Though Fox has officially cancelled the freshman comedy Enlisted, from Cougar Town co-creator Kevin Biegel, the network will air the show's remaining four episodes starting June 1.  Fox never really gave the series a chance, throwing it in a difficult Friday night time slot, and failing to promote it past its debut.  And while I gave a lukewarm but "why the heck not?" review of its first few episodes, the show really grew in its comedy and character dynamic as it progressed this season, and in no way deserved cancellation.  Hit the jump for more information on the show and the final episodes.

The real core of Enlisted are the relationships among the Hill brothers.  To quote my earlier review:

"Enlisted follows the story of the three supremely attractive Hill brothers — “Supersoldier” Pete (Geoff Stults), sarcastic Derek (Chris Lowell) and sweet Randy (Parker Young) — who find themselves together at Fort McGee, a Florida military base that is home to the Rear Detachment, i.e. the soldiers left behind to take care of the base (washing tanks, mowing lawns, and comforting army wives in the most chaste of ways).  The trio were raised in a military family, with a father who was later killed in action, leaving them with a strong military connection that — despite their varied personalities — brought them together in the same place."

Like Cougar Town, the show is extremely fast-paced, with a whirlwind of quips and zingers.  And, after the show hired some military consultants post-pilot, it also became an interesting glimpse into military life (on a very low-level base) that was respectful, but occasionally challenging of certain policies. Its sincerity has also apparently gone over very well with the military community.

According to Biegel himself, who is continuing to campaign for the show despite its cancelled status, "These are the best four episodes we did.  The episode airing June 1, our first one back, is one of our funniest, and the finale is one of the best pieces of TV I've ever been lucky enough to be a part of.  Even more than that South Park episode with the mouse with the penis on its back, although that one was pretty good."

For current fans and those who are curious, it seems worth it to tune in to these final episodes, even if the show really does stay cancelled.  Enlisted is (was?) a fun show with lots of eye-candy, and plenty of great jokes.  Fox was wrong to cancel it, and giving these last episodes a gander may at least give the show a proper farewell salute.

Enlisted's final four episodes will run on consecutive Sundays starting June 1st at 7 p.m. on Fox.