No-See TV

When it comes to TV, Hope Davis doesn't have much to brag about.

The NBC Thursday night drama "Allegiance," which was about a a loyal American citizen and a  CIA analyst who discovers that his mother, father and sister are in fact Russians spying on the U.S. - Davis played the mother - was canceled after five out of thirteen episodes were aired. Other shows Davis has starred in - "Deadline," "Six Degrees" - have also had short lifespans.

As for "Allegiance," my mother enjoyed the show, but its ratings were so low, I'm surprised the announcer didn't say, before a commercial break, "Don't go away, Mrs. Maginnis - we'll be right back!" "Allegiance" was one of the shows in NBC's Thursday night drama lineup meant to go against ABC's Shonda Rhimes-produced dramas that same night.

Yeah, how's that working out?

"The Blacklist," which originally aired on Mondays, might not survive because of its new Thursday time slot.  "The Slap," which was meant to be a limited-run series anyway, might end up having a more limited run than expected.  Now all of the TV critics who were skeptical on NBC's gambit - i.e., all TV critics, period - get to say, in unison, "We . . . told you so!" :-O       

Meanwhile, NBC brought back "Undateable" and and premiered "One Big Happy," the Ellen DeGeneres-produced show I mentioned in an earlier blog post, this past Tuesday (March 17)  "Marry Me" and "About a Boy," which these shows displaced, haven't been on since late February, the intervening time devoted to special broadcasts of the singing-talent-contest show "The Voice." Although I haven't heard anything official yet, I fear that "About a Boy" star Minnie Driver may be right and the show might very well be canceled.  This would leave producer Jason Katims in an unfavorable position.  Before "Parenthood" concluded its run, he was the producer of two NBC shows.  After this TV season is over (or sooner than that), he might not be the producer of anything. :-(  

I write about TV to get my mind off the snow we're expecting tomorrow (no rain mix, possibly "significant" accumulation . . . you can tell I haven't gotten my mind off it completely!)