# We knew Arrested Development couldn't hang on forever **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 11, 2005, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592 "2005-11-11T17:17:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tracy\_Lord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@Tracy\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tracy_Lord)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/1 "2005-11-11T17:17:35Z")
…but it’s still something of a shock to see it go. [Link: Yahoo News](http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051111/tv_nm/shows_dc) > [@](#): > > As for the demise of “Arrested,” it comes just as the acclaimed comedy came back this week after a hiatus to make room for Fox’s baseball coverage. The two back-to-back episodes averaged a paltry 4 million viewers Monday, sending Fox to fifth place in the 8 p.m. hour and putting a dent on the ratings of its lead-out, the rookie drama “Prison Break.” > > There is a possibility that the show will be shopped around, but its high cost is expected to be prohibitive for a cable network. > > Fox said Thursday that it will pull “Arrested Development” and “Kitchen Confidential” off the schedule for the remaining three Mondays of the November sweep, replacing them with a rerun of the previous episode of “Prison Break” leading into an original episode of the serialized drama. > > “Arrested” and “Kitchen” are set to return to their time slots with original episodes December 5, following the fall finale of “Prison Break” on November 28. You know it’s coming, but at the same time, it’s hung on for so long without being cancelled – it was the Magic Show that was brilliant and nobody watched but got renewed by the skin of its teeth because FOX suddenly grew a soul and Jason Bateman kept winning awards! It was the Un-Cancellable Show! Until, you know, now. _sigh_ Sometimes I want to slap the Average American Viewer across the face. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/2 "2005-11-11T17:20:22Z")
Good thing I previewed before posting my own OP. I’ll just share again David Cross’ rant from the season 2 DVD gag reel: > [@](#): > > I got an idea for what you can do…why don’t you fucking fire your complete marketing team, alright? Get a new one in there that knows how to market a show that won five motherfucking Emmys, Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Writers Guild Awards, Directors Guild Awards, Producers Guild Awards, Critics’ Top Ten lists. You know, if you can’t market that kind of show and get better ratings, then maybe the problem doesn’t lie here [on the set]. Maybe it lies with marketing. ---
**Author:** ![JerH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bb73d2/32.png) [@JerH](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerH)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/3 "2005-11-11T17:25:26Z")
I’m honestly surprised it lasted as long as it did - Fox has a history of cancelling well-written shows fairly early on: Firefly’s half season and Wonderfalls’ 4 episodes come to mind. It’s damn near a miracle that Arrested Development lasted 2-1/2 seasons. ---
**Author:** ![kingpengvin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9dc877/32.png) [@kingpengvin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kingpengvin)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/4 "2005-11-11T17:31:04Z")
> [@Troy McClure SF](#): > > Good thing I previewed before posting my own OP. > > I’ll just share again David Cross’ rant from the season 2 DVD gag reel: I love that rant because it is so true. The show is excellent yet for some reason Fox could not draw the viewers. Or perhaps they couldn’t draw the dead eyed, sub moronic Neilsen families who sit there dictating what is good or not by what they watch. Neilsen Son: Hey paw, switch the television to that there show where they eats the worms! Neilson Paw: Wait son I gots to know whether or not they get off that there island or not this week. Neilson Ma: My friend Geraldine from Bingo asked if I’d seen that there show arrested development? Neilson Paw: You mean that show whats not got a laugh track to tell me when its funny? Nope. Asides they can’t even keep the camera still. Neilson Ma: It’s supposed to be like a documentary style. Neilson Son: That sounds stupid… Documentaries is for eggheads and those peopel who think too much…quick change the channel button device, Joey is on. Neilson: Now that there is comedy! He’s so funny 'cause he’s so stupid Whole Family : Yuk heeaw Yukhewaaa Yuhaw! Then the nurse coems in to change their drool pans ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/5 "2005-11-11T17:46:15Z")
Now, now, let’s not blame the Nielsen viewers. Let’s assume there are 20 million or so viewers at any given moment in prime time, out there ready and waiting to be entertained. By definition, half of them are below average, so we can disregard them as not being a target audience. That leaves 10 million as a potential audience for a clever, well-written, award-winning, highly acclaimed show. Four million are watching AD. Where are the other 6 million? If AD could get half of them, that would be 7 million viewers, probably enough to save the show. ---
**Author:** ![sj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@sj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sj2)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/6 "2005-11-11T18:33:30Z")
Fear not! You can look forward to [Skating with Celebrities](http://www.fox.com/skating/) next winter!! I’m not kidding. What hats. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/7 "2005-11-11T18:39:32Z")
