NBC ANNOUNCES 2009-2010 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE BOLSTERED BY MORE ORIGINAL PROGRAMMING THAN EVER BEFORE
Shared Time Period Strategy Around NBC’s Broadcast of 2010 Winter Olympics Along with Jay Leno at 10 p.m. Enables Network to Broadcast Original Programming Year-Round
Network Renews Returning Series “Law & Order” and “Chuck”
NEW YORK CITY — May 19, 2009 – NBC announced today its 2009-2010 schedule featuring more original programming than ever before and a shared time-period strategy around NBC’s Olympics platform that, along with “The Jay Leno Show” (Mondays-Fridays 10-11 p.m. ET), allows the network to broadcast all-new content year-round.
In addition, NBC issued renewals to “Law & Order” and “Chuck” (see accompanying release) as part of its strong slate of new and returning shows announced recently at the network’s highly successful Infront.
“NBC has picked up more scripted shows than last season even with “The Jay Leno Show” at 10 p.m.,” said Ben Silverman, Co-Chairman, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios. “We’re incredibly excited about our new and returning series and have more comedy programming than anyone else, as well as two of the most buzzed about new shows, ‘Community’ and ‘Parenthood.’ We can’t wait for the fall.”
“We are extremely proud to introduce these strong new series to NBC’s schedule next season in strategic timeslots that position them for success,” said Angela Bromstad, President, Primetime Entertainment, NBC and Universal Media Studios. “They join some of the highest quality returning shows on television, which will serve as a strong foundation to the new schedule. I think viewers are going to be happy to see this lineup of great new shows that will truly fit the NBC legacy of quality, culturally defining shows.”
NBC’s shared time period strategy will kick off this fall on Mondays with the premiere of “Heroes” (8-9 p.m. ET) continuing with all originals before “Chuck” assumes the time period after the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, which will be a powerful launching platform with its broad, female appeal and strong ratings as the most-watched event of the year. Using “NBC Sunday Night Football’s” potent promotional platform, the new high-octane drama “Trauma” will debut Mondays (9-10 p.m. ET) with the epic event series “Day One” taking over the time period following the Olympics.
NBC’s successful “The Biggest Loser” series continues Tuesdays (8-10 p.m.) and will help launch the new Wednesday lineup this fall, with the new family drama “Parenthood” debuting (8-9 p.m. ET) and the new hospital drama “Mercy” assuming the time period post-Olympics. “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” will air 9-10 p.m. ET following “Parenthood.”
NBC’s Thursday marquee comedy night will begin with the only live comedy between 8-10 p.m. on any network, “Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday” (8-8:30 p.m. ET), followed by “Parks and Recreation” (8:30-9 p.m. ET), “The Office” (9-9:30 p.m. ET) and the new comedy “Community” (9:30-10 p.m. ET). After “Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday” completes its multi-week run, “Community” will move to 8 p.m. and “30 Rock” will debut at 9:30 p.m., enabling NBC to feature more original comedy than ever before.
On Fridays in the fall, the enduring drama “Law & Order” will return for its record 20th season (tying “Gunsmoke” as the longest running drama series in primetime) and will lead off at 8-9 p.m. (ET) while “Southland” follows at 9-10 p.m. (ET), building a great crime block.
Saturdays will be a showcase for “Dateline NBC” (8-9 p.m. ET) and encore episodes of “Trauma” (9-10 p.m. ET) and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (10-11 p.m. ET).
“Football Night in America” (7-8:20 p.m. ET) and ” NBC Sunday Night Football” (8:20-11 p.m. ET) – the number one show of the fall — will return on Sundays in the fall with a fan-pleasing schedule of games to round out the fall season.
Utilizing the compatible demographics provided by the Olympics, NBC will launch the premieres of “The Marriage Ref” from executive producers Jerry Seinfeld and Ellen Rakieten (”Oprah”) on Sundays (8-9 p.m. ET) and the third season premiere of “The Celebrity Apprentice” on Sundays with two-hour editions (9-11 p.m. ET). In addition, the new comedy “100 Questions” will debut on Tuesdays (9:30-10 p.m. ET) following a 90-minute edition of “The Biggest Loser” (8-9:30 p.m. ET).
And coming in the summer, NBC will telecast all original episodes of “The Jay Leno Show,” “Friday Night Lights,” “America’s Got Talent,” “Breakthrough with Tony Robbins,” “Dateline NBC,” with additional programs to be announced later.
For detailed series descriptions and for photography, please log on to www.nbcumv.com.
To catch up on season finales, watch new “Heroes” and “The Office” web series, and more, please log onto NBC.com.
NBC FALL 2009 SCHEDULE
*New programs in UPPER CASE
MONDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Heroes”
9-10 p.m.–”TRAUMA”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
TUESDAY
8-10 p.m. – “The Biggest Loser” (two-hour edition)
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – “PARENTHOOD”
9-10 p.m. – “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
THURSDAY
8- 8:30 p.m. – “SNL WEEKEND UPDATE THURSDAY” (multi-episode run)
8:30-9 p.m. – “Parks and Recreation”
9- 9:30 p.m. – “The Office”
9:30-10 p.m. – “COMMUNITY” (moves to Thursdays 8-8:30 p.m. after multi-episode run “30 Rock” returns)
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Law & Order”
9-10 p.m. – “Southland”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
SATURDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
9-10 p.m. – “TRAUMA” (encore broadcast)
10-11 p.m. – “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (encore broadcast)
SUNDAY
7- 8:20 p.m. “Football Night in America”
8:20-11 p.m. “NBC Sunday Night Football”
NBC MID-SEASON 2010 SCHEDULE
(2010 WINTER OLYMPICS preempt regularly scheduled programming from February 12-28, 2010)
*New programs in UPPER CASE
MONDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Chuck” (season premiere)
9-10 p.m.–”DAY ONE”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
TUESDAY
8-9:30 p.m. – “The Biggest Loser” (90-minute edition)
9:30-10 p.m. – “100 QUESTIONS”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – “MERCY”
9-10 p.m. – “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
THURSDAY
8- 8:30 p.m. – “COMMUNITY”
8:30-9 p.m. – “Parks and Recreation”
9- 9:30 p.m. – “The Office”
9:30-10 p.m. – “30 Rock”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Law & Order”
9-10 p.m. – “Southland”
10-11 p.m. – “THE JAY LENO SHOW”
SATURDAY
8-9 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
9-10 p.m. – “Southland” (encore broadcast)
10-11 p.m. – “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (encore broadcast)
SUNDAY
7-8 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
8-9 p.m. – THE MARRIAGE REF
9-11 p.m. – “The Celebrity Apprentice” (season premiere; two-hour edition)
Now that is….boring
Boo to having to wait until next year for Chuck.
WHAT!!!! Chuck at mid season?
Chuck on monday
Heroes at 8pm!
Looks like “My Name is Earl” was given the axe…
If anyone was wondering why NBC continues to come in last in the ratings game, look no further.
You beat me to the punch, Melbye! I foresee NBC’s ratings corroding even further (with the exception of Jay Leno, who will garner respectable ratings in 10 pm slot).
My Name is Earl and Medium both were canceled.
Oof, so I suppose any speculation that NBC was going to make changes was dead wrong. I personally though splitting Biggest Loser across two nights was worth trying, but perhaps they didn’t want to go up against both nights of Idol.
Seems like they’re planning on Southland sticking around.
So Medium was cancelled!
Did Southland get a full season pickup? Or is that jsut a place holder?
OK …NBC was able to screw up the agreement with SUBWAY
unbelieveble ahahahaha
Is Medium gone too? I don’t see it.
I feel very underwhelmed. But the fact that they have the Office, Chuck and Jay Leno (and for laughs – Celebrity Apprentice) makes it the most watched of the 4 networks at our house.
It seems both My Name is Earl and Medium was unceremonially cancelled. Not sad about MNIE, kinda sad about Medium
Law & Order can do very well on fridays (something like 6 or 7 million viewers). But all my favourite low-rated shows will be at 9pm with Dollhouse, Southland and Ugly Betty (and possibly FNL midseason). I predict big DVR numbers for all these shows.
I heard My Name is Earl might get picked up by Fox if it’s not renewed by NBC.
While I like Leno, I hope his show tanks. This schedule could have been so much better with many more new series!
Please, Please, Please! Promote the heck out of Chuck during the Winter Olympics! It could be a good thing, plus I wonder if they are planning Heroes demise?
9 Months till Chuck and counting.
WTF ?! Where’s MEDIUM ?? *crosses fingers to see Medium on CBS schedule*
Wow! NBC has a lot of faith in its new dramas. Only Southland (sort of new) is on both the Fall and Winter, and it’s the worst performing (okay, only one that’s been on) of the bunch. Really odd schedule.
What about telling the WB that Chuck that the back 9 option was available. That is a shitty move.
@Robert
Any hope for 9 months of Chuck?
All that Leno hurts my eyes!
Unless they promote the heck out of Chuck during the Olympics I se this as not being good for the show. Also I’m not sure on the whole 13-16 episode seasons that NBC is doing. But that may be just for the Olympics.
Also I don’t think that Southland lasts into midseason.
“And coming in the summer, NBC will telecast all original episodes of “The Jay Leno Show,” “Friday Night Lights,” “America’s Got Talent,”… ”
Are they talking about this summer or summer 2010 ? Because they can’t air new episodes of FNL before DirecTV, right ?
So Southland gets another 1.7 seriously Chuck never got those ratings ever.
What the hell.
So, it seems that they decided to give Law & Order the Friday slot and move Chuck to mid-season. I doubt Southland will make it the whole year. They’ll probably put Friday Night Lights in its slot.
what about Medium? could the CBS rumors be true?
if they wait till spring, chuck can’t have a +9-that really sucks and is demoralizing. Maybe one of the new shows will tank and they’ll put chuck on and order the back 9. Here’s to hoping…..
