Category Archives: Miss/Guided

News has broken today that Rob Thomas, creator of Veronica Mars, has split from ABC’s midseason comedy “Miss/Guided” only a month after agreeing to run the show.

Zap2it.com – ABC’s “Miss/Guidance” Seeks New Guidance

No, it doesn’t appear to be in order for him to devote more time to that Veronica Mars comic book; rather, the split appears to be for a variety of good reasons.

Okay, so let’s recap this entire situation for just one moment:

Step 1:

ABC picks up comedy pilot, Miss/Guided, starring Judy Greer, for midseason at the last minute. The pickup was a bit of a surprise, but seemed like a decent pilot at first glance.

Step 2:

Rob Thomas, newly available after Veronica Mars went under, is hired to run the show as an executive producer. This was hailed as good news, considering it kept a great producer on television.

Step 3:

ABC, deciding that it doesn’t have enough generic comedies premiering this year (Carpoolers, Cavemen), turns the show into a more straightforward comedy. More specifically, ABC are dumb and are turning the show into That 70s Show: Modern Edition by bringing in that show’s producer to run things.

Step 4:

Rob Thomas leaves the show, citing creative differences. More specifically, I believe his real reason is something along the lines of “ABC doesn’t want a good show, and I don’t want to be part of a bad one.” That’s my assumption, anyways.

So after this entire saga, the question remains: what does this mean for both Thomas and the show?

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Judy Greer is perhaps best known to television comedy fans for her stint as receptionist Kitty on Arrested Development. Rob Thomas is best known for creating Veronica Mars, the beloved UPN/The CW drama that was recently canceled. Combining these two elements seems like good science, and apparently all parties think so. A last-minute addition to the ABC Pilot lineup, “Miss/Guided” was seeking guidance and has found it in Thomas, who will lead Greer and Co. as showrunner starting at midseason according to E! Online.

This means a few things: first, yes, Veronica Mars is definitely canceled. However, I think that fans (and everyone else) should look on the bright side knowing that Rob Thomas is still in television. While I think that he has yet to prove himself a consistent showrunner over multiple seasons, and the fact that he hasn’t created the show is certainly going to make for a different experience, the first season of Veronica Mars was some of the most exceptional television of the decade. If Thomas can develop his vision and keep it from spiraling out of control, I believe that he is the right person for this job.

Second, I’m now that much more excited for Miss/Guided. I was happy to see it picked up, considering Judy Greer is both very engaging and very funny, but now the series has a great deal of potential. The show is certainly not all that original, actually seeming to play just a little bit like Ugly Betty in a public school, but I think that this type of fish out of water story is exactly the type of thing that Thomas is good at capturing. The best parts of Veronica Mars were when she was a total outcast, struggling not to fit in but to survive not fitting in. Much as Veronica developed her own way of doing that, I believe that Greer’s Becky Freeley can do the same.

So, while it is perhaps no consolation for losing Veronica Mars, I look forward to seeing what he is able to cook up for Miss/Guided. Perhaps with a creative resurgence the sitcom might actually get a timeslot confirmed; if it replaces Cavemen (Which better not succeed), I shall be most pleased.

For a clip of Miss/Guided from its pilot episode, head to ABC.com’s Fall Preview.

Also of Note: Christina Applegate comedy “Sam I Am” is now listed as “Untitled” on ABC’s fall preview. Looks like changes are afoot on more shows than one over at ABC.