Big wave goodbye to dear ‘John’

HOW sad that HBO has decided to cancel “John From Cincinnati,” one of the most entertaining shows to come along in a long time [“A Short, Strange Trip Into Oblivion,” by Ann Donahue, Aug. 15]. It managed to represent our “postmodern,” alienated, disconnected world the way “J. Alfred Prufrock” slam-dunked an earlier one.

I’d cheer on “John’s” curious group of lost souls any day over the ruthlessness and self-pity sanctioned by “The Sopranos.” Has HBO lost its daring?

Jane Feldman

Studio City

I for one, will miss the quirky “John From Cincinnati,” although as we faithfully watched each episode, we could see the writing on the wall.

“John” would never go over big in Cincinnati, much less any town 50 miles from the nearest surf break. I enjoyed the nonlinear storytelling and didn’t mind that characters were introduced at the last second, as those characters always had some redeeming strangeness that made the show interesting.

I thought it indicative of today’s TV audience’s appetite for banality that your review- ers panned a show that reveled in originality while heaping praise on the summer’s latest “hit,” “So You Think You Can Dance.”

Excuse me while I reach for my boogie board and head to the beach.

Mary Dippel

Topanga Canyon