How many decent network shows have been cancelled just because someone in charge decided that the production cost too much?

FOX has been doing that for years. "Human Target" was a very good show, and they ended after Season 2 because it had a bigger budget than they wanted. CBS just did it recently with "Blue Bloods". There are lots of examples of shows that were popular and dumped purely for financial reasons. Even a couple of movies were buried for tax purposes not long ago.

I'm not trying to convince anybody of anything. I'm just saying that two things can be true at the same time.

I read someplace that in 1981 CBS cancelled "The Incredible Hulk" because it was just too expensive . At the time, the ratings were still decent.

You will notice that if you watch episodes from Season 4, alot of his transformations occur off screen. There is also some recycled footage and many episodes have a "low budget" feel to them, where they are mostly filmed indoors on just a few sets OR the episode is entirely outdoors where the action mostly consists of the characters running through the woods/being chased, etc.