movieking

Smith! Didn't see this posted, so here you go:

NEW YORK (AP) -- Here's something Ray Liotta and Virginia Madsen won't be putting on their resumes: stars of the first new TV show to bite the dust this fall.

"Smith," the Tuesday night CBS drama with Liotta leading a band of high-stakes thieves, is off the schedule, the network said Friday. It will be replaced temporarily by reruns of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and "Criminal Minds."

Networks don't like to use the word "cancel" -- it sounds so messy -- but the show's producers have been given no promise that it will return.

Its last episode had only 8.4 million viewers on Tuesday, according to Nielsen Media Research. It faced tough competition in the time slot from NBC's "Law & Order: SVU" and ABC's "Boston Legal."

Meanwhile, NBC announced the sort-of cancellation of its Wednesday night serial comedy "Kidnapped," which stars Jeremy Sisto. NBC gambled by putting the show in the time slot held for a long time by "Law & Order," and it failed miserably.

"Kidnapped" will be moved to the television purgatory of Saturday nights, starting October 21. Its producers have been told to wrap up the serialized drama's story lines by the end of the show's 13-episode order, NBC said.

Networks have been wrestling with how to satisfy fans who've gotten involved in serialized dramas when the ratings are poor enough for the show to be canceled.

Fox has put its new comedy "Happy Hour" on hiatus, but insists it will return.

MechanicalMan

I won't be losing any sleep over this.

LorenzoL

This show had potential but I guess people don't want to root for the bad guys and the execution was a bit lacking.

@ NBC for burning off the remaining episodes of Kidnapped on Saturday nights.

critterdvd

I watched the pilot of both series and it seemed almost like a chore to get through the episodes... Plus with 'Smith' gone it gives 'Jericho' a higher chance of survival...

MrX

Deletes Tuesday's recording of Smith

That was a pretty tough slot to break into with one monster show and another established show on at the same time, plus cable.

No more weekly Amy Smart

MechanicalMan

I remember when NBC aired the final episodes of Just Shoot Me by showing them back-to-back on Saturday nights with virtually no advertising. I thought that seemed kind of cold, since that show had given them decent ratings (as I recall).

GoldenJCJ

I was the same way. The only reason I watched the show at all was because of Ray Liotta but damn that was some tedious viewing. I got about halfway through the pilot and decided I'd had enough.

I like Liotta so this news is too bad in that regard, but on the other hand he's now free to pursue something worthwhile.

JasonF

Anyway, I haven't watched either show, but kudos to NBC for giving fans of Kidnapped a complete story. Makes me far more likely to invest time in NBC serials in the future.

nodeerforamonth

I've never even heard of it!

Snowmaker

I've never even heard of it.

Timber

I guess I'm the one disappointed watcher of the show. One of the new show I enjoyed the most this season.

LorenzoL

Now compare "Smith" with "Shark" which is headlined by another movie actor but is getting a much different result. "Smith" had a big name supporting cast and high production values however, I think that the subject matter didn't help the show because it made it into a somewhat depressing and tedious show.
Now, look at "Shark", the plot/writing is generic or cliche, they have an average/below average supporting cast but James Woods makes that show great. It's fun and very enjoyable.

Michael Ballack

I enjoyed watching "the bad guys". How many freaking doctor, lawyer, ahd cop shows can you take?

rkndkn

I am, too. One of my favorite new shows this season.

Shannon Nutt

Kidnapped...Smith...I'm guessing Jericho will be next, since it's the only other new fall show that I've watched more than once. I absolutely HATED the episodes of The Class and Shark that I watched...watch those go on to be big hits!

B.A.

I liked it, but it wasn't anything special. Definitely the first time I have ever liked Siimon Baker in anything.

I shall miss Amy Smart.

Patman

I'm surprised they dropped the show so quickly. At least let it get through October and see if there was signs for improvement. Sheesh!

Rogue588

So....does this mean Law & Order moves back to ITS slot?

Deftones

I doubt it. I think NBC realizes that L&O is on it's last legs, and moving it back might kill it off.

J-Dubya

let me know when the dvd comes out so i can rent it

Geofferson

The couple episodes I watched didn't impress me. Figured it wouldn't last long anyway...

Jimmy James

IIRC, Levitan had engaged in a pissing contest with NBC by that point, so it was kind of personal. Apparently, it was worse than what Paul Simms did because Simms got Newsradio renewed a couple more years and joked about it in an episode while Levitan had whatever dolt was running NBC at the time swearing that he was going to blackball Levitan.

Scott27

No, Dateline is replacing Kidnapped in the Wednesday slot.

TheBigDave

for NBC giving Kidnapped the time needed to wrap everything up. I'm not a big fan of the show. But it would suck if they didn't follow it through to a resolution.

I hate it when these TV series with ongoing story arcs are just dropped with no conclusion. It's bad for TV in general. Lots of people aren't willing to give these types of shows a chance. I passed on a couple shows this year, because I knew they'd just disappear. You can't leave everyone hanging.

DJariya

I thought the pilot was really well-produced almost movie quality. But, I guess the show was really expensive to produce and the crappy ratings didn't justify CBS forking over more money to John Wells