Doomed by Statistics?

Things aren’t looking good for Harry’s Law, the NBC-TV legal drama that debuted just over a year ago. Here’s the lowdown from the Los Angeles Times’ Show Tracker blog:

Normally, if you are the executive producer of one of the most-watched shows on a struggling network, you don’t have anything to worry about when renewal time rolls around.

But that’s not the case for David Kelley, executive producer of the legal drama “Harry's Law,” starring Kathy Bates as a crusty shoot-from-the-hip defender of lost causes. Although “Harry's Law” is averaging almost 9 million viewers this season, it is hardly a lock to return to NBC’s lineup next fall.

That’s because “Harry's Law” has the wrong 9 million viewers. Among adults ages 18 to 49, “Harry’s Law” has a rating of 1.4, or 1.75 million people, which is very low by industry standards.

“Word seems to be out that we’re a show for old people,” Kelley said.

This is a regrettable turn of events. I’ve enjoyed Harry’s Law, though I question some of the changes instituted during the second season. (Why, for instance, was the lovely Hillary Snow booted in favor of the wooden Mark Valley? It boggles the mind.) I hope Kelley can persuade NBC execs that Harry’s Law deserves a stay of execution.