The Book of Daniel Closed

"The Book of Daniel" has gone the way of many shows--obscurity and early cancellation.

Ostensibly, the show was cancelled because of ratings, not because of the boycott by some organizations of the religious right. Those groups are claiming victory right now.

They are wrong, however. The show, which I have TiVo'd has only been aired a few times, did fall on its merits not because of the boycott. It was a noble attempt and a noble failure. The show always seemed to be about two steps from brilliance, which is, of course, far more respectable in my book than settling for half-baked mediocrity.

What is most frustrating is that its best aspect was its full embrace of Christianity and all its tenets rather than just a few passages from select chapters. Jesus (on the show) was unconventional, insightful, funny, and always challenging Aiden Quinn to do better and to do right. That the show was criticized for its most obvious strength is a testament to how dumb its critics are, and how apparent it is they haven't even watched the show.