Save Our Shows: 'Person of Interest' leads

Gary Levin | USA TODAY

Fans are definitely interested in saving Person of Interest.

Among 122,764 voters in USA TODAY's 18th annual Save Our Shows poll — which asks viewers to weigh in on which of 21 endangered shows should spared the ax, the CBS drama was the top pick. Half voted to keep it, and just 11% want it dropped. (The rest said they didn't care either way.)

Rounding out the top five were Fox's Bones, which is "on the bubble," awaiting word on a 12th season, only because of expiring contracts for its stars; ABC's freshman dramas Marvel's Agent Carter and Forever; and ABC's Nashville, though support has weakened for the music-fueled drama since last year's poll.

Which shows do fans want to unfriend? NBC comedy Undateable, ABC's oddball musical Galavant and CBS torture-porn drama Stalker topped the list of bubble shows fans want dropped.

Among key factors in shows' survival: Ratings (steady or falling?); a show's provenance (network-owned series get the upper hand in close calls); and the quality of the pilots now being screened and tested. When unveiling their fall schedules, programmers like to wow ad buyers and viewers with shiny new series, and are weighing them against more established and proven (if declining) shows.

That puts first-year series with sub-par ratings most at risk. Just ask David Shore (House), who's producing CBS' quirky cop drama Battle Creek and complains that too few viewers are even aware of the show. "I don't think they promoted us as much as they should have," he says. "It used to be relatively easy for networks to get the word out there because there weren't as many choices. (But) people who have watched it seem to like it a lot."

Ratings for Person are down 15% ahead of Tuesday's finale, and the show isn't owned by CBS, where most series are "strong enough that they are not going to be canceled but old enough that they're not going to grow," says Sam Armando of Chicago ad firm SMGx.

But "I think we have a real shot to come back," says executive producer J.J. Abrams. "I think the show deserves to come back. (Producers) Jonah Nolan and Greg Plageman have a great pitch for a fifth season. And if it doesn't come back on CBS, hopefully there can be another home for the series. But it is a show that has a fan base we are incredibly grateful for, and I think the best stories for Person of Interest are ahead."

Eric Traska of Windsor, Conn., would be pleased: "The only one I'm truly passionate about is Person of Interest," he says. "The premise is fresh, the actors nail their parts and the writers are unafraid to kill off lovable characters," such as Taraji P. Henson's Joss Carter.

Some producers try to hasten renewals by pitching story ideas for a potential new season, though for ABC's Revenge it's too late: The series will end its run next Sunday. Bones is the longest-running series in the poll, and support mirrored that for NBC's Law & Order: SVU last year, also endangered by a contractual dispute that eventually was settled.

"For a show that has been on as long as it has, its been fresh and fun for the last three seasons, and it deserves a proper send-off," says Jennifer Lester of Claymont, Del. "We've followed Bones all over the schedule, and I think its only fair that we get the proper amount of time to say goodbye."

And Natalie Hollist of San Antonio praises ABC's Forever, which also scored well among voters, as a "very tender, fun take on the popular Sherlock theme. It has heart and intelligence. It is cleverly written, beautifully executed, and excellently acted by a cast that work well together, which is very rare."

Check the list below to see which way voters leaned on every show in this year's survey.