Brilliant But Cancelled

Former Late Night With Conan O'Brien sidekick Andy Richter went solo in this (literally) imaginative Fox Network sitcom. Richter was cast as "himself," a would-be fiction writer trapped in a humdrum office job. Dissatisfied with the goings-on at the workplace and the behavior of his coworkers, Andy (who narrated each episode) frequently took refuge within the confines of his own imagination, thereby "controlling" situations over which he would otherwise have no control, and determining the outcome via Rashomon-like reworkings of the events of the day. Others in the cast included Irene Molloy as Wendy the receptionist, for whom Andy quietly carried a torch; James Patrick Stuart as Andy's best friend Keith; Paget Brewster as his boss Jessica; and Jonathan Slavin as rival coworker Byron. Andy Richter Controls the Universe debuted March 19, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Created by Mike Kelley (Big Love, Rome) and produced by Robert Del Valle and Alan Poul (Six Feet Under), Swingtown is a dramatized--and highly fanciful--overview of the moral, social and political upheavals of the pre-PC, pre-AIDs 1970s. The series began on the eve of the July 4, 1976, Bicentennial, as Bruce and Susan Miller (Jack Davenport, Molly Parker), a happily married couple with two lovely children (Aaron Howles, Shana Collins]), move into an upscale Chicago lakefront suburb. Almost immediately the Millers find themselves at a party (or more accurately, an orgy) at the home of their new neighbors, Tom and Trina Decker (Grant Show, Lana Parrilla). A pair of Quaalude-dropping swingers, the Deckers are firm subscribers to the Open Marriage Policy--and throughout this and subsequent episode, Tom and Trina do their best to turn the wide-eyed Millers to their hedonistic way of thinking. In stark contrast to Bruce and Susan's new friends are a pair of old ones from their former neighborhood, the prudishly conservative Robert and Janet Thompson (Josh Hopkins, Miriam Shor). Less an accurate portrayal than a gaudy pastiche of the 1970s, the series was filled to overflowing with bad hair styles, leisure suits, mood rings, pet rocks, shag carpets, clips from TV game shows like $10,000 Pyramid and wall-to-wall period music from the likes of Captain and Tennille, David Bowie, Chicago and Seals and Croft. And since this was on "over-the-air" TV rather than cable, the sexual hijinks and excessive drug use were merely hinted at rather than overtly stated. Even so, the CBS debut of Swingtown on June 5, 2008, prompted Brent Bozell of the Parents Television Council to beg viewers not to watch the show, accusing the network of ignoring "common sense broadcast decency standards"--which of course merely served to increase the series' ratings. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Follow Eli Stone (Jonny Miller) on his quirky quest for answers in this exciting and upbeat comedic drama. When Eli awakens to an unending George Michael soundtrack that only he can hear, gets dive-bombed by a WWI biplane on a busy San Francisco street, and faces a fire-breathing dragon outside his office window, there are two possible explanations: delusions caused by a potentially fatal brain aneurysm or the chance that something greater is at work. He might just be a prophet sent to change the world. Victor Garber and Loretta Devine lead an acclaimed supporting cast in this wonderfully wacky new series, ELI STONE: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON. Complete with every Season One episode, exclusive bloopers and behind-the-scenes footage, this 4-disc box set will surprise, inspire and leave you feeling like you gotta have faith.

Jericho returned for a second astounding season thanks to unprecedented and impassioned support from its legion of loyal fans, many of whom sent peanuts (reportedly totaling thousands of pounds) to the CBS offices in New York and Los Angeles. Why peanuts? That was a reference to the Season 1 cliffhanger finale, which ended with a character uttering "Nuts." CBS responded by bringing the series back for this concluding seven-episode Season 2 run in the spring of 2008. In the aftermath of a devastating nuclear explosion, and a battle with neighboring New Bern, the once peaceful town of Jericho begins to rebuild itself as it attempts to communicate with the outside world. The newly formed Cheyenne government strives to establish its stronghold in the region, but Jericho's citizens become suspicious of these new leaders as they question their true intentions.

