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I’ve talked quite a bit over the course of this column about a TV show’s legacy. You see, there’s this financial tendency for a successful show to continue on, long past the point of its peak, because of the revenue it brings in. For many shows, Two And A Half Men, to name a current example, it really doesn’t matter too much. Two And A Half Men has never been very good, so replacing Charlie Sheen really does little to taint any sort of reputation the show might enjoy.

Then there’s the quality show that bypasses its natural endpoint, resulting in an overall devaluing of the brand. The X-Files is a perfect example. This show was such a phenomenon in the '90s, yet it continued on for two years after David Duchovney wanted out, and the show was already showing wear by that point. As a result, a show that should have entered into television legend seems more a '90s relic. Now, as the summer winds down and we head into the antiquated traditional television season, three shows, once a big deal, limp to their conclusions, shadows of their former selves, likely to become similar relics because they didn’t know when to quit.

As we hit the ten year anniversary of 9/11, the show most dedicated to its memory crawls across the finish line. When Rescue Me premiered, it seemed like FX’s new big deal after the successes of The Shield and Nip/Tuck. And, sure enough, acclaim greeted the show about an alcoholic New York firefighter and his team as they face the loss of their friends and colleagues in the wake of the Twin Tower collapse.

The thing is, as melancholy as that sounds, and the show certainly isn’t shy about exploring that melancholy, some of the strongest moments of the early years feature the good natured camaraderie of Tommy Gavin and his team, hanging around the firehouse, busting each other’s balls. As the show progresses, however, the dialogue remains witty, but the layers of the male bonding fray. Or rather we discover that these men really aren’t that layered. What starts as a celebration of masculine heroism devolves into a display of homophobic befuddlement.

Not that the women get a much better deal. The show has its share of female characters come and go, but the two mainstays Sheila and Janet, though more urbane than Tommy and pals, are no less shallow. Increasingly shrill and histrionic (Sheila), cold and judgmental (Janet), we lose sight of why they would want to be with Tommy in the first place, or he them.

But the biggest crime, the reason the show lost its mojo, is lack of direction. Unlike its F/X counterparts The Shield, Sons of Anarchy or Justified, Rescue Me is a serial that doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. While the other shows tell a cohesive story, Tommy’s tale just goes on and on, repeating themes and events, building to nothing. Events happen, but they aren’t climactic or a part of a greater whole.

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