Wait: They Cancelled That?!? TV Networks Swing The Axe

Case Closed. FOX isn't renewing The Grinder, starring Rob Lowe and Fred Savage after the family legal comedy's first season. Image: Ray Mickshaw.
Case Closed. FOX isn't renewing The Grinder, starring Rob Lowe and Fred Savage after the family legal comedy's first season. Image: Ray Mickshaw.
Case Closed. FOX isn’t renewing The Grinder, starring Rob Lowe and Fred Savage after the legal comedy’s low-rated first season. Image: Ray Mickshaw.

Spring is a difficult time for actors on a bubble TV show. They must live with great trepidation as network executives decide between series renewal, changes or cancellation. And the latest round of series announcements include the axing of well-loved favorites. On the upside, networks are about to announce their new fall programming slates, so we can salve the sting of cancelled faves with the hope of series yet to come.

Latest Cancellations:

Telenovela- NBC
Ay, Dios Mio!! This Eva Longoria-starrer was hilarious and should have pulled a much larger audience. But there are so many TV offerings, that I guess that these days, it takes more than steamy accents and skimpy clothes to grab a TV audience. If only one of the characters in fictional soap Las Leyes de Pasión was a sexy zombie…

Game of Silence- NBC
NBC’s drama about a successful Atlanta attorney whose past resurfaces at the most importune time, has been muffled for good. Just weeks after the drama premiered, NBC announced that it won’t return for a second season. I admit that I watched a few minutes last night and couldn’t get past all of the needless yelling. It was so overacted that it made soap opera actors seem subtle by comparison. I guess that other viewers mush have felt the same way.

Undateable Live-NBC
Bill Lawrence’s comedy went live for every episode of its third season after a live show during Season 2 proved popular. But NBC has announced that it can no longer stay committed to Undateable.

Heartbeat-NBC
Insert your own flatlining joke about NBC’s medical drama about an accomplished heart surgeon having the plug pulled on it after just a few months.

Crowded-NBC
If only Patrick Warburton had had David Puddy’s 8-ball jacket; maybe he could have predicted that his latest series, Crowded, was doomed after just a couple of months.

Other Cancelled Series:
Castle-ABC 
Fans cried foul when ABC announced that it wasn’t renewing the contract of series star Stana Katic and co-star Tamala Jones, but the decision to end the series after 8 seasons has come as a shock of the popular detective dramedy.

Nashville- ABC
ABC was harsh on its beloved musical drama too, and ended the tour of the country-fried drama after harmonious four seasons.

Galavant- ABC
ABC’s costumed musical was well received by critics (i.e. me) but was a little too quirky for audiences and was cancelled after two seasons, that were so short that they were more like mini-seasons.

Agent Carter- ABC
One of the first casualties of the recent comic-book resurgence, is the 1940’s era drama about secret agent Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell). Marvel’s Agent Carter had a small, but loyal following, but couldn’t escape cancellation.

The Family- ABC
The Joan Allen-starrer that started out as a family drama about a missing child returned, evolved into a whole-lotta crazy and will not be renewed after its first season.

The Muppets- ABC
The series wasn’t sure if it was for families or adults, and viewers couldn’t tell either and stayed away. In midseason, series co-creator Bob Kushell was replaced by Galavant EP Kirstin Newman. “There are as many opinions about what the Muppets should and shouldn’t be as there are people on this planet,” she said at the Television Critics Association winter press tour. “So my job is to listen to what everybody is saying in common, and what they were all saying was, we want the tone to be more joyful. We want the Muppets to be the Muppets.” Unfortunately, the gamble couldn’t undo the early-season weirdness and ABC’s experiment in puppetry ended after one season.

Grandfathered- FOX
Wake up! The beautiful face of John Stamos, the GILF of our dreams,  has been cancelled. Despite a charming premise — a lothario learns he’s a father and a grandfather in one fell swoop — the series starring easy on the eyes Stamos, and easy on the eyes Josh Peck was cancelled after a single season.

The Grinder- FOX
This one is a head-scratcher. Most critics thought Rob Lowe and Fred Savage was a surefire recipe for success and guessed that the series was going to do well. Unfortunately, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink, and TV watchers didn’t lap up this charming comedy.

Cooper Barrett’s Guide To Surviving Life- FOX
I thought this comedy’s title was too long, TV watchers thought it was on for too long, and it was cancelled after half a season.

Bordertown- FOX
The animated series about residents of Mexifornia failed to find an audience was was cancelled after half a season. It was muy mal.

Containment- The CW
Fans didn’t get infected by virus-drama Containment on The CW. The series starring David Gyasi will not be renewed beyond its initial 10-episode run.

CSI:Cyber- CBS
Patricia Arquette may be an Oscar-winner but she and recent addition Ted Danson (who jumped over after the conclusion of CSI), couldn’t save the series from the dark web of cancellation. The internet “who done it?” will be disconnected after 2 seasons, ending Anthony E. Zuiker’s CSI franchise.

The Good Wife- CBS
It stated with a slap, and ended with a slap. And in between, The Good Wife became my parent’s obsession and reignited Julianna Margulies career. The series ended May 8 after 7 seasons.

Mike & Molly- CBS
The series final will be an hour-long send-off airing on May 16. In its six seasons on CBS, the series was always funny and beloved by fans, so many are wondering if McCarthy’s stardom is prompting the series end. We can’t help but wonder why this Chuck Lorre laughter is ending and not 2 Broke Girls.