Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (2006)

The ambitious one that did not work, and fascinating for exactly that reason. Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford play a writer and a producer brought back to rescue a live sketch show after its creator's on-air rant against television, and the pilot crackles with the old energy. The problem is the comedy inside the drama: a series about a sketch show needs its sketches to land, and they rarely do. A pilot seen by 13.4 million viewers lost a large share of them within weeks, and NBC cancelled it after a single season of 22 episodes, while 30 Rock, set behind a similar show, was renewed. Watch it for Perry and Whitford's rapport and for a writer arguing with his own industry.