dead men tell no tales...

So Fox today announced the formal cancellation of three sitcoms, Arrested Development, That 70's Show, and Malcolm in the Middle. I still can't decide whether this is news or not... basically everyone who's ever seen the show has seen this coming for Arrested for months now, including the show's creative team, who did a "Save Our Bluths" episode in which they "went to showtime" (i.e. put on a show) because The Bluth Company was in trouble. Showtime, of course, is one of the networks (along with ABC) interested in grabbing the Emmy Award-winning show and breathing new life into it.

The other two shows jumped the shark long ago. Eric Forman left Point Place, what, two seasons ago? And I didn't even realize Malcolm was still on with new episodes, it's become an ubiquitous part of almost every local station's syndicated lineup.

So really, no news, I supposed... to That 70's Show and Malcolm in the Middle, they'll get their series finales in May and will live on forever in syndication. And as for Arrested Development, they will go to a network that will hopefully know what to do with a show that is so funny, so topical, so self-aware as to be beyond description.

A fitting end in all three cases, then. Who needs Fox, anyway?

posted by Steve  # 10:23 AM