I didn’t expect them to move 30 Rock to midseason…oh well.
‘Medium’ WAS canned by NBC. We all know it had to do with CBS and NBC not agreeing on the episode order and the costs of the show in general.
Now we have to hope and pray that CBS DOES pick it up, as they make it after all…
Wait I’m confused. Where are Friday Night Lights and Medium? I thought those shows were renewed. Maybe CBS did steal Medium from NBC (since NBC wasn’t willing to do the 22 episodes) and are going to put it on after Ghost Whisperer. It looks like everything got a half season except the Law and Orders, Biggest Loser, the Thursday comedies. Why is Southland going to play all year round? I would think the half season of FNL would be there.
30 rock isnt midseason itll be on after the snl thursday updates have finished which is usually october
So, Robert and Bill, how do you feel about that 95% for Medium now?
This blows! I hear that NBC has until Friday to exercise their option on Medium, and that CBS can’t make an announcement until then. And supposedly the deal with CBS is contingent on them not renewing Old Christine, which doesn’t sound too likely.
So it looks like Medium and it’s fans are screwed ROYALLY!
Thanks a LOT, NBC!
NBC is trying to kill its N°1 drama (L&O SVU) by putting it against Criminal Minds.
This is NBC killing Chuck. Death by starvation. It will be on in the most brutal slot of the week. With no hope of a back nine. After not being on the air for 10 months. What could survive that?
Answer – Nothing.
Great News for Law and Order. It could do very well on 8pm Fridays, GW is the only competition and there’s no audience overlap. And when Parenthood or Trauma fails, it would be replace them.
Mercy is one of the few shows I’m looking forward to this fall and it sucks that I have to wait until Febuary. Not to mention the possible Idol compation and no compatability with SVU.
Well I’am happy that chucks renewed but i feel abit sad to know i have to wait 9 months to watch it again and there is no +9 order only 13
Well seems my girlfriend and i have time to make a baby before chuck returns..i have no more excuses ..like sorry i cant have a baby on monday i must see Chuck; btw i bet chuck will start in november
So they’re going with half seasons of practically all their good shows (Chuck, Heroes) and sticking shows with constantly declining rating (Parks and Southland) for full seasons? And not to mention their “most hyped new series” community being shuffled from 930 to 8 after a few episodes…way to confuse viewers NBC. I better not hear them complaining about Chuck pulling in low ratings when they keep it in THE most competitive timeslot against House, Dancing and the BS Comedy Block….do you reall expect to move out of fourth in that time period?
F*** you NBC ! And F*** You Silverman ! MEDIUM is such a great show and you don’t deserve it.
guess those who are waiting for the next season of fnl will have to wait till next summer. glad I have Directv
This means that Chuck starts on March 1 and ends on May 24, assuming no Presidential interruptions. This could actually be good news. The show does better with no breaks. Someone mentioned elsewhere that if Subway is serious about the partnership, the Subway in-store ads could be more noticeable. That could help as well. I’ve enjoyed the two Christmas episodes (even bought Run DMC’s Christmas in Hollis after Season 1), so it I’ll miss that. As for Southland in the Winter, I think that’s a typo. It should be FNL. NBC already announced that it would be back, and that’s its natural timeslot. Perhaps NBC should hire someone to proof read its schedule before issuing a press release.
well i hope heroes can pull some good numbers on mondays at 8, so after it’s finished chuck could profit from that…
Today NBC killed SVU, Chuck, Medium, Southland and MNIE.
So how many episodes was Heroes’ order in the end? Looks like it can’t be more than 13. And did they ever work out a deal with the leads on SVU?
Wow, that is terrible. If they didn’t have football I probably would never turn this network on for the next 9 months. Good luck with beating the CW.
This will be Chucks last season. Subway or no Subway. This show got the shaft hard.
Maybe (I’m hoping) that they are planning to relaunch Chuck. Not saying reboot, but treating it like a new show promotion-wise. If they market the show, get the principles in front of the masses, show extended clips in the down time it could actually be a positive for the show. However if they sit on it, we fans can say goodbye after the next 13 episodes, at least on NBC. There is still a possibility that Chuck would get the back 9, Silverman says that they are happy to have new content year around. So maybe Chuck gets the back 9 in the summer?
Will people really watch that much Jay Leno in primetime? I know I won’t.
Ausiello is reporting that Medium is moving to CBS
Julia Heroes will have 19 episodes.
Please CBS, save MEDIUM ! It will bring you Emmy nominations and money from syndication !
I wanted Thanksgiving and Christmas with Chuck. . . this is Sarah and Chuck’s third Christmas. . .
This may not kill Chuck. It pulled a decent audience after the SB for the 3D episode. Unfortunately, that episode sucked and many of those folks didn’t come back. The writers have made some changes to the series (e.f Kung Fu Chuck), and if they have a good first episode after (hopefully) good advertising during the Olympics, the show could really benefit from the start time. Also, if they are down two writers, perhaps the extra time will allow for those left standing to develop quality scripts for a 13 episode run. I know this is glass half full talk, but if it all falls into place, it could work well.
I thinke all of us Chuck fans need to keep 1 thing in mind. New shows tend to die a very quick and anguishing death. With Southland already on the decline as well as Parks & Recreation… it’s WELL within reason to expect they won’t see a full season and may even be gone by xmas. Chuck will have a few episodes in the can… NBC will have at least 90 minutes freed by Southland and Parks getting axed. All they’ll need is a little schedule juggling, Heroes back at 9 and Chuck starts early leaving room for the back 9 or at least some of the back 9.
God willing Leno tanks opening 5 more hours.
What if Leno doesn’t tank, and they change it to be three hours long? What then?
Ack…. squiggleslash… some people may be trying to eat lunch, don’t make us choke.
So… after NBC said they wouldn’t delay Chuck as a midseason show because it would hurt its ratings too much, that’s EXACTLY what they went ahead and did? I’m longing for the Friday timeslot…. The rumor mill is also swirling that Sarah is going to work at a Subway next season.
On the plus side, Chuck did fairly well on its mid-season return after the Superbowl this year so there IS the possibility that if the series is promoted PROPERLY during the Olympics it could be a boost and that could be their plan: Hype the hell out of it during what’s sure to be a ratings goldmine. However I still believe this is a bad, BAD move by NBC.
if cbs picks medium for friday it seems that flashpoint will be a goner i don’t think they will put in anywhere else
I was hooping to see SVU in sunday nights at 9 or even at 10 in mid-season, or on monday nights at 9 in the fall! but wednesdays at 9? never!
when cbs annouces the ncis spin-off to 8 pm wednesday i think in nbc they could change their minds!
It is telling about the profitability of Biggest Loser that NBC would rather have the scheduling headaches of Parenthood/Mercy into SVU than split up Loser.
And I would put zero faith in that midseason schedule (or summer, for that matter). If Parenthood/Trauma get a backorder, they will get end up somewhere; if Southland is canceled, FNL takes the slot, etc. However, am I missing it or are they not saying when their Winter schedule begins: pre- or post- Olympics? Or does the Sunday phrasing suggest that M-W switch over in January, while Sunday doesn’t switch over until March?
And to repeat, Medium is (at this point) not renewed by NBC, but CBS could still sell it someone else/themselves once the NBC option is over (which, unfortunately, isn’t until after everyone was announced their schedules). Though I am looking forward to Robert & Bill eating crow on that one as well.
heroes vs house ? … umm gl with that nbc …. gl with that.
Hey CHUCK people – this give us a perfect opportunity to do a “CHUCK CHRISTMAS.” Give as gifts to family and friends Season 2 (or Season 1 and 2 to the uninitiated) as Christmas Gifts. Fill those Christmas (or whatever holiday you celebrate in December) with CHUCK DVDs. That will give people time during the crummy winter months of January and February to get familiar with CHUCK and be ready for the Season 3 premiere in Feb/March 2010. And, if NBC promotes the show correctly during the Olympics, it will be a great launching pad for the show. So we might only wind up with 13 episodes. So what? Season 1 was only 13 episodes (due to the strike) and we certainly got by. So we don’t have to bellyache about being put out to pasture on Friday nights so we can die. Let’s give this strategy that NBC is proposing a try – and do our part, including the “CHUCK CHRISTMAS” to get people “on board” for Season 3 when it starts after the Olympics. Use those great promos from Virgin/England during the Olympics and you WILL get people interested and ready to watch Season 3 (after they’ve watched Seasons 1 and 2 on the DVD’s we bought them for Christmas/ Hanakuh, Kwanza, or whatever holiday your celebrate in December). Likes not gripe or moan. Let’s look at the good opportunities presented by this and lets make it work! If we get a good Season 3 (even with only 13 episodes) there’s even a chance for a season 4 – and maybe even with more episodes. So GO CHUCK FANS, GO!! We didn’t get axed! So be happy and let’s make this work. We saved the show, we can make it grow, too. And keep supporting Subway, because they obviously had a BIG part in the renewal of CHUCK. It might not have happened without them. Sarah in a Subway uniform?? Or even Casey slinging lettuce and tomatoes? That would be a riot! (As long as Sarah gets to keep the Orange Orange uniform while working at Subway!!!)
If what Ausiello says it’s true, i predict a lot of L&O, Fox and Supernany viewers will tune to CBS at 9pm in order to watch Medium. Because, Dollhouse isn’t gonna gain any viewer next year (sadly). Ugly Betty is a really weird show (that i love). And Southland is just not enough strong.
Is it my impression or Heroes is going to die as well ?
8pm on Monday ? Against House ? Without lead in ? This basically killed Chuck
OMG. NBC.
