For the duration of the past few weeks, television networks have basically slaughtered their fall lineup. At this point, and the cancellations aren’t over yet, there’s a good chunk of the television that we have grown accustomed to that has been cancelled. From behemoths of shows like “American Idol” and “America’s Next Top Model” and fan favorites like “Nashville,” “Person of Interest,” “The Good Wife,” “Castle” and “Mike and Molly,” to newbies like “Grandfathered” and “Telenovela,” television definitely won’t be the same come next fall.

Though these cuts aren’t as bad yet as some previous years — think end of “How I Met Your Mother” era — they are pretty substantial. And if you look at what kinds of shows are being cut, you can begin to gain an understanding of what America wants, what America is tired of, and what makes the networks the most money.

“You are no longer in the running to be America’s next top model.” Syke!

Long-time fans of the show were pretty upset about the show being over after 22 cycles. But we were also kind of relieved. Around the 19th cycle, the show felt tired despite Tyra’s obvious efforts to revamp the show, using fan votes and bringing men into the competition. The end of the last cycle was bittersweet, as we all knew this was probably the last episode of “America’s Next Top Model” that we’ll ever see.

But then it was announced that VH1 will be picking up the series, and now none of us really know what to think. The show feels old and outdated. We know that none of the winners really amount to much after the show — except Nyle DiMarco of course. We’re able to pick the top few at the beginning of the cycle, and it seems that Tyra is all out of surprises. So was it really worth it to continue the series? My personal opinion: No.

The team behind “American Idol” however, got the hint. When you think of the show, memories of the 2000’s fly past our eyes. We think back to Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson. We smile at all of the failure auditions that we watched with our friends. “American Idol” really was an American television show.

But after 15 seasons, they realized that the time for the show came and went. Newer singing shows have taken the spotlight (“The Voice,” anyone?) and people kind of stopped caring about how brutal Simon Cowell is. So they created a farewell season, and that’s that. We don’t have to sit through uncomfortable seasons of a show that we once loved trying to make itself relevant again.
“American Idol” will stay what it was in the hearts of millions of Americans of all ages.

Along these lines, shows like “Castle” and “The Good Wife” were also able to recognize when their time was up; however, both for very different reasons. While “The Good Wife” was able to complete its story arc and end on a note that left viewers satisfied with an actual ending, “Castle” had to cancel due to extenuating circumstances. After Stana Katic announced that she was leaving the show, people freaked. What would “Castle” be without Kate Beckett? The network realized this as well, and instead of letting the show continue without one of its anchor characters, desperately trying to fill the void with new less-likable characters, they decided to call it quits. They saw what happened to “The Vampire Diaries” after Nina Dobrev — the main character — left the show and how the show tried to right itself afterwards. (By the way, “The Vampire Diaries” is still going, despite many of us former viewers begging for it to not to.)

And then there’s the rookie shows, the ones that always end up being cancelled. As someone who loves the sitcom form, I feel bad anytime yet another sitcom gets cut. However, I don’t blame them. After smash hits like “Parks and Rec.” and “How I Met Your Mother,” it’s hard to let average comedic writing and over-produced sets slide. But still, classics like “Arrested Development” and “30 Rock” weren’t hits right away either. In situations like these, I see the networks compare the initial successes of new comedies to the final success of high-performing comedies. And this happens year after year, this year it was “Grandfathered,” last year it was “Manhattan Love Story” and “A to Z.”  None of these new comedies are given the chance to prove themselves, leaving us comedy junkies without any new material. Sure, I love “New Girl” (a lot) and “The Mindy Project” (which was also cancelled before Hulu decided to pick it up and create a stellar season), but I want more. I want more “Parks and Rec,” more “Grandfathered” and less Melissa and Joey.

So why are the networks willing to hold on to dead television shows like “America’s Next Top Model” and “The Vampire Diaries” and doomed-to-fail television shows like “Melissa and Joey” but fail to give the shows that have promise a chance?

Money. Ratings, viewership and money.

American viewers may be upset with the state of television as it is right now, but they continue to watch the shows that are past their prime (“Supernatural”?) and don’t have the patience for new shows to establish themselves.

For our television and other areas in our lives, we need to learn how to let go. We need to understand when eras are over, and we need to give ourselves a chance to start over. Give yourself a chance.

So, while the networks are spring cleaning, maybe do a little “soul” spring cleaning for yourselves, and let yourself move on from whatever is holding you back.

 

Contact Arianna Lombard at ariannal ‘at’ stanford.edu