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Night-by-Night
Overview
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Last
Season
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The
2007/2008 Season
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- CBS:
Last year, we noted that The Class
was not as strong as some of the other
CBS comedies. It seems CBS agreed as it
was the one Monday night sitcom that they
did not bring back
- FOX:
As predicted, there were two many serial
dramas and Vanished soon lived
up to its name
- NBC:
Heroes lived up to the positive
buzz we saw last year while our prediction
was accurate that Studio 60 would
be challenged in living up to its hype
as well as the challenge of CSI Miami
- CW:
We were not surprised when Runaway
failed to prove a compatible match with
7th Heaven
- MYNT:
Our theory regarding the challenge MYNT
would face was soon proved correct
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- ABC
is sticking with reality (plus one new
sitcom) on Monday night while CBS once
again returns with a night of comedies
followed by CSI: Miami
- FOX
is sticking with dramas on Monday night
featuring the return of serial drama Prison
Break (with 24 expected back
in January)
- Buoyed
by the success of Heroes, NBC is
moving to an all sci-fi Monday night
-
After mistakenly moving the former UPN
comedy line-up to Sunday, CW has returned
it to Monday. Also, this year one non-ethnic
comedy (Aliens in America) has
joined the schedule
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2006/2007
Survivors
Heroes (NBC)
Rules of Engagement (CBS) - Mid-Season
The Game (CW) - Moved from Sunday
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2006/2007
Casualties
The Class (CBS)
Vanished (FOX
Studio 60 (NBC)
Runaway (CW)
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Go
to The New Monday
Night Programs
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Last
Season
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The
2007/2008 Season
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-
ABC: As expected, Knights
could not survive in its time slot while
Help Me Help You never really moved
beyond what we saw as a poor pilot
- CBS:
Smith was faced with being yet
another serial drama in a year that was
overflowing with them as well as established
pressure from Law & Order: SVU
and Boston Legal
- FOX:
Standoff suffered from a typical
FOX challenge of trying to launch shows
in 4Q with baseball and a schedule that
would change come 1Q
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NBC: Last year, we noted the quality
of the Friday Night Lights pilot,
but noted a concern about the time slot.
Our predictions were accurate with NBC
sticking with the show in 2007/2008 based
on its quality, but in a new time slot
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- ABC
returns with a night of comedy, reality
and Boston Legal – this year hoping
that leading off the night with the comedies
will make a difference
- CBS
has maintained their strategy of Tuesday
night dramas
- FOX
is keeping House at 9pm, but hoping
for greater success at 8pm with the return
of their summer reality success Don’t
Forget the Lyrics. Of course, it all
changes come January with American
Idol
- With
the failure of the comedy line-up in 2006/2007,
NBC is extending their reality fare to
2 hours while sticking with Law and
Order: SVU at 10pm
- With
Gilmore Girls and Veronica Mars
gone, CW is trying out a night of reality
followed by a light sci-fi drama
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2006/2007
Survivors
Friday Night Lights (NBC) - Moving
to Fridays
Don't Forget the Lyrics (FOX) -
Mid-Season
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2006/2007
Casualties
Knights of Propserity (ABC)
Help Me Help You (ABC)
Smih (CBS)
Standoff (FOX)
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Go
to The New Tuesday
Night Programs
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Last
Season
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The
2007/2008 Season
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- ABC:
As expected, The Nine could not survive
against CSI: Miami while Day Break
suffered from a concept that seemed
too repetitive to many viewers (who failed
to stay around and see how it would be executed)
- CBS:
Our note last year that Jericho was
appealing despite the high concept was quite
accurate. The show was appealing enough
to get CBS to pick it up against after low
ratings caused its cancellation
- FOX:
We were not surprised that Justice
could not win out against tough competition
- NBC:
Last year, we liked the promo clip of 30
Rock and apparently the network did
as well – moving the show to Thursday when
their Wednesday sitcom plan failed (driven
down by the poor 20 Good Years).
