Hellcats: Just as surprised by cancellation

Last week's series finale of Hellcats didn't go out with a big BANG. Instead it went out with a big HUH(?), leaving viewers flabbergasted by so many unresolved story lines left dangling in mid air. Hellcats was one of the recent pitfall subjected to the canceled series 'vibe' going on. It was sudden and it seemed as though Hellcats was just as surprised as its viewers.

Not only was Hellcats thrown out of the competition altogether, Vanessa was thrown out of her position as coach, definitely in that order. Red's ex-wife has been stirring up trouble for Vanessa the minute she arrived. There ain't nothing like a woman scorned according to Lady Antebellum (seems like an appropriate quote right?), because it seems like Emily was crushed by Vanessa and Red's affair. She set out deliberately to hurt Vanessa the minute she arrived.

How devastating it would be to see your ex, after having an affair, still happy with the woman he cheated with? Emily could tell the story and as much as she appears unlikeable, it's understandable where the rage comes from. Vanessa and Red show no remorse or guilt. Sometimes through hurt, the worst sides overcome characters. We have only known Emily through her hate for Vanessa, but it is all wasted energy. Emily appears to still be single, which meant she spent years focusing on one thing, that she couldn't move past and that could be depressing.

Writers waited too long to reveal Emily to viewers and that could be a major setback for this series. They also waited to long to bring Marti's sister into the picture. They just pushed what seemed to be the most thrilling story lines at the end and dragged out the relentless ones like the Marti-Dan-Savannah triangle. Alice and her craziness with Jake, all could have been cut short. So now I am left wondering had they done that, would things be different?

As much as Marti and Julian was unexpected and interesting for most, he still came of as Marti's professor. Their relationship should have been explored much deeper before they became so intimate. Their romantic scenes were well covered and acted through, but their was still this detachment in character chemistry. I wanted a little more conversation. Although most characters are well in their twenties and going to college, the show still came off like high-school drama without the classes and the bells and well you know that stuff.

There were also other dangling themes:
The Nasty Kathy
Savannah's pregnant sister - Savannah's ex 'the baby-daddy'
Savannah's father on the run
Dan not best best friends with Marti anymore
Alice and her father
Alice-Lewis-Marti-Lewis-NastyKathy-Lewis-Alice-Lewis (maybe we could have had a Savannah-Lewis(?))

As much as I appreciate these arcs, they could have been dealt with on a more subtle way. Savannah's sister definitely began to annoy me after a while. As for Savannah's choice to stay out of the competition, very noble, but it came off very naive of a captain to abandon her team. They could have at least had Charlotte attempt to convince her to support her team, to make it more realistic that Savannah's absence was for loving her sister and not some scandal to keep the Hellcats out of the competition for convenience and ratings.

Oh yeah Marti's father revelation could add for a great cliffhanger, but it was poorly handled. We barely got to know Marti's sister, so when she acted irrational towards Marti's affections, I couldn't tell if it was because she didn't have enough trust in her life, or if she was just trying to be annoying. Clearly Marti loved her, because she was the only other family she knew. She deceived Marti by leading her on to the idea their father was possibly dead, when she knew for a fact that he was alive. So instead of running out and saying 'you promised', how about an 'I can explain'. Cliched, but she could connected the pieces, who else calls her phone? Her father obviously regularly enough for her to be more careful if she was keeping a secret from Marti. What was her game anyway?

I am just disappointed that all of that was just left there, incomplete. Like an exam you are taking, you just walk out knowing fully well things would fail and this series failed to deliver in the end. It actually had high hopes and I like the fact that Tom Welling was the producer, way to have an idea of Smallville still on air, even though the shows aren't related. So goodbye Hellcats, it was sudden, short and sweet(?) who knows what it could have been.

Series Finale Rating:
2 Stars

Lexa