SciFi first began to slip when it became "All Stargate, All the time." There was a time in the early 2000s that it was all they EVER played during the day. The higher-ups then started screwing with FarScape trying to force Henson to make it more like SG-1, and all that monkeying around is why Season 4 got off to such a shaky start (S4 just wasn't as good start-to-finish as S3, or even S2). THEN, despite averaging 4m viewers each week, (which ESPECIALLY for the time was VERY good for a basic cable program. Today it would be a runaway success) they decided to cancel it citing "Poor ratings."
To add insult to injury, maybe not a week after the series finale aired they announced the BSG remake because they "needed an edgy, space-based scifi drama."
THEY JUST FRELLING CANCELED ONE!
I would be willing to bet with near-absolute certainty that FarScape was canceled because of some personal agenda of Bonnie Hammer (principle network exec at the time. She's the one to blame for Tremors: The Series, Scare Tactics, and Dream Team). It could have pulled 20 million viewers and she'd have still found an excuse to kill it. Whether it was done deliberately to make room for BSG is hard to say, but it's an AWFUL big coincidence BSG was announced within days of FarScape's finale.