On the other hand, Kidnapped was
yet another serial drama in an overcrowded
field
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- With
Lost not returning until 2008, ABC
is filling up Thursday with three brand
new dramas (including the Grey’s Anatomy
spin-off Private Practice)
- CBS
is back with their same schedule from 9-11pm
while trying out a new reality concept at
8pm
- FOX
returns Bones to Thursday night,
but at a later time. At 8pm, they have moved
to a sitcom strategy counting on the talents
of Kelsey Grammer and former Everybody
Loves Raymond stars Patricia Heaton
and Brad Garrett
- NBC
introduces an all new schedule mixing reality,
sci-fi and dramas while CW returns with
Top Model now joined by their new series
Gossip Girl
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2006/2007
Survivors
Jericho (CBS) - Returning in Mid-Season
30 Rock (NBC) - Moved to Thursday
Til Death (FOX) - Moving from Thursday
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2006/2007
Casualties
Day Break (ABC)
The Nine (ABC)
Justice (FOX)
20 Good Years (NBC)
Kidnapped (NBC)
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Last
Season
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The
2007/2008 Season
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ABC: Our prediction that Ugly
Betty would be an appealing alternative
to Survivor proved quite accurate
based on the show’s return. We were also
correct regarding the eventual fate of 6
Degrees against both ER and the
higher quality Shark
- FOX:
Shark lived up to the high quality
we noted in last year’s pilot and the show
is retuning this Fall (although on a new
night)
- FOX:
As expected, Til Death was not a
huge hit, but did manage to survive under
the radar. On the other hand, Happy Hour
(noted last year as the weaker of the two
sitcoms) could not survive and will not
be returning
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- Stability
is the key on Thursday night with ABC, CBS
and CW all returning with their schedules
from 8-10pm. At 10pm, ABC is once again
trying to launch a new drama in the time
slot while CBS returns Without a Trace
to its home from two years ago
- With
The O.C. gone, FOX has moved to an
all reality strategy for Thursday night
- NBC
is back with their mid-season (and old Must
See TV) strategy of a night of comedies
followed by ER
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2006/2007
Survivors
Ugly Betty (ABC)
Shark (CBS) - Moving to Sunday
Til Death (FOX) - Moving to Wednesday
Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader
(FOX) - Mid-Season
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2006/2007
Casualties
6 Degrees (ABC)
Happy Hour (FOX)
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Last
Season
|
The
2007/2008 Season
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- ABC:
Last year, we noted the positive aspects
of Men in Trees as a light-hearted
drama. We were not, however, sure about
the 9-10pm Friday timeslot. Following our
prediction, ABC did stick with the show,
but ended up airing a great deal of the
season on a different night. For 2007/2008,
the show’s back on Friday, but in an earlier
slot
- FOX:
It should also be noted that FOX’s winter
series, The Wedding Album, never
even premiered. (FOX probably has the longest
track record of any network in announcing
shows in the Upfront that never make it
on the air.) FOX did follow-up with The
Wedding Bells, a completely different
wedding show in the Spring, however, that
show failed to attract enough viewers
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- 20/20
is back at 10pm on ABC while the rest of
the night is now filled with dramas
- CBS
returns with a night of dramas hoping to
extend on the “otherworld” aspect of Ghost
Whisperer with new vampire series Moonlight
-
On Fox, they are once again trying for success
of Friday with a night of reality
- CW
returns with Smackdown while NBC
is back with Las Vegas joined by
Deal or No Deal and the relocated
Friday Night Light
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2006/2007
Survivor
Men in Trees (ABC)
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Go
to The New Friday
Night Programs
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Last
Season
|
The
2007/2008 Season
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-
For years now, the networks have been avoiding
launching new shows on Saturday night. Last
year (with the exception of ABC adding Saturday
Night College Football) was not an exception
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- The
networks are pretty much sticking with their
same strategies on Saturday night (and will
most likely be doing so for some time to
come)
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2006/2007
Survivors & Casualties
Except for football, no new programs premiered
in 2006/2007
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Last
Season
|
The
2007/2008 Season
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- ABC
: We were unsure last year of exactly
how Brothers and Sisters might fit
in with Desperate Housewives, but
figured the presence of Calista Flockhart
might draw viewers in long enough to give
the show a chance to find its way. As predicted,
that is pretty much what happened with quite
a deal of recasting occurring after the
pilot and new characters added (including
one played by Rob Lowe) that improved the
quality of the show – rewarding viewers
that stuck with the program
- CW:
As expected, The Game fit in well
with CW’s comedy schedule. However, we did
express a concern last year about how CW
was taking a risk moving their comedy schedule
from Monday night. Accordingly, we were
not surprised when they moved the comedies
(including The Game) back to Monday
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- ABC
and NBC are back with their 2006/2007 Sunday
night schedules. After football, NBC will
move to a night of Dateline and dramas
(including the original Law & Order)
- CBS
is, of course, once again leading off the
night with 60 Minutes. 60 Minutes
and returning drama Cold Case are
now joined by a relocated Shark and
a singing casino series (Viva Laughlin)
- For
the fall, FOX is moving back to a night
of all sitcoms (now all animated). However,
come winter, they are adding in a sci-fi
action-drama
- With
the sitcoms long gone, CW returns with Top
Model on Sunday night joined by their
new family drama Life is Wild. From
7-8pm, they have reality/news/entertainment
programming
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2006/2007
Survivors
Brothers and Sisters (ABC)
The Game (CW) - Moved to Monday
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Go
to The New Sunday
Night Programs
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