Are they trying to kill Heroes? Honestly, 8PM vs House. Really now. I thought it was going to have 19 episodes to, i guess it’s only 13?
it seems like they are trying to pump Trauma with Heroes viewers….
On the flipside….does this mean that we’ll get a daily post here like the Fifteen Days of Chuck while waiting for the season 3 premiere of chuck?!
270 Days of Chuck: Day One coming later this afternoon??
Lol.
Heroes VS House? NOT GOOD! What is wrong with NBC!
OH wow…they’re holding Chuck til midseason and putting it back on Mondays? Hmm….crazy!!! I’m KIND OF happy Chuck will be on Mondays (as opposed to Fridays) but midseason!? Still wish it was on Wednesdays. What can you do? Oh boy…
Ugh, and Barack Obama just loves that 8PM time slot…
This is straight from Kristen E online’s page- This is a live transcript folks.
Are there any plans to trim castmembers from Chuck? Ben Silverman: “We’re not looking to lower the cost in any way…we want Josh Schwartz, Zach and McG to perform at the highest levels…it’s Chuck with another level of creative momentum. The show you love will be the show you get.” Is Warner Bros. asking them to make concessions in their production costs? “I don’t think so…I know that’s a show they believe in tremendously based on their [lobbying for it] with us.”
The Monday schedule is very odd – Heroes back in the fall and at 8 sounds like a disater waiting to happen, yes even bigger than the disaster that’s been Heroes this year. Worse than that it’s a disaster that will likely sink Trauma and the Chuck/Day One pairing midseason seems just as odd and potentially disasterous for them unless the Olympics promotion can do what the Super Bowl promotion didn’t.
Outside of Monday’s this all makes sense and I quite like it.
Law & Order paired with Southland on Friday’s works particularly well I think and the Thursday schedule might actually be genius. The struggling Parks gets a SNL lead-in for the first six episodes, which makes all kinds of sense given Poehler’s SNL connection and that then allows you to launch Community with an Office lead-in for the first six episodes before bringing 30 Rock back. That all makes sense and is really quite good. If that comedy line-up doesn’t work then I don’t know what NBC can blame.
CBS MUST pick up Medium. I love that show. And, this is a better schedule for Heroes.
I actually find this an interesting schedule. If NBC allows it to play out (and they probably won’t), the network will have have far fewer repeats on some nights than the other networks. If NBC premieres Chuck when most of the other networks are running repeats it could get a good number of new viewer sampling that’ll stick around later. Who knows. It’s all a gamble anyway.
But I must admit… I loved this Chuck/Day One pairing.
So they’re gonna first start off Community with The Office as a lead-in before moving it up at 8. Might be the smartest idea NBC’s had this season, though that isn’t saying much.
Clay, he also said the Subway deal helped to defray the costs. That probably saved the show from the budget cuts, saved the cast and crew.
So NBC is trying to kill Heroes and Chuck. Yet they are promoting Southland.
Why is SouthLand on both Fall and Winter’s schedules? Was it picked up for a full season?
Btw, Robert and Bill, THANKS SO MUCH for the hard lobbying you did for MEDIUM too! Way to go, guys!
@ Marcella- I wholeheartedly concur!
Medium is a much better show than pretty much everything else on NBC’s schedule and they’ve treated it like crap for years. They don’t deserve it.
I wish I could believe the rumors about CBS, but right now, I’m so disgusted that I can’t put much faith in those kinds of rumors.
You have to hand it to TV execs. They can really build excitement with a press release. Even with this schedule, they are using words such as marguee, great, original, etc. Basically all I see is that they are relying on football, diet shows, and Leno to carry the day.
My intuition is telling me that Chuck has received an ever-so-slightly nicer version of the “Jericho” treatment. Renew the series, make a big fuss about how great an innovative the renewal is, how great the fans are (which they are, that part is true)…then wait. For months and months and months. Keep the show in a time slot that has proven problematic for your network. At the end of the renewal’s limited run, state “Oh, sorry, we tried. Nielsen says there just weren’t enough people watching, sorry.” Then cancel. In Chuck’s case, at least they got 13 episodes instead of a mere 7.
And where is FNL? Perhaps they are planning to air it when Southland tanks, but they are trying to save face by showing full-season confidence in Southland, on paper but not in reality?
Holy crap! NBC thought they were in the dumper last year. This is HORRIBLE! This is the worst lineup I’ve ever seen.
NBC needs more ground-breaking shows like Southland and yet what’s it do — moves Southland to Friday to pump up it’s dead pan comedy (which isn’t funny,) Jay Leno (who isn’t funny) LOSING lineup.
And I’d rather see Medium on CBS anyway — you know where people might actually watch it.
Silverman needs to be fired. And that other prick that cancelled Las Vegas (yeah I’m still bitter,) should be fired. WIth Medium gone, and Southland soon to go — there is NOTHING I watch on NBC. Doesn’t seem like there will be for a WHILE.
Wow, NBC’s schedule really is scary…so many new shows w/o any lead in help….or any lead in at all….but really, what can they do?
It sounds like next year will be the last year for:
SVU
Chuck
Heroes
Parks
Law and Order
Any other goners you see next year?
‘Medium’ will be sorely missed if it does not return on CBS. That is a scary thought, and I am thinking the season (possibly series) finally is a cliff hanger with Allison ahvign a brain tumor….yikes…
‘Medium’ could work anywhere on CBS’s schedule, after GH, Cold case, any other drama or crime show…..
Come on CBS, keep your ‘Medium’ fans and get more money for syndication.
You will finally have a drama lead actress contender!!!
FNL is delayed until summer 2010.
What is NBC’s backup plan if Leno flops? I know some will say he won’t flop but they should still have a backup plan in case he does, it’s irresponsible not to.
As to Chuck, way to kill the momentum. They finally got a show that might have broken out and become a big hit and they do this to it.
CHUCK is going to have original content “webisodes,” through out the Fall. HEROES I believe was shortened to a 13 episode season. CHUCK is going to start airing before the Olympics in January.
“@tvweek_joe: Ben: We may expand Chuck beyond 13 and extend it to summer.”
Why would NBC do that?
I told people it was MEDIUM or CHUCK, because I knew the star wasn’t going to renegotiate her contract and CBS was convinced they wanted 22 episodes. MEDIUM will be on CBS so MEDIUM fans shouldn’t worry.
From Ausiellos twitter-feed:
EWAusielloFilesMore NBC: Peacock boss Ben Silverman insists “we’re not looking to lower costs on Chuck” next season. That’s not what I’m hearing!
EWAusielloFilesMore NBC: Ben Silverman says network may extend Chuck order beyond 13 episodes.
My prediction…
Trauma and Southland fail within a month or two into the season. Leno ratings will be mediocre to bad, but NBC will drag it out before ultimately killing it in the Spring. The Trauma and Southland demise will open room for Chuck to have an earlier start in either a Monday or Friday time slot. I prefer Friday…
Must flee TV. See ya after the new year NBC. Why is tv run by people with the lowest common denominator thinking? Reality TV good… intelligent TV bad! Garbage.
Wow, now I saw the problem in Heroes time…. thay are really trying to kill Heroes.
“Why is SouthLand on both Fall and Winter’s schedules? Was it picked up for a full season?”
NBC _intends_ to keep Southland in that slot for the entire year, along with L & O (yet they haven’t ordered enough episodes (so far) to make that even vaguely believable – try a bit harder next time, NBC PR people), but unless ratings make a marvelous turn around, Southland won’t get a backorder and will be replaced by FNL.
Or to summarize: PR dictates that NBC says the show will be on for the entire year, but ratings will actually decide, like always.
UPDATE: Chuck could possible air into the summer, which would mean that the back 9 would get picked up… this is getting interesting…
KN, because they picked it up for a 13+9, then decided that Fridays would be bad. So if they didn’t air it on Fridays it would be a mid-season show. By putting it on in the mid-season they would have the option of adding those 9 episodes for the summer. NBC Universal is extremely successful with Summer shows on USA, so this should not be a surprise.
Nick that makes no sense. Get people involved in the show. Then go on a two week hiatus for the olympics.
Also how can they even pick up the back 9 now.
What kind of Webisodes. ALl they did was promote the Buy More. Chuck and Sarah never made it in those promos.
Trimming those 5 episodes of Heroes was a smart move – they can see if Bryan Fuller helps turn it around, but they’re not stuck with it. If they need closure I could see a TV movie “event” working out next season/in the spring.
I don’t think SVU is a goner unless they don’t resign the leads.
NICK! Any
Body PoliticCW news?“CHUCK is going to start airing before the Olympics in January.”
I thought the plan was after the Olympics?
From Gorman’s Index:
Those shows that had decent ratings in the demo. Last year, shows that fell under .91 were cut.
CHUCK NBC 2.4 2.31 1.04
MEDIUM NBC 2.4 2.31 1.04
MY NAME IS EARL NBC 2.4 2.31 1.04
PARKS AND REC NBC 2.4 2.31 1.04
These four shows were in a virtual tie. I guess NBC decided to keep one drama and one comedy. Chuck got the nod over Medium, P&R got the nod over MNIE.
“I told people it was MEDIUM or CHUCK, because I knew the star wasn’t going to renegotiate her contract and CBS was convinced they wanted 22 episodes. MEDIUM will be on CBS so MEDIUM fans shouldn’t worry.”
I hope you are right Nick C!
I also do NOT think it has to do with Arquette’s contract. Who really knows though?
I can’t imagine that cbs won’t pick up Medium. It’s too profitable for them.
Heroes VS House should be interesting.
Nick C, do you for sure know that HEROES was shortened to 13 eps? There were rumours that it was going to be on air throughout december and january leading into the Olympics.
I think the fan driven 5 dollar footlong campaign may have backfired. They probably would have renewed it anyway since they don’t have much else to put on, and now they feel like they have the fans blessing to mess creatively with the show and put Sarah in a Subway shop. Bleah.
