I think it's going to be canceled after s02

why would you even say that!


And the signature.. goes....where? :D

I don't agree. The problem with Joey was that the character was already so well known that great things were expected. Sadly, as we now know, Joey was not to Friends what Frasier was to Cheers, which is why it was cancelled. Had the show been about a new character played by Matt Le Blanc, then who knows? I'm not a fan of Episodes but it just got sold to over 150 countries worldwide, so it just goes to show Matt Le Blanc - like Matthew Perry - is still a draw and Joey was clearly the wrong vehicle for him.

As for Samantha Who? quite how that got cancelled is still a surprise. SW? was definitely an ensemble cast and it had to be given the sitcom's premise because there's only so many things you can do when the lead has amnesia. However since then, the mother is now a regular on Bleep My Dad Says and Melissa McCarthy is now the lead on Mike & Molly, so no I don't agree there either that Samantha Who? was a one trick pony.

But back to Mr Sunshine, last week's ratings proved a few things. Such as Matthew Perry is still a huge draw from his Friends fame. Even though the pilot was ruthlessly savaged by the critics, everyone loved Allison Janney's character. Fast forward a few days to episode 2 which was shown in Canada on Monday night. It was a much better episode and you could really see the cast pulling together. What was notable about it was you got to see what Matthew Perry's character is really like, but I won't spoil it for those who'll be watching it in a few hours, and the real Ben Donovan is the kind of guy you'd happily buy a drink for at the bar.

So although the show is technically named Mr Sunshine after Mr Perry's character, it's a false impression that the show is solely around his Ben Donovan character. In the episode that airs tonight, you get to see a lot more of the other characters' quirkiness (despite Allison Janney stealing the episode again with one scene in her office) and even at this early stage, I see a bright future for Mr Sunshine (no pun intended). A similar misconception exists around Cougar Town, where the cougar aspect has long since departed and it's blossomed into a wonderful ensemble comedy. So as I see your subject, once Mr Sunshine hits its stride in the next few episodes, it won't be going anywhere for several years.

Surely you mean 'ep02' right?
How did this make it to air?
I actually blame Matthew Perry for some of the eventual failure this show will certainly face.
Is he this desperate to get back on the networks that he would agree to this crap?
If the 'suits' insist on keeping this on the air, they need to replace the whole writing staff.
So much wasted talent on bad writing.

For those looking for an ex-'Friends' hit, check out Showtime's "Episodes" starring Matt LeBlanc. Now that's funny.

Most people DVR, stream and download shows. The networks are using the archaic nielsen system relying on people to sit and watch a show in a traditional manner. The only people doing this are people like my 60+ year old mom and friends....hence we are stuck with shows like "Dancing with the (washed up) Stars", hosted by some out-of-work ex-boy bander and shows involving voting for no -name singing amateurs to be the next flavor of the minute.

Good to know that most of the people doen't read further then the headline...that explains a lot.

Isn't it sad that that many great shows get cancelled because the management of the TV Studio is just to stupid to create a acceptable Business Modell for their viewers. Crap, I don't give a sh** if i have to watch some ads, as long as I'm not forced to watch something at a fixed time.

Most shows run out of proper material earlier than the second season. Show's like Lost seem designed to drag out the story for so long that at the end you are just glad to have it over with. Also typical with most soap opera story lines.

The other problem is that networks tend to cut the budget for many shows which means fewer cast, lower quality writers, etc. On some shows this is very obvious and you see a guest cast list that is basically actors from previous network shows (CBS is probably the worst at this).

The third problem is that there just are not enough quality writers and those with a passion to do a proper job. Eventually the job gets passed on to writers that can copy the formula to the satisfaction of the network.

Fourth, most of the hit shows (e.g. CSI, SVU) are based on very formulaic scripts, almost fill in the blanks type of material. The network knows that quality is expensive and it doesn't pay off. They make their money from cookie cutter syndicated crime shows.

Popularity and longevity rule the day, quality doesn't come in to play. Take 2.5 Men, a show that survives on two brothers that insult each other for 20 minutes each week, who would guess that that would last as long as it did unless you understand that in America, the $1 cheeseburger rules, not because it is good or good for you, but because people buy it.