On Monday, Mayor Rob Ford - a Canadian-produced drama/comedy series that captivated audiences both at home and south of the border - will end its 4-season run, following an abrupt cancellation notice.


Series star Rob Ford, who has portrayed the role of Toronto Mayor to a mixture of acclaim and derision from critics, announced in September that he won't be returning for another season. The announcement left the door open for a spinoff with his brother, supporting character Doug Ford, taking over the starring role of Toronto Mayor. However, as we get closer to the series' final episode, it's looking increasingly unlikely that the spinoff will be picked up.

After a bombshell third season in 2013 that saw Rob Ford become a ratings juggernaut at home - including unlikely success in the U.S., where it was picked up following a buzz-worthy storyline involving organized crime and addiction - viewers have had mixed feelings on the uneven fourth season. After a cliffhanger season finale last year saw the Mayor admitting to smoking crack cocaine, viewers seemed sure that the anti-hero protagonist would get his comeuppance, especially after the introduction of fan-favourite police chief Bill Blair to the storyline. Instead, viewers were treated to a long mid-season hiatus in 2014, followed by a sudden stomach cancer plotline that critics described as a deus ex machina to tie up loose plotlines.


We've seen an advance screener of the series finale, set to air on Monday (ed. note: spoilers follow.) John Tory, the bland mayoral challenger introduced last season, ends up winning the election over Rob's brother Doug. Rob's immediate future is unclear, as the show fades to black in a device reminiscent of The Sopranos' series finale, where viewers are left guessing about our main character's fate.

Rob Ford - a larger-than-life character that critics have often likened to both Tony Soprano and Breaking Bad protagonist Walter White, for his mixture of brazen criminality and poignant pathos - ends the series out of the Mayor's office, but seemingly recovering from cancer. While the series as a whole has addressed themes of greed, pride and megalomania, the toned-down finale seems to suggest a restoration of order - of Fortinbras arriving to take the slain Hamlet's crown, so to speak.


While some viewers will no doubt find the open-ended nature of the finale compelling, others will be left expecting more from a show that once reached such lofty heights. While the first season in 2010/2011 mostly focused on the day-to-day affairs of a bumbling oaf who lands himself in the Mayor's office almost by accident, the show slowly introduced the sort of cliffhangers and scandals for which it would later become famous.

The tone of the show has also noticeably changed over the years. Early on, Rob Ford was more of a political comedy in the vein of Veep or Yes Minister, focusing on the Mayor's pratfalls, questionable hijinks, and heavy use of stock sitcom catchphrases ("We need to stop the gravy train!") Gradually, as new characters were introduced such as beloved young Star reporter Daniel Dale and sleazy criminal associate Sandro Lisi, the show took a darker turn. By the start of this season, which opened with Rob Ford's powers as Mayor being removed in a tense City Hall scene, viewers had become hooked on the show's blend of drama and emotional poignancy. Even as some fans began seeing the show's star as a tragic hero akin to Willy Loman, others saw Ford as more of a "love-to-hate-him" classic villain - a sociopathic, criminal narcissist, lifted up just so that we could watch him fall. In other words, more Tony Montana than Tony Soprano. And ever since season 2, fans have been waiting for the final straw that would take him down.


Instead, the controversial cancer storyline has mostly been forgotten by fans. Doug Ford, the new star of the show, has been derided as a less-interesting version of the original character. Compared to the way that Rob Ford would toe the line between pathetic poignancy and sneering, villainous contempt in classic moments such as the crack video press conference episode, Doug (a fine actor in his own right) plays the role like he's performing a cheap off-Broadway knockoff version of his brother. Although this season has been peppered with great scenes and a few classic lines ("I've got more than enough to eat at home" will go down as an all-time fan favourite), viewers never warmed to John Tory as an antagonist, and the whole election storyline seems trite.

It looks as though we'll never get the closure we all expected on the promising Project Brazen 2 storyline, or learn more about the various Somali gang members that were introduced in a subplot last season. At times, viewers said they were often confused by the large ensemble cast (even avid viewers are forgiven for mixing up Fabio Basso with Bruno Bellissimo.) Even guest appearances from major US stars like Jimmy Kimmel (rare for a Canadian production), and a companion book to the series written by Star writer Robyn Doolittle, couldn't save the show's weaker ratings this season.


While the rehab-centric episodes and the rapid introduction of characters like Mikey Ford, Karen Stintz and Shirtless Jogger offered glimpses of the show's earlier wit, they just couldn't capture the brilliance of the crack-smoking, drunk-driving, wife-swapping, flying-cheeseburger thrillride offered by a classic episode like One Wild Night In March.


In all, Mayor Rob Ford will be remembered by fans as a slow-building, rewarding series that delivered on all cylinders when it was at its best. Despite its uneven finish and a variety of loose ends in the finale, it will be a long time before Canada can produce something this innovative, emotional, and dramatic again.

And when we tune in on Monday and the final credits roll, we'll probably miss it.