Friday, March 15, 2019
Fri-Yay: Netflix Cancels One Day at a Time; Stana Katic Drama Returns June 14 on Amazon
by Vincent
Yesterday, Netflix announced it was canceled its critically beloved sitcom One Day at a Time due to low viewership. I have a lot to say about the cancelation - frankly, I think it's a sign that Netflix as a reliable provider of quality content is becoming quite questionable - but I might have even more to say about the odd way Netflix announced the show's cancellation. In a truly bizarre turn of events, Netflix took to Twitter to gush about how much they love the show and how important it is...only to cancel it.
This rings false for several reasons. I'd accept this more from a broadcast or cable network, whose funds are directly tied to a show's performance. But on Netflix, which doesn't even announce viewership totals and has never really explained how they correlate to their overall profit, it seems odd to act as if cancelling the show was a necessity. After all, the third season of the show has only been out for a month. Isn't the point of Netflix that you can watch it anytime, and that it's always available for new viewers to discover? And how can we know just how terrible the show's ratings are without any viewership data at all?
Moving on from the method, though, One Day at a Time's cancellation truly feels like the moment where Netflix stops being the fan favorite service it once was. Netflix was once the network that didn't cancel anything, and whose entire presence was based on pleasing fans. It launched, after all, with the revival of Arrested Development. But more and more, as Netflix has canceled fan favorite series like the Marvel series, American Vandal, Fuller House and now One Day at a Time, it feels as if Netflix is, simply, just another TV network, driven more by money than making anyone other than their own wallets happy. Still, hope remains for me that perhaps the outcry will cause Netflix to revisit their decision. At the very least, maybe another network will notice it and swoop in, similar to what NBC did for Brooklyn Nine-Nine. But if that doesn't happen, at least we'll have those three top-notch seasons to enjoy for all time.
After tracking down and killing her abductor, former FBI agent Emily Byrne struggles to define her new normal as a mother and a survivor of six years of physical and mental torture. Even while she rebuilds her relationship with her son, Flynn, Emily still cannot shake the darkness of her past. She enlists Boston police detective Tommy Gibbs in a secret investigation of her mysterious history. When the case turns deadly, she risks everything to uncover the truth. Absentia, starring and executive produced by Castle's Stana Katic, centers on FBI agent Emily Byrne (Katic).
In season one, Emily disappeared without a trace and was declared dead after hunting one of Boston's most notorious serial killers. Six years later, Emily was found in a cabin in the woods, barely alive, and with no memory of the years she was missing. Returning home to learn her husband had remarried and her son was being raised by another woman, she soon found herself implicated in a new series of murders. In season two, after tracking down and killing her abductor, Emily struggles for a tenuous new normal with son Flynn and ex-husband Nick. But her obsessive investigation into the questions that haunt her uncovers a serial killer and a spiraling conspiracy that threatens more than just her family. New cast members joining season two include Matthew Le Nevez (The Widow) and Natasha Little (The Night Manager). Watch Absentia Season 2 June 14 on Amazon Prime Video.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Saturday, September 7
Johnson - "Bahama Breeze" (Bounce TV, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Naomi is impressed with Omar's growth; Antionette makes Jarvis a proposal at a much-needed time; Greg reconnects with Jada; Omar, Keith and Jarvis hit the club.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 2)
Friday, September 6
- Kumail Nanjiani (Bless the Harts/Silicon Valley) - Watch Kumail on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Michael Keaton (Report to Murphy/Working Stiffs/All's Fair) - Michael appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Conner O'Malley (Shrill) - Conner is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Edie Falco (Bupkis/Nurse Jackie) - Edie talks about her film I'll Be Right There on NBC's Today in the 10am hour and on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Josh Gad (Wolf Like Me/Avenue 5/The Comedians/1600 Penn/Back to You) - Josh is joining Drew and telling her about getting denied from his college's musical theater program and making his return to Broadway after eleven years with bestie Andrew Rannells on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Diane Farr (Splitting Together/Like Family/The Job) - Diane discusses the CBS drama series Fire Country on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
04/03 - Too Close for Comfort - The Complete Series (VEI)
04/08 - Check It Out! - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/21 - Frasier (2023) - Season One
06/11 - The Jeffersons - The Complete Series (2024 Release)
06/11 - Welcome Back, Kotter - The Complete Series (2024 Release)
07/05 - Letterkenny - Season 12 (Final Season)
07/30 - Ted Lasso - The Richmond Way (The Complete Series) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/10 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-7
09/10 - Ted - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/17 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
09/17 - Top Cat - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
09/24 - Friends - The Complete Series (4K Ultra HD)
09/24 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Seventh Season (DVD) / The Complete Series (DVD) (Blu-ray)
10/08 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Twelfth Season / The Complete Series
10/22 - Veep - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
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