FX President Explains, Laments Cancellation of Terriers

It was a depressing, albeit not surprising move: FX canceled Terriers today, following the show's dismal ratings throughout a critically-acclaimed first season.

But FX president John Landgraf's credit, he took part in a conference call after the decision was made and explained it to reporters, something we can't recall happening before in recent history.

While acknowledging Terriers could have bee marketed better, Landgraf cited its subtle tone and pacing as the basis for its failure. He said:

"People thought the show was compatible with the FX brand, but not similar to other FX shows. To the extent it was dissimilar, they found it to be a little less edgy, sexy and suspenseful, and I think the things that were wonderful about the show tended to be a little more subtle."

For many, yours truly very much included, such subtlety - highlighted by the banter between Britt and Hank - is what made the show stand out.

In the end, though, you can't argue with ratings or deny that FX gave Terriers every possible chance.

It averaged 509,000 viewers in the key 18-49 year-old demographic, less than half what other, quickly-canceled shows such as Dirt (1.6 million) and Over There (1.3 million) averaged.

"There's no question in my mind [Terriers] was a credit to our air," Landgraf said. "The question is whether it could find an audience and we couldn't find a large enough one on FX for it.... This isn’t the first really good show we've had to cancel and it won't be the last."

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.