The End of the World Rises from the Dead

Such high-profile efforts to save fan-favorite shows such as “Deadwood,” “Gilmore Girls,” “According to Jim” and “Veronica Mars” may have been unsuccessful, but a relatively beneath-the-radar campaign has apparently resurrected “Jericho,” CBS’s nuclear-conflagration drama starring Skeet Ulrich.

Fans assaulted CBS with bags of peanuts (you had to have watched the show to understand, and I didn’t see the requisite episode(s)) – which, one supposes, is better than mailing in actual nuclear weapons – and now, a few weeks after CBS announced a 2007-08 season free of the specter of total annihilation, the network has relented and will bring back the series for eight episodes: Not just to give viewers closure, “Jericho” producers say, but with a hope to keep the series an ongoing concern. All well and good, but here’s a little piece of advice: Understand you’re on the bubble going in and this time, don’t end your season with a big, splashy cliffhanger. Wrap things up a little, OK?