People keep saying Earl might get moved to FOX. How do we know that, is there any legit information floating around to support that?
Yeah but they didn’t like the ratings on Monday and almost cancel it. Now they are going to have another 9 months between episodes. How is Chuck going to pull the ratings to get the back 9. It seems like twisted logic.
haha, could Friday become the new Thursdays??
All the networks have scripted shows this year!
Nick C., are you saying that that NBC may be moving toward original scripted shows during the summers (and not just burning off orders)? What will the ratings have to look like in the 13, against tough competition, to get the 9?
What are you hearing about the episode budgets in light of the Subway deal? BS is quoted on twitter as saying Chuck won’t see cuts.
BTW …Robert the new provider is actaully very very good …. you are still up after this “comments sandstorm”
Nick C says: “NBC Universal is extremely successful with Summer shows on USA, so this should not be a surprise.”
Stop putting that USA dream in my head! Now I really, really, rrreeeaaallly wish CHUCK would have started out paired with BURN NOTICE from the beginning, on USA network. Is there even the tiniest, remotest of possiblities that such a sked may happen someday?
I think Subway helped defer some of the costs for Chuck. That is why Sarah is in a subway. Also think about the free advertisement in every subway in america. Chuck will be everywhere. If it gets us a 4th season I am all for it.
It all depends on how truthful NBC is on airing original (especially scripted) programming in Summer. There’s no law that says you can’t, it is just that the most recent attempts to do so (see Fox’s comedies a couple years back) have been ratings disasters.
Along with very real logistical issues on how you announce renewals at May upfronts for shows that won’t start until June.
Then again, this is NBC – how would they be able to tell the difference between a disaster and their usual ratings?
Nick C I keep hearing after the olympics for chuck.
I am still devastated over Christmas without Chuck.
What about a Christmas special?
Not quite sure why everyone’s freaking out about Heroes/Chuck going up against House. What else are they supposed to put there? You’ve got a better chance putting shows with established viewing bases there rather than sending a new series to a quick and brutal death. Same goes with SVU – it gets one hell of a hard timeslot, but out of all their shows it stands the best chance of survival there.
Parenthood is going to tank hard in that spot, though, as Mercy will likely too. Community, 100 Questions (God I hate this show already), and even Trauma look like they may be able to actually get some success out of those spots.
Their Thursday night is very well planned out, and it looks like their Friday night could actually be pretty competitive. Tuesday and Sunday nights were easy to plan, and Saturday will always be a rerun dump, so Monday and Wednesday are the only nights of concern in my eyes.
Hey “Subway Chuck Bartowsky special” is my idea
I want royalties 
Maybe Lou should buy a Subway . . .
Someone at NBC should have there head looked at. No one watching TV in the summer that is why they have reruns. NBC also has many new shows that might suck and they might have to more Chuck into one of there slots
Sarah’s a Hottie, why doesn’t it make sense? They plan on creating original content for the web to keep CHUCK fans pleased. These will have Zach, etc. in them. They will be what BS called “webisodes.” As for the Olympics interrupting scheduling it will do that for every show on NBC’s schedule.
Julia, it’s either getting a Friday pickup, or mid-season order. That was what I heard yesterday in NYC. No deal had been reached yet though. I’ve seen ever pilot from CW, and BODY POLITIC and BEAUTIFUL LIFE were the best pilots.
chuckfan, no the plan is midseason. The Olympics will interrupt programming. NBC isn’t going to just not air anything for 6 weeks before the Olympics.
My understanding was that HEROES is now going to be 13 episodes.
I know people like to bash NBC but I find that ABC’s schedule is a lot worse than NBC’s. Well I feel that ABC has a lot more room for failure than NBC does. ABC continues to not give a new show a plump spot behind Desperate Housewives and continues to let B and S get the lead in. Wed’s are all new shows. Didn’t they just have this problem the last two years on wed’s wit new shows? There was nothing to anchor the night and they all failed (until PP moved behind grey’s where it should be. Then ABC puts a male skewing sci fi show on it’s female skewing Thu night in front of Greys at 8??
Look NBC’s schedule isn’t perfect ( Heroes at 8pm against cbs comedies, House and dancing) but it has protected a lot of it ’s newer or new shows ( P and R, community, etc..)
NBC is sort of doing to CHUCK what CBS did to JERICHO – just placating fans then killing the show off.
Say the two Tuesday shows back to back strung out: “The Biggest Loser THE JAY LENO SHOW”. Leno is a decent guy I just dont think this experiment will fly. NBC will likely continue its 4th place finish in 2009-2010
Even though Community looks like the only show that’s interesting I’ll probably end up watching all the new shows.
Well Burn Notice is on in the summer.
Hi, when can we expect the CBS schedule please ? today ? I am quite anxious about Ghost Whisperer’s future to be honest considering Medium was axed and the way networks are trying to cut costs on friday
well, Chuck after the Olympics is good (I thought that that would happen, never thought it would be Friday), but what bothers me more is that all NEW SHOWS I might watch are comming after the Olympics too. (Mercy, 100 Questions and Day One???). That let me think about how to be still excited when they finally air and what about the promotion. I realy hoped that there would be some Chuck Promos during the Olympics but with that amount of new Shows premering thats not gonna be happen. Or wil NBC surprise me at least once.
I’m not sure I see the logic of starting anything midseason (Chuck included) before the Olympics. It seems a bit pointless to bring everything back for a week or two then take it off air, presumably promote it during the Olympics and then kick off two or three episodes into the run.
Thanks Nick.
Jenna, I’m not convinced Wednesday @ 8 would be a good night, it would go up against either Idol or SYTYCD results shows and they generally grab the most viewers. I was actually looking forward to Friday nights. I am very disappointed that it is starting mid-season, though, I would NOT be the least bit surprised if start dates get moved around when some of the new shows don’t do so well. As for mid-season with back 9 pickup for part of the summer, that would be interesting considering most hit shows are over in May. I just didnt want to wait until Feb/Mar to see a new Chuck episode, it’s going to make for an extremely long Winter for sure.
This schedule is kind of odd, moving Heroes time will cause problems, Parenthood gets a good slot, not so much SVU, especially if they don’t sign the stars. Some interesting things for thursday but L & O and Southland seem a bit dark for fridays. Last year a ten month layoff almost killed Chuck so this year we’ll only do nine months off, are they on crack?
lopan, you hearing this anywhere “official?” Because the press release would have stated CHUCK after the Olympics vs. mid-season if you’re right. I haven’t read the PR.
Nick C, what is the possiblity that Chuck is used as a replacement for a failed new show in the fall?
Nick C Ben silverman said chuck after the olympics and heros will run 19 consect episodes.
Epic fail, NBC. Thanks for renewing Chuck, but fail nonetheless.
Having Chuck off the air for that long will kill off its audience. 30 Rock is not going to like it either. All the other interuptions this season caused drops in ratings this will be brutal. Its like bringing the writers strike back for those shows starting in the winter that have started in the fall before. How are they going to keep those that watch the shows interested? I mean I’m a lifer and will be there when it comes back, but how will it get its numbers back by the end of its 13 show run enough too be renewed? Going to need something; Chuck TV movie in the fall/winter or a Marathon of season 1 and 2 on a Sister Network prehaps. Heroes is better off with the fall start thats for sure. They seem to be relying on Chuck’s fan base to keep it alive, but they will have to give them something.
Alex, except we’re talking about after 5 or 6 episodes and not 2 to 3. I don’t see mid-season starting in March. That would mean new episodes through June. When it’s common knowledge that later April/early May lose viewers (because the weather is getting nicer). Cable has proven that you can be successful with summer shows that start after summer gets hot and people want to be in doors again.
BURN NOTICE, MONK, PSYCH, etc. do well in the summers.
Having a short break and have CHUCK air 9 episodes during that same time period (as well as other shows possibly) isn’t a bad idea.
So no Heroes in spring
. How are they going to fit 18-20 episodes in the fall. Hope it does well against House and Dancing, plus comedies but I’m not sure plus its a time slot change. NBC is taking a big gamble with Mondays. Plus I doubt Southland will work out on fridays but I like the fact networks are going for the shows on fridays now.
Nick C , are the CHUCK webisodes an official thing ?
Chuck after the Olympics quoted from the press release quoted at the start of this page: “NBC’s shared time period strategy will kick off this fall on Mondays with the premiere of “Heroes” (8-9 p.m. ET) continuing with all originals before “Chuck” assumes the time period after the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, which will be a powerful launching platform with its broad, female appeal and strong ratings as the most-watched event of the year.”
lopan, that would be interesting to pull off. It would be the only new shows airing through the holiday season. I’m not sure how smart that is. Even if it aired 19 straight weeks, that leaves 2 weeks for CHUCK to air before the Olympics.
I know the other mid-season shows are starting in January.
UH, yes BS told me that last night. I’m not certain on about the HEROES number of episodes. It is just the way he said it would all work out lead me to believe it has been shortened to 13 episodes. 19 straight weeks through the holidays is a gutsy move.
Yeah we definitely dont want The Olympics interrupting Chuck’s run, may as well wait until after and run them continuous and hope they get back 9 order.
From televisionary.
NBC made news earlier today when it officially announced, via press release, that it would be bringing back Chuck for a third season, although it would hold off on returning the series until after the Winter Olympics, when it would rejoin the schedule in its Monday nights at 8 pm timeslot. Also joining Chuck in midseason are dramas Day One and Mercy and unscripted series The Marriage Ref, all of which will turn up following the Olympics.
David1, there you go. As I said I hadn’t read the press release. It appears true that HEROES is running 19 straight weeks. So CHUCK will be the only show to not be airing before the Olympics that is a mid-season pick up.
