As has been discussed in many o’ comments here on the blog, ABC did what many had predicted/hoped for and announced that Life on Mars would air on Wednesdays at 10pm after LOST in the winter/spring and that Private Practice would move to air after Grey’s Anatomy. James Hibberd has an article on it here, where his sources seem to indicate that Dirty Sexy Money has a good chance at getting a full season order while Pushing Daisies and Eli Stone are considered longshots to be picked up for the full season.
As for NBC, while I was watching Chuck on the DVR I caught the rare commercial and it was a promo — Christian Slater “in the role everyone is talking about. The new hit ‘My Own Worst Enemy’.”
I’m OK with stretching the truth in a press release, and don’t get me wrong, I don’t really expect any truth in advertising. But everyone isn’t talking about My Own Worst Enemy, not even on the Internet. New hit? C’mon! Still I find the “f–k it, let’s just fake it till we make it” approach amusing. My Own Worst Enemy isn’t NBC’s worst performing show, but hey, neither is Kath & Kim. But both are underperforming My Name is Earl, which is having it’s worst year ever.
I think what they meant to say was, “in the role Ben Silverman wishes everyone would talk about so that it would be the new hit!” Sadly, as Patrick Stewart once uttered in the role of Jean Luc Picard, “Wishing for a thing does not make it so.”
My Own Worst Enemy is a good show even though it doesn’t do well in the ratings. Christian Slater does a great job playing both characters and the writers have it going at a frantic pace. The reasons it doesn’t do well are because the Heroes leadin ain’t what she used to be and the buy-in is too steep. It sounds like NBC is getting behind it though. Declaring it a hit and the fact it’s in renewal territory in the index make me think a back nine order is looming.
more changes:
MIDSEASON PLANS COME INTO FOCUS FOR ABC
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)
LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) — ABC is gearing up for a major overhaul to its primetime schedule, including new homes for “Private Practice” and “Life on Mars.”
The proposed changes – which include the additions of “Border Security USA,” “Scrubs” and “Here Come the Newlyweds” – began making the rounds in the advertising community this afternoon.
It’s believed a final schedule will be unveiled as early as tomorrow morning.
Here’s a breakdown of the aforementioned schedule, which would take effect by the end of January:
Mondays
8:00/7:00c – “The Bachelor” (New Season)
9:30/8:30c – “Samantha Who?”
10:00/9:00c – “True Beauty” (New Series)
Tuesdays
8:00/7:00c – “Border Security USA” (New Series)
9:00/8:00c – “According to Jim” (New Season)
9:30/8:30c – “According to Jim” (New Season)
10:00/9:00c – “Eli Stone”
Wednesdays
8:00/7:00c – “Scrubs” (New Season)
8:30/7:30c – “Scrubs” (New Season)
9:00/8:00c – “Lost” (New Season)
10:00/9:00c – “Life on Mars” (New Time Slot)
Thursdays
8:00/7:00c – “Ugly Betty”
9:00/8:00c – “Grey’s Anatomy”
10:00/9:00c – “Private Practice” (New Time Slot)
Fridays
8:00/7:00c – “Wife Swap”
9:00/8:00c – “Here Come the Newlyweds” (New Season)
10:00/9:00c – “20/20″
Saturdays
8:00/7:00c – “Saturday Night Movie”
Sundays
7:00/6:00c – “America’s Funniest Home Videos”
8:00/7:00c – “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”
9:00/8:00c – “Desperate Housewives”
10:00/9:00c – “Brothers & Sisters”
It’s assumed that current Wednesday entries “Pushing Daisies” and “Dirty Sexy Money” will sign off at 13 episodes while “Supernanny” will rejoin the lineup after “Newlyweds” completes its second season.
Due in the spring then are newcomers “Better Off Ted,” “Castle,” “Cupid,” “The Goode Family” and “The Unusuals.”
Again, keep in mind the above schedule has yet to be confirmed.
http://futoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=7841
hell yes at back to back episodes of scrubs leading into LOST. great move by abc, perhaps the first one they’ve made in a while.
Well, I hope that schedule turns out to be wrong. I really want to see Cupid and The Castle. Leaving them for spring is not a good sign.
Futon Critic is smart to get the schedule that advertising firms were given. I can’t help but notice that certain shows are missing.
Indeed. I will not claim Renew/Cancel Index victory until it’s official, but no Pushing Daisies,
Eli Stoneor Dirty Sexy Money on that list.ehm Eli Stone is there. Tuesdays at 10.
Do’h! Old Eyes!
Eli Stone was the only show that had scripts ordered of the 3. I think it’s interesting because the last week or so I’d heard positive things about DSM and its future. I think this weeks ratings for Eli Stone may tell the tale.
Bah, obviously. Cancel other 2 and give possible full order for the one that has the least quality. Way to go.