The groundbreaking and influential Twin Peaks series originally ran on the ABC network for the short time between April 1990 and June 1991. Created by film director David Lynch (Blue Velvet) and writer Mark Frost (Hill Street Blues), it gained an enormous following of viewers while challenging genre conventions and changing the standard of television programming. The story begins with Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) of the FBI arriving in the small town of Twin Peaks, WA, to investigate the murder of a popular high school girl named Laura Palmer. When the first season ended without answering the pressing question of "Who killed Laura Palmer?", the loyal audience had to wait all summer until next season to find out. However, the series proved to be more than just an engaging soap opera or juicy murder mystery. The dark supernatural subject matter was offset by moments of absurd humor, and the haunting musical score from Angelo Badalamenti was well suited to the cinematically rendered images. The creators succeeded in blending a very human drama into a humorous and entertaining crime show against a small-town background of eccentric characters and places. Offering plenty of symbolism, the series became highly discussed for exposing the darkness underneath apple-pie America, among other issues. For a series that gains layers of meaning with repeated viewing, it was also accused of alienating casual viewers. Some of the audience just lost interest during the second season, after the central mystery was solved. Nevertheless, the eerie mood and unusual themes of Twin Peaks continue to influence numerous television series from Northern Exposure to The X-Files. A rebroadcast on the Bravo cable channel in the late '90s added the Log Lady opening introductions to each episode of the series. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Something of an Irish variation on The Sopranos with a considerably younger cast, NBC's weekly, hour-long The Black Donnellys was reportedly inspired on the exploits of an actual family (also named Donnelly) who were involved in a notoriously bloody fued in the Ontario of the 1880s. The TV series, however, was set in the present, and took place in the Hell's Kitchen district of New York City, specifically a patch of territory controlled by four tough young Irish-Americans with mob connections. The eldest of the four Donnelly brothers was the hotheaded, antagonistic Jimmy (Thomas Guiry), the leader of the gang and owner of the bar where the family all hung out. Jimmy's second-in-command was his brother Tommy (Jonathan Tucker), a former art student who occasionally suffered pangs of conscience over the Donnelly's dubious ethics and business practices. The third brother, Kevin (Bill Lush), was a compulsive gambler, while youngest brother Sean (Michael Stahl-David) was a weak-willed ladies' man. The series was narrated by family friend Joey "Ice Cream" (Keith Nobbs), a combination hatchet man and court jester. Created by the same people responsible for the Oscar-winning feature films Million Dollar Baby and Crash, The Black Donnellys debuted February 19, 2007, as a ten-week replacement for the floundering NBC dramedy Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Season Two of the lavish, lusty British historical series Rome begins exactly where Season One left off, with the murder of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March in the year 44 BCE. The power struggle that follows is set in motion when, thanks largely to the machinations of Caesar's scheming niece Atia (Polly Walker), her young and callow son Octavian is announced as heir to the throne--infuriating Caesar's closest ally Marc Antony (James Purefoy). In the war that follows between Antony's "Caesarians" and Octavians "Liberators", there can be only one winner--but it is not until the season concludes in the year 31 BCE that the true winner is revealed. Amidst the intrigues of Rome's high-born power brokers, we never lose sight of the secondary plotline involving two lowly veterans of the Gallic wars, Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson) and Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd). Characteristically, it is the thoroughly hedonistic Pullo who thrives and prospers during this turbulent era, with each stroke of luck advancing his prestigate and wealth. Conversely, Lucius suffers spectacularly throughout season two, beginning with the death of his beloved wife and the distintegration of his family. The ultimate blow will not be dealt to Vorenus until the season finale, but in the meantime much is made of the fact that Gallo has aligned himself with Octavian, and Vorenus casts his lot with Antony. Though scrupulously authentic in its historical detail, Rome continues to successfully pinpoint the most "contemporary" aspects of ancient History. Especially notable this season is the series' depiction of Rome's small but ever-growing Jewish community, and the emergence of "Crip and Blood"-style gang warfare in the treacherous Aventine Collegium district. In a similar vein, after Marc Antony suffers his humiliating defeat at Actium, he retreats to the palace of his Egyptian lover Queen Cleopatra (Lyndsley Marshal), where the two lost souls wallow in debauchery--reminding more than one observer of the equally foredoomed punk-rockers Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Another of the many serialized TV dramas of the mid-2000s in which important clues and motivations were slowly and methodically revealed on a "need to know" basis, Kidnapped got under way when Leopold Cain (Will Denton), the son of self-made millionaire Conrad Cain (Timothy Hutton) and his wife Ellie (Dana Delaney), was abducted during a quasi-paramilitary attack on his private school. "Don't call the police" was perhaps the least cryptic message received by Mr. and Mrs. Cain in the days that followed; other messages and clues always seemed to be weighted with double meanings and vague allusions to unsavory incidents in the past lives of the victim's parents. Assigned to rescue Leopold (if possible) was chief FBI investigator Latimer King (Delroy Lindo), who much against his will was teamed with rogue ex-agent Knapp (Jeremy Sisto), who in turn worked hand in glove with his mysterious sidekick Turner (Carmen Ejogo). The search for the kidnapped boy whisked virtually everyone in the cast around the world, with Mr. and Mrs. Cain frequently bollixing up the "good guys'" efforts by refusing to follow instructions or going off on their own whimsical tangents. Early on, the Cains' bodyguard Virgil (Mykelti Williamson) abruptly vanished from the scene; was he, like several others involved in the case, a murder victim, or was he pursuing his own agenda. Unfolding in a "Rashomon" fashion with contradictory information and points of view, this was one of those maddening series in which "truth" was an intangible commodity at best, and in which everyone had a skeleton or two in the closet. Kidnapped made its NBC bow on September 20, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An average 16-year-old, Joan is going through the growing pains typical of any teenager. But after she and her family (Joe Mantegna, Mary Steenburgen, Jason Ritter, Michael Welch) relocate to Arcadia, her life gets especially interesting when God starts paying her visits.