> [@kingpengvin](#): > > Neilsen Son: Hey paw, switch the television to that there show where they eats the worms! _snork_ Now, that’s not fair. Don’t call them drooling submoronic hillbilly cretins. Be nice to the drooling submoronic hillbilly cretins. ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/8 "2005-11-11T18:42:13Z")
If I were the producers of AD, I’d take it straight to HBO. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/9 "2005-11-11T18:42:42Z")
I really wish broadcast television would hurry up and die, already. It’s just not a workable business model anymore, and too many fantastic shows get killed off early because of it. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/10 "2005-11-11T18:45:38Z")
Then there are those of us who, I don’t know, just don’t find **Arrested Development** funny. At all. I would pay substantial amounts of money to never have to see, hear, or hear of David Cross for the next 50 years. My wife, OTOH, loves the show Go figure. YMMV, of course. But don’t condemn the people who didn’t watch out of hand. They obviously had better things to do with their time. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/11 "2005-11-11T18:51:19Z")
> [@Nonsuch](#): > > If I were the producers of AD, I’d take it straight to HBO. Unfortunately, from what I’ve read, HBO doesn’t pick up non-original programming. And apparently it’s too costly for FX to produce. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/12 "2005-11-11T19:15:03Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Then there are those of us who, I don’t know, just don’t find **Arrested Development** funny. At all. Well, I wouldn’t go as far as you, but I never found it that funny. It certainly never made me laugh out loud the way _The Simpsons_, _Seinfeld_, _Frasier_, _Family Guy_, _Newsradio_, early _Malcolm_ or a host of other shows did and do. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great. Certainly nothing that I would take time away from doing something else to watch. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/13 "2005-11-11T19:38:23Z")
Well this is one where I just can’t blame Fox :(. They tried. Damn viewers… best thing on TV for years and couldn’t get enough viewers to stay on more than 2.5 seasons. ---
**Author:** ![Valerieblaise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@Valerieblaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valerieblaise)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/14 "2005-11-11T19:56:44Z")
OK, I understand why FOX did it. They DID give AD a really good chance. Still, I’m bitter and will never understand why more people didn’t watch. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Big\_Cheese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@The\_Big\_Cheese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Big_Cheese)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/15 "2005-11-11T19:57:59Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Then there are those of us who, I don’t know, just don’t find **Arrested Development** funny. At all. I would pay substantial amounts of money to never have to see, hear, or hear of David Cross for the next 50 years. My wife, OTOH, loves the show Go figure. > > YMMV, of course. But don’t condemn the people who didn’t watch out of hand. They obviously had better things to do with their time. Not even when Portia and GOB were doing the chicken dance??? …Kachaww…kachaww… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/16 "2005-11-11T20:04:19Z")
> [@The Big Cheese](#): > > Not even when Portia and GOB were doing the chicken dance??? > > …Kachaww…kachaww… 😃 :dubious: Have you ever even _seen_ a chicken? ---
**Author:** ![Balduran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cc9497/32.png) [@Balduran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balduran)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/17 "2005-11-11T20:08:07Z")
Guess I’m another one of those submorons out there. Heard about how wonderful it was, but only watched one or two episodes before finding others things to do or watch. I have pretty much just lost interest in sit-coms. Doesn’t matter how good they are. I would rather watch survivor. Are there any sit-coms that still do well? Maybe the format itself is in trouble. I remember reading something about how young people just don’t connect to them anymore. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Big\_Cheese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@The\_Big\_Cheese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Big_Cheese)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/18 "2005-11-11T20:09:48Z")
That’s what makes it so funny! Yes, my neighbor has 2 of them as a matter of fact(You can keep chickens in this city now). ---
**Author:** ![kingpengvin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9dc877/32.png) [@kingpengvin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kingpengvin)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/19 "2005-11-11T20:11:42Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > :dubious: Have you ever even _seen_ a chicken? Haa haa haa… good times… look at us crying like a couple of school girls! ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592/20 "2005-11-11T20:14:22Z")
> [@kingpengvin](#): > > Haa haa haa… good times… look at us crying like a couple of school girls! Taste the laughter, **kingpengvin**. Taste it! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-knew-arrested-development-couldnt-hang-on-forever/330592.md?page=2)