As you "Homefront" fans are no doubt aware, the series' second-to-last episode of the season did not air this past Tuesday.
At the last minute, it was pre-empted by an ABC News special about the fiery deaths of David Koresh and his followers in Waco, Texas.(And that was probably the first time ABC had a legitimate excuse to pre-empt this frequently pre-empted series.)
But the good news is that the network has scheduled both that missing episode and the season - and perhaps the series - finale tonight. The episode titled "Shabbat Shalom" airs at 8 p.m., followed by "All Good Things" at 9 p.m. on Ch. 4.
Imagine! Two hours of one of television's best series!
And they're both wonderful episodes. In the first, Gina (Giuliiana Santini) becomes more aware of her Jewish heritage, and decides her daughter must be raised in a Jewish home - so she breaks off her engagement to gentile Charlie Hailey (Harry O'Reilly).
In the meantime, Mike and Ruth Sloan (Ken Jenkins and Mimi Kennedy) seem headed for divorce court and their long-suffering servants, Abe and Gloria Davis (Dick Anthony Williams and Hattie Winston) make a decision about their future that may cause them to part ways with the Sloans.
The final hour is even better - largely because it centers on perhaps television's most endearing couple, Jeff Metcalf (Kyle Chandler) and Ginger Szabo (Tammy Lauren). This pair, who've provided much of "Homefront's" gentle but uproarious humor, are in top form tonight.
If you haven't followed the romance of Jeff and Ginger over the past couple of seasons, it came as a surprise even to the producers and writers of the series. Jeff was originally caught up in a love triangle with his brother, while - in the "Homefront" pilot - Ginger showed up at the train station in a wedding gown to greet her fiance as he returned from World War II - only to discover he'd married a British girl.
Jeff and Ginger caught each other on the rebound in what was supposed to be a short-term story, but the chemistry between Chandler and Lauren was so great it overwhelmed even the writers.
Well, after some very funny and touching moments, Ginger is back at that train station in another wedding gown tonight - but will she be marrying her current fiance or her ex-fiance, Jeff? (I won't give it away.)
The final hour also provides some nice closure for Charlie and Gina, Al and Anne Kahn (John Slattery and Wendy Phillips) and the Sloans - but none of it seems forced or manufactured.
And, should "Homefront" be renewed, there are plenty of places for the remaining characters to go.
However, watching these two hours of "Homefront" is not without risk. Personally, I loved both episodes. They were entertaining, heartwarming and even thought-provoking.
But a day later, I write this with a deep sense of sadness because the chances of "Homefront" being renewed aren't great. And this is not a show that deserves to die.
Several long-running shows are disappearing in the next few weeks. "Cheers." "The Wonder Years." "Designing Women." "Knots Landing." "Quantum Leap."
But each of those had a chance to live a good, long television life.
Two seasons - and the second a rather short season of only 18 episodes - is not enough for "Homefront."
These are great characters worth spending more time with. This is great writing that's full of surprises and willing to tackle tough topics.
If ABC doesn't give them a reprieve, I'll miss Jeff, Ginger, Mike, Ruth, Charlie, Gina, Abe, Gloria, Al, Anne, Linda, Judy - even Caroline.
Let's hope that ABC programmers - who profess to love the series - bring it back.
And let's hope that the title of that last hour - "All Good Things" - doesn't mean they must come to an end.
WHERE TO WRITE: Time grows short. ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox will be announcing their fall schedules in just a couple of weeks.
So if you want to voice your opinion, write now. And here's where to send your letters:
ABC: Ted Harbert, ABC Entertainment president, 2040 Avenue of the Stars, Los Angeles, Calif., 90067.
- CBS: Jeff Sagansky, CBS Entertainment president, 7800 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, Calif. 90036.
- NBC: Warren Littlefield, NBC Entertainment president, 3000 W. Alameda Ave., Burbank, Calif. 91523.
- Fox: Sandy Grushow, Fox Entertainment Group president, P.O. Box 900, Beverly Hills, Calif. 90213.
LOOPING: The producers of "Homefront" did have to make one last-minute change in tonight's second episode.
Jeff Metcalf gets a second chance in professional baseball, but he's being sent to the minors. And, when the episode was filmed in January, they were sending him to the farm club in Waco.
The producers had the actors go back and "loop" (re-record) a different city.
NBC STUFF: The Peacock network has announced premiere dates for the three summer series it had previously announced. (Got that?)
- "South Beach," an hourlong action/adventure drama will debut as a two-hour movie on Sunday, June 6, and move to its regular time slot on Tuesday, June 8, for an eight-week run. It's about a "beautiful con artist who reluctantly accepts the task of working as an undercover government operative."
- "Route 66," an hourlong remake/sequel to the early 1960s series, debuts on Tuesday, June 8, at 7 p.m., where it will appear for four weeks.
- The half-hour comedy series "Smoldering Lust" debuts with an hourlong episode on Saturday, May 29, at 9 p.m.
The following week, it stays in that time slot but cuts back to 30 minutes. (It will be followed by previously unseen episodes of the apparently canceled "The Powers That Be.")
- The network has also announced that its newest news magazine, "NBC Prime Story," will premiere on Wednesday, June 23, at 8 p.m. Of NBC's summer series, this is believed to have the strongest shot at continuing in the fall.
QUOTABLE: Deseret News staff writer - and occasional TV viewer - Marjorie Cortez, on NBC's decision to renew "L.A. Law":
"I can't believe there will an eighth season of L.A. Law. Where's Dr. Kevorkian when you need him?"