To Cancel or Not to Cancel - TV Reviews on Why to Save Selected Shows

Three of my favorite television series are about to be canceled. They are as follows: "The Simpsons" (FOX), "Friday Night Lights" (NBC) and "Mercy" (NBC).

"The Simpsons"

"The Simpsons" has been chiefly criticized for "declining quality" in recent years. They've been on FOX's endangered list a few times, but now it seems to be a final farewell in 2010.

For its 23 years on the air, viewers have become more than familiar with the brilliantly conceived characters and their shtick. They also know the animated series' multiple levels of humor, from slapstick that a toddler can understand to scathing social and political satire that a Nobel laureate like Stephen Hawking and Linus Pauling might appreciate. And in between, there are levels that are just plain hilarious across the board. Some notable critics have even called "The Simpsons" the greatest show ever on television.

If the show's quality has been perceived to be in decline, this may only be due to audience familiarity. Yet even the weakest shows in the series are still brave enough to savagely ridicule the most sacrosanct of targets. Only certain "South Park" episodes have come close in intelligence and satirical quality.

My main argument for keeping "The Simpsons" on for at least one more season is that there is a whole new herd of sacred cows that have yet to be butchered, particularly BP, the Obama Administration, and the Gulf disaster. For me, only "The Simpsons" would be able to approach this horrific event with at least the right level of scathing ridicule.

"Friday Night Lights"

Like "The Simpsons," "Friday Night Lights" has been a smashing critical success. Unlike "The Simpsons," "Friday Night Lights" has been on the network's endangered list since its first season.

The show offers a hard look at small town America through the day-to-day plights of a high school football team. The superb ensemble cast coupled with well-crafted slice-of-life storylines, however, may be too much for an audience experiencing America in decline as an economic power. In NBC's defense, they've listened to the critics and fans, and have supported the show off-and-on through its five seasons despite low ratings.

While not yet officially announcing the show's final season, in February 2010, NBC told the "Friday Night Lights" cast that they would be free to pursue other roles after the production of the fifth season.

Note, however, that this isn't the first time that NBC has canceled the show. It was axed mid-season during its third year on the air. Several months later, NBC aired the unaired third season episodes. In the meantime, fan support had surged. They delivered a groundswell of "Save Friday Night Lights" petitions to the network mostly via the Internet.

My main argument for keeping "Friday Night Lights" on for more than five seasons is that the dramatic series hasn't declined in quality. And if past experience is any indication, NBC should never underestimate the show's fan base.

"Mercy"

Unlike "The Simpsons" and "Friday Night Lights," hospital drama "Mercy" has never been a critics' darling. For me, the ensemble cast's chemistry alone is worth saving from NBC's chopping block even if the storylines can be contrived at times.

Unfortunately, "Mercy" has been more a victim of bad timing than bad writing, launching after Showtime's hospital series "Nurse Jackie" starring the always outstanding Edie Falco. Many critics can't get past certain glaring comparisons between both shows, far favoring "Nurse Jackie."

While "Nurse Jackie" is a 30-minute dark comedy as opposed to "Mercy," which is an hour drama, both share blue-collar married nurse main characters with fidelity and substance abuse issues. Other similar characters include naive but dedicated student nurses, gay male nurses, and primadonna doctors. And both series have a neighborhood bar and inner city emergency room settings.