CANCELLATION ALERT: Outlaw

The third casualty of the young season and the first for NBC is new legal drama Outlaw starring Jimmy Smits after four episodes. NBC plans to burn-off four remaining episodes on Saturdays at 8pm over the next five weeks (preempted on Oct 30). The drama, which centered on a Supreme Court justice quitting the bench to go back to practicing law, was panned by critics. It premiered as a special sneak peak behind the season finale of America's Got Talent and scored a solid 10.7 million viewers and 2.3 in the demo. But it quickly fell apart when it moved to its regular sleepy timeslot on Fridays at 10. The highest it scored on Fridays was 4.9 million viewers and 1.1 in the demo and it dropped from there. Most assumed it was doomed when NBC announced a production hiatus last week.

There are no tears from me regarding this cancellation. The pilot was abysmal but for some reason, I still watched the second episode. The second one was better but nothing amazing. Jimmy Smits is a real talent but he needs to be in a better showcase of his talent. Maybe he would thrive best in an ensemble a la LA Law and NYPD Blue where he found success before. There were rumors that NBC considered him for a lead in Law & Order: Los Angeles. Given this news, that may have been a better idea.

Starting this Friday, NBC will air the new series School Pride at 8pm followed by a two hour Dateline NBC. The two hour Dateline had been airing from 8-10pm but will now shift to 9-11pm. It is unknown how the planned burn-off on Saturdays will affect the encores of The Event which had been airing there.