|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
Times, My Life and
A drama as
gripping as it was ambitious, the 1991 series "My Life and Times"
was suffocated by an uncaring network after just six episodes. The
show revolved around Ben Miller, an elderly man in a retirement home
circa 2035, looking back on his life. With each episode set in a
different year, the show's minuscule audience watched the highs and
lows, loves and loves-lost of an ordinary man. Despite being
survived by stars Helen Hunt and Megan
Mullally ("Will & Grace"), the forgotten program
has no visiting hours. | |
 |
Firefly
Acclaimed, beloved and ultimately
unwanted, Joss Whedon's
("Buffy
the Vampire Slayer," "Angel") "Firefly" died in 2003 after
losing
a long battle with the c-word: cancellation. Set 500 years
in the
future, this sharply written, quirky series was often
described
as a Western in outer space; it had to be
described,
unfortunately, because no one was watching it. The
show's loyal following and big DVD sales inspired the feature
film "Serenity" in 2005.
| |
 |
Life, Get a
A brilliantly
subversive sitcom about a sarcastic man-child (Chris Elliott) who wastes
his afternoons delivering newspapers and harassing his parents, "Get
a Life" paved the way for everyone from Zach Braff ("Scrubs," "Garden State") to Bam Margera. After
consistently finishing near the bottom of the ratings, the end of
the show's three-year run came via a mercy-killing in 1992. Sensing
the end was near, the show had devolved into surreal moments
including a nuclear-waste-powered soccer game with decapitated
heads. A limited number of episodes can be visited on DVD.
| |
 |
Bill, Buffalo
Arguably the most
famous "would have been" sitcom ever, "Buffalo Bill" was the rarest
of shows, presenting a completely unsympathetic lead character. Dabney Coleman played a
conceited, discourteous, bitter TV talk show host who amusingly
tore into his guests and treated his friends even worse. The
groundbreaking series met its bitter end, but fathered such
television bastards as the main characters of "Becker," "House,"
and the British and American versions of "The Office." The
acclaimed program has not been seen since its 1984 closed-casket
funeral. | |
 |
Action
The show that was
supposed to revolutionize television, "Action" gave "The Osbournes"
the freedom to go bleep themselves, but died too quickly to leave
behind more of a legacy. Jay Mohr ("Last Comic
Standing") checked his Christopher Walken
imitation at the door while taking on the role of Peter Dragon, a
tough-talking Hollywood producer sinking millions into ridiculously
clichéd action movies. Insider jokes about characters who may have
been based on everyone from Alicia Silverstone to the
Weinstein brothers captured Hollywood's attention, but soared over
the heads of viewers in the flyover states. "Action" is
occasionally memorialized on Trio's "Brilliant but Cancelled" TV
series, but has garnered little more than online petitions for a DVD
release. | |
 |
Development, Arrested
A program
that makes you laugh so hard you have to rewatch it for the jokes
you missed, "Arrested Development" story lines have included a
sighted lawyer with a blind seeing-eye dog, a father who hosted tea
parties with dolls and a man who joined the Blue Man Group because he thought it
was a support organization for depressed men. Despite Emmy wins and
pleas from fans and critics alike, the show's mediocre ratings have
kept it on the verge of cancellation for three seasons. Currently on
life support, the revolutionary anti-sitcom -- narrated by executive
producer Ron Howard -- airs
its season finale on Feb. 10. Only time will tell if the Bluths will
make a triumphant return, or if the show will end up like the
once-wealthy family it portrays: caged, abandoned, but always
hilarious. In the meantime, our prescription is that you snap
up the first two seasons on DVD --
stat. | |
Larry Carroll is a
reporter for MTV News and a pop-culture junkie. His writing has
appeared on sites such as CountingDown, FilmStew, E!Online
and IGN Film Force. His merciless review of the film "Drumline"
continues to draw hate-spewing e-mails from marching band devotees
who resent his comment, "There's a reason why people go to the
bathroom during halftime."Agree? Disagree? Send
comments to heymsn@microsoft.com. |
| Page 2 of 2 |
 |
|
 |
Previous | |
|
|
|
|
|
Hotmail
