'Tis Lousy to Have Loved and Lost... : Another Pause in Our Programming

Well, another network down. We've learned this year that for the most part, NBC, under the watch of recently ousted entertainment president Kevin Reilly, took chances with some very peculiar shows, and for the most part stuck with them at least for a full season (or half-season in the cases of mid-season replacements). The casualties weren't as severe as ABC, nor as half-assed as CBS, or nearly the disaster that was FOX's last season (one, count them, one new show lasted to see another season, and it's not a very good one) and the future looks bright for NBC. I'll deal with their new shows later on when that times draws closer.

There were, of course, another handful of shows on NBC's canceled list about which I didn't write. This would either be due to the fact that I was on the road for four months starting in January (severely limiting the hours I usually dedicated to watching every damn thing the networks throw at me) or a complete lack of interest. As follows:

-"The Black Donnellys": Paul Haggis is sort of a hack, and while the concept mildly intrigued me, I wasn't going to watch anything he created on his own. I reserve my right to do this.

-"Crossing Jordan": During its entire run I have seen exactly zero episodes. I did, however, see an episode of "Las Vegas" where the two characters randomly appeared to solve a mystery at the Montecito. It was okay.

-"Grease: You're The One That I Want": I watched the first three weeks of this, and then work caught up with me (along with the fact that it was nigh-impossible to download any episodes of this). I appreciated the effort but wasn't ecstatic about it, and from what I knew of the contestants by the time I stopped watching, I was not satisfied with the winning couple. Still, an intriguing idea for a show that just didn't catch on. (You know, like "On the Lot" right now.)

-"Raines": I saw the pilot very recently, and thought it was really interesting, but I just don't have it in me to download the rest of the small season, especially now that it's canceled. Sorry, Jeff Goldblum.

-"The Real Wedding Crashers": One of the two shows that stole "Studio 60's" Monday at 10 spot, it fell under that series of reality television--i.e. dating shows and wifeswapping--I decided early on to avoid.

-"Thank God You're Here": A mediocre but slightly watchable take-off on "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" that just didn't grab my attention during the first episode. All the episodes were available on NBC.com and still may be (along with "TBD" and "Friday Night Lights") and still very may well be, and I might visit a couple more before I say goodbye, but I'm fine without it. The hilarious Bryan Cranston, who appeared on the first episode, now has his own series coming up called "Breaking Bad." I'm looking forward to that far more.

As with ABC's "What About Brian?" I'm not sure if I'm ready to discuss the cancellation of "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" for two reasons:

1) It is very dear to my heart.

2) They're still technically burning off episodes.

And as for "The Apprentice," it may not be on the fall schedule, and Trump may have threatened to quit, but current legal battles and flighty network executives haven't technically dropped this one yet.

CBS is next, and they've got some shit to deal with maintenant.