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Wednesday
Night 2004/2005:
Fall
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Net
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8:00pm
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8:30pm
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9:00pm
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9:30pm
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10:00pm
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ABC
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The Bachelor
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CBS
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60 Minutes
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King/Queens
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FOX
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That '70s Show
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Quintuplets
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Bernie Mac
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Method
and Red
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<Local>
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NBC
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The West Wing
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Law & Order
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UPN
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America's
Next Top Model
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<Local>
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WB
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Smallville
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<Local>
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ABC
--- Hour Drama --- Wednesday --- 8:00 PM
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Premise
Reminiscent of Castaway, a group of 28
plane crash survivors land on a remote island
with only the shirts on their backs and, with
hope, the will to survive. This series also
includes mysteries regarding what creatures
inhabit the island and the histories of the
passengers.
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Gilligan’s
Island meets Castaway meets <<Insert
Horror Film Name Here>>
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Familiar
Faces
Dominic Monaghan (The Lord of the Rings),
Matthew
Fox (Party of Five)
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Our
Take
The pilot is somewhat intriguing. However, high-concept
dramas are always a challenge. The key consideration
may be how loyal ABC is to the producers combined
with how the rest of their schedule performs.
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Expect
to Hear
"Is
this normal? Day turning into night, end-of-the-world
type weather? Is this normal?"
-
Charlie
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ABC
--- Hour Reality --- Wednesday --- 10:00 PM
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Premise
Based on a popular UK series, Wife Swap
features two mothers from two different families
who trade places for 10 days. The first five
days the mothers must adhere to the rules and
lifestyle of the respective family. The remaining
five days the mothers have free reign to take
care of the house in the best way they see fit
– sometimes a serious shock to the families.
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FOX
has already launched their own swap program
(Trading Spouses)
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Familiar
Faces
<<None>>
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Our
Take
Much has been said in the news regarding how
FOX stole ABC’s idea and beat them to air. The
truth is it all depends on the show itself.
If the show is good, viewers will tune in regardless
of whether it is original (such as with the
myriad of home shows on Cable). Of course, Law
& Order and CSI New York will be
the real competitors in this timeslot.
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Expect
to Hear
"Now
Jodi must abandon everything...She’s about to
trade places with a woman she’s never met and
knows nothing about her new life."
-
Announcer
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CBS
--- Half-Hour Sitcom --- Wednesday --- 9:30
PM
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Premise
John Goodman and Jean Smart play a married couple
who not only have to raise their own son but
an entire extended family. Family: Can’t live
with them. Can’t live without them.
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Unwelcome
relatives are the cornerstone of the sitcom
universe from Fred Flinstone’s mother-in-law
to Ray Romano’s parents
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Familiar
Faces
John Goodman (Roseanne), Jean Smart (Designing
Woman), Edward Asner (The Mary Tyler
Moore Show)
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Our
Take
King of Queens has held its own since
moving to Wednesday. However, the 9:30pm sitcom
has not necessarily benefited (as was the case
with Becker). John Goodman is highly
likeable, but may be too ingrained in viewers’
minds as Dan Connor.
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Expect
to Hear
"You
know how they say every family has at least
one chucklehead? Well, there are at least four
families walking around out there scot-free."
-
John Pressman
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CBS
--- Hour Drama --- Wednesday --- 10:00 PM
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Premise
From the creator of CSI and CSI:
Miami, comes CSI: New York starring
Gary Sinise as the leader of Manhattan’s top
team of crime scene investigators. Minus the
Miami scenery and the Las Vegas casinos, this
CSI offers the same type of story lines
as the originals.
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CSI
moves North
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Familiar
Faces
Gary Sinise (Forrest Gump),
Melina Kanakaredes (Providence)
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Our
Take
A spin-off from TV’s #1 drama seems a sure
hit (especially after the overnight success
of CSI: Miami). Of course, the latest
CSI will face-off against the grand-daddy
of crime drama spin-offs: Law & Order.
Assuming there are enough viewers to go around,
both will do well.
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Expect
to Hear
"It
worked until the evidence told us another
story."
-
Detective Mac Taylor
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NBC
--- Hour Drama --- Wednesday --- 8:00 PM
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Premise
Hawaii isn’t all surf and sand. Underneath
the gorgeous seascape lies a jungle of local
and international criminals. A diverse group
of cops and detectives fight crime, Hawaii-style.
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Hawaii
Five-0 without the “Five-0”
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Familiar
Faces
Michael Biehn (The Terminator, The Rock,
Aliens), Sharif Atkins (ER), Ivan
Sergei (Crossing Jordan)
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Our
Take
While Hawaii may be a little more accessible
to an 8pm viewer than Lost, it is still
somewhat of an odd fit for this timeslot.
On the other hand, Ed survived here
somewhat under the radar for a while.
