According to Nellie Andreeva of Deadline, critical and cult favorite NBC sitcoms 30 Rock, Community, and Parks and Recreation are all likely to be renewed, pleasing small but dedicated numbers of fans. But there could be a catch.
Andreeva reports that all three series are likely to get short orders, meaning that the number of episodes for each will be closer to 13 than the usual 24.
If this comes to pass, the news could be bittersweet for fans, though ultimately welcome. Until recently, Community was assumed to be on its last legs, and both 30 Rock and Parks and Recreation were favored for renewal but not assured. Recently, however, Community saw an uptick in ratings that significantly bumped its chances to see a fourth season. Should 30 Rock score a seventh season, it is likely to be the series last. Parks and Recreation never duplicated the stellar ratings of The Office, its spiritual predecessor, but receives good critical marks.
Andreeva also reports that freshman sitcom Whitney, a series about as funny as the burn ward at a children’s hospital, is unlikely to return. Fellow freshman series Up All Night has better odds but is far from guaranteed to return.
Source: Deadline
This news makes no sense for Community and Parks and Rec. Both could go into syndication after a fourth season but I believe both would need 17-18 episodes or something close to that. Community has a pending deal with Comedy Central. If it doesn't get enough episodes that deal goes out the window.
I just don't understand why NBC is trying to dick over all of its loyal fans. Seriously though. At least 30 Rock is leaving TV on its own accord. Parks and Community (especially Parks) would love to stay on the air longer, and could go for at LEAST a few more seasons! You're throwing out your wonderfully smart comedy shows for a pilot starring Anne Heche? Who is making the decisions at this network because it must be a monkey.
I hope Community and Parks and Recreation have long TV lives, but unfortunately I can see why they're considered bubble shows. The ratings aren't great and costs rise every year as cast and crew usually have raises built into the contracts for every season. Really, NBC has been fairly nice to let most of the Thursday lineup exist as they have, as shows with better ratings get cancelled all the time. On the other hand, if they can hold out until the number of episodes gets high enough, they can clean up on syndication, where clever series tend to do better than crowd pleasing nonsense.