Did you know that I’ve never seen all of Studio 60? This is because toward the end of the season, I wanted to hold off from experiencing the letdown of a series being canceled just as it was getting good. And this isn’t the first time that I’ve experienced this kind of entertainment pain. I endured it with Sports Night, although having to endure the abysmal middle of the second season (which I forgave Aaron Sorkin for because he was getting the West Wing off the ground at the same time), I’m dreading getting to What Kind of Day Has it Been for the same reason I dreaded getting to Quo Vadimus [Sports Night’s finale] and Tomorrow [West Wing finale]). Anyone else feel this way?
At least I got seven seasons of the West Wing… well, six and a half, not counting the crappy fifth season post-Sorkin, where John Wells tried to do a stupid-ass meld of ER and West Wing by removing pretty much all the great dramatic themes that Sorkin and Schlamme put together for the first four seasons. I was kind of hoping to find out that Sorkin would return to the show at some point, especially when they announced that it was going to be the last one…
But, I digress.
I know some don’t really like Studio 60, but there’s more to it than simply being a show-within-a-show. Sports Night was similar but it wasn’t until they found their groove in the second season that I thought Sports Night could run with a heavy like the West Wing, with the multiple episode arcs and the threat of cancellation (plot, not reality) of the show. I even liked the parting shot from the guy who buys the network, “If someone can’t make money off of Sports Night, they need to get out of the money-making business.” Great line. I miss Natalie and Natalie World.
Studio 60 didn’t really get much of a chance to show us what it could do in the long-term. I haven’t quite completed the whole season, yet, as I’m slowly making my way back through the episodes I’ve already watched… to kind of try and get back into that mood of buildup, y’know? I want to savor the very first time I see these episodes so I don’t take it for granted, given that eventually I will reach the end and look back with regret, wishing I could watch them all again for the first time.
Oh well. I hope this isn’t the last we see of Shoe Money Productions. I hope we get another opportunity to enjoy Sorkin’s wit on the small screen.
