Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Critic's choice: To save, or sever, these shows

By Robert Bianco, USA TODAY

  • James McDaniel, back, and Shaun Majumder star in Detroit 1-8-7, a keeper on ABC.

    ABC

    James McDaniel, back, and Shaun Majumder star in Detroit 1-8-7, a keeper on ABC.

ABC

James McDaniel, back, and Shaun Majumder star in Detroit 1-8-7, a keeper on ABC.

Readers had their say in our annual Save Our Shows poll. Now it's my turn to weigh in with a keep-or-kill wish list, knowing all too well that, when it comes to TV, wishes are seldom granted.

ABC

Keep:Detroit 1-8-7. This terrific urban cop drama is almost certain to become a victim of bad ratings, bad timing and an oddly (though sadly, not untypically) indifferent network. But it's not canceled until it is, and that's reason enough to rally behind it. Detroit was impeccably acted, intelligently written and increasingly engrossing ? and, as the only network series dealing with the real-life issues facing our large cities, it was a valuable dramatic asset.

Kill:Happy Endings. � ABC took three swings this year at finding a new sitcom to fill its open Wednesday slot and failed to get a hit. Matthew Perry's Sunshine probably was the least appropriate fit for the night, but it also was the best series, a bitter, well-cast comedy just beginning to find its voice. That leaves Happy Endings and Better With You, both a bit stale, neither as funny as the shows around them. But Better has the better cast, and at least it's never as annoying as Endings frequently is.

CBS

Kill:Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior. �What CBS really needs to do is clean creative house and sweep away a host of its procedurals, starting with both Minds and throwing in Hawaii Five-0 and a random CSI. But the days when a network gave up a sure hit just because it was no longer (or never was) a good show are long gone. Still, if CBS must fill its air with procedurals, at least prove it has some idea of when enough is enough, and a good place to start is with a spinoff of network TV's most vile scripted series. It would be nice if that "most vile" label were enough to get the original canceled as well, but we all know it won't.

Keep:Blue Bloods. �The issue is less whether it will return than what will it look like. The creators have left amid disputed reports the network wants to simplify the show into another, yes, procedural. Someone at CBS might want to ask Donnie Wahlberg, of the late lamented Boomtown, what happened when NBC overplayed its simplification hand in that show's second season. The changes pushed away former viewers without attracting new ones. That can't be the result CBS is after.

NBC

Keep:Parenthood. � For all its good intentions, Parenthood has never quite jelled: Too many situations seem strained, and too many casting choices seem misjudged. But it clearly does work for some devoted fans, who have embraced its vision of family life. Since no other current show attempts to fill the family-drama niche, that's reason enough to support it. Keeping Lauren Graham on TV is a bonus.

Kill:The Apprentice. �Either Donald Trump is running for president and the show's untenable, or he's demeaning the presidency as a publicity stunt and it's even more reprehensible than it already is. Either way, the decision to cancel it is a no-brainer. Beyond that, for many in the creative community, The Apprentice symbolizes the incompetence of a now-departed management team that sacrificed long-term benefits for short-term gain. If the new bosses want to send a powerful message times have changed, this is a very good place to start.

Fox

Kill:Breaking In. �In a network drawn to tasteless cartoons such as Bob's Burgers, this live-action sitcom is innocuous, relatively pleasant and mildly amusing. Problem is, the last thing Fox (or TV) needs is another comedy that manages to hit only "mildly amusing." Bob may offend some people, but at least it makes some others laugh. And in a sitcom race, he who makes you laugh last, wins.

Keep:Chicago Code. �On TV, sometimes you have to settle for second-best. When it comes to urban dramas, we'd be better served by a second season from Detroit than Chicago, and best served by keeping them both. The two series share a big-city setting and some of the same social concerns, but where both tackle urban issues, Chicago often subordinates them to its fictional corruption tale. Unfortunately, the shows have another difference: Chicago has a shot at surviving. So root for Chicago, and hope that a second season pushes it more in Detroit's direction.

CW

Keep:Nikita. �Because it's different than most of what CW has on the air.

Kill:One Tree Hill. �Because most people would probably be surprised CW still has it on the air.

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