Are you kidding? They get cancelled after 2 eps. Just ask Nathan Fillion and Tim Minear. As for X Files, the only reason it wasn't canned after the first season is because they didn't have anything else to put in its slot so they left it there. And bang, international supersuccess.

With a few exceptions, what we have is a business model predicated on instant return. There'll always be a difficult balancing act between the pragmatic and the creative -- these same issues happen in the publishing world, too -- and it's exacerbated when those making the decisions don't actually love stories -- they love money. If you can, read a book called Who's Killing Hollywood, by Peter Bart. Very illuminating, if depressing.

It's always a miracle when a show succeeds. Usually it's despite the networks,not because of them.