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Expect
to Hear
"This
may be a dumb question, but where do they
think they are going? We’re on an island!"
-
John Declan [During a car chase]
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UPN
--- Hour Drama --- Wednesday --- 9:00 PM
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Premise
Taye Diggs stars as Kevin Hill, the man
who has the ultimate bachelor life: a good
job, pretty ladies and plenty of money to
get whatever he wants. His life takes an
unexpected turn when his cousin passes away
and he inherits his 6-month-old daughter.
He takes a new job and learns how to play
“Dad” instead of “The Bachelor.”
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Jerry
Maguire meets Baby Boom
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Familiar
Faces
Movie actor Taye Diggs
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Our
Take
Kevin Hill is another feel-good drama.
As long as UPN stands behind the show, it
has the chance to perform modestly well.
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Expect
to Hear
"I
haven’t been home on a Friday night since
I was twelve."
-
Kevin Hill
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WB
--- Hour Drama --- Wednesday --- 9:00 PM
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Premise
The Mountain takes place on a remote
Utah mountain where the country’s largest
independently owned ski resort is managed
by the Carver family. When the patriarch
passes away and chooses his heirs, the community
is in shock and the close-knit family is
forced to not only survive but thrive on
the mountain.
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Mix
the wealthy brotherly conflict of the Ewing
brothers on Dallas with the WB drama
format
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Familiar
Faces
Oliver Hudson (Dawson’s Creek),
movie
actress Barbara Hershey
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Our
Take
While on the outside The Mountain is
not necessarily compatible with Smallville,
they are both involved family-friendly dramas.
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Expect
to Hear
"You
know when my grandpa left me the mountain,
we thought he was crazy. But then I realized
it wasn’t about the mountain; he did this
for his family."
-
David Carver, Jr.
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Wednesday
Night 2004/2005:
Winter
|
Net
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8:00pm
|
8:30pm
|
9:00pm
|
9:30pm
|
10:00pm
|
|
ABC
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Lost
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The Bachelor
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Wife Swap
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CBS
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60 Minutes
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King/Queens
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Center/Universe
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C.S.I. New York
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FOX
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That '70s Show
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American Idol
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Bernie
Mac
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<Local>
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NBC
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Hawaii
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Law & Order
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UPN
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Kevin Hill
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<Local>
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WB
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Smallville
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The
Mountain
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<Local>
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FOX
--- Half-Hour Sitcom --- Wednesday --- 8:30
PM --- [Winter]
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Premise
This family comedy is about a group of teenagers
who work and hang out together at a mall
food court. This group includes step-siblings
whose parents are slightly obsessed with
their 8-year-old joint son.
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Mallrats
meets the extended family aspect of Something
So Right
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Familiar
Faces
Amy Yasbeck (Problem Child)
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Our
Take
In some ways this program feels very similar
to Quintuplets which aired in the
same timeslot over the summer. Considering
the poor performance (so far) of Quintuplets
and the fact that That ’70s Show
is aging, Related by Family will
need to overcome quite a few challenges.
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Expect
to Hear
“Laz
was going to take the blame but Molly sacrificed
herself to save him....that's huge."
-
Gus
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NBC
--- Hour Drama --- Wednesday --- 9:00
PM --- [Winter]
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Premise
In this religious version of The X-Files,
Bill Pullman takes on the cynic Scully
role as Dr. Richard Massey, a man searching
for rational explanations to unusual events.
He is joined by Sister Josepha Montifore,
a devout nun in the believer Fox Mulder
mode, who is seeking religious answers
to these events.
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The
short-lived ABC series Miracles
explored similar themes with less of a
religious overtone
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Familiar
Faces
Bill Pullman (Independence Day),
Natascha
McElhone (Solaris)
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Our
Take
Revelations will not enter the
fold until the competitors have already
had a chance to establish themselves.
In the past, the strong religious overtones
would also have been a negative. However,
this may no longer be true. There has
also been positive buzz regarding the
pilot.
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Expect
to Hear
“Looks
like a shadow, but there is nothing to
create a shadow. The sky is perfectly
clear."
-
Sister Josepha Montifore
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The
Road to Stardom with
Missy Elliott
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UPN
--- Hour Reality --- Wednesday --- 8:00
PM --- [Winter]
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Premise
Missy Elliot is the host of this new Dramality
series (UPN’s term). The hip-hop superstar
takes thirteen aspiring performers on
tour as they compete to become the next
“Hip-Hop American Idol.” Missy
plans to help launch the winner’s musical
career and back him/her with a record
deal.
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A
hip-hop American Idol
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Familiar
Faces
Singer Missy Elliott
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Our
Take
In some ways, Missy Elliott is
just the latest imitator of American
Idol. However, the show (and star)
may have a certain appeal against a subset
of the UPN audience.
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Expect
to Hear
<<Not
Available for Preview>>
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Go to Thursday Night Programs
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