Girlfriends Goes Bye-Bye

• Feb 14, 2008 09:07 PM ET
• by TV Guide News

When Aaron proposed to Joan in Girlfriends' seventh-season finale, fans suspected that that episode was the series' swan song. But it wasn't. The show returned for an eighth and final season.

But instead of going out with a bang, Girlfriends went out with a whimper - another victim of the writers' strike. Today, CW executives announced there will be no new post-strike Girlfriends episodes because the network has decided to "focus its creative and financial resources on shows that are in consideration for renewal next year."

So Monday's episode, where Joan ( Tracee Ellis Ross) read her fiancé Aaron's letter to his former students and learned that he would be returning from Iraq in two weeks, will be the series' last. New episodes of its spin-off, The Game, are expected to premiere in March.

"Although it's always difficult to say goodbye, I choose to focus my energy on the history that Girlfriends has made," Mara Brock Akil wrote in her official farewell statement. "I am immensely thankful to the amazingly talented cast, writers, directors, staff and crew for their endless dedication and hard work for eight seasons."

Girlfriends ran for 172 episodes. Akil is currently in talks with CW and CBS Paramount Studios to produce a farewell special for the series, which has consistently ranked among the top shows with African-American viewers. - Rochell D. Thomas