Actually, scratch that. One really can’t afford to blame the network. What is really scary is that crap like Bachelor or Newlyweds would likely get bigger audience from stupid people than Eli/PD does. That’s a scary thought. And, unfortunately, it will end up being more than just a thought.
i personally think scrubs before lost is an odd choice… and Tuesdays schedule…. jim leading into eli stone seems like a bizarre ratings mix
DSM dosent deserve pick up, i was somewhat following the series before the writers strike, but since coming back its all been down hill in my opinion
I will be absolutely devastated if ‘Pushing Daisies’ gets canceled – it has the genius of a cable network show and the family classification of a Disney movie. I have just about everything on my body crossed that we don’t lose such a brilliant piece of TV. Couldn’t ABCFamily pick it up or something??
I guess those rumors about Greg Berlanti being given a choice between ES and DSM may have been true after all.
In both reports (on Hollywood Reporter and The Futon Critic), PD appears to be canceled. But, one states that DSM will continue and the other ES. So it was a choice between ES and DSM (as someone posted earlier – it wasn’t very likely that ABC would can all 3). I suppose the report on FC will be more accurate, as it is based upon the schedule given to advertisers.
So, that’s it then. PD and DSM are gone, and ES will continue to limp its way to the end of the season. Too bad ABC execs and Jon Feldman ruined DSM this season.
As far as the ratings are concerned, I still think ES is a bigger loser than DSM – its lead-in DWTS results show is 50% stronger in the demo than DSM’s lead-in PP (not to mention 100% stronger in total viewers), and yet they both get the same demo numbers (about 2.0).
happy to see PP after grey’s and life on mars after lost.
i hope to that PP and GA could have some cross episodes to form a good dynamic between this two shows.
William, prepare to be devastated, Pushing Daisies is going to die; as its ratings are horrible for a 1 hour show. I like the show and wish it would continue but its clearly lost its appeal among the masses. I suppose the final episodes could have a miracle recovery, but as Jean Luc Picard once said….
What is so new about networks declaring every new show “A HIT!” theyve been doing this – like forever! Often times they will declare a show a hit, even after 1 episode and even if the ratings are marginal, in their promos for the 2nd episode.
Dirty Sexy Money should stay
and Eli Stone/Pushing Daisies should be gone, ABC already saved Eli Stone last season so this year ABC should give Dirty Sexy Money a chance especially it has a crap lead-in show (Private Practice).
I don’t like that Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice is going to be in the same night because 2 medical shows in a row is an overkill and a bit tiring
Can you actually have two 1/2 hour comedys with 2 new shows everyweek?
Jim/Scrubs?
Well, for me it’d be a ‘lesser of two evils’ situation when Eli stays. Can’t really say I’m overly confident about the first draft of the new schledule, though. As has been hinted, it is more likely that network
will go with the most boring and weakest choice, that is DSM.
I’d be really glad if this schledule sticks, though. After all, Eli’s ratings have seemed at least marginally better than DSM’s as much as I’ve
seen.
Hopefully I won’t loose both of my favorite shows…
The Futton Critic unveils ABC’s the new schedule, pointing out it as not been confirmed yet
http://thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=7841
It’s unfortunate Dirty Sexy Money has to be sacrificed for Eli Stone, a show which still fluctuates between spurts of being moderately interesting to being totally insipid. Granted DSM and Brothers & Sisters have been there as well at times, but at least these two seem to be moving in the right direction. Still, none of the three ever developed the consistency of Grey’s Anatomy nor Desperate Housewives. Both GA and DH are amazing hours of tv and move from one great storyline to the next with brillant ease. I would like to see Private Practice, a solid winner on its own, get the DH slot. It deserves a chance to become a big hit behind Desperate Housewives but the idiotic programmers at ABC are again blind to the obvious. Maybe running two medical dramas back to back will pay off just as running back to back episodes of Scrubs and According To Jim will be successful in their time slots. LOL. Right. I don’t see it. When there’s already ER and Eleventh Hour in the 10 pn time slot Thursday, why would you want to put another medical dramas in that position. Move Brothers & Sisters to Thursdays at 10pm and bring back some of those reality hits from the writer’s strike season that were stupidly cancelled. The reality is America will watch a well put together actuality program like American Idol, The Bachelor, or Here Come The Newlyweds in huge numbers over a plodding narcissistic dramedy, crime drama, or comedy every time.
hey big daddy,
both jim and scrubs have wrapped shooting so yes, they can. typically shows can only do one a week due to production concerns, but that isn’t the case with these two shows.
abc’s really splitting up their comedies though. i though scrubs would’ve been a great fit for sam who, though it looks like they’re going with nights based on demographics and not similarly toned shows – bachelor leads sam who, border patrol usa leads jim, and scrubs leads lost. i wonder how that will work compared to the success of cbs, nbc and fox’s comedy block (though to be fair, for the most part those comedies work for the same viewers, while abc has a diverse crop of half-hours).
thoughts?
I won’t do my happy-dance just yet, but I really hope there won’t be any major shake-ups at the last minute and Eli will stay.
Eli was one of my favorites during last season, I found it incredibly warm.
DSM really isn’t much, show isn’t good when the only reason I turned in for
a few episodes was to see old Sutherland play his magic. And as I’ve been hearing, S1 was even better than what is shown now…