Now that ABC has pulled poorly performing rookie sitcom In the Motherhood yet again, it’s up to Christina Applegate’s sophomore comedy Samantha Who? to carry ABC’s Thursday-night, summertime comedy lineup. I have faith.

Coming up tonight, July 2, on the series are the two fresh episodes “Todd’s Job” and “The Sister.” The first features former Girlfriends and All My Children cast member Dondre Whitfield, who just happens to be married to Eureka star Salli Richardson-Whitfield, and the second has guest stars Christine Ebersole of USA Network’s breakout hit dramedy Royal Pains and Florence Henderson of Brady Bunch fame. Woot!

Follow the jump for episode details…

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Although ABC unceremoniously canceled both sophomore sitcom Samantha Who? and its fleeting rookie companion In the Motherhood just a little over a month ago, the comedies return tonight, June 25, to air their remaining episodes on the shelf.

That means seven new episodes for the older show and three for the newcomer, starting with tonight’s “The Rock Star” (Samantha) and “Shepfather” (Motherhood). Details follow the jump.

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The bad, sad news dropped earlier today. Basic-cable network TBS, which currently syndicates My Name Is Earl, has declined to pick up the comedy following its cancellation at NBC last month. That means the sitcom is now officially finished. *sniffle*

Blame the latest disastrous and final development in the comedy’s struggle to survive on failed negotiations. Apparently, Turner, which owns TBS (and also TNT), and the sitcom’s production studio, Twentieth Century Fox TV, were unable to reach an agreement that would have allowed production of new episodes to continue.

The culprit? Money, as always. It seems one or both sides couldn’t come up with a financial strategy that worked for everyone involved.

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Whoa! I didn’t see that coming! ABC has reportedly canceled the Christina Applegate sitcom Samantha Who?

Just last week, the entertainment Internets were alive with speculation that the struggling, Emmy-winning sophomore series would get a shortened third season, not the ax.

Variety reports today, however, that ABC has decided to show the sitcom the door and not reserve a spot for it on ABC’s 2009–2010 schedule. Two reasons account for the fairly surprising development: (1) the network couldn’t cut enough fat from the sitcom’s budget and (2) ABC’s numerous recent rookie pickups made Samantha Who? expendable.

I am mildly stunned, despite my full awareness of the show’s ratings troubles, and I imagine the cast and crew members are, too. It seemed the series had built up a lot of good will, not to mention an assumed understanding that it would require time to recover from losing its posh Season One post-Dancing with the Stars time slot on Mondays.

So long, Samantha Who? I expected at least a shorter midseason order, but definitely not this. Keep in mind that ABC has made no official announcement yet (that I know of) about the cancellation or what will happen to the seven produced episodes that still haven’t aired. The network’s upfront presentation is scheduled for Tuesday morning (tomorrow), May 19.

Fourth-place broadcast network NBC really demonstrated its determination to remain in that lowly position during The Peacock’s “Infront” presentation earlier today. Apparently, it cares not a lick about genuinely original yet thoroughly entertaining programs, as the confirmed cancellation of the stellar Damian Lewis and Sarah Shahi cop dramedy Life proves.

Also confirmed as canceled are the God-awful remakes Kath & Kim and Knight Rider. It actually pains me to see a terrific series like Life lumped together with two shows that never should have made it past go in the first place. Given the upcoming primetime Leno fiasco, NBC is now officially a network that I won’t be taking seriously again anytime soon, Chuck renewal or not.

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I read an interesting column not too long ago. In the wake of the Hollywood Reporter’s recent proclamation that Reaper is as good as gone at The CW, writer Daniel Fienberg defends the devil dramedy and offers several reasons why the network should at least give a Reaper renewal proper consideration before lowering the ax.

Among the fine points made is Reaper’s sturdy, if not impressive, performance against reality behemoth American Idol, the Fox reality show that The CW intentionally threw Reaper under the bus for in order to save sappy 90210 from a swift and certain ratings death. Remember, the network moved 90210 from its original 8pm ET time slot to 9pm, just so Reaper could take on — and get crushed by — Idol at 8pm instead.

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Could it really be almost time to say goodbye forever to The CW’s devil dramedy Reaper? That just might be the case now that a reputable entertainment publication has publicly stated the series is canceled.

In an April 19 online article titled “Crunch Time for Bubble Series,” the Hollywood Reporter closed its overview with one lone sentence that Sam fans have been dreading pretty much since the middle of the sophomore series’ first season:

Over at the CW, “Reaper” is gone, while the prospects for “Privileged” have improved, and the show is now considered for a possible midseason order.

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Well, it looks like Eric McCormack had the right idea when he joined the pilot for a potential ABC comedy last month.

Earlier today, the New York Times reported the news that TNT, the home network for McCormack’s most recent gig, Trust Me, has decided to cancel the advertising-agency dramedy after only one season.

The show’s first-season finale — and now series finale, as well — aired on Tuesday, April 7. At least fans of the show were able to see all 13 produced episodes since the network burned them off by doubling them up on the last several air dates.

TNT executive Michael Wright blamed Trust Me’s unimpressive average ratings of approximately 1.4 million viewers on the show’s inability to find an audience due to the advertising theme not being “as accessible a subject as other subjects on television.”

I bet to differ. From my perspective, the series performed poorly Nielsens-wise because it was often either very boring or too silly. That’s just my two cents, though. Hopefully, McCormack’s co-lead, Tom Cavanagh, will also find a new role on a better TV show soon.

This news truly sucks.

E! Online’s Kristin and tons of other TV industry insiders in the know all report pretty much the same dismal development: ABC is holding off on airing the final episodes of canceled gems Dirty Sexy Money, Eli Stone, and Pushing Daisies until the summer.

For those of us who remember the vastly boring wasteland the summer TV season used to be before basic cable swooped in and made it a legitimate occasion for new stuff, waiting isn’t such a big deal. But, for fans who wanted closure as soon as possible, it’s a whole ‘nother story I’m sure.

The reason for the delay is very simple, of course. Chalk it up to money, meaning ratings too low to have a large enough positive impact on the network’s bottom line. As Kristin points out, the shows that replaced the three series in their former time slots, including repeats of other series, have been bringing in much more Nielsen bacon — often twice as much or more.

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The news is spreading like wildfire all over the Internets: on November 20, ABC announced more changes to its midseason schedule that include:

• The Thursday pairing of Grey’s Anatomy and its spinoff Private Practice, beginning on January 8

• The Wednesday pairing of Lost and Life on Mars, which has also received an order for four additional episodes, beginning on January 28

• The simultaneous return and ABC premiere of Scrubs on Tuesday, January 6 at 9pm EST, following double episodes of According to Jim at 8pm

What’s most notable about the schedule, however, especially to us dramedy fans, is the absence of three of television’s most engaging, entertaining, and arguably unique series: Dirty Sexy Money, Eli Stone, Pushing Daisies.

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