008 at 5:37am: Is there any chance that series (like ones seen here) can make it just by DVD volumes or something? I don't have TV access, but I've given up on networks pulling the rug under noteworthy, quality shows like Wonderfalls and, hell, many other series that never finished their first season.
I'm sick of it, so I'm just waiting for some brave, bold production company with a lotta brass (and budget) to just say say "#$^ it. We're not going to last on the networks. Let's just focus on working DVD series and if a cable network wants what we're dishing out, cool, but we're not going to rely on anyone, but the people buying our crap".
Hell, it worked for Mary Kate and Ashely, right?

Comment by ghostwriter on November 18, 2008 at 5:20am: Let's not forget "kids" TV!

I was heavily invested in Nickelodeon's Danny Phantom...LOVE that show! Then halfway through Season 2, they announce it's being cancelled. I wrote Nick, got a letter back saying they had to make room for "New and Exciting" shows...so, where the hell are they?

I led two rallies at the Viacom HQ, Nicks parent company in NYC. We wrote letters to the media and still nothing. We had a rally at the KCA awards in LA this past March, I was unable to attend and they pulled one more NYC rally this August that I didnt' go to...sorry, I'm just too burned out at this point to care!

Over 70 letter I sent to Nick, projects I put together for the kids on our website, lots of money down the drain....and what do we have to show for it...zip!

So, the moral of the story is, don't go overboard for a TV show. If there is a silver lining to this, I've met some great folks and made some wonderful new friends, of course they all live at least 1000 miles from me but we still keep in touch!

I tell the gal in charge of the forum it's time to shut it down, and even she is feeling the burn at this point. And don't get me started on the So The Drama of fan sites!!!!!

Comment by Clown Baby on November 18, 2008 at 4:00am: In the pilot of "My own worst enemy", I really admire who ever decided to depict the gun fight in the middle of the episode as violent, and not "cool". (In case you were wondering, it was when Henry accidently became Edward for the first time.) But anyway, I really hope they don't cancel TERMINATOR: SCC. I love that show, and I don't think FOX will be to hasty when it comes to cancelation on their TERMINATOR tv show. Not when the TERMINATOR movie is coming out so soon. Plus, didn't FOX dump allot of money into extra advertising? Wasn't that money supposed to go to 24's new season? Sure it had a bad season, but it's a proven show with a big star....well a star non the less. But on another note, I sincerely hope HEROES gets cancelled! Good god! This weeks episode was awful! I loved the first season, but one out of three is not a hit! This show needs the axe!

Comment by Its all part of the plan on November 18, 2008 at 3:30am: man i am hella sad that my own worst enemy is getting canceled because the show is hella good and i like the characters and the story

Comment by Santos on November 18, 2008 at 3:26am: Though it wasn't perfect, "My Own Worst Enemy" was one of the better shows this year. It sucks that they cancelled it.

Comment by Dr. Detfink on November 18, 2008 at 3:07am: Bionic Woman was such a damn waste of potential. Not even guest-starring Starbuck could save that show.

Comment by Moxie on November 18, 2008 at 2:58am: wow my TV must be sorely neglected because i have never heard of any of these shows (except the bionic woman but i am assuming you arent referring to the original show).