The show hasn’t been picked up for the fall 2011 season yet. Do you think it deserves a last-minute renewal?

Many CW viewers breathed a sigh of relief April 26 when the network announced the renewal of five hit series — but the news wasn’t quite as hopeful for One Tree Hill fans, whose favorite show remains very much on the bubble. As a longtime fan myself, I have to say I’d be pretty bummed if these next three episodes also turn out to be the last. I’m not ready to say goodbye to the group of madcap southerners who taught me so much about life. And actually made me care about basketball.

1. The cast wants to do it.

It’s not every day you get actors wanting to stick with a series into its ninth year, which I think is a true testament to what a great show One Tree Hill is, and how much the cast enjoys working together. Sophia Bush, Bethany Joy Galeotti, Austin Nichols, Robert Buckley, Stephen Colletti and Lisa Goldstein have all signed on for a potential ninth season, with James Lafferty reportedly interested in returning at least part-time.

2. The fans deserve a ‘final season.’

Much like Smallville fans have been savoring every second of the show’s admitted “final season,” One Tree Hill fans deserve the same experience. There are a ton of story lines to wrap up, and unless the writers know ahead of time that the series is ending, there will be a ton of loose ends left… well, loose.

3. The characters’ stories aren’t finished!

The denizens of Tree Hill, N.C., have been through a lot over the past eight years. We’ve watched them long for their dreams, achieve their dreams, and ultimately… lose their dreams. Do we seriously want the series to end on such a low note? Let’s see Nathan’s back heal enough for him to shoot some hoops again. Let’s see Brooke regain her clothing empire (which it looks like she’s finally starting to.) Heck, I’m even interested in seeing Mouth (Lee Norris) get back in the newsroom!

4. Lucas & Peyton might actually come back… seriously this time!

While I’m sure the current regulars hate hearing about it, the fans really want to see Lucas (Chad Murray) and Peyton (Hilarie Burton) make one last trip to Tree Hill before the series ends. And Chad recently broke his silence about the possibility, tweeting: “Return to oth? I don’t know. Maybe next season for u guys.”

5. Do you really want Glee‘s Brittany to die so young?

One of my favorite lines ever spoken on Glee — not that there are many — was when sexually-confused cheerleader Brittany (Heather Morris) said she didn’t want to die “before One Tree Hill gets canceled.” Doesn’t she deserve at least a few more precious months on this earth?

Show your support for OTH by signing this petition for a ninth season!

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I feel like I had a real Thanksgiving tonight. Granted, my family members were replaced by the sexy, emotional creatures of Tree Hill, so there was slightly more drama involved. There was a friendly game of touch football… but it ended in a fist fight between Alex (Jana Kramer) and Mia (Kate Voegele); there was a ridiculous spread of food… but most of it came in the form of alcohol; and there was the long-awaited return of a family member, Quinn (Shantel VanSanten)… but she might also be a murderer! Yup, only slightly more drama than normal.

Jailbird Victoria (Daphne Zuniga) crashed Thanksgiving at the James-Scott household, which put her in the same room as Brooke (Sophia Bush) for the first time since their heated prison confrontation. As you can imagine, the results were… not fantastic. As a matter of fact, Millie (Lisa Goldstein) had to quickly grab the carving knife from Brooke’s reach as soon as Victoria stepped through the door. I guess we’re back to the Brooke-Victoria frienemy-ship we first saw in season five.

Meanwhile, Skills (Antwon Tanner) is apparently still very much into cougars, as he immediately eyed Julian’s (Austin Nichols) mom (Sharon Lawrence) as his prey. Apparently his fling with Deb was just the start of a serious old lady fetish. I’m kind of bummed they didn’t hook up — but hey, there’s always the wedding!

I will say, I’m super disappointed with Erin’s story line — mostly because it’s barely a story line. I’ve had my doubts about her ever since we met her (an unidentified co-worker of mine is still convinced she’s a man with the hots for Haley.) We finally found her “deep, dark” secret tonight, and it turned out to be that her parents “didn’t believe in her music.” Seriously. That’s it? So much for my dreams of a psycho for season eight. (Wait, is Katie still out there?)

I’m also already yawning at the idea of Nathan (James Lafferty) going back to school. I wasn’t crazy about him dropping basketball (PUN!) and becoming a sports agent. I’m not sure if I can handle him with a backpack.

Fortunately, Quinn might be plotting something that would seriously kick this show back into gear. When I said she might be a murder I wasn’t kidding — just speculating. She’s back from Africa, and in the episode’s final moments, we learned she’s been following around trigger-happy Katie and playing paparazzi. Will she take back that gun and take Katie out for the sake of herself and Clay (Robert Buckley?) I’m thinking hoping yes!

— Andy Swift

And just because I love you, here’s a clip of Sophia Bush’s epic turkey fail:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Courtesy of the CW

One Tree Hill fans are more determined than ever to keep their favorite show on the air for one more year!

We here at HollywoodLife.com are pretty big fans of One Tree Hill and it looks like all of YOU are, too! Over the past week, you’ve been commenting on our site and even tweeting to Bonnie Fuller‘s Twitter about how badly you want to see your favorite show continue on The CW for at least one more season. We hear your cries, and though we sadly don’t have too much say over what gets picked up, we can direct your attention to a special petition addressed to the network. Some dedicated fans have rallied together to create this petition, which has already gathered 8,996 votes (as of Feb. 21), just 1,004 votes short of their goal. So if you’re a fan, make your voice heard! Tell The CW you’re not ready to say goodbye to One Tree Hill!

We’ve already expressed OUR love for the show (click here for our special rant), so now it’s time for The CW to hear how YOU feel about it!

Click here to sign the petition!

Courtesy of the CW

Last week, we asked our readers which CW show they most wanted to see renewed for next season, and their answer came through loud and clear: One Tree Hill!

“This show has changed my life time and time again,” commenter Amanda P. writes. “I feel like it got me through some of the hardest years of my life.” That’s just one of the many statements we’ve received from outraged One Tree Hill fans. Devoted followers have been with the show for seven years now, and they’re not ready to say goodbye.

Hey, we know Sophia Bush is on board! “If there’s a season eight, yeah I’ll be there!” she told us Feb. 13 at the alice + olivia by Stacey Bendet show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York. “I want Brooke to be happy. I think their relationship [her and Julian's] is the best relationship that Brooke has ever been in, because it’s real and it’s substantial. We’re not dealing with puppy love in high school anymore.”

And that’s exactly what we love about the show! We’ve seen these characters legitimately transform themselves from confused teens to established adults — and we’ve grown right along with them. The show may not be about high school basketball anymore, but at its core the show is still about a tight-knit group of friends finding love and pursuing their dreams — with the occasional psycho nanny and brother-murdering talk show host thrown in for good measure. And isn’t that something we can all relate to?

It would also be a shame to cut our relationship with this season’s new crop of characters short. Clay (Robert Buckley) and Quinn (Shantel VanSanten) are great additions to the show, and their characters bring the kind of angst and torment we’re used to seeing on One Tree Hill. But like all newcomers to a cast, it took some time for viewers to warm up to them and now they’re finally becoming invested in their stories.

So here’s our official plea: CW, give One Tree Hill at least one more season! It may not pull in crazy numbers, but it consistently outperforms many of the shows you already renewed for next year. Whatever your issues are — budget, contracts, etc. — work them out and give us all one more year with the gang from North Carolina.