Executive produced by Shaun Cassidy and Thomas Schlamme, the highly touted ABC sci-fi/fantasy series Invasion began when a devastating hurricane roared into the town of Homestead, FL. Among the survivors of the deluge were stalwart park ranger Russell Varon (Eddie Cibrian), his pregnant TV-reporter wife, Larkin Groves (Lisa Sheridan), and their little daughter, Rose (Ariel Gade), who insisted that she saw "hundreds of white lights" darting through the air at the height of the hurricane. Although Rose's parents were inclined to doubt her incredible story, a number of very strange things occurred in the days following the storm. For one, local sheriff Tom Underlay (William Fichtner) began acting like a man possessed, tyrannically imposing a quarantine on Homestead and totally cutting off contact with the outside world. For another, Tom's wife (and Russell's ex-wife) Dr. Mariel Underlay (Kari Matchett) had undergone some profound behavioral changes -- as had several other people in town. Russell's brother-in-law Dave (Tyler Labine), a conspiracy theorist whom no one had previously taken seriously, suddenly seemed to make a lot of sense when he cast a suspicious eye upon his friends and neighbors (or at least, they looked like his friends and neighbors). But it was up to Rose to sum up the terrifying situation in four little words: "Mommy -- you smell different." Although the title of the series did not include "...of the Body Snatchers," the essence of that classic horror film oozed from every frame of the weekly, 60-minute Invasion, which debuted September 21, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The first season of the lush, lavish and frequently lewd and lascivious British historical drama Rome covers the years 52 to 44BCE, beginning with the return of Julius Caesar (Ciaran Hinds) from the Gallic wars and ending with the fateful "Ides of March". Though returning to a hero's welcome, Caesar realizes that he's stepping into a snake pit of deceit and corruption. The Patrician ruling class, worried that Caesar will make himself emperor and abolish the Republic, intend to strip him of his power. His scheming niece Atia (Polly Walker) is already undercutting her uncle by forcing her daughter Octavia (Kerry Condon) to marry Caesar's most influential nemesis, the aging Pompey (Kenneth Cranham). Playing one side against the other to keep Caesar at bay, Pompey proves so effective that Caesar must ask his friend Marc Antony (James Purefoy) to help him vanquish his foes, even if it means all-out civil war. Meanwhile, a pair of humble soldier, the virtuous family man Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and the hedonistic Pullo (Ray Stevenson), simply try to stay out of everyone's way and survive--but instead find themselves at Ground Zero of virtually every major historical turning point during the series' turbulent eight-year timespan. Pullo in particular spends much of his time squeaking out of one death-trap after another, somehow managing to enrich or aggrandize himself without even trying. His main contribution during Season One consists of taking Atia's callow son Octavian (Max Pirkis) under his wing, teaching the boy the ways of warfare and women. Eventually Octavian will emerge as the greatest threat against the pro-Caesar forces of Antony after Caesar's assassination--and thus the redoubtable Pullo has once more unwittingly altered the course of history. Not only was Rome an international success during its first season on the air, but the series also garnered an Emmy award for its American run on HBO. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Geena Davis lights up the screen as President Mackenzie Allen, earning a Golden Globe(R) award for Best Actress in the show's inaugural season. Experience the first 10 thrilling episodes of the captivating drama, starring Davis, Emmy(R) Award winner Donald Sutherland, and an acclaimed cast. When the President of the United States dies in office, his independent Vice President ventures into territory no woman has ever entered before. Now, the nation's first female Commander In Chief must balance the pressures of running the country and the responsibility of raising a family while facing a sustained torrent of underhanded attacks from the Speaker Of The House (Sutherland). It's an exhilarating blend of suspense and drama that O, The Oprah Magazine, calls "realistic and riveting!"