canceled shows

Uh-oh, Starter Wife fans — it looks like this is the end of the road for Molly Kagen. USA has decided not to renew Debra Messing's show for a second season.

When it aired as a miniseries in the Summer of 2007, The Starter Wife was an unquestioned success, garnering 10 Emmy nominations and getting as many as 5 million viewers (though it was closer to 3 million by the end). But as a regular series this Fall, the show averaged just 2.4 million viewers, which, according to Entertainment Weekly, wasn't enough for USA to renew it. In a statement, the producers called the December finale a "satisfying conclusion" to the story.

It's a bummer for me, because I thought the show was much better as a regular series than it had been as a mini. Everything was just higher quality — the storylines were more interesting, Molly's journey of personal growth intrigued me more, and best of all, they did away with the freaking homeless man from the mini-series. Also, I was looking forward to watching Molly get to make her movie, Wife Goes On. And I'll certainly miss seeing Debra Messing on my TV each week, but I'm equally sad to say goodbye to her quirky, lovable friends: Joan and Rodney.

Tell me: Did you watch the series? Will you miss Molly? And what would you like to see Messing do next?

Photo courtesy of USA

ABC has decided against ordering more episodes of Pushing Daisies, Eli Stone, and Dirty Sexy Money, at least for now, writes The Hollywood Reporter. The story continues:

Actively avoiding the c-word, the network left the door open for ordering more episodes at a future date, though that is considered improbable. The trio are still on the schedule for next week.

Pushing Daisies has wrapped production on its 13 episodes for this season, while Dirty Sexy Money and Eli Stone will be able to finish their initial orders. There's no word on whether all of those episodes will air between now and when ABC's midseason schedule kicks off in January, though.

Meanwhile, this makes it official that Life on Mars will air after Lost starting in January. Scrubs will also join the Wednesday schedule.

Deep sigh. It's not like this is a shocking surprise for these shows (which all have gotten critical acclaim — especially Daisies — but have struggled in the ratings). But it's still, you know, sad. Can we start the collective wailing in the comments?

Photos copyright 2008 ABC, Inc.

Word slipped out late yesterday that NBC was axing both Lipstick Jungle and My Own Worst Enemy from its schedule, but there's some good news today: There are reports that both shows will at least get to air their remaining episodes in their current time slots. Lipstick will have 13 episodes and is wrapping production on them this week, while Enemy will end after nine episodes.

According to The Futon Critic, Friday Night Lights could take over the Lipstick slot in January, to which I can really only say "hooray!" — this season's episodes on DirecTV have been wonderful. NBC hasn't announced a successor for Enemy yet, but it's now set up to end on the same day as the finale of the "Villains" chapter of Heroes, so if NBC wanted to completely overhaul its Monday schedule, that wouldn't be a bad time.

So, since networks seem to be in a chopping mood, what shows are next to worry about? Two ABC shows, Dirty Sexy Money and Pushing Daisies, seem particularly vulnerable, since neither was on a potential ABC midseason schedule that was floated earlier this week. There's a report that Prison Break could be on its way out. And while Chuck already has a full-season order, consider this my official plea for NBC to get it out of the high-traffic Mondays-at-8 time slot (competing against Gossip Girl, How I Met Your Mother, and, before long, House) if there's any hope for a season three.

Will you miss Enemy or Lipstick? And which other shows are you concerned about?

Photos courtesy of NBC

Granted, this news has probably been a long time in coming, but it's still a bummer: Men in Trees has been officially canceled after two years of life in Elmo, AK.

Of course, that's two years of airing on three different nights in numerous different time slots, with two long breaks — one when its first season came to an early end, another when ABC decided to save episodes of the show rather than air them during the writers' strike — in between. Not the easiest way to get a following, that's for sure.

It was bad news when Lifetime decided not to pick up the show when ABC offered it, but the show still had its promoters at the network — not to mention a dedicated (if relatively small) fan base that had organized a campaign to buy trees for developing countries. And coupled with the news that ABC didn't plan on premiering as many new series as normal in the Fall, it seemed like the show had a chance.

The one bright spot is that Trees did prepare an ending that could serve as a series finale; that last episode will air sometime this Summer, after the show returns May 28. In the meantime, what do you think about the decision? Did Trees deserve to be saved? Would you have wanted it to return for a third season even if it meant it would be shuffled all around ABC's schedule again?

Photo copyright 2008 ABC, Inc.

Big Shots, one of those new shows that I wished would be better than it was, has been pulled from the ABC schedule, effective immediately. It's a curious decision given the writers' strike — the show had three finished episodes that could have aired, and you'd think any original programming these days would be better than repeats.

Not so at ABC, apparently; instead of Big Shots, the network will air repeats of Private Practice in the post-Grey's Anatomy time slot for the next three weeks. (Grey's will be in repeats the whole time, too.)

There's speculation that the move could be a tryout for Private Practice in the post-Grey's time slot, but I really hope that doesn't happen. For one thing, Private Practice seems to be doing just fine on Wednesdays. For another, I think putting the spinoff after the original would just make Private Practice look weak. I already miss Addison at Seattle Grace; seeing the shows back-to-back would only make that worse.

I've already said I'd like to see Cashmere Mafia air after Grey's to take on NBC's Lipstick Jungle. But if that doesn't happen, what about Dirty Sexy Money? It's a good show that's being mostly forgotten in its current time slot, and it shares the soapy tone of Grey's but is different enough that viewers might stick around to watch it. I know I would — what about you?

Photo copyright 2007 ABC, Inc.

Remember when the short-lived series "Traveler" ended with an episode that promised to answer all your questions — but then totally didn't? The series creator, David DiGilio, has fixed that with an extensive blog entry at TVGuide.com explaining everything that would have happened in seasons two and three of "Traveler" — and beyond. Here are some of the biggest revelations:

• The quest to uncover the Fourth Branch — the organization that seemed to be calling the shots toward the end of the series — would have been the major plot of season two. Jay, Tyler and Will would have sought to expose the organization, which was a secret society filled with rich, powerful, and mostly corrupt members of America's oldest families.
• The painting — John Trumbull's "Declaration of Independence" — was key because it depicted the formation of the Fourth Branch. Will took it as leverage in case the organization decided to punish him for letting Jay and Tyler live.
• Tyler has an evil brother, Gabriel, who would have been the key nemesis in season two. In that season's finale, Tyler would have been murdered at Gabriel's hands.

For more, especially about Will Traveler's past, just read more