Top 8 Shows that Deserve to be Cancelled

Every television season we witness the major networks cancel shows that have been on the air for some time, shows that have just debuted, shows that have seen their ratings plummet, and shows that never had any ratings to speak of in the first place.  Recently, we watched as Fox bid goodbye to Fringe.  It was a quality program that ended with one of the best series finales I have watched recently.  Yet, the show still deserved better than the treatment it received over its years on the air.  Fox loves to screw with timeslots, as every geek who remembers Firefly can attest.  Shows like Last Resort and Emily Owens M.D. got to broadcast all the episodes they had filmed, but were cancelled in their debut seasons.  Both shows deserved better.  Just yesterday Do No Harm was pulled from NBC’s lineup after only TWO episodes.  Was it that awful?  Not really.  A bit unoriginal, but somehow it pulled in the lowest ratings of an in-season debut of a scripted show in the history of the big four networks.  Are there shows on television that deserve cancellation far more than any of these now defunct programs?  Absolutely!  So, this week I’m going to count down my top eight shows still on the air….that don’t deserve to be.  It looks like all the major networks will be represented and sitcoms take more of a hit in my list than dramas.  Some of these shows are ratings juggernauts and some failures.  Just because millions are watching does NOT make the show any better.  Let’s get to the countdown…

 

 

Bones

 

#8. Bones (Fox)- I have been a fan of this show since the beginning.  Having watched David Boreanaz on both Buffy and Angel, I was glad to follow him to a series in a totally different genre.  It was good!  Very good, in fact.  However, somewhere along the line, this show committed the ultimate television crime.  It “jumped the shark”.  Every fan of the series might have a different opinion on when exactly they did it, but it happened.  Now the show has gone from being a gritty procedural with the occasional comic relief, to being a near slapstick love story with the occasional bits of procedural thrown in to make us feel like we’re still watching the same show.  Which we aren’t.  The show has already been renewed for next year, its ninth season, and somehow I doubt we’ll be getting back to the formula which attracted the fans in the first place.

 

 

 

whitney

 

#7. Whitney (NBC)- I have never been the biggest fan of Whitney Cummings to begin with.  She was entertaining when I saw her on the Comedy Central roasts, but never the person I thought deserved to star in her own primetime sitcom.  The show isn’t TERRIBLE.  However, it’s not GOOD either.  It’s rather formulaic and Cumming’s acting is beyond atrocious sometimes.  Chris D’Elia and Rhea Seehorn are bright spots in a completely forgettable ensemble cast.  No word yet on whether the show will be returning to the lineup after this season.  It was on the bubble after a decline in ratings last year, yet managed to weasel its way back on to our screens.  It may not be so lucky this time around.

 

 

 

last-man-standing

 

#6. Last Man Standing (ABC)- This show stars Tim Allen.  Do I really need to write anything else about it or can we all agree now that the man doesn’t deserve to be on television?  Fine…I’ll give you some details.  Allen plays a macho guy (big surprise there right) who lives with his wife and daughters, being almost completely surrounded by women.  What a new and inventive idea for a sitcom, huh?  The show debuted a season ago to fairly high ratings, but by the end of the season had lost half its viewership.  Roles were re-cast, one child character was actually advanced in age from two years old to five, and a THIRD show runner was selected for a series that hadn’t even been on the air for two years.  Its second season debut was down 38% from the first season and it was moved to Friday nights, which just happens to be the television graveyard nowadays.  No word on whether it will be renewed for a third season, but the move to Fridays means it will either be cancelled or possibly stagnate on that night for as long as the network can drag a few more dollars out of it.

 

 

 

90210

 

#5. 90210 (CW)- I could probably list half of the CW’s lineup on this list.  However I narrowed it down to this particular show as a shining example of a series that needs cancellation.  Yet, when your series is on the CW, it is damn near impossible to get yanked from the airwaves.  Taking a popular show from the nineties, rebooting it, bringing in some of the old cast members for cameos, and tossing it on the lowest of the major networks sounds like a recipe for success, does it not?  Well, it worked for a little while.  Ratings were initially good. (For a CW show, that is)  However, they have fallen drastically every season since its inception.  Leading to the fifth season premiere which actually pulled in LESS than a million viewers.  CW’s reasoning for keeping the show on the air is its DVR ratings, which sometimes double its broadcast ratings.  Although, I personally believe the CW just has a bank of DVR’s set up somewhere set to record its miserable shows.  No word has been given on whether 90210 will receive a sixth season, but the CW president has stated that it is “likely” the show will be back.

 

 

 

up-all-night

 

#4. Up All Night (NBC)- This show was awful from the start.  I don’t care what the ratings said.  I don’t care what the critics said.  It is disgustingly bad.  I have nothing against Will Arnett, Christina Applegate, or Maya Rudolph.  All have done things I enjoyed.  Yet, together they produced what I consider one of the worst shows I have witnessed in recent history.  It is a moderate ratings success for NBC, yet as of January of this year the creator/executive producer has left the show.  If that weren’t bad enough for the series, Christina Applegate, the show’s main character, has announced that she will be leaving effective immediately.  There is no word on whether it will be renewed for a third season.  How could it survive the loss of its main character?  They could potentially recast the role.  Lisa Kudrow has been rumored as a fill-in.  I believe NBC should just kick it into a deep grave and do their best to forget this abomination ever graced the airwaves.

 

 

 

the_bachelor

 

#3. The Bachelor (ABC)- This is the first reality show to hit my list.  Although I could probably populate an entire list of just the so-called reality television that needs to be abolished from the airwaves, I have narrowed it down to the two most egregious offenders in my opinion.  This show has been on the air since 2002 and is currently in its SEVENTEENTH season.  Enough is enough already!  At no time during all those seasons has the bachelor contestant actually married the winning female.  NEVER!  It has come under fire for apparent racism, seeing as that the bachelor has never been anything other than a white a guy, and the female contestants are overwhelmingly white as well.  It has been leaked by numerous sources that the show is predominately scripted.  However, it is a prime example of the mass populace clamoring for what they believe to be “real” drama.  The ratings continue to make it a success, even though anyone who actually watches this show deserves to be taken out back and beaten.  No word yet on whether we can expect an eighteenth season, but it’s almost a sure thing.  Just like my disappointment in our civilization as a whole.

 

 

 

two and a half men

 

#2. Two and a Half Men (CBS)- This show is in its tenth season on the air.  It is still a ratings behemoth, though I can’t imagine why.  As we discussed earlier though, there is no accounting for the mass populace’s taste in television.  In ten years I have never sat through an entire episode of this garbage.  I found Charlie Sheen’s rantings and ravings, before being killed off on the show, far more entertaining than the series itself could ever hope to be.  He was replaced by Ashton Kutcher, who I believe should join Tim Allen in the “never allowed back on television” category.  The stars are some of the highest paid actors on television, which just goes to show you that if you take a giant steaming dump on a plate….someone out there will pay you for it.  I thoroughly enjoy Chuck Lorre’s other series The Big Bang Theory, and wish he would put this one out to pasture, so I am not stuck with the possibility of catching a few moments of its horribleness when Big Bang ends each Thursday.  No word on whether the series will be returning for an eleventh season, but it’s not likely it will be cancelled.  No matter how much we all close our eyes and wish for it.

 

 

Finally….we have come to number one on my list.  The top show still on the air that I feel deserves the axe more than any other.  It’s a reality show, an incredibly popular reality show.  However, that means nothing to me.  People are sheep…sheep that apparently watch appallingly bad television.  If you haven’t figured it out yet, the show I believe deserves cancellation more than any other program on the air is…..

 

 

american-idol-logo

 

#1. American Idol (Fox)- This affront to humanity has been on television since 2002.  It has just begun its twelfth season on the air.  The ratings for this season have dropped it to the lowest since its debut year.  However that means it’s still managing to draw a ridiculous 17 million idiots a week to watch a singing competition.  I’ll admit to watching some of the tryout episodes very early on in the history of this show.  Those episodes being the only thing I found entertaining about the series at all.  Alas, how many times can you watch a pathetically bad singer embarrass themselves in front of thirty million viewers?  It is something that got old for me VERY quick.  Yet this show managed to set record after record and from 2003 to 2011 it was the single most watched television show on the air.  The judges that made the show entertaining for many folks have since left the series.  Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell both bailing on it after the 2009/2010 seasons respectively.  Since then it has been a revolving door of even worse judges, culminating in the installation of Nicki Minaj as a judge this season.  REALLY??  What credits does this vomit-inducing pop star bring to the table?  Absolutely none.  I am glad that this show saved the Fox network and allowed other programs such as Bones and House to bolster their success.  Although, if there was ever a television show that was evidence of the downfall of western civilization it is American Idol.  There is no word yet on whether it will be returning for a thirteenth season, but sadly I doubt Fox will let it go until they have squeezed every last drop of monetary value from this heaping pile of television refuse.

 

 

 

There you have it ladies and gentlemen, my list of the top eight shows on television that deserve cancellation.  Are any of your favorites on the list?  If so, you need to reevaluate your viewing habits.  Are there any shows you feel should be included that weren’t?  If so you can always comment below or email seanscott@8daysageek.  You may also feel free to make your opinion known to me on Twitter, @SeanMLScott.  Until my next list….Allons-y!!

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