Ten Shows Canceled Before Their Time...NOT by the Fox Network

Alright, Fox Network isn't the only network which gives up on shows just as they're getting good, or before they've even had a fair chance. Now you must endure my list of ten shows I've lived through the loss of at the hands of other television executives who mistake slow, steady ratings growth for failure.

1. Bionic Woman-I never liked the 70's version of this show, and wasn't sure about a remake, but I was shocked that I enjoyed it so much. I didn't care that it was a little trite, and sometimes cute. It had a lot of cheese, good action sequences, and a storyline I was really getting into when it fell under the wheels of the media machine and got smooshed into oblivion.

2. U.C.: Undercover-Maybe it was the 'department of redundancy department' of a title. Maybe it was the cheesy story lines laced with some action. More likely it was because it featured Oded Fehr, and I couldn't stop drooling. Be that as it may, I loved this show, and can't believe it died when so much tripe survives.

3. Savannah-I'm not a Southern belle. But I did grow up watching Dynasty and Dallas, and Savannah was as trashy, juicy, and ludicrous as those classic shows ever were. In the first few episodes we got a long lost twin brother, for crying out loud! This was nighttime soap opera at it's finest, but for it, tomorrow was not another day.

4. The Dresden Files-A wizard detective. Vampires. Werewolves. Ghosts. All sorts of dark magic. C'mon, people! What more can you ask for? This had a film noir feel to it, on top of everything else, and a charming star. Yet the 'new' Battlestar Galactica just won't die fast enough. I do not understand this world I live in.

5. Sledge Hammer- David Rasche plays a man in love with his gun well before Stephen Colbert adopted 'Sweetness'. His partner is a tough as nails, yet feminine sort of gal who keeps up with Sledge Hammer as often as she goes along with his over-the-top approach to crime fighting. The end of the first season showed a nuclear bomb destroying the city. Then it came back for a second season, but alas, that also came to an end. I still weep, even as I watch my precious DVDs of the show.

6. Painkiller Jane-Kristanna Loken starred in this sometimes cliched, usually interesting, often funny show about a woman who heals from just about anything you hit her with, or shoot her with, or electrocute her with... You get the idea. The supporting cast is what kept me watching every week, but apparently that wasn't enough to convince Sci Fi that this should get a second season. Bastards.

7. Moonlight-Thanks, Sci Fi. Another show I got hooked on after it was already canceled. Vampire detective in a city full of vampires. Every episode has some great one-liners. The romance isn't sugary sweet, and keeps you guessing 'Will they or won't they?' The cast of characters is strong, including a 400 year old vampire who delivers the best lines of each episode. Again, someone didn't think vampires have enough commercial appeal to go for more episodes? Where's my fly swatter? I've got to swat at some flying monkeys for this one.

8. Wolf Lake-Argh! I love this show! Sadly I discovered it a few years too late, and it isn't even on DVD. A pack of shapeshifters who can become wolves live on a lake outside of Seattle, protecting each other and their secrets. Lou Diamond Phillips plays the detective who tracks his sexy girlfriend to this town, and the story ensues. This is another great nighttime soap opera that offered drama, suspense, sensuality, loads of interesting characters, and lots of humor thrown in for spice. Next time Sci Fi airs a marathon of it, make sure you catch it so you can be just as bummed as I am that it was cast aside.

9. Black Scorpion-Ah, Roger Corman, you know cheese! This television series based on his movies was just awesome, and not only because it gave Scott Valentine a chance to act again. The acting, scripts, and plots were all typical, cheesy, over-the-top Roger Corman, and just bad enough to make you laugh, but not so bad you could turn away. Plus, you had guest appearances by people like Dave Mustaine of Megadeth playing a pyromaniac named 'Torchy', for heaven's sake! How could this show have been allowed to die off?

10. Jack Of All Trades-Last, but not least, a Bruce Campbell show that was allowed to stop airing before the atrocious Cleopatra 2525 that it was paired with did. It was about an American spy on the island of Palau-Palau who teams up with an English spy to keep Napoleon at bay. It was laugh out loud funny for both the physical comedy as well as the one-liners bandied back and forth. While you were laughing at one, you'd miss the next. The historical inaccuracies only made it better.

Okay, because Jack Of All Trades ended we have Bruce 'Give Me Some Sugar, Baby' Campbell with a great role in Burn Notice. Fine. At least something positive came out of ripping this show right out of my ribcage with bare hands and then throwing it on the floor and stomping on it 'till it died. (Guess the song that last line vaguely references, and you'll win absolutely nothing!)

So many deceased shows. So many open wounds on my soul. I only endure because there is so much cheese out there just waiting to be discovered...

Comments

[DevSpamNull]

You totally left out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adderly" rel="nofollow">Adderly!
It was great in late night & just wasn't sold well when they tried to move it to prime time...
You just have to love a super spy who is attached to the department of "Miscellaneous Affairs".

Not to mention http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Invisible_Man_(2000_TV_series)" rel="nofollow">The Invisible Man. Theif turned invisible agent via experimental surgery (that killed the last recipient if I remember correctly) for a low budget spy agency. Their 3D imaging presentation system were http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?t=page&a=go&s=viewmaster&p=landing_flash&site=us" rel="nofollow">Viewmasters.

[The Queen Herself]

I totally missed out on Adderly! I didn't see many episodes of The Invisible Man with Vincent Ventrusca, but the episodes I saw looked like it was a lot of fun. It's one show I hope to catch up on through Netflix someday, and now I'll have to see about Adderly, too, dang it! :)