The Internet: Where TV Shows Go To Die

One of the first shows canceled this television season was CBS’ Smith. As one of about a dozen viewers, I was disappointed when they decided to pull the plug on the weekly heist drama after only three episodes. But I can’t say I’m surprised… The show obviously had a big budget for actors, sets, and effects — so they need to find an audience quickly and they didn’t pull it off.

Their first obstacle was one they imposed upon themselves: the title. Whereas Lost evokes mystery and Heroes suggests adventure, Smith just seems dull, common. The other major challenge Smith faced was the pacing. It’s a pretty slow moving drama — quite an accomplishment when you consider the characters “execute high-stakes robberies.” Perhaps, it could have done better on HBO or Showtime where this sort of content has thrived (think The Wire, Sopranos).

So about a month after Smith’s demise, what’s CBS to do with the remaining four episodes that they filmed? Sell them for $2 a pop on iTunes and Amazon Unbox, of course! CBS is also kindly offering free streaming of the last episodes via their (advertising-supported) web site Innertube. But wait! There’s more! CBS.com has just posted a 5 page synopsis for each of the next five episodes (8-12) that were never shot.

So what am I going to do? I’ll let Smith rest in peace and rent The Score to satisfy any unfulfilled heist jones.