Ask Matt: ‘Irrational’ Scheduling, ‘NCIS,’ ‘Rookie: Feds’ & More

Welcome to the Q&A with TV critic — also known to some TV fans as their “TV therapist” — Matt Roush, who’ll try to address whatever you love, loathe, are confused or frustrated or thrilled by in today’s vast TV landscape. (We know background music is too loud, but there’s always closed-captioning.)

One caution: This is a spoiler-free zone, so we won’t be addressing upcoming storylines here unless it’s already common knowledge. Please send your questions and comments to [email protected] and follow me on Twitter (@TVGMMattRoush). Look for Ask Matt columns on most Tuesdays and very occasional Fridays.

Where Did The Irrational Go?

Question: The Irrational seems to have been taken off the NBC schedule with just three episodes left. Nothing I have read on the Internet confirms this, but my local NBC station has a game show scheduled for that Monday time slot. It really makes little sense to pull a show with just three episodes left when new content won’t be available until mid-February. —Jon A.

Matt Roush: Actually, The Irrational aired all seven of the episodes that had been completed before the strikes, which explains why we’re seeing mostly game shows and holiday-related specials filling the hour for now. The series is going back into production to complete its first season, and the final four episodes will begin airing Jan. 29. I’ll be surprised if NBC doesn’t renew this show and Found, which did well for the network during a difficult time.

Burned by The CW

Question: Has The CW given up on Everyone Else Burns? All of a sudden, it’s not airing. If so, that’s too bad. It was very clever. Simon Bird has been in a couple very good and successful series, including The Inbetweeners and Friday Night Dinner. —D.P.

Matt Roush: Somewhat inexplicably —although these days, it’s never a shock to see shows come and go with little warning — The CW pulled the British comedy Everyone Else Burns off the Thursday lineup just a few weeks after it premiered. (The Canadian sitcom Run the Burbs was also removed.) This came as something of a surprise because the reviews for Burns were strong, and The CW had previously announced a second-season pickup of the series prior to its premiere. It’s another reminder that there is a bar even too low for The CW to continue airing these imports despite them being far less expensive than original productions. (And I agree about Simon Bird; he was hilarious as the deluded dad in Burns, and The Inbetweeners is a longtime favorite.)

Will Ducky Get His Due?

Question: I realize it’s way too soon to know for certain, but have you heard any indication as to how NCIS will deal with the topic of David McCallum‘s death once new episodes return? It feels as though simply a brief mention wouldn’t be sufficient for him (and Ducky).—RJ

Matt Roush: It probably is too soon, because shows are just now gearing up to go back to work after the strikes and they haven’t been promoting the new, shortened seasons just yet. (At least not that I’ve seen.) It’s hard to imagine the show not paying due respect to such a foundational member of the NCIS ensemble. I could even imagine other cast members who’ve left finding their way back for a special tribute, though for now that is merely speculation.

Will We Ever See Those Feds Again?

Question: I still can’t believe after six months of leaving us in limbo, ABC axed The Rookie: Feds. Can we at least know if the characters will reappear in the upcoming season of the parent show to at least wrap their story up? — Shon

Matt Roush: Again, it’s too soon to know the plans of most returning series just yet. But it would make sense, given that the characters from the Feds spinoff have been established within the Rookie universe, that we’d see some of these characters again when the story calls for it. This would also be a good gesture for the fans left hanging, but keep in mind that with truncated seasons this year, the producers will be scrambling to tell stories for their long-dormant main casts and may not have as many opportunities as within a regular full season to accommodate as many special guest appearances.

Can Any Holiday Movies Stand Out from the Pack?

Question: Given the sheer relentless inundation of Christmas-cookie-cutter movies foisted on us every year, this may be a hard one to answer, but have you ever come across a Hallmark holiday film that transcended its genre? Kind of like those rare (very rare) Lifetime movies that rise above and beyond the call of woman-in-peril duty? —Ryan

Matt Roush: I haven’t had a chance yet to sample any of this year’s holiday treats, but to generalize, I tend to gravitate towards any story that’s a bit out of the norm or that shows more diversity of characters—in other words, not just another contrived rom-com or story about big-city business types who rediscover small-town values. (It may exist, but this small-town Hoosier native is still waiting for the movie where someone says, “Yeah, that was nice, but I can’t wait to get back to the city.”) That said, I’m hearing good things about the recently aired Hallmark movie A Merry Scottish Christmas, which was more about repairing the sibling relationship of characters played by Party of Five alums Scott Wolf and Lacey Chabert, and I’m curious about this weekend’s A Biltmore Christmas, which plays with genre (and with black-and-white) during the remaking of a (fictional) holiday classic at the famous Biltmore Estate.

And Finally …

Question: Can you shed some light on the contractual side of renewals and why it takes so long for some streaming shows to be renewed for another season? I am especially surprised that brilliant shows such as Undone and Russian Doll never even got a formal cancellation, but given that 1 1/2 years have passed since they aired their last seasons, it is probably safe to assume that they will not continue. Same with the splendid Warrior on Max. Half a year passed since Season 3 premiered, but so far no news on a possible renewal. Sure, the strikes may have had an impact in this case, as studios likely mull over costs against the financial losses they endured during the strikes, but for some shows it seems to take an awful lot of time until a decision is announced publicly. —Sascha

Matt Roush: If the waiting game is excruciating for fans, imagine what it must be like for the casts, writers and producers left in limbo. But I don’t see the situation improving. I can’t comment or explain these particular shows’ situations or speculate on their fates, though I agree that when nearly two years go by without word of a show being canceled or renewed, the likelihood of their return is pretty slim. (It’s only been a few months since the Warrior finale in August, but consider the situation at Max, which has been pulling library shows off the service among other cost-cutting measures, so there may be cause for concern.) In the bigger picture, the reason these studios and streamers are cautious with the green-lights has everything to do with the existential crisis the industry has been facing since the streaming revolution (which accounts as well for the elongated strikes). These companies see streaming as the future but haven’t entirely figured out the economic model, so what was once a rush to develop as much content as possible has cooled. We’ve become used to shows on broadcast TV being perpetually “on the bubble” and now we have to learn to live with that reality in the streaming world.

That’s all for now. We can’t do this without your participation, so please keep sending questions and comments about TV to [email protected] or shoot me a line on Twitter @TVGMMattRoush. (Please include a first name with your question.)