Steve M.
05-18-2004, 10:45 PM
"I'm With Her" was one of the funniest, smartest sitcoms to come along in years. So why did ABC kill it?
Here I offer a few theories as to why it happened. Some are serious, others less so. All have a kernel of creedence to them.
1. Hollywood elitism. A lot of movie stars must have been repelled at the idea of a sitcom about a movie star dating an average guy; in real life, such an notion is so beneath them. They wouldn't date an average person in real life, and the thought of a sitcom depicting such a thing must have nauseated them so much, they must have leaned on Michael Eisner or Robert Iger or someone to cancel it even before it had to go up against "American Idol."
2. Hollywood artifice revealed. The series showed scenes of all the artifice and trickery that goes into making a movie, which must have offended Hollywood insdiers who didn't want such company secrets revealed. They could have used their influence to get it canceled. Both of these theories suggest a, for lack of a better word, political reason for the cancellation.
3. Patrick was too nice and smart. You know what I mean here. Just about every other sitcom on TV today depicts heterosexual male characters as insufferable, immature louts with smart, attractive wives they should be glad to have. So Chris Henchy created Patrick Owen, a bookish, intelligent, sensitive fellow (who knows what he has in Alex) that Alex considers herself lucky to have. A nice guy on a sitcom - and one who finishes first at that? Can't have that. He's not a jerk? No, no, no - that breaks the rules of sitcom writing these days. So no more Mr. Nice Guy!
4. Andre Agassi. I'm still convinced Brooke Shields's ex-husband was a Fox mole and helped put "The Simple Life" and "American Idol" against this show. He wanted it off the air as much as the Hollywood insiders.
5. The "series killer" curse. Teri Polo and David Sutcliffe had starred in TV shows that got canceled pretty quickly, so "I'm With Her" was jinxed from the start. And if you believe this, you must think Paul McCartney is dead and Elvis Presley is alive.
6. Not enough critical support. Some critics liked "I'm With Her," but many didn't. Entertainment Weekly called it "gimmicky crap." These jerks are the folks ABC listened to?!?
Or it could just be this. . . .
7. Something Alan Alda once said. Alda once observed that the networks give up on shows too easily. "The networks cancel shows faster than the Post Office cancels stamps," he said in 1983.
Whatever the reason, ABC's decision sucks big time! :mad:
Here I offer a few theories as to why it happened. Some are serious, others less so. All have a kernel of creedence to them.
1. Hollywood elitism. A lot of movie stars must have been repelled at the idea of a sitcom about a movie star dating an average guy; in real life, such an notion is so beneath them. They wouldn't date an average person in real life, and the thought of a sitcom depicting such a thing must have nauseated them so much, they must have leaned on Michael Eisner or Robert Iger or someone to cancel it even before it had to go up against "American Idol."
2. Hollywood artifice revealed. The series showed scenes of all the artifice and trickery that goes into making a movie, which must have offended Hollywood insdiers who didn't want such company secrets revealed. They could have used their influence to get it canceled. Both of these theories suggest a, for lack of a better word, political reason for the cancellation.
3. Patrick was too nice and smart. You know what I mean here. Just about every other sitcom on TV today depicts heterosexual male characters as insufferable, immature louts with smart, attractive wives they should be glad to have. So Chris Henchy created Patrick Owen, a bookish, intelligent, sensitive fellow (who knows what he has in Alex) that Alex considers herself lucky to have. A nice guy on a sitcom - and one who finishes first at that? Can't have that. He's not a jerk? No, no, no - that breaks the rules of sitcom writing these days. So no more Mr. Nice Guy!
4. Andre Agassi. I'm still convinced Brooke Shields's ex-husband was a Fox mole and helped put "The Simple Life" and "American Idol" against this show. He wanted it off the air as much as the Hollywood insiders.
5. The "series killer" curse. Teri Polo and David Sutcliffe had starred in TV shows that got canceled pretty quickly, so "I'm With Her" was jinxed from the start. And if you believe this, you must think Paul McCartney is dead and Elvis Presley is alive.
6. Not enough critical support. Some critics liked "I'm With Her," but many didn't. Entertainment Weekly called it "gimmicky crap." These jerks are the folks ABC listened to?!?
Or it could just be this. . . .
7. Something Alan Alda once said. Alda once observed that the networks give up on shows too easily. "The networks cancel shows faster than the Post Office cancels stamps," he said in 1983.
Whatever the reason, ABC's decision sucks big time! :mad: