ABC recently cancelled several shows (Mixology, Suburgatory, Betrayal, etc.) and renewed many others (Resurrection, Revenge, The Goldbergs, etc.). What about the new Black Box series that airs on Thursday nights?
The show revolves around a beautiful and brilliant neuroscientist (Kelly Reilly) who’s hiding the fact that she’s bipolar. The rest of the cast includes Ditch Davey, David Ajala, Terry Kinney, Ali Wong, David Chisum, Laura Fraser, Siobhan Williams, and Vanessa Redgrave.
The show debuted on April 24th to a poor 1.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 6.87 million viewers. The ratings have gotten even worse as the weeks have progressed. This week’s installment hit a new low with a 1.1 rating and 4.31 million.
While ABC hasn’t cancelled Black Box, they surely will. The ratings have just been too low to be renewed for a second season.
The question now is, “Will all of the episodes air?” There are nine episodes remaining. If the ratings keep going down, the network could easily pull the show and replace it with reruns. Hopefully they’ll either air or release them so the show’s small audience can see them.
What do you think? Do you think that Black Box should be cancelled or renewed for a second season? Do you think ABC should air all of the episodes they have?
Shows like these are always canceled. Very rarely does a doctor/lawyer/cop show succeed when it revolves around one lead character. All the most successful ones focus on an ensemble cast in which ALL are leads. This had “doomed” written on it from the start.
No, you’re completely wrong. This show was doomed from the start not because it isn’t an ensemble show. It was doomed because it is unremittingly, stupefyingly, jaw-on-the-floor, hit-me-over-the-head-with-kindling bad. Black Box makes Gilligan’s Island look like Robinson Crusoe. It makes I Dream of Jeannie look like Apollo 13. It makes Frank Drebin look like Sherlock Holmes.
I didn’t say it was a good show. I watched the first 10 minutes of the first show and could tell immediately it wasn’t going to be good and would definitely not grab high ratings, especially as the weeks went on. But before anyone even saw anything other than the commercials, it already had “doomed” on it. The first time I saw it advertised, the first thing I thought was “canceled” and I knew nothing about the show other than it was about one doctor. And as I said, very rarely does a doctor/lawyer/cop show succeed when it revolves around… Read more »
Please don’t cancel.
PLEASE don’t cancel Black Box!!!!!
I really like this show. I thought it a little twisted to start but it has grown on me. Unlike a lot of other folks who I read their reviews; they never even gave it a chance. They watched half of the Pilot or 1 episode and that was it. Gave up on it. It has really grown on me, but being a realist about our network bullies, we’ll be real lucky if we get to see the rest of the episodes. Time will tell.
RENEW IT! PLEASE!
Cancel… It’s really bad. I’ve given it a 3 tries and everytime I think it must have gotten better… it’s gotten worse. There is something very off with this show.
It’s very simple. What’s “off” with this show is everything. And I’m not exaggerating.
I love the Black Box! Please keep it on, at least air all the episodes.
Please let the show run all their episodes. We have so little that deals with mental illness. I can do without the exploding heads. Saving the boy when they discovered a brain tumour was very emotional for me. He would have died if the had’nt looked into other reasons why he was actin the way he was.
i like very mucch black box and i hope it will be renewed
I hope the Black Box series is NOT cancelled! There is not enough information out there about mental illness. Some people never heard of BI-POLAR or MANIC DEPRESSION. There aren’t even enough facilities to treat these diseases. I have a sister who is bi-polar and never understood why she did the things she did, or comes up with such bizarre stories. This series has been very informative and enlightening for me and my family who have had to deal with the consequences of her erratic behavior for over 30 years! Each of her 3 siblings could write a book on… Read more »
This show should have been cancelled before it even aired. As someone with bipolar, this is the most offensive thing I have ever seen, and every time the lead “actress” starts with her “adorable” little girl voice I want to punch her in the neck. Worst show ever. And I watch a lot of tv.
This show is rated highest by (gasp) teenage girls, who happen to be the audience demographic that is most likely to be utterly clueless that this show is so far removed from reality that compared to it, Grey’s Anatomy is documentary quality. To medical professionals like me, this show is nightmarish. It’s House in Wonderland, or actually, House in Hell. This show is so offensive and insulting that if I heard that its creators were getting death threats from doctors and people with mental illness, I wouldn’t be overly surprised. Gilligan’s Island has more realism than Black Box, and I’m… Read more »
Black Box me parece una buena serie y no deberían cancelarla!
A couple of other things that are annoying about this show:Too much reliance on a Mac for special effects like the nanny’s head blowing apart;the nurse’s face looking gnarled and so many ridiculous “special effects” that they no longer are special. Last, but not least, the medical terminology is so obtuse and there is so much of it, it detracts rather than adds to the show. The icing on this horribly constructed cake is the crazy, unbelievable names of the patients. Which only adds to the massive confusion of this mess of show. Again, Vanessa Redgrave is the only reason… Read more »
You’re absolutely right, except you didn’t go far enough. What’s wrong with this show is everything. The only good thing I can say about it is that no neurologists were harmed or abused in the making of this show.
Don’t know if it is the acting, writing or direction, but it falls short. Except, of course, Vanessa Redgrave. I have worked with Bi-Polar clients and nothing rings true in this show. Except, of course, Vanessa Redgrave. Pretty Bi-Polar Dr. acts “normal”. Then she acts Manic which is NOT the way most in the manic phase act. They usually become talkaholics not Nymphomaniacs who dance on hospital stairways like Isadora Duncan. And they usually are so uncontrollable sans medicine, they cannot hide their illness from anyone, especially a professional community of other Physicians. The ****** male Doctor is a remake… Read more »
well bon bon, at least we agree on one thing. All of the shows that are being cancelled should at least be allowed to run all the episodes out for those of us, who sometimes got within two episodes of the end. I just don’t understand the way they think. why would you put a rerun in the place of the new episode ? That way at least three or four million people could watch ’till the end.
rather than have three mill watch garbage that has already been taken out back, they put on a rerun that 5 or 6 mill will watch. More money that way for the network.
I agree with Robbie. I don’t get why a network would choose to show re-runs rather than airing new episodes of a show that they’ve already paid for. You’re saying that “5 or 6 mill” will watch a rerun. Well, I guess I don’t know who those people are. In several decades of TV viewing I can honestly say that I’ve NEVER watched a single re-run of an episode of a show that I’ve already seen the first time. That makes no sense to me. Why watch the same episode of some show more than once? What is it that… Read more »