However they are having “a lot of original web content for CHUCK,” and I was told webisodes.
you got to treat nbc’s mid-season schedule like fox’s.
basically, take it with a grain of salt. aside from heroes, which will air 13-19 episodes with limited interruptions, anything could happen with all those shows.
and chuck fans need to understand what the show is. sure you all may collectively like it, but the numbers are what they are. it was in the same timeslot for 2 years and received enough promotion. it may be a great show, but tv is a business. most of the time the great shows dont catch on. such is life.
Actually reading the PR it appears multiple shows will wait until March. That’s a gutsy move on NBC’s part. I’d understand if they did what ABC did and ordered 5+1s but didn’t think they’d want to run so many episodes in the deadzone that is late May.
What they did to Chuck by scheduling it in March 2010 just shows how they truly feel about the show (they wanted to cancel it). NBC was afraid of taking a big hit in viewership and backlash and are just throwing Chuck fans a bone. It would’ve been much better if they just let Chuck film a two hour series finale to tie up all the loose ends. I now don’t see how Chuck can get a fourth season (if you can call it that).
In fact having read the PR and now understanding that mid-season for NBC this next year means March… I think they’re nuts. Airing 5 or 6 episodes before a break is no big deal, holding them for the Spring when viewers start abandoning their tv sets for outside… not so smart.
Bruce W, they’re throwing all their shows under that same March bus, it appears their mid-season starts much later than their competition. Which means they’ll have new episodes when the competition is watching reruns, however in my mind it means that viewing habits will already be set for the season. It’s a death blow to all the new NBC mid-season shows.
I disagree, Nick. I think interupting Chuck for a month would kill the shows momentum. I’d rather wait till March for an uninterrupted run.
Nick C , so finally this look like a potential big businnes for Chuck …
Let me figure out a scenario :
Subway need to capitalize the big Chuck campaign so on September latest they need to prepare the way for the premiere .
Webisodes starts in the fall until Olympics Games .
) .
In the menatime they can advertise the show in their stores ( the 5$ Chuck bartowsky special
NBC just need to make a very good promo campaign during Olympics Games and they have to… in order to do not upset the major sponsor of CHUCK .
If the 13 episodes of CHUCK will works the money from SUBWAY will make very cheap ( and with low risk for NBC ) to get another 9 episodes to be aired in the Summer even with not very high rating .
Does it make sense ?
So, what happens to “Heroes” in mid-season?
I wish I’d been in NYC with time to discuss NBC stuff with people, if I’d known that I’d have been loud in my taunting of their stupidity. What morons. By March viewing habits will be in place and those new shows will be in trouble. CHUCK I think will be fine. I also wouldn’t be shocked if CHUCK is the show they pull up to an earlier launch when the new shows fail.
Yeah, I agree with the many people who have said this will essentially kill Chuck’s chances at a third season. But honestly, depending on how this season goes, that might be okay with me. That’s not a terrible run, and they’ve given us some quality episodes. As long as they wrap things up in a satisfying way, I think I’ll be okay with an end after the third season. I would not have been okay if it had ended this year.
Having said that, who wants to see the “Chuck Bartowski” as a new sandwich offered at Subway? I mean, they already had a sub girl on the show talking about naming a sandwich after Chuck. If the show and Subway really have such an extensive partnership, and Sarah is really going to work in a Subway, why not name a sandwich after Chuck?
Nick C, that’s twice now you’ve mentioned USA summer series, and this time you even called out Burn Notice by name! Stop that! I need to kill the Chuck/Burn Notice dream combo that’s been haunting my head since FDOC day 13 or so, when someone blurbed “NBC Universal” instead of just “NBC.”
As for the post-Olympics start to Chuck, it’s specifically mentioned in the New York Times TV Decoder. Don’t have time to pull up the link right now, but you can find it I’m sure.
Well, no surprise with Heroes being moved at 8, sharing the slot with Chuck seemed like an obvious choice (no idea where the Friday rumor came from).
Won’t be surprised if its the last season for Heroes, because I doubt its ratings will improve, no matter how good it is. With the producers/directors being fired, I kinda saw a sign that they wanted to kill Heroes, while hoping it would still keep it’s audience to launch a new show (Trauma). The only thing I wonder is why it’s leading-in to Trauma, and not Day One (switched with Chuck), which would make more sense.
I’ll enjoy Heroes as long as it will last, and hopefully it can go out on a good note. Even if I don’t watch it yet, I kinda hope Chuck survives.
Some of the new show will obviously tank, the bet will be on which one first
I dont think that NBC is just throwing Chuck fans a bone. Friday midseason would mean that, they’re still giving Chuck important place.
And I dont really think that we should hope that new NBC shows tank, since Chuck airing in November (for example) with very little promotion would mean death for sure.
“Yeah, I agree with the many people who have said this will essentially kill Chuck’s chances at a third season.”
Whoops…I clearly meant fourth season. Brain fart.
I wish people would knock off the ultra-paranoid “NBC is bringing Chuck back to kill it off” train of thought – first, NBC or any other network isn’t afraid of fans (otherwise every genre show would get renewed) and second, no network renews a show for the purpose of canceling it. I’m sure NBC had options (Medium being one) and they went with Chuck. I’m really happy they did, because it’s a great show.
chuckfan, it wouldn’t be a month, it would be 2 weeks. That isn’t that big of a deal. It’s worse to air when viewers stop watching.
Anthony, HEROES will end 3 months early. I doubt it will be back for a 5th season unless they right the ship.
“It’s a death blow to all the new NBC mid-season shows.”
The question is will NBC take that into account regarding the ratings or are they completely oblivious to the fact. Perhaps they believe it is a good strategy.
If BS is to be believed from today, he is still talking about a 9 episode back order of Chuck which means that they are looking at running it into the Summer. I think NBC is testing the cable model waters of running original scripted content in the Summer. FNL is also going to be in the Summer. If NBC got Chuck’s licensing fees reduced enough to make it work, the network could be on to something. Chuck, and to a greater extent, FNL are the test subjects. Chuck with heavy Subway underwriting and FNL with Direct TV. Unfortunately, I agree with Nick that the viewing habits may already be set by February. The one hope is that the two weeks of Olympics may be enough to break those habits.
Nick: Yes, after re-reading the description, I think you’re right. Their 13 episodes will be done by mid-season. I hope they’re filming a wrap-up because I fear it’s the end for “Heroes”. A once-great show is now lost.
Sadly too, “My Name is Earl” (another once-great show) is probably gone for good. A great storyline that they couldn’t work with over the long term.
I really hope Jay Leno crashes & burns too. What a boring, un-creative waste of time to allocate 5 premium prime-time slots to him.
“Anthony, HEROES will end 3 months early. I doubt it will be back for a 5th season unless they right the ship.”
Even if they right the ship, which I have full confidence in the writers that they can, they will probably still not get a 5th season due to the fact that they are placed at 8PM. I just hope that it gets a proper ending.
Nick C, if you’re the hugging type know I’m giving you plenty of hugs right now virtually of course. Thanks for answering questions and for setting my mind at ease about Chuck.
The NBC plan for next season seems like it will either work well or blow up in their faces.
Personally I like the idea of the ‘slot share’ and running Heroes, Trauma and Parenthood into January/early February before the Olympics takes over and allows you to promote the new ‘midseason’ line-up of Chuck, Day One and Mercy. I think perhaps NBC has paired the shows that are ‘slot sharing’ up badly – Trauma/Mercy, Heroes/Day One and Parenthood/Chuck all sharing the same slots seems to make more sense to me on paper in terms of audience over lap, although Parenthood/Chuck is more by default than anything else.
Of course whether or not the Olympics promotion is going to be enough to off set the later than usual start and end times for the runs will be interesting to see. The question here is, which shows does NBC have more faith in? The fall shows or the midseason ones? Is it a sign of faith to get the Olympics push but the later end date with a lower ratings threshold or not?
The more I look at the NBC schedule the more I actually start to like it though. I think there’s a lot of good stuff here of course whether any of it actually pans out is another question entirely.
They really do seem to be trying to bury Heroes. Didn’t read through all of the posts, but where does Friday Night Lights come into play? So far according to these schedules, I’m going to have nothing to do on Tuesdays.
God Particle, the bizz is made up of a few beliefs and they aren’t all shared. I’m guessing BS is not a believer in set viewing habits. I on the other hand believe in them. I think people mess with their viewing in September and January. After that their viewing habits are set. If it’s a rerun they’re more likely to watch it or turn off the TV than to switch to a new show they aren’t accustomed to.
I think a March start is tough, tough, tough to beat. Unless you’re ABC and putting it against LENO. ABC has to be dancing in the streets over LENO.
Last year, 30 Rock didn’t debut until October 31, I believe, so it’s probably a simliar thing this year.
CP NBC has moved Friday Night Lights to the summer schedule next year.
If parenthood does’nt work out they could also move law and order to wednesday at 8.
Not sad to see Medium go. Have pretty much hated it since day one. “Earl” and “Medium” do however deserve proper finales as both shows have been on the air for a considerable amount of time and fans deserve proper endings. Ah well. Pretty boring overall. Not sure I will follow Jay as a view when he moves to 10PM.
On a non-Chuck note, I am actually looking forward to Community. I love love the preview clip.
So… Heroes gets a half-season before xmas, Chuck gets a half-season in the new year, Medium is missing presumed cancelled, ditto for My Name Is Earl… and all so they can show Jay Leno 5 days a week?
If anyone needed proof that NBC have lost the plot, that schedule is all the proof they need. On Mondays, Heroes (sorry, Carnivale) and Trauma are doomed to fail against Fox’s double header of House and Lie to Me. I’m guessing NBC will be showing 24 hour winter olympics coverage if that’s how much they value their shows.
