PLYMOUTH, N.H. (AP) – No one seemed to be crying Monday over CBS announcing that after five episodes, it was canceling “The Brotherhood of Poland, N.H.” a show based loosely on Plymouth.

Enthusiasm for the series about three-middle aged, overweight brothers in the fictional town of Poland began lagging during the premiere party, when only shots of the town hall and covered bridge seemed to produce any enthusiasm.

The drama, created by David E. Kelley, failed to compete with NBC’s “Law and Order” and drew a disappointing 6.7 million viewers.

Officially, “Brotherhood” is on hiatus for the November ratings sweeps, according to a CBS spokesman, but it’s unlikely to return.

It will be replaced next week by “48 Hours Investigates.”

At the Main Street Station, a 1950s diner that was re-created in a California studio as a meeting place for the show’s characters, one waitress said she didn’t like anything about the show.

“I tried. I wanted it to be good. But it was boring,” said Betty Tomas, who nevertheless enjoyed good tips from the show’s star Randy Quaid and members of the film crew.

A common complaint was that the program degraded small-town New Hampshire life.

“Small towns can get dull. But they made it very dull,” said retired teacher Linda Barlick.

Police Chief Anthony Raymond said he would never have punched someone in the face when stopping them for a traffic violation, as his fictional Poland counterpart did.

“In this case, life doesn’t imitate art,” Raymond said.

Even Town Administrator Elizabeth Corrow, who is disappointed the show was canceled, has no lost love for the plot.

“We were hoping it would catch on and get better. But it didn’t. I watched every night, hoping…” she said.

Corrow said she disliked the show’s sexual references.

“The issue of sex seemed to be very overwhelming in the story line,” Corrow said.

Waitress Martha Clifford, who taped the first episode so her small children could watch it, agreed.

“We just fast-forwarded it so they could see the scenery shots,” she said.

On the bright side, Corrow said, some businesses saw more visitors and shots of Plymouth scenery were viewed by a nation-wide audience.

“It was definitely worth it,” she said.

AP-ES-10-27-03 1854EST