So, I missed Love Monkey‘s short 3-show stint on CBS. The show, starring former Ed leading man Tom Cavanagh, seemed to be part of the huge, mid-season roll-out that led to several shows being cancelled after only a couple (or fewer) episodes. Based on a novel of the same title, I think the show suffered from an awkward title, and no confidence from the network.
But much to my surprise VH-1 picked up the show, and plans to air the existing set of eight episodes. Having now seen four episodes, some things are immediately apparent to me. First, the pilot wasn’t particularly good; there’s a distinct: been there, done that, typicalness to it. Next, the second and third episodes are much better. Finally, this show deserved better – I think the networks have lost the ability to be patient and nurture good shows. Possibly they don’t have faith in their ability to pick winners; or maybe the pressures of instant ratings feedback make patience difficult, if not impossible. But if the broadcast networks want to start reversing the trend of viewers flocking to the shows on the cable networks, they’ll have to start developing some of the same sensibilities that have allowed HBO and Showtime to start producing excellent TV.
I’m not surprised that Love Monkey has found a new, if somewhat temporary, home on a cable network (although this particular was a bit of surprise), and I hope that it florishes enough to get a whole new lease on life (more episodes). Do yourself a favor, catch Love Monkey on VH-1, new episodes are currently airing Tuesday nights at 9pm.