WARNING: The following post contains liberal use of CAPS and bold letters.

This week on Why It’s Worth a Watch Wednesday, Tiffany and I once again go head to head, bringing you the latest in new TV. This week, we check out NBC’s new drama, Do No Harm.

Do No Harm stars Steven Pasquale as…wait. Starred. I should say “starred” not “stars”.

Dude. They cancelled us. We have the sads.

Because it’s already been cancelled.

TWO. EPISODES. IN.

Yes, ladies and gentles, this show has the awkward distinction of being the lowest-rated scripted premiere in the HISTORY of the big four.

It must have been horrible, right?

Well…

Here’s the thing. By the time I got a chance to sit down and watch the show, I already knew about the cancellation. So, it was hard for me to be overly critical. If this were a real review, I probably would have made unfair comparisons to the BBC’s Jekyll (unfair, because, well, it’s the BBC). But, why kick a man while he’s down, right?

The premise to the show had promise. The main character, Dr. Jason Cole (Stephen Pasquale) has DID (dissociative identity disorder) but it manifests in a unique way. His alter, who goes by the name Ian Price, shows up at the same time every night – 8: 25 PM – and stays for 12 hours. Dr. Cole has little to no memory of what his other personality does, but he does know that he is a horrible person.

Because of this, it seems that he’s enlisted the help of a fellow doctor (Lin-Manuel Miranda) in creating a drug that suppresses his other half. It’s worked for a while, but they discover that Cole/Price has become immune to the drug.

The alter, angry after being suppressed for so long, is out for revenge on Cole.

And Cole, understandably, wants to kill Price.

It’s a Jekyll and Hyde-like tale. And I happen to enjoy Jekyll/Hyde stories. I also find DID interesting subject matter, even if this portrayal is over the top.

But, I’ll never know if this story would have been developed well, if Pasquale’s subtle shift between Cole and Price would have been refreshing or not enough, because the network didn’t give me a chance.

They did what they had to, right? If a show isn’t getting ratings, it gets the ax.

Here’s the thing. Not that I know anything about anything, but I get the feeling that networks haven’t caught up with the new generation of “TV” watchers. And by TV, I mean the countless numbers of people who watch their programs after the fact.

Show of hands: How many of you watch a show the second it comes on? There are a fair amount of viewers who are watching new shows On Demand, days later on their DVR, or online via network websites or Hulu.

Are networks accounting for these people?

I probably would have given Do No Harm a chance, honestly. But I don’t think my viewing figures are being considered.

Networks – catch up with the times. Find a new way to track your viewership. Put more of your marketing dollars into social media and online advertising. Offer sneak peeks (some have done this) of pilots to Social Media influencers who can get online viewers excited about the show.

Leverage the interwebs!!

And again, I don’t understand how things work, but if you’ve ALREADY filmed a certain number of episodes, why not air them all if all you are going to replace it with are RERUNS of another show? (Yes, they are going to air previously aired episodes of Law and Order: SVU.)

OH, OH! And stop premiering shows in timeslots where you historically underperform. NBC has been sucking wind in the 10 o’ clock time slot since, what, ER? Not to mention that the timeslot is occupied by Scandal – a HUGELY successful drama on ABC, and Elementary on CBS, which has also been doing well.

Go home, NBC, you’re DRUNK.

A lot of folks have DVRs that only let them records TWO things. Sticking yourself in a time slot already inhabited by a couple of strong shows is kind of asking for horrible ratings, isn’t it?

AND…AND! How about you give the show a stronger lead-in? Sure, Thursday night comedies on NBC were once a strong bunch, but with The Office nearing it’s end, 30 Rock done, and the addition of the absolutely horrid 1600 Penn, you can’t expect viewers to stick around for an unknown drama.

1600 Penn. ::shudder::

How is it, exactly, that you’ve cancelled Do No Harm after two episodes and not this waste of TV space?

Sigh.

No ratings today. I’m guessing Do No Harm would have received an SSTV from me. But apparently NBC wants microwave programming.

Enjoy your hot pockets.

I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore.

Come back next week when I’m less angry at the world. Or, you know, NBC.

Don’t forget to see what Tiffany has to say about this whole debacle!

(PS – I am really disappointed that the cancellation means I don’t get to see more Lin-Manuel Miranda. For those who don’t know, he is the uber-talented guy behind the musical In the Heights, and had a memorable guest appearance on House)