Besides being two of my favorite little theme ditties, they were also a pair of very specific, idiosyncratic sitcoms, the schedule being all the better for having their voices. I'd like to say a word about each.
Don't Trust the B- in Apartment 23 was perhaps the wonkier of the two, but also the riskier. Granted, part of the problem was that the second year was comprised of a shameless mixing of leftover season 1 shows and obviously more polished 2nd season episodes. However, I believed the show was getting better with time, finding a nice balance between heart and sociopathy (which go together like PB&J, don'tchaknow). Creator Nanatchka Kahn came from the Family Guy writing stable, and I thought it was fun to see that sort of anarchic humor paired with a female point-of-view, with a dose of heart and serialization.
Krysten Ritter was appropriately unhinged, and brought an unpredictability to the performance itself that always made me quite happy. Dreama Walker was more than she needed to be as the "straight woman", and quite funny in her own right. And of course, James Van Der Beek had fun with a showy role, never wasting a moment, including his epic Dancing With the Stars routine:
So, rest in peace, Bitch in Apartment 23. I hope I get to see your last eight episodes at some point. I'm sure I'll be shocked, disturbed, and often quite happy.
Now, Ben and Kate. Oy, this one makes me very sad.
Right from episode 1, Ben and Kate was a show that you just wanted to like. The pilot wasn't terribly funny (though I think most aren't), but the characters were extremely likable, the kid wasn't annoying, and the cast was very strong. Dana Fox, the show's creator, had assembled something very sweet in her memoir-esque sitcom.
Over the course of the season, the show strengthened in ways both unexpected and unexpected. Echo Kellum proud this wonderful weirdness. Lucy Punch was so clearly the ready-made breakout star, and she lived right up to that with her expert timing and hilarious deliveries. Nat Faxon (Oscar winning screenwriter for The Descendants, amazingly) brought a very appealing level of intelligence to "goofy brother" Ben, to the point where I really believed he was going to pull his life together (and was already on the path to doing so).
And of course there's Dakota Johnson. Tasked at the offset with the "mature" sister/responsible mother role, she and the writers began to find in Kate a hilarious social awkwardness, very natural and yet also cringe-worthy and absolutely hilarious. Much like the show itself, you wanted to like her, and root for her and her weird little surrogate family. And then there was this.
Sigh...oh well. It's not like I haven't gotten over cancellations before, so I'm sure I, and TV, will be fine. But my hat is off for the time being, and I hope you all take the opportunity to check out one or both on Hulu (if you're going to only pick one, go with Ben and Kate). They at least deserve to be seen.
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