BrainDead: Cancel or Renew for Season Two?

Created by Robert and Michelle King, The Good Wife ran for seven seasons on CBS. The series was never a hit in the ratings but it was a source of pride for the network and kept being renewed. How has the Kings’ new summer series, BrainDead, been performing? Should it be cancelled or renewed for a second season?

On BrainDead, Laurel Healy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) has returned home to Washington, DC to work for her brother, Senator Luke Healy (Danny Pino) on Capitol Hill. She is caught in the midst of two huge problems: the government has stopped working due to budgetary disagreements, and mysterious bugs are eating the brains of a growing number of members of Congress and Hill staffers. The rest of the cast includes Aaron Tveit, Tony Shalhoub, Nikki M. James, Johnny Ray Gill, Charlie Semine, and Jan Maxwell.

Debuting in June, the first episode of BrainDead drew a 0.7 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 4.59 million viewers. It was an unimpressive start to be sure and the numbers have fallen much lower as the weeks have progressed. The seventh episode’s ratings represented a new low, drawing a 0.3 demo rating with 1.75 million viewers.

Despite the talent behind the program, it is highly unlikely that CBS will want to invest in a second season of BrainDead. Hopefully the last installments will provide enough closure to satisfy the show’s audience. Episode 11 is scheduled for next week and the last two of the season are set for September 11th.

But, what do you think? Do you like the BrainDead TV show? Should it be cancelled? Would you watch a second season?

10/18 update: CBS has cancelled BrainDead after one season. Details here.