For those paying attention, Fox is currently in the bonus roundof their annual contest “How Many Series Can We Cancel?” The network has gained a reputation among snarkier audiences for ending shows before they can see a Season 2, and they’ve now officially cut all ties with freshman comedies Dads, Enlisted, and Surviving Jack, along with first-year drama Rake. It makes watching the endless line of previews for these shows for the past year really worth it in hindsight, doesn’t it?
Coming days after the much-protested cancellation of sci-fi drama Almost Human, this hit list isn’t very surprising, though I’m sure it’s still disappointing for many people. Via THR, Fox also announced they wouldn’t be moving forward with a handful of comedy pilots, including Nahnatchka Khan’s Fatrick, Jane Krakowski’s Dead Boss and Jane Kaczmarek’s No Place Like Home. A moment of silence, please.
Rake
The most high-profile of the bunch, Rake seemed like it would be a surefire hit for the network, with star Greg Kinnear adding comedic depth to this oft-frustrated lawyer, in an adaptation of the Australian series of the same name. Unfortunately, it didn’t bring in immediate big numbers, so Fox just shoved it under the TV rug on Friday and eventually Saturday nights, and now the garbage pile.
Enlisted
Rake's fate was similar to this second most acclaimed series in this bunch, Enlisted, which was also pigeonholed on Friday nights, but still managed to score halfway decent ratings once DVR was taken into account. Enlisted also gained a lot of fans by word of mouth due to its lighthearted and goofy look at the lives of military families. But while the tonally similar Brooklyn Nine-Nine will live on with a Season 2, Enlisted prematurely went AWOL from Fox’s schedule and is expected to see its remaining episodes aired before the summer schedule kicks into gear.
Dads
Produced by Fox animation king Seth MacFarlane, Dads seemed likely to get cancelled immediately after it was announced. The show itself proved the validity of that prediction with purely awful jokes, often delivered at the expense of someone’s nationality, gender or age. The really good news is Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi can technically never be in something so terrible again.
Surviving Jack
Which leaves us with Surviving Jack, Christopher Meloni’s post-Law & Order: SVU return to TV. A genuinely pleasing, if not downright enjoyable, family comedy, Jack temporarily had the advantage of an American Idol lead-in but still managed to get watched by next to no one. Now even less people can watch it.
These cancellations come as Fox starts deciding where it wants to put its recent line-up of new dramas, including Empire, Red Band Society and the Batman-ish prequel Gotham, and they’re still deciding on the rest of the pilots currently sitting in-house. Which of these series will you be most sorry to say goodbye to?
