It’s the nightmare NBC’s Awake fans were dreading. NBC has cancelled the show after 13 episodes and one season.
Created by Kyle Killen (Lone Star), Awake revolves around a police detective (Jason Isaacs) who, after being in a horrific car accident, finds that he’s living in two realities. In one, his son perished — in the other, his wife did. The cast also includes Laura Allen, Steve Harris, Dylan Minnette, B. D. Wong, Michaela McManus, Wilmer Valderrama, and Cherry Jones.
The complex drama had an unimpressive debut back on March 1st, registering a 2.0 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 6.24 million viewers. NBC had released the pilot episode well in advance so some believed that hurt the premiere ratings.
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Theoretically the second episode should have shown signs of growth but it didn’t. Week two dropped 20%. Week three remained stable but subsequent weeks saw additional declines. Last week’s episode hit a new low with a dismal 0.7 rating and just 2.15 million viewers.
This season has averaged a 1.1 rating in the demographic with 3.5 million total viewers. Awake is the third-lowest rated drama on the network, beating only Harry’s Law and The Firm (both of which have been cancelled as well). On our NBC Ratings Report Card, which measures the relative demo performance of shows on the network, Awake has a “D+” grade.
NBC has now cancelled Awake and the series finale is on track to air Thursday, May 24th. While it wasn’t intended as a series finale, Killen has said that he believes the finale is very satisfying.
What do you think? Are you sorry to hear that Awake has been cancelled and won’t be back for a second season? Was the series too complicated for most TV viewers or did it have other problems?
Image courtesy NBC.
I find this to be yet another reason to switch to stations like AMC and FX. These networks are willing to give shows time to grow. I hate hate hate how network tv cancels shows so easily. It’s really quite ridiculous. They have programmed Americans to “wait for it to come out on DVD” to prove it’s worth getting into.
For the record, I thought this show was amazing. This is another tv bummer. This show reallly had something special.
I loved Awake…it was smart, mysterious, thrilling…the writing was excellent and along with others I’ve admired it’s been dumped. I no longer watch tv with the same enjoyment I used to…this latest manner in which tv networks decide what stays and what doesn’t – makes no sense… Shows that have survived are less riveting and intriguing and the smart ones are thrown out. What’s the point of “getting hooked” only to have it end unexpectedly…so frustrating…I hate it.
Why don’t the networks change the night aired before cancelling? Great show! Too bad the network got it wrong yet again.
NBC finally gets a decent show, and wouldn’t you know it – they cancel it after one season. Finally, something other than fake reality shows. Maybe they should get monkeys to pick their new shows; they would probably do a better job than the idiots who have that job now.
Thanks for nothing NBC.
A great show. One of the best in recent years. Certainly the best this year. It was really disappointing to read that this is now cancelled. Almost everything else out there is mindless drivel. Why do the networks cater to the lowest, instead of sticking with intelligent good quality shows like this and producing more like it. It is degrading. This is why I only watch things on Hulu and Netflix now. I do not watch network TV. I find a good show, watch it on my own schedule, and skip the endless and annoying commercials. Prison Break, Lost, 24… Read more »
It seems the best shows on TV are always cancelled, yet all the idiotic reality shows remain on the air. Guess the world is full of stupid people..so only stupid television is popular. Too bad this show was too smart for the general public.
Awake was riveting and kept my attention. It was more like watching a movie than a tv series. I am glad that they did have and ending and didn’t leave us hanging.
Just finished watching the latest episode on Hulu. I didn’t know beforehand that this was the series finale, but it felt like a season finale so I went to look up when, not if season two was going to debut, only to find out that the show had been cancelled. I was initially shocked, but then I came to my senses, remembering that the average human being does not enjoy entertainment that requires him or her to think a little bit. I majored in philosophy undergrad, so this show was right up my alley. Oh well, down goes another good… Read more »
Sorry to see Awake go – really was a nice show. Kind of figured it was coming to a close with the crazy sequence of climactic episodes – seemed like the major storyline was coming to a close way quicker than was originally intended. Not sure where they would’ve gone with a second season with all the major conspiracies and plot twists solved, but then again I remember thinking the same thing when I first saw the show 24 and they went on for a while with many great seasons. I guess I’ll just have to think about Awake as… Read more »
I really couldn’t believe my eyes, this was worse than my team crashing out of the champions league (won’t tell you which one). Why would they do this? It’s genuinely such a good show. Guys we really need to give this a lot of attention, let’s do something. Maybe they’ll reconsider, or another network could pick it up.
I don’t think it was too complicated … just a bit difficult to tell which reality(?) he was in. It was also a bit short on action. Not a problem for me. I loved the show. Only theorizing why it might have had trouble finding an audience.
Another problem might have been a shortage of younger characters … too many “old people”. (I’m in my 50s in case you were wondering.)
I thought Jason Isaacs did a great job. He deserved better.
When I saw this article on the cancellation, I told my girlfriend. Both her and I were rivited right from the start. Like the other comments this was an interesting premis for a show and kept us glued and waiting for the next episode. We live in NB Canada and watched it on Global TV. There is a lot of junk out there. I am not crazy about most reality tv and some have reached over the 10 yr. span already. Some shows are just plain not good but I thought that this one is great, cudos NBC and sorry… Read more »
Loved this show and am so disappointed that it’s concluded. It would be great if another network could pick it up — there are so many possibilities for it: is he now in reality or another dream (he never “awakened” at the end)? Is/was he in a coma? Did the accident really happen or is he working out another puzzle through it? When can we see the excellent Cherry Jones again? The plot was complicated, but that made the show engaging, along with the superb acting of most of the cast. It’s really a shame that such a show is… Read more »
how is it possible that shows like Awake, The finder, and yes I’m still sooo upset that Prison Break were gone so fast, yet shows the kill all brain cells still are running strong? I absolutely loved Awake, and enjoyed the talents of the writer and the actors, now Awake and the finder are put on my “I wish they were still running” list, like my FAVOURITE show Prison break. I wish NBC realizes they made a mistake and renew it.
how can this show be cancelled? HOWW ???bring it back!!! there must be away to bring it back, thursdays are the best days because of this show!!!!. BRING AWAKE BACK!!!!!!