Party Foul

Well, the party is over. After airing the second season finale in late June, Starz original comedy "Party Down" has not been renewed for a third go round. Each episode chronicled the work of a six-person team at the titular Party Down Catering Company as they served and supported a different party each week.

Created by comedian Paul Rudd and television entrepreneur Rob Thomas (creator of "Veronica Mars" and the re-vamped "90210") along with Dan Etheridge and John Enbom, "Party Down" provided something different from the all-to-common police or medical show flooding broadcast channels.

The cast starred a group of actors that you may recognize, but you're probably not sure from where; including Adam Scott (Step Brothers), Lizzy Caplan (Mean Girls), and Megan Mullally ("Will & Grace"). Watching the premiere episode with friends recently, the comment "Hey, it's that one guy," was made three times in the first five minutes.

Only 74,000 people watched the season finale, even with the return of former co-star Jane Lynch, who left the show to join the cast of "Glee". 74,000 people, it's been pointed out, could all fit inside of Cowboy Stadium in Dallas. But Starz is a subscription channel that doesn't need to fight for viewership like advertising-funded networks. So why is it cancelled?

"Party Down" is not the only show cut from the programming. Another Starz original, "Gravity" was canned and the fate of "Crash", based off of the Oscar- winning film, is still undecided. It may be that president and CEO Chris Albrecht, who began working with Starz in January and was previously with HBO, wants a clean slate for new programming. Or maybe it's because team leader and star Adam Scott is leaving to appear on NBC's "Parks & Recreation". Even with Scott's departure, "Party Down" has a strong cast and probably the best use of guest stars on television.

Starz only reaches about 22 million homes in the U.S. I found "Party Down" when it was recommended to me on my Netflix instant queue. "Party Down" was also available to watch on TV.com and a few other smaller web sites, but put full episodes on the larger site Hulu or even the official Starz web site, and I would be willing to be that viewership would double.

The Internet is how people watch TV theses days, and "Party Down" might just be the show to prove it. Maybe Starz, shouldn't be petitioned, perhaps "Party Down" can become the first successful Internet-based television show. Find a website to host, advertise and nurture future seasons of "Party Down" and the jump to web-based entertainment that experts have been predicting just might happen.

"Save ‘Party Down'" attempts have cropped up across the web, including a Facebook page and an official Twitter. This show is too clever to end just yet, especially with the inconclusive ending of season two. So folks, don't let the party end just yet.