HBO is not renewing Deadwood!
(Since this is kind of a rant about the idiots at HBO, and not really about the show I didn’t put this in the Cafe. And it isn’t quite Pit material, either.)
Man, I am so bummed. HBO has really gone downhill. I don’t think I’m going to continue with a subscription. Soprano’s has taken a turn for the worse, and is NO WHERE near what it used to be. Deadwood was solid though. I’ve always applauded HBO for their original programming. The casting in these original series are fantastic. My wife HATES westerns, and yet got sucked in to the show from the first episode. What idiots make these kinds of decisions? People don’t get HBO just 'cause they want to be able to watch Bill and Ted at three a.m. There are a TON of other premium movie channels. People get HBO for things like Sex in the City, Soprano’s, and Deadwood. These are things you CANNOT get elsewhere. These are addictive, must-see shows with VERY LOYAL fan bases.
Sure its probably expensive to produce. But no one on the show can be making anywhere near what Gandolfini on Soprano’s is pullin’ down. And as I’ve mentioned (and everyone has noticed), Soprano’s ain’t what it used to be. Why, oh why would they want to get rid of one of the draws for their network? Seems like a bad business plan to me. Without Deadwood, I don’t have much incentive to pay for HBO anymore. Screw you HBO. And the horse… well, you know.
I’m keeping it at least until they decide about S5 of The Wire, but you’re right, it’s not the creative haven it used to be. According to stuff Milch has said about the situation with Deadwood, I take it that HBO overextended itself with the astronomical budget of Rome, which never was more than a modest success. But when you spend that kind of dough, you’re locked in – the suits can’t admit they wasted that money (to themselves, to their bosses, and ultimately tot he stockholders), so they cut costs elsewhere, even the wrong places.
–Cliffy
Welcome to the Carnivale camp. We’ve got coffee and a great ferris wheel, but little else.
Sorry for the loss of another good show. Pull up a chair. 
I read somewhere that Deadwood cost $5 million per episode – $60 million for a season. Rome cost $100 million and HBO’s keeping it for at least a second season. I’m going to try not to get too attached to it. 
I guess I’m accustomed to network TV, where shows stay on for years past their freshness date. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Deadwood, and I’ll be thinking of what happened to Deadwood before I let myself get too involved in future shows.
But I’ll keep the subscription.
Sopranos and Deadwood were the only reasons for my HBO subscription. Time to save $5.00/ month.
Your sub is only $5? I’m paying $12. What’s up with that?
Ah YES! Carnivale, another greatly casted, well done HBO original. They’ve got a pretty good track record with these things. Just don’t see the sense in getting rid of Deadwood. I personally have no interest in Rome. (Though ancient Greece and Rome facinate me…) My wife (with a Master’s in History), has no interest in Rome either. I somehow suspect that’s the case with a lot of people. Admit they can’t all be winners, you goofed on that one, and drop it. Free up the budget for the good shows like Carnivale and Deadwood!
I am so disappointed with HBO. Here they have Real Sex, not exactly Ozzie and Harriet, but they edited the hell out of “Crash” (the car crash fetish version, not the Oscar winner). I don’t subscribe to HBO any more, but last weekend they had a freeview weekend on Direct TV. Crash came on late Friday night and I hadn’t seen it in a long time so I tuned in. They hacked almost half an hour out of it.
So up yours, HBO.
Some friends who have HBO are Deadwood fans, she more than he. I died laughing when she called from the living room, “Honey, your show is coming on… Deadwood”. A comment more about the status of his wood than his affinity for the show.