Someone could do an interesting study about the popularity of shows starting with "M." It'll have to be someone else, though, because I've got my hands full explaining the future of these three. The short answer is yes, maybe and sooner than you think.

The yes is straightforward enough. The first season of "Murder in the First" was a runaway hit for TNT, and so barely a month had gone by after the season finale when the network announced a renewal.

TNT also renewed "Major Crimes" around the same time for its fourth season, but the even better news is that it's not through airing its third. It's currently on a mid-season break, but is slated to return in November.

The story for ABC's "Motive" is a little more complicated. That series is part of a new trend lately -- it's a Canadian-produced show to which ABC just buys the rights.

There's good news for Canadians, as the CTV channel has renewed it for a third season, but ABC has yet to commit to bringing it south.

"Motive" has never been a huge hit for ABC, however buying the rights to air a show is much cheaper than producing one from scratch, so it doesn't need big numbers to turn a profit. It also airs in the summer, when expectations are lower, and many networks are just trying to fill/kill time until the fall.

So it remains a "maybe" while ABC does the sort of math networks never used to have to do. They're doing it more often now, though. NBC also experimented with Canadian-ness this summer with its sitcom "Working the Engels," which it canceled before even finishing the first season.

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