Joan of Arcadia
Network: CBS
Years Aired: 2003-2005 – Two Seasons – 48 Episodes
Whenever somebody breaches the topic of shows being cancelled too early into its run, I always immediately think of Joan of Arcadia. Sure, its demise was relatively recent (it was cancelled over the summer of 2005), and its run was pretty short (it lasted two seasons), but, to me, the show never really got a chance to take risks or come out of any potential slump. It was placed in a less-than-desirable timeslot (8:00 Friday nights), and wasn’t given an honest shot.
Few people realize that while the show wasn’t necessarily bringing in amazing numbers, during its second (and final) season it usually received a rating in the upper 5’s, and almost always placed second for its timeslot. With that in mind, the show can hardly be considered a bomb. Admittedly, Ghost Whisperer (which took over the Friday night timeslot) usually comes in at the mid-7’s, however the same can be said about Joan’s first season. The reason for the drop in ratings is likely to do with the fact that the show decided to go in a different direction, in which Joan struggled to believe that she was truly seeing God, and in turn refused to undertake the tasks he was assigning her. A lot of people were critical of the darker tone, and thought the show had lost its charm. I on the other hand, found it a natural evolution, and her internal struggle made her reconciliation with God a legitimately beautiful moment. Unfortunately, the network did not seem to have much faith in the show, and because of that cancelled it prematurely.
Another reason the show was cancelled was that while it didn’t bring in bad numbers, it did bring up the wrong numbers. Specifically, the show didn’t rate as high as the network would have liked in the precious 18-34 demographic. CBS also recognized that somebody like Jennifer Love Hewitt could probably match the ratings Joan of Arcadia was receiving, while also bringing in a younger audience.
While the above statement is true, the fact remains that a very touching, creative show was canned in favor of a show already similar to (at the time) a current hit show and a debuting show, NBC’s Medium and The WB’s Supernatural, respectively.
That’s the thing, though. Along with being excellently written and superbly acted, Joan of Arcadia was a genuinely heartfelt show. Having a character talking to God enters into a very dangerous territory, namely, religion. However, the show managed to handle the situation with incredible sensitivity, being careful not to determine any particular religion or denomination as “right” or “wrong.” Yes, God was portrayed as all knowing and all powerful, but he also allowed Joan to have free will, and you could tell he truly cared for her as well. One of the my favourite moments of the entire series was in the second season premiere, when Joan was arguing with “Cute Boy God,” and continually insisted that she was crazy and that he wasn’t real, and after she told him she didn’t miss talking to him, he simply asked “Do you miss yourself? Because I do.” The message was so simple, yet so beautiful: God knows when you’re not being true to yourself, and when you aren’t, he misses who you truly are.
There are many other moving moments that come to mind. In the second season, when Joan finally decided to reconcile with God (after her friend Judith nearly died of alcohol poisoning), she broke down into tears, and “Old Lady God” was there to comfort her. The image was just so strong: The idea of just completely losing control of your emotions, and there God is to hold you and tell you it’ll be okay. There was also the episode where Joan was going to find out that her boyfriend Adam has been cheating on her, and throughout the entire episode you could tell that God was trying to protect her, as he truly didn’t want to see her get heartbroken.
However, one must not forget that the show swayed from being preachy because of how likable most of the characters were. The show contained a great deal of subdued humor, and its lead, Amber Tamblyn, was immensely charming. Not to mention the fact that she has the face of an angel. The “God wave” was always a fun and subtle moment to tip off the fact that the person Joan is talking to is actually God, and their interaction together was always comfortable and amusing. Her parents were realistic (so you could relate to them), yet likable. They were comforting and supportive, yet strict and firm when they needed to be. Their children (Joan and her two brothers) were definitely three distinct personalities, yet they managed to connect with each of them in their own way. Although it was difficult, Joan’s father managed to bond with his nerdy, brainy son just like he had with his jock son. And after his jock son became paralyzed, their relationship evolved to something beyond sports.
Finally, what made the show really work was the fact that they weren’t afraid to encounter a lot of taboo issues, which is surprising considering the religious premise of the series. The show dealt with death (and many different facets as well, from the murder of Joan’s best friend to the natural death of a young ill boy Joan used to baby-sit for), rape, pre-marital sex, vandalism, hate crimes, cheating, and the metaphoric idea of selling one’s soul. When Joan was contemplating having sex with her boyfriend Adam, God didn’t tell her not to. Instead, he knew that, ultimately, Joan would realize for herself that she wasn’t ready. I also loved the idea that everything was connected. God telling Joan that she should help out a stranger leads to Joan volunteering to baby-sit a woman’s son, which ultimately leads to her discovering that Adam’s mom had committed suicide, which in turn allowed him to open up to her, bringing her closer and releasing all the emotions he had been holding in. It was always fun watching, and trying to figure out how her latest task would help somebody in her life.
As the second season came to a close, the show was starting to go in yet another direction, as Joan came face to face with a man (played by Wentworth Miller, of Prison Break fame) who also communicates with God, but has far more sinister intentions. Joan was going to have to use everything she had learned from God, as well as her faith in God and knowing what’s right and what’s wrong, to try to overcome this man, who had slowly put himself in a position of power within the community. Along with that, Joan’s mother (who was reclaiming her faith throughout the season) seemed to have premonitions from God, which would likely ultimately bring her and Joan closer together. It also seemed as if God wanted Joan to fill her friends in on their relationship, so that they could help her combat with this man.
Things were definitely starting to look interesting, and it’s entirely too bad that CBS decided to give up on the show. Considering all the shows that get cancelled before they have a chance to overcome their slumps and grow into themselves, it’s shocking that a show like Seinfeld ever survived its first few seasons. Perhaps networks should learn from this example.
