Generally I don't write many reviews because usually everything's already been said at least once. But that is not the case with "The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer". (Premise: Abraham Lincoln had a black butler who was the only brains of the White House during the Civil War. Call it a US version of Blackadder the 3rd.)This series has gained a reputation for being a turkey, but in reality, there wasn't really that much wrong with it. But we never found out because after 4 episodes it was canceled under false accusations of racism (5 episodes remain unaired). And, I have some proof for this: One year later there was a historical comedy about the first American colonists, called "Thanks". It has six episodes and if you watch it, you'll see that it's very comparable, basically following the same pattern, with the same level of humor as "Pfeiffer", perhaps it's even less funny. But look it up, and you'll find it has a rating of 8.5, more than double the 4.2 that "Pfeiffer" has now. If you watch an episode of both shows, I think no-one can deny that "Thanks" is in no way superior, the only difference is that Pfeiffer's reputation has become a self fulfilling prophecy: We've been told that it's rotten, so we find it easier to spot bad points (cognitive bias, as it's known scientifically). Of course, this doesn't mean everyone has to suddenly like this show. The British do this sort of thing better, I know. Perhaps Pfeiffer was too much like Blackadder and American audiences couldn't deal with it when it was their own history that was being turned upside down. Hopefully there will one day be a chance to see all 9 episodes. Actually it's unlikely (I've only seen 3 myself). But IF that ever happens, judge it for what it really is, not for what others have been repeating about it.

This may be the worst TV show ever to make it into a network prime-time slot. It was juvenile, dumb, and just plain not funny. Horny Abe?? A sarcastic black butler??? What were they thinking?????? I honestly think I'd rather sit through a Love Boat marathon than see this wretched refuse again, which is saying quite a lot. I'd love to give it a zero, but you can't--so I'm giving it one star apiece for Chi McBride (Pushing Daisies, Boston Public) and Dann Florek (Law & Order, L.A. Law). They deserved--and got--much better than this. I think this ended the production careers of the creators, and deservedly so. If you really must see it, I think it's on YouTube. But...please don't.

Sure this wasn't the greatest show on TV, but it seemed that those opposed to it (because of it "racial insensitivity") just wanted to get TV air time. The sole African American character (Chi McBride) the most intelligent! And the show tried to to meld well-worn characters into modern (albeit crude) comedy. By contrast the newer "Still Standing" (with Jami Gertz) is TOTALLY unfunny, and even rips off entire scenes (and plot lines) from another unfunny "hit" show ("Yes, Dear"). Maybe it's because I like history, but I can't believe this was off the air faster than any of those endless "Friends" clones.

"The Secret Diaries of Desmond Pfieffer" was a television show that, sadly, only lasted for four weeks, during which the show and its premise was constantly derided and mocked by the media and largely ignored by the television viewing public.True, a sitcom about Abraham Lincoln's sarcastic black butler sounds silly, and it is, but luckily the show carried a sense of self-awareness. Despite one atrocious episode (in which the drunken Ulysses S. Grant faces down his bowling demons) the show 's remaining three were not pitifully stupid, as some folks would have you believe.The cast was top notch: Chi MacBride (who was Cyrus in Peter Jackson's under-rated "The Frighteners") is simply superb as the title character: A dignified and intelligent overwieght black man, truly a rarity among prime-time role models. Max Baker was the image of perfection as Nibblet, the inbred indentured servant, and Dan Florik was suitable as the Bill Clinton-meets-Gerald Ford Lincoln.The show isn't perfect, though. Many jokes fall flat, and the woman playing Mrs. Lincoln is quite annoying.But the show had its moments, as evidenced in the episode in which Desmond, Nibblet, and Lincoln are stranded behind Confederate Lines. Desmond has convinced the Southern soldiers that he is, in fact, a white Confederate spy disguised as a black Northern free slave. One Southerner inquirers, "It must be awfully hard on you to even temporarily go through life as a Negro."To which Desmond replies "Oh, it hasn't been that bad. I have been able to get a lot more white women!"It will be missed.