from the LA Times:
A day after premiering the single-camera comedy "In the Motherhood," ABC has cut its episode order by half.
Based on the Web series of the same name, the series chronicles the lives of three mothers, played by Cheryl Hines, Megan Mullaly and Jessica St. Clair, (pictured) in different stages of parenting, using ideas and stories generated from real-life mothers.
wow, I know the numbers weren’t that good for its premiere but still, that’s a little surprising.
Isn’t this insanity when its premiere was unexpectily up against American Idol?
It could be that ABC was just waiting for a reason to cancel it. According to Fox News story way back in December the relation between Mullali, and Hines, at the beginning of the show, was less than friendly. If things didn’t improve, in the meanwhile, I can totally see the then waiting until they see the critics reaction and the first numbers to stop their babysitting duties on set, if things didn’t improve between the 2.
Suits only have patience for troubled sets for hits. and at the time they had already killed the Milano comedy, they had no margin, to kill another troubled set. It was not the numbers that killed the show, it was a combination of bad reviews, and a trouble set.
Such a quick cut suggests that ABC wasn’t pleased with episode quality, either.
well ABC always wanted to bring back Ugly Betty starting may which =s bumping 5 episodes of SW? to season 3 (Christina Applegate talked about those 5 episodes (already shot) as though season 3 was a sure thing for Samantha ) but i guess they dont know if Motherhood will be back for season 2 and wouldnt want it to continue filming for episodes that would air next season
It would seem to make sense to flip its and Sam’s timeslot, since they clearly don’t give a crap about ITM (not that I think they should) and they seem to care a little bit about Sam.
I keep watching Sam because of my fondness for Christina Applegate, but the show is unfunny. It’s pleasant enough but there’s no real humor. It’s not a sitcom, it’s a sit.
The fact that they’ve announced this so quickly after a debut that went up against Idol would suggest that ABC have pretty much been looking for an excuse to do it but didn’t they spend a fair bit promoting this? That seems like an odd move for a show you don’t like.
Wow, that was quick.
I did not even watch even though I love Megan Mullaly!
the premise is NOT appealing, seeing mothers complained about being mother, is NOT my idea of fun! To each their own!
In The Motherhood is ABC’s Kath and Kim………ITM focused on moms while K&K Wanted to attract Mothers and there Daughters………each failed (i liked both shows)
Perhaps someone who saw the original web content can help me out here but how much truth is there to complaints that the producers departed too heavily from the original material and idea that made it successful online? I would think if ABC thought they were getting something that had a built in audience but the producers completely changed the concept that would explain the quick decision to cut back the episode order…
I’m guessing they cut the order to be safe. If ratings are stable, or increase, they will most likely order more. Since they have Ugly Betty coming back soon, I doubt they want episodes to sit on the shelf if the ratings decrease.
“Motherhood” would likely have done no better against regular time slot occupants “Survivor” and “Bones.” And really, can *anyone* who watched the painfully bad premiere be expected to watch again?
With weak debut ratings and no creative spark, ABC is wise to cut its losses. What was the last female-centered sitcom to do huge syndication business, anyway? I can’t think of one since “The Golden Girls.”
How stupid. If they’re cutting ITM they should have already announced Better off Ted as dead the day after its premiere
That was fast. I was sure that ITM would survive before Better Off Ted. I guess ABC isn’t pleased with the quality of the show.
What was the last female-centered sitcom to do huge syndication business, anyway?
Reba? The Nanny?
Really surprising, the only good news about ITM and SW? is that both are very compatible, I think both should come back next fall with a more high profile comedy before (the Patricia Heaton/Courteney Cox pilot)… something like this
8:00 – Cougar Town (Courteney Cox sitcom)
8:30 – The Middle (Patricia Heaton sitcom)
9:00 – In the Motherhood
9:30 – Samantha Who?
but I don’t know if ABC has the “balls” to launch a comedy block so quickly.
I don’t really know what ABC expected to happen. When I read the description of the show, it didn’t exactly scream “smash hit”. The thing with turning web series into TV shows is that a lot of them might be fairly popular for the web, they are catered to a too narrow demographic and can’t gain mass appeal on TV. The same thing happened with that Quarterlife thing that bombed a while back.
Why don’t you give it a chance ABC????,..It was up against American idol and the advertising wasn’t that great in promoting the show..I don’t think many comedy shows will ever get more than 6 showings today… back in the 70s, 80s whole different story…