TV Week: Podium Masterpiece Theatre

"You smell that? Do you smell that?"

If I had to name one show this season that you're not watching and should be, it's Podium Masterpiece Theatre on CBS. Struggling in the tough Wednesday early-morning timeslot, and facing off against a killer double-bill of America's Next Top Next Top Show and The Shit Whisperer on NBC, its days may be numbered, but this critically-acclaimed show needs your attention. My advice? Don't wait for the DVD.

With blink-and-you'll-miss-it podium cameos from such diverse performers as former President Bill Clinton reading the DiC logo title card, and Susan Sarandon as Kanye, this is a show like no other. It's passing will be deeply regretted by those lucky few who tuned in.

Despite falling ratings, this season's PMT has still been improving week on week, decisively answering those critics who argued it had peaked last year with the Emmy Award-winning season finale "Michael Sheen reads excerpts from O Magazine".

The New Yorker lavished the show with praise, calling Sheen's performance "White... toothy, grin!" and urging its readership to give the desperate PMT a try. The resulting buzz may have granted a renewal this season and second chance to find an audience, but many insiders felt this was more of a stay of execution than a reprieve.

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But the show's producers have not rested on their laurels, and are determined to go out fighting. In an interview for Vanity Fair last month, showrunner Alan Cliffe was defiant.

"We've got some big names. Real talent. Hell, we've got titans. Last year we had Michael, Martin, Charlie. Hell, all the Sheens. You thought Emilio's rendition of It's Not Easy Being Green was a tour de force? This year, we're going even bigger."

When it was leaked last Summer that network execs wanted PMT to go mass market, fans outrage was palpable. Would Podium would dumb down in an attempt to reach a wider audience? Cliffe dismissed the claims with equal vigour.

"Man, don't go believing everything you read on Twitter. Yes, some guys at HQ said some things over coffee. Yes, meetings took place. And yes, we told them no. From day one, this was a show that was not going to be for everyone. Not everyone wants to see a naked Kevin James stand behind a podium and read the book of Genesis. We get that. The network gets that. PMT is for the fans. Always has been."

True to his word, the commitment of Cliffe, along with his team, to the ideals of Podium has been stronger than ever. As promised, acting heavyweights Ian McKellen and Lil' Kim joined the cast this year, and if their joint podium reading of Huckleberry Finn in episode 2 is any indication, if Podium Masterpiece Theatre is going down, it's going out with a bang.