TV

Feel the Burn: Three Cancelled TV Shows Return . . . Temporarily

Did you enjoy a new TV show this year only to see it cancelled without resolution? You're in luck: three shows will return to the air (briefly) this summer

By Brent Furdyk /

Credit: ABC

Anthony Edwards’ Zero Hour is one of three cancelled shows to be burned off this summer

Zero Hour, Do No Harm, and Cult will all return from cancellation for a brief burn-through of summer episodes

Earlier this year, a trio of midseason shows from three different networks debuted to ratings so low they were yanked off the schedule almost immediately.

Well, they’re back for the summertime burn-off, an annual TV tradition in which unaired episodes of cancelled shows are finally shown during the summer months under the auspices that never-before-seen programming is better than reruns — even if the unaired shows are horrible. 

This year, Zero Hour, Do No Harm and Cult all came and went so quickly most viewers probably missed them. And while it’s likely that the same majority of viewers who ignored the shows when they first aired will continue to ignore them, the few who did watch will now have a chance to see how they end.

Zero Hour

This week brings us the return of Zero Hour, the Raiders of the Lost Ark-meets-The Da Vinci Code thriller starring ER’s Anthony Edwards as a conspiracy-busting journalist who, ironically, becomes caught up in a huge conspiracy. Although only three episodes were run before the executioner’s axe came down, back-to-back unaired episodes will launch this Saturday on Global and ABC. 

Cult

The following week, The CW head-scratcher Cult returns on June 28 to continue the tale of a cult-hit TV show (also called Cult) that appears to have deadly consequences for those who watch it. The CW plans to air back-to-back episodes each Friday night over the course of three weeks until the final six episodes have been shown. 

Do No Harm

Finally, Do No Harm  — which was canned after only two episodes — returns on June 29, with unaired episodes running on Saturday nights. As a reminder for those who were lucky enough to avoid it entirely or have somehow managed to erase it from their memories, Do No Harm follows the Jekyll-and-Hyde-style journey of a neurosurgeon (Rescue Me’s Steven Pasquale) who morphs into a villainous alter ego each evening.

Originally published in TVW. For daily programming updates and on-screen Entertainment news, subscribe to the free TVW e-newsletters, or purchase a subscription to the weekly magazine.