Nick I kind of agree on the viewing habits point, which is why I think the ‘slot sharing’ shows need to be matched up better than they are. It seems to me that if you put two shows with similar audiences in the same slot then the audience will likely stick with that slot. I’m not sure how many Trauma fans would stick with Day One for example but surely there’s some degree of overlap between Trauma and Mercy so why wouldn’t you put those two shows in the same slot and hope the audience sticks with it?
Of course this slot sharing only works out well if the shows that air in the fall don’t crash and burn. If that happens NBC is royally screwed.
Fall Mondays is a potential bomb. I just can’t see Heroes pick up viewers in the 8 hour and existing fanbase is trendiong downward (and will pick up speed barring 2-3 really fantastic initial episodes). I had a hard time finishing the Trauma script. I’m open to everything but I got bored quick. Barring amazing cast chemistry in the pilot I think it goes down in flames fast.
Thank God NBC has Community to infuse the Thursday lineup. Parks & Rec started off horrible but found its footing really late. That should be a good night and despite tough competition could even find a few more numbers (ok, DVR #, but # nonetheless). Its the best 4 block of comedy on any network.
LAw & Order+ Southland makes for a strong Friday night. I think NBC finally has a winning night. Imagine that- a Friday slot saves Southland’s skin.
Wow, the midseason schedule is exactly what I predicted in my best scenario for Chuck. I’m guessing NBC really does like Chuck and genuinely wants it to find some kind of footing. Sure, Mondays are tough but Tues/ Thurs could be worse and Fridays are usually death. Wednesdays could eventually be better- but not the best for what the show needs to live longer.
Why? The Olympics. Chuck spiked decently this past season following heavy advertisements from major event. My opinion is that is it wasn’t in 3-D those numbers could have retained somewhat. The Olympics provides with constant bombardment with network ads. Day One should be pimped out heavily and I don’t see why they wouldn’t do that for Chuck either. The day after the Olympics is a better launch than 3 days after (or 5). It’s a good pairing- and a safe one for NBC. They can feel confident with a +2.5 demo for their entire Monday block. With any luck and smart show pimping over the Olympics- this could be 3+. And that my friends would indeed be enough to save Chuck.
I’m surprised we did not see Chuck on Thursdays at 8, it seems to be a better fit
Alan: I can’t wait for mainstream America to get totally sick of Leno, now that he’s on when most of them are awake.
Hudson: Me too. I’d like to see a nice wrap-up since I’ve invested such a huge chunck of my time following the show.
David1, when I talked to BS it was just about CHUCK… so I can say they do have plans for the show that are going to make them money. The summer idea in my mind is smart. CHUCK just has to survive the break and the webisodes will keep the die hards happy. However that is a long, long, long break. If it can survive the break and hit that back 9 I think CHUCK could be around for a long time. The seasonal seasons are imho a good idea. USA does a great job with it as does HBO and Showtime.
If CHUCK can make the back 9, it’s golden. So fans should take advantage of the break with friends. At Christmas introduce them to the show with DVD sets.
Nick C, what do you think the chances are of Chuck getting the back 9 pickup and NBC airing it over the summer? Do you think that since NBC appears to be testing the idea of year round content that they’re going to go ahead and do it anyway, even if Chuck doesn’t necessarily perk up in the ratings (and by that I mean, at least if the show holds steady against Dancing, etc.)?
This is GREAT news, I can officially stop watching NBC. Medium was the ONLY thing left on the network I watched. Now that they have gotten rid of that there is no reason to turn that channel on and I can devote my time to better networks
I hope CBS does pick up medium, its a great show and I have no idea what is wrong with NBC for being so horrible to it all these years even though it has consistantly done well.
ack.. Nevermind, Nick! I see you just basically answered my question.
Dave Heroes seems to be sticking with the reduced 18 or 19 episode order and will run into January/early February along with everything else on the fall schedule. How long shows like Chuck and Mercy will run is another question completely. Nick suggested that NBC might be looking to carry over Chuck into the summer schedule for its back nine, which isn’t a bad idea and could potentially work well in terms of pushing their ‘year round programming’ agenda.
Not sure if anyone has read this link, but it says the Chuck cast won’t be messed with.
http://www.tvguide.com/News/Fall-TV-NBC-1006185.aspx?rss=keywords
Nick C, I hope you are right in that statement regarding Chuck potentially getting earlier start date due to new shows poor ratings and possible cancellations. If it can get started early enough and give 6 quality episodes it stands a good chance of getting the back 9 for after the Olympics. As for my NBC viewing, until Chuck starts its pretty much zero, I live in Canada and our national network (CBC) will have better Olympic coverage for us seeing how we are hosting it.
Seeya in 2010 NBC or sooner when something tanks and you bump Chuck ahead.
It will be interesting to see how heroes will do on 8 against house, and now i can get on with my life again… Until march i mean…
I have a drinking game going on. Every time somebody on this website mentions “Chuck” I have a shooter. I’m usually drunk by 9:00am.
WHY ARE PEOPLE ON THIS WEBSITE SO OBSESSED WITH CHUCK????
Let’s rename it “ChuckByTheNumbers.com”
Another variety talk show 5 days a week while scripted series are going away. Truly a shame. Talk shows and “reality” shows. Enough already!! How many times do I want to watch the same celebrites touting their latest project..Jay, Conan, Jimmy, etc….Bye Bye NBC at 10pm…now I won’t have to DVR..hello CBS and ABC!!!
Nick C., I agree and I wasn’t suggesting that NBC was doing anything but trying to make money. It’s a business. It seems like Chuck is a good show to test the waters with. It isn’t a hit such that it would be a great loss from a business standpoint if the test failed, but has the potential to be a big win if it succeeds. On another note, if Heroes runs 19 episodes up until the Olympics starts, and does not end before Christmas, then perhaps the viewing habit argument may work in NBC’s favor because those “released” Heroes viewers will want to start a new show rather than jump into the middle of a Fox or CBS show.
Alex, FNL will be mid-season because SOUTHLAND will be canceled.
I agree about viewing habits and split shows. When Angela told me that DAY ONE would be in the fall and then replaced by HEROES in the Winter I thought that was smart. Obviously this new line up is … different. There was pressure by stupid fans on HEROES and it’s going to kill the show. They should have shut up and waited because Fuller with that time frame likely would have delivered the goods, and DAY ONE may have held up enough that the time slot would be safe for them when they came back.
I suppose the real hope here is the Olympics totally screw up viewing habits. People watch the Olympics and see commercials for CHUCK, etc. and go “Hey I need to watch that,” and for CHUCK being the day after the Olympics it might win from that scenario.
I just would bet against it. Still I feel CHUCK at its worst will pull 1.8 in the timeslot if not a 2.0. Slowly give it time to get back to 2.4 and it should be ok.
From what is reported from execs and Kring, Heroes should get a 19 (almost) non-stop run. It’s been mostly down to its core audience by the end of this season, and will hardly go up (or down depending what else fans watch), even if it’s as good as its first season. Running against House and CBS’s sitcoms is a huge gamble though. That makes 3 differents type of shows and a reality show on the same spot. It could go either way, in my opinion.
For Chuck fans’. No real way to tell for now if they’ll tune on Heroes (solidarity? slot?) or go another direction. The real question is how many fans Heroes and Chuck have in common (and judging from Chuck fans bashing Heroes, I can’t really say there are much as far as I know). Chuck could actually do good at mid season, benefiting from Heroes viewers, and an eventual promotion during the olympics.
Day One with Heroes might have worked really well, with Chuck it might do ok.
Personally I think House is going downhill and might lose some viewers next season, ever since Hugh Laurie became a producer the show has lost its flavor.
I feel having to wait until Next year for Chuck is going to be brutal (I’m a Diehard fan), but having webisodes and promos all throughout the fall might be good for the show, and using Hulu/NBC.com to run them might mean some good promotional work, and with Subway and NBC/WB saying the budget will now stay intact, having Chuck run through the summer (if it gets a back 9) will not be bad, as all the other shows will be off the air by mid May.
NBC/Hulu better put up the complete Chuck 2nd season, because with the long delay it will need people to want to watch and get caught up. Maybe a promotional thing on HULU, like “Great TV You Might Have Missed”
People got to remember that the Summer has to be use to air new stuff as well, ever since cable and now the internet play a part in viewership, the networks need to air more orginal contant year round. Not to mention Cable shows do really well with the long delays, look at Monk, Rescue Me, Nip/Tuck, all have huge fan bases and the shows have short seasons and long waits betweeen. The only good thing about Cable is they reair the episodes a bunch of times for pepole to get a chance to see them. Personally Univrsal/NBC should air Chuck and heroes on SciFi or USA or Universal HD to get people caught up or attract new viewers.
Leno might do better than what many people think, he will be on more than any other scripted show, and is a breakup of the die hard drama shows of the old days of TV. Sure you might not tune in every night but if he gets decent numbers for maybe 2 of the 5 nights he will be staying.
We all know some shows wll not make it, and some of our favorite might take a hit until they get a greenlight for more episodes. Shows like Heroes needs shorter seasons, because the current amount it takes too long to tell one decent story. You tell writer they have 13 episodes they need a quicker storyline.
In theory HEROES airing in the fall/winter, and CHUCK spring/summer would be great for NBC if it worked. They just have to pull it off. When was the last time NBC pulled anything off?
SOUTHLAND had a great debut and died a swift and long, long, long death that won’t come until next Fall.
I wonder what they mean by webisodes. They had several this past season. And their quality was about that of a high school class project. If they don’t have Chuck and Sarah in them, what is the point?
Nick C. I’m curious how this schedule will affect NBC’s long-term future. Do you think next year we’re going to have to judge NBC’s ratings using a completely different measuring stick?
