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TV Media Weekly | September 15 - 21, 2018 By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: Will "The Crossing" be re- turning to ABC? Or will it be picked up by another net- work? It was one of the best, most innovative shows in years. A: Unfortunately, "best" and "innovative" don't necessarily translate into successful. And in this case, they don't translate into a second season — "The Cross- ing" has been canceled. The sci-fi drama started out looking like a political show about refugees coming to America until (not really a spoiler, since it hap- pened right at the start) we learn that the refugees are in fact from America 180 years in the future. The cancellation came as a bit of a surprise because the early reviews were quite positive — not always the case with sci-fi shows. The majority of critics rec- ommended it, according to the review aggregating site Rotten Tomatoes. Toronto Star reviewer Johanna Schneller called it "deliciously promising," and the San Francisco Chronicle's David Wiegand said, "'The Crossing' has a European feel and a more deliberate pace to match ... fingers crossed on this one." And those are just the profes- sional critics. A budding sci-fi ex- pert by the name of Stephen King praised the show on Twitter. "Hard to trust network TV drama over the long haul these days, but this is worth a look. The first five minutes are jaw-dropping — strange and beautiful." Note, however, that these peo- ple were all just reviewing the pi- lot. Things seemed to get worse from there, according to the rat- ings at least. Its premiere drew 5.4 million viewers, which is middling for a network show, but the numbers pretty well plummeted from there. By the sixth episode, it was draw- ing just 3.7 million, at which point ABC decided to cancel it. The rat- ings bleed continued from there so that the series finale airing five weeks later drew just 2.1 million. That steady drop — a loss of nearly two-thirds of its audience from beginning to end — means it was unlikely to draw attention from any other networks (or streaming sites) for a last-minute rescue. It's worth noting that even some of those positive reviews predicted this end. Melanie Mc- Farland from Salon.com put it simply: "The show probably isn't going to be with us for long. Which is too bad." Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Per- sonal replies will not be provided. Hollywood Q&A By Andrew Warren TV Media L ove it or hate it, we live in a culture of tipping. In restaurants especially, leaving some extra mool- ah at the end of a meal is the norm, and even less-traditional eateries usually have a tip jar or the like. "Bizarre Foods" host An- drew Zimmern's new show takes tipping to the next level for restaurants, where every penny earned can help make ends meet: food trucks. "Big Food Truck Tip" premieres with back-to-back episodes on Wednesday, Sept. 19, on Food Network, with Zimmern swing- ing by two far-flung cities where he checks out some of their hottest mobile eateries — and leaves some whopping tips for his favorites. Each episode takes the host to a new food truck hot spot, where the host meets with three food truck operators. He doesn't just try their food — he also gets to know them, learn- ing the stories behind their dishes and getting a feel for what makes them tick. Running a food truck is no walk in the park, and in each city, Zim- mern chooses one of the three businesses he visits to receive a supersized tip — one worth a whopping $10,000. That's enough to transform any small business, and the host is clearly overjoyed that he gets to be the bearer of such an incredible windfall. "Our modern-day food world is blessed to have the extreme ambition, fun attitude, and glo- rious culinary output of today's truckers," he said in a state- ment. "Micro businesses on wheels, serving up love by the sandwichful, makes looking at this community and telling these stories a real privilege." The premiere sees the host visiting Birmingham, Alabama, where he encounters a food truck serving up classic South- ern comfort foods to everyone — even the needy who don't have the means to pay. In the night's second episode, Zim- mern heads to Memphis, Ten- nessee, where the foodie scene has blown up in recent years. There, he hits up a food truck rally for a fill-up before finding a place serving tacos with a Tennessee twist. That's three food trucks visit- ed in each city, but only one gets an incredible $10,000 tip. They're all deserving, though, and they're all featured in "Big Food Truck Tip," premiering Wednesday, Sept. 19. Andrew Zimmern rewards mobile eateries in new series 10 | Cooking this week Moore's Home Health 2 x 2" Family Health Clinic 2 x 1.5" White Lilies N Paradise 2 x 1.5" Andrew Zimmern hosts "Big Food Truck Tip" White Lilies N Paradise 333 North Philips Street • Kokomo, IN 765 - 459-0637 • w w w.whiteliliesinparadise.com Mon – Wed: 9 am – 4 pm • Tues, Thurs – Fri: 9 am – 5 pm • Sat: 9 am – 1 pm

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