Playmakers

Best show ever to be cancelled

Arguably the best show to ever be cancelled. Can understand why ESPEN pulled the plug on the show as it was highlighting the negative side of American football which the NFL would rather keep out of the public eye and i believe the NFL put major pressure on ESPEN to pull the show. Cant believe another station hasn't picked the show up.

Have never seen Omar Gooding in anything prior or since playmakers but like his brother Cuba Gooding Jr he is an incredibly underrated actor who deserves much more acknowledgment than hes getting.

Bring it Back!!!!

This is one of the best shows on television in a long time. My wife got me the DVD set for my birthday and I was thrilled. It's a shame the NFL, and Ray Lewis, couldn't take the heat. I watched the pilot last night and forgot how good it was. Ray "I want shows that my kids can watch" Lewis. If one of the episodes wasn't about him, I wonder if he'd watch it. Cracked out first round draft picks. Gay full backs. Shows got it all. Love it Love it Love it Posting this comment was more a pain than it was worth. The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. Please block my account because filling this with ten lines is stupid. Whoever thought of this is a goof.

The short-lived (but critically-acclaimed) TV show "Playmakers" was a well-acted series, with a lot of unknown and relatively-known actors in lead roles (which I always enjoy seeing). The show's subject was the lives of professional football players from a variety of perspectives: the headline issues, the playing fields/locker rooms, and their private lives. Gritty sports drama (with good humor mixed in throughout); had a slick soap opera feel to it.....sort of like an NFL Network/Lifetime Movie Network collaboration. :o)

If you ever wanted to take a look behind some of those NFL stories that get covered on SportsCenter, "Playmakers" is an enjoyable way to do it (now on DVD). Remember, though--it's *fiction*, not a documentary. It's supposed to sensationalize the pro football scene by adding more drama to each situation than might actually be present in real life. That having been said, the stories are *straight* from the sports headlines.....

And needless to say, if you love NFL football (like I do), it's worth checking out. The show does stand on it's own as a drama, however, and it's a good enough show that you don't have to be a hardened fan of the League to get into it.

The only caution from me would concern the implied violence, sex, drug use, etc. This show's not for the kids, the delicate, or the easily offended. I wonder which category the NFL corporate leadership falls into? It's not surprising, though, that they squeezed ESPN into dropping the show.

A true surprise from ESPN. Playmakers may not have portrayed the image ESPN's partner the National Football League (NFL) wants to market but, for the first time since North Dallas Forty, we have a glimpse of players life from something other than the carefully crafted image the League markets. The players, we as fans religiously follow, are more than just Gladiators, they are people. They are people who have real lives off the field and real issues to deal with. They aren't just lures to get us to watch commercials, they are human beings. Just like the rest of us, some are better than others. This show was and is definitely worth watching. That wasn't why it was cancelled. It was cancelled because the NFL found the series to be more realistic than it cares to admit. In an age of trash and copy cat redundancies, Playmakers offered it's viewers an original, smartly written, quality drama based on the trials and tribulations of an imaginary football team. In only eleven episodes before being cancelled the show won an award for the American Film Institute Top 10 TV Programs of the Year. In an age where the critics and the populous rarely agree on what is good TV. Here we had a show that had good ratings and was critically acclaimed yet, it was cancelled. Was this a case of art imitating life too closely for the comfort of the NFL big wigs? If not, you explain why this show is no longer on the air. Here's a theory, the NFL needs to stop practicing censorship and concentrate on producing a quality product where the term, 'Any given Sunday' continues to apply. And allow its broadcast partners to be broadcasters and create quality programming.

If you get a chance to see this show, please do so. the first show just aired last night and was nothing short of powerful. The show is shot in wide screen format and looks and sounds great. If you are a football this is the show for you. even if your not a fan you will be of this show. Can't wait the next show. this has hit written all over it. Check it out on ESPN Tuesday nights at 8:00pm.