I ask that because it seems to me like Heroes and L&O are almost certainly entering their final seasons. Add in that Southland won’t make it, probably 2-3 other shows will fail, that opens a lot of space. Plus, if Leno utterly fails and they decide not to bring him back after his first season (or he decides to retire for real) that opens another five hours of programming.
I’m asking all this because I’m wondering if NBC will inevitably be forced to bring back average or under-performing shows simply because they lack anything else. I’ll admit my ulterior motive is wondering if Chuck can survive and get a fourth season and beyond, but I’m also curious about the network in general.
The only thing that I can think of that NBC is doing is that the olympics will take away the viewing habits that had been set, ie DWTS, if viewers miss a few weeks of the competition then those viewers may be up for grabs. But I don’t know if the winter olympics are that much of a ratings winner that they will disrupt the competition and put viewers into play.
To me it looks like NBC could have put Chuck on Fridays, but decided not to take the chance the show would crater. Looks like they want their stable show on Monday nights, even with the risk of an initial ratings drop since its been off the air for so long. The thinking may be they can “make up” for that by major promotions during the Olympics and their hope that the fans are doing the same intensity campaign then as they did with Subway, only with getting new viewers.
“I have a drinking game going on. Every time somebody on this website mentions “Chuck” I have a shooter.”
If that were true I’m sure you would have been dead from alcohol poisoning a long time ago.
Sorry…re-posting from another slot.
OK…Im split here…I LOVE that Chuck is going to be renewed, and that above all else takes the cake. A couple things though…I think Chuck would do much better on fridays as it had been rumoured. Monday is still going to be the 6-6.5 million Neilson viewers, but maybe NBC is ok and happy with that. Thats obviously the case or they wouldnt have put it back there. They have seen how other shows in that slot have tanked and decided Chuck is their Monday night show. I think the demise of Heroes in the fall in the same slot “could” keep Chuck around even longer during the summer, and BS may have that same thought.
I am pissed that they decided to put Heroes on in the Fall and Chuck the after the Olympics…The Olympics are up here in Canada, and I dont even watch em’.
To Nick C, Robert ( Bobo’) and Big Willy ( Bill )…is there a possibility, if NBC decides to, for Chuck to come on late fall in the instance that Southland, DOND, Heroes, or any of their other shows massively depleats in numbers?
Nick C,
Would Chuck be ready to go in the fall if/when Trauma or Parenthood dies? Or would they go with one of their new shows? Also how long is Leno guaranteed a spot?
Nick on the subject of viewing habits, maybe NBC is planning to play the long game on this and hoping that if they just stick with the Fall-Winter/Spring-Summer schedule that people will change their viewing habits over time? In theory if they can keep the cost on shows like Chuck low enough they don’t need to get blockbuster ratings to stay alive and when people point to the low ratings they can argue the ‘changing viewing habits’ line. If NBC is willing to stick with it and can luck into a couple of shows that catch fire then they may force the other networks to follow suit.
As it is I think if the Spring-Summer scheduling works out then the other networks may very well follow suit on that in the sense that they’ll do what ABC did this year order 5-6 episodes of new shows, put them on in March and if they work out order a back nine for the summer at the very least.
Southland and P&R continue their downhill slide and I see no reason for that not to continue. Its pretty safe to say that ALL the networks will have movement/changes when cancellations start, and we all know cancellations WILL happen, just a matter of which show, on which night.
Can a show get another season if they only are given 13 episodes this season.
@Sarah’s a hottie:
Yeah, a 13-episode order is a death sentence. Chuck got a second season after 13 episodes in season 1. Granted that was because of the strike, but either way it happened.
I meant ISN’T a death sentence…to the runners of this Web site, you need an edit function on comments.
In the end Chuck is the one of the more solid performers NBC has. Comparing it to Medium is fair, because of scheduling, however, My Name WAS Earl, pulling those numbers on Thursday (a typically strong night for NBC) is poor.
However, here is my question: Why Chuck over Medium? Medium scored as high on Mondays and the budge is cheaper. I am a huge Chuck fan, but maybe I am missing something with NBC choice of Chuck. Not complaining, just asking.
Chuck fans asked for it Mediums fans did not. According to Ben Silverman.
@Sarah, yes 13 is considered the minimum required for a season and many shows only get that but have several seasons.
When looking at this line-up, I see reasons for concern just about everywhere…
Monday, Heroes has been getting stale lately, and not sure what kind of lead in it provides for Trauma. I will be very interested to see how Heroes does in the Chuck timeslot (although I wanted Chuck there). I don’t think Trauma and Heroes will mix well. They won’t help each other at all, IMO.
Tuesday, all loser line up.
Wednesday, parenthood and then law and order? Again, no coherent theme for the night. No carry over effect.
Thursday, Office getting stale, and the SNL stint probably won’t work IMO without Sarah Plain to make fun of. Parks and Rec is stale. So they depend on Community to create some buzz for anybody except the Office fan base to have any reason to tune in to comedy thursday, and guess what, they change the community time slot around which means that some people will likely miss an episode or two. Further, people will still need to sit thru the dreadful Parks+ Rec to get from community to the office. I am assuming community is even a hit, which we don’t know! If the Office has to carry that whole night, expect no more than 7 million viewers, IMO.
Friday, law and order gets Chuck level ratings currently and will not benefit from that Friday time slot, and Southland has appeared to fizzle. It is not compelling enough as a new series for people to tune in and catch the last few episodes. So Friday seems like non compelling tv on NBC.
What already annoys me about NBC is having to avoid some of the really stinky shows. For instance, I would watch Earl on Thursday but then have to turn the channel with that terrible Kathy and Kim show and wait for the office to come on. I prefer to just leave one channel on and let it ride but Thursday night is getting really lame on NBC, and not very funny. So you end up skipping half the comedies instead of having comedy night. And for me that ends up meaning that I usually miss part of the Office.
NBC needs coherent schedules. I actually thought that Chuck, Heroes and Medium was a coherent line up (although ratings challenged on a Monday).
I am not as pessimistic that Leno will fail as many people, I just need to see what happens on that front. Do people want to tune into that kind of show at ten? Million dollar question. Maybe or maybe not.
Dustin,
Here’s what Ben Silverman had to say, per this link:
http://hollywoodinsider.ew.com/2009/05/nbc-announces-f.html
“A couple of our shows were aging as we were getting younger,” explains NBC Entertainment Co-Chairman Ben Silverman. “And the demand for Chuck that came from online and the advertising base made us have to pick up that show. The other shows, there was not that kind of attention or energy.”
I’m planning on catching up on Chuck so even if I don’t watch it yet, I hope it survives. While Heroes is probably going in it’s last season, Heroes audience might be a good plus for Chuck. After the olympics, they’ll probably be more inclined to watch Chuck starting than catching up on House.
That’s why I’m expecting Chuck to go up more than seeing Heroes go up. Of course if Chuck viewers can help Heroes, it could help too.
I trust Fuller to get a hold on the stupid ideas the other Heroes’ writers seem to get (there are good other writers, don’t get me wrong, but since they’re like 20, there has to be someone to filter the good from the bad). That’s why I said I hope they go out on a good note. Starting at mid-season could have helped, but I’ll take what I can get.
About House. The episode pattern (almost died – survives) annoys me, and even Hugh Laurie can’t save it for me (he’s still awesome though). After last years 2-episodes-finale (which were the best eps they did and will ever do), I kinda had hopes for it, but this season has been horribly disapointing. Hopefully it’s not just me, and Heroes (and consequently Chuck) can benefit from it, but if it’s last season (likely), there is still BBT-HIMYM that I prefer watching over House. The only little character development House’s characters get are on the finale (except for the recruit part of S4), which aren’t that much episode to watch.
Meant to say ‘Sarah Palin’ not Sarah plain…
Dustin I assume that WB was able to make a better deal with NBC for Chuck (probably involving the Legally Mad penalty) than CBS was able to make with them for Medium.
dustin, swap Medium with Chuck this past season and I think you have your answer, the 10 pm timeslot was nothing compared to the hellish 8 pm slot and Chuck survived it, can’t say I could say the same about Medium or any other NBC show.
The only things NBC has to offer for me personally is The Office and Parks & Recreation which I happen to think is not half bad. By episode 6 it seems to have worked out pretty nice.
That is WAY TOO MUCH Leno!. I’m just not interested. Seems like something the 50+ crowd might go for but I don’t see any young people rushing to their TV’s for that. I wonder what the point of Jay leaving the Tonight show was? I mean this is just a rebranding of the same thing. It’s a talk show, what else can you do really? Seems like a waste off time.
None of the new shows seem at all interesting. YAWN!
When will we find out about Criminal Intent?
Tiffany Criminal Intent will be renewed (or not) at the USA upfront although I don’t know when that is…
tiffany, Criminal Intent airs new episodes on USA, it’s in a new cycle now. NBC airs repeats only as filler.
Edit: USA already had its upfront, but we didn’t get the schedule. I will look for it.
I wonder how many posts we can go without mentioning “Chuck”.
Let’s try it! For fun…
@Alan:
Chuck….had to do it.
I’m guessing a whole bunch of program shuffling come the end of October by all networks, NBC more than any.
Leno was replaced by Conan, because that was supposed to be the succesion. Leno still wanted to be on TV, and he would have been on ABC if NBC didn’t do something about it. Personally NBC didn’t want another Letterman issue, Conan could have easily gone to another network as well. It was a kind of win/win keeping Leno and Conan.
I think Leno only got a one year deal, so if the 10PM show doesn’t work, expect ABC/Fox to start baiting him for another Late night show.
Well Heroes will likely have a spike in viewers in the fall because of ZQ’s appeal and rave reviews from Star Trek. It could be a great opportunity to get the show back on track; of course that is if they don’t epically screw it up.
