The Best Years

Cult favorite The Best Years has come to an end.  The drama, which aired on The N Network last summer, was set for an eight episode second season when, earlier this month, a new executive at The N Network decided to nix the second season plans and go other directions with their programming.  The drama, which starred Charity Shea as Samantha Best, a college student who receives a scholarship to attend fictional college Charles University after bouncing around foster homes for most of her younger years, wasn't a big hit, but acquired a legion of devoted fans.  Created by Aaron Martin, a writer and producer on Degrassi: The Next Generation, The Best Years currently has a fan petition in place that hopes to bring the series back, though the cancellation decision appears to be final.

I have to be honest – I wasn't aware that The Best Years even existed until today.  It was a Canadian production and aired on a network I'm pretty sure my cable company doesn't offer.  Nonetheless, the premise is an attractive one and I'm surprised the series didn't gain more traction than it did, especially in Canada.  From what I can tell, the ratings for The Best Years were above average given its time slot – the series debuted with an impressive-for-cable 323,000 viewers.  From everything I've read, it is a surprise that the series wasn't renewed for a second season. 

However, judging by the online petition, the show's cancellation is either still a bit of a secret or has been greeted with wide-spread apathy – the petition has less than a thousand on line signatures.  It must be noted that, after what happened with CBS's Jericho, a cancellation isn't necessarily the end and network's aren't afraid to bring shows back if the interest is there. 




-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
Source: CharityShea.net
(Image Courtesy of The N Network)