That Was Them

According to Variety, while numerous series are being canceled, This Is Us has been picked up for three more seasons:

This is not the first time the hit drama series has received a multi-season commitment at the network.  After it's first season kicked off to stellar numbers and critical acclaim, NBC gave it an early pick up for two more seasons, bringing the show to its current third season.

First, it's "its."

Second, while I can't blame NBC for locking in a huge hit, I question the move artistically.

The format of This Is Us has the three Pearson kids dealing with their problems in the present, along with regular flashbacks showing how the Pearson family, headed by husband and wife Jack and Rebecca, raised the clan to begin with.

The stuff set in the open-ended present can work, I suppose (though, like most shows of this type, the writers apparently couldn't help but descend into soap opera once the basic situation and characters had been explored).  But to continue to go back into the past, looking at how Jack and Rebecca did this or that, grows thinner each year.  We already know the general outline of their marriage, and we've also learned the big mystery--how Jack died--so going back to learn more about how things got to where they are today has become a case of diminishing returns.

I know it goes against how show biz works, but NBC, and show creator Dan Fogelman, should be figuring out how to end it.  It's already tired.  They should have a plan to end it by, say, season five.  Is going out on top so awful?