Gil-no-more

I'll probably write a little on this later and a full post-mortem after the finale, but I wanted to make sure I posted this before starting work. From AP:

LOS ANGELES -- Goodbye Gilmore Girls.

The sharp-witted saga of an independent mother and daughter that added to the luster of the young WB network, will end its run after seven seasons. The show, which last year moved to the CW network created by the merger of WB and UPN, will air its final episode at 8 p.m. May 15, CW and producer Warner Bros. Television announced Thursday.

Gilmore Girls, starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel and created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, "helped define a network and created a fantastic storybook world featuring some of television's most memorable, lovable characters," CW and the studio said in a joint statement. They thanked fans for their "passionate support" promised to give the show "the send-off it deserves."

Ratings had dipped this season for the series, which lost Sherman-Palladino as its guiding hand because of a contract dispute. Sherman-Palladino and her husband and fellow executive producer, Daniel Palladino, left after failing to come to terms with the studio on a new deal, and the series struggled creatively and in the ratings this season.

The April 24 episode drew fewer than 4 million viewers, down about 25 percent compared to the same time last year. As production on the show got under way last fall, its future then uncertain, Graham speculated about the final chapter.

Sad news, especially for CW, but not a huge surprise.