Nick C, I owe you an apology…I really thought you were full of it, but it seems you are a man who knows what you are talking about. I realize now that information changes daily and you are only reporting what you know. I apologize for my previous rudeness.
The more I look at Wed., the more odd it looks. In the Fall, it’s Parenthood (which NBC picked up without a pilot because it looked so good on paper), followed by SVU and then Leno. Parenthood, a family show about kids and parents dealing with family stuff with some comedy thrown in, followed by SVU where parents deal with the death and/or molestation of their child??? followed by, Leno “an alternative to murder and death at 10″. Then, in the Winter, Parenthood, which was so great, is off (unless it’s moved to fill a hole for a failed show) to have a medical (and presumably people dying) show at 8. Really, really odd programing.
This is posted at EZTV but with no source…
* NBC has pulled the plug on My Name is Earl. The show’s sidekick, Ethan Suplee, confirmed the news via Twitter. “Just got the call that My Name Is Earl has been canceled,” he wrote. “They sure did take their time with that decision — or rather informing us of it.” An Earl insider says execs at 20th Century (the show’s producer) are in discussions with Fox and ABC about picking up the four-year-old comedy.
* NBC has passed on ordering another season of Medium. However, CBS, which owns the show, is expected to pick it up and pair it on Fridays with Ghost Whisperer.
http://eztv.it/index.php?main=tvnews&show_news=3828
Chuck is gone after that 13 episode run anyway – and I was interested in “DAY ONE” – but it’s mid-season against 24 – so i may tape DAY ONE……but I’m not giving up 24…Jack RULES!!!
and Jay Lamo is not going to work – it’s……how shall I put this? …………..A STUPID idea!
Well, we have to patiently wait and see if CBS will renew ‘Medium’ and air it.
I should not be scared, but rumaors have been rampant that ‘Medium’ was renewed as confirmed 2 weeks ago, now it has bene canceled.
Until CBS says something, nothing is official. However, I highly doubt they would let the Lifetime syndicated week-day deal die and lsoe all of that money.
I really want to be positive and believe that NBC is doing the right thing. However the things that are bothering me with this are.
1. Same horrendous time-slot
2. Long 10 month delay casues audience erosion
3. Ratings expecatations
I am sure NBC is expecting the ratings to go up because of the Olympics but I am afraid of the head start all the other shows will have on Chuck. Do we think people will stop watching DWTS, House and BBT/HIMYM in the middle of the year. They have invested months into those shows. Maybe we get some of the Heroes audience but that is a big if.
We also had the Olympic promo for the summer olympics for Season 2 and we still lost millions of viewers from the strike. We also had that time slot for a whole year. Obviously Ben Silverman didn’t think our ratings were good enough to get renewed so we needed a renewal campaign and Subway to save the show.
Now wait another 10 months and loose all that good buzz from the campaign, now try to get good enough ratings for a pick up of the back 9 with even more audience erosion let alone another season.
Just my observations.
Is ‘Poker After Dark’ canceled?
NBC is a disaster. And it only took five years to get there.
I see very little of interest.
Maybe they should step back from A1849 and try to garner VIEWERS.
Why is it that FOX can handle their 15 hours better than NBC?
Is Medium gone for good? That doesn’t make sense. It could still be produced and used as a replacement. With NBC’s standard practice of having well over half of all their new shows being complete failures, they’re going to have openings in their schedule soon enough. Like Law & Order, they need to keep something around that they can count on to get over 3 million viewers.
I know somepeople really love Olympics but I can’t think of anything worse clogging up the airwaves.
Even TV by the Numbers figured out that Chuck increases their hits. So I expect them to keep Chuck in the mix. Chuck may save this network. Go Chuck go!
“UPDATE: NBC has announced they have ordered 19 episodes for Heroes Season 4, presumably to run back-to-back without interruptions.”
The source is reliable but well, if anybody can confirm, well, he/she can confirm it. ^^
Michaela, true about ZQ in Star Trek as a rating bumper. While it’s true, his character is one of the things that divide the actual audience :
- Some are tired of Sylar because his storyline just go around in circle (count me in), at the expense of other characters being underdevelopped/killed off.
- Others think Sylar is awesome no matter what and that ZQ is a living god.
And people belonging to both those groups could stay/leave because of the end of S3 (people who watch will understand why).
The beggining of the season (and what they do with Sylar) will tell us quickly, rating-wise, if we can expect the numbers to go up or heavily down.
Nick C – No, Chuck isn’t scheduled to return in January. The release above says,
“NBC’s shared time period strategy will kick off this fall on Mondays with the premiere of “Heroes” (8-9 p.m. ET) continuing with all originals before “Chuck” assumes the time period after the 2010 Winter Olympic Games”
So Chuck looks like it will run from March 1 to May 24, if they stick to the schedule.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
As a Chuck fan, I’m ambivalent about this schedule. Obviously I’m thrilled that they’re coming back. I don’t doubt that the writers will make the best of 13 episodes — the show is at its best when it’s moving the story arc forward anyway.
On the one hand, I thought Day One was a natural fit for Heroes, but then again, Heroes jumped the shark hard after the first season. I’m pleasantly surprised they aren’t giving it a full season this year.
I’m surprised that they kept Chuck in the same spot after it suffered in that time slot last year. I don’t know if Big Bang Theory is going anywhere (I hope it’s moved, but have my doubts), and House is still there.
I think NBC has a good chance to promote the show with the Winter Olympics, which might help make up for the fact that they can’t bring in young males using Sunday night football. NBC’s Super Bowl promotion of the show was a big success, but unfortunately that 3-D episode was one of the weakest episodes of the season, and the next week’s show was preempted by Obama, which crushed Chuck’s ratings the next week.
Also, as mentioned above, this gives Chuck fans a chance to introduce new viewers to the show with the DVDs. The show’s numbers appear to have stabilized, and they can be built up by word of mouth, especially with the anticipation coming out of the last several episodes of Season 2. Viewers need a chance to get introduced to the show — most of Chuck’s problem is that people don’t know about it.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Putting Parenthood and SVU together on Wednesdays seems odd to me.
However, they were absolutely right to put L&O and Southland together. Those shows are basically compatible, and if Southland has any chance at all, that’s the right place for it to get some support and breathing room.
Finke was spreading the rumor of a Chuck-Southland Friday, which would have been a downright awful pair.
Chuck in March… hmm…
Well, possible advantages:
The Winter Olympics will have a lot of time slots for commercials and has in the past been a strong draw for viewers (especially since the Olympics are in North America this time around, making the time zone issues significantly less of a problem) so if Chuck gets promotional support from that, especially if the promos are targeted at the more popular events, such as the ice skating/dancing competitions, it should help remind folks that Chuck is on the return path to television. Granted the Winter Olympics are not quite as popular as its cousin Summer Olympics but it is still a major draw most of the time.
Longer time frame before returning to air does allow for more thought, planning, and examination of stories so scripts can potentially be in a more polished form, thus having less chance of clunker moments slipping through. Potentially the Chuck stories rolling off of the reel could be the best yet, script-wise.
Vancouver is not far away from Los Angeles so the Chuck cast can be up in the Olympic village doing “on-the-spot” pieces and getting recognition for the show. Casey can interview the ice and speed skaters, Yvonne can talk with the ski jumpers and bobsleders, Chuck can exchange stories with the downhill crowd and curlers, Jeffster can try not to get arrested.
Maybe they can also put Subway’s logo on all the gates in the ski runs and the crew and drive around town in a Crown Vic. Perhaps they can even come up with some unofficial competitions like snowmen building, Subway discus toss, a polar bear dip in some cold water. 
Consecutive run of episodes could maintain, if not boost, interest. Predictable and steady is what folks want… this arrangement offers that.
Qualified advantage: SAG is sending out the ballots for the strike vote today (just heard it on the radio) and if they vote in favor of the contract (warts and all) then that potential road spike strip will be removed from the landscape of television production.
Possible downsides:
Overexposure potential in commercials at the Olympics may turn some people off to caring about Chuck or whatever else is being advertised and, given NBC’s proclivity at sandwiching bits of competition between blocks of commercials and talking heads at times during this event that is a (admittedly remote) concern. I point this out because I have worn out a mute button or two during the Olympics in the past because of this practice (full disclosure).
9+ months is a long time to wait for the return of a show. Some shows do not have a problem with this (24, Burn Notice, Eureka) but Chuck is an unknown here. People who are moderately committed or curious will need reminders (such as Olympics spots). The Christmas story would be a good idea although I am sure the contract dynamics to make that happen could be interesting. Thanksgiving or even Halloween would also be good times (where is that sandworm?)
Questionable choice of a time slot although (a) that could change if shows start bombing early and NBC ends up putting together a scrambled schedule and (b) NBC is running into buzzsaws in most time slots anyway so, truthfully, it’s more a matter of finding a better slot in comparison than finding a good slot period. That is a network-wide problem that probably won’t improve until NBC’s offerings improve.
Well, Chuck has its 3rd season and chance to make it beyond that. This may be its best chance, too, if it’s promoted properly. It’s a long wait… hope it is worth it. Good luck, Chuck.
Sorry, didn’t realize the post was that long. I’ll trim it next time :-/
It wont be 10 months with no Chuck. Their will be webisodes (no word on who will be in them and what the prduction quality will be), hopefully on par with the Office and Rescue me webisodes, and most likely some kind of Chuck/Subway promotion during the fall/winter to get viewers attention. Sure the Olympics will take away some buzz from some shows, I even bet Fox/Abc/Cbs will put on reruns to counter some loses, just think what the MLB playoffs will do for Fox in the October. You also have the Season 2 DVDs sometime this summer/fall, plus the opertunity for the cable networks to run the show to pick up some fans for NBC. Not saying this will happen but the people over at NBC have to think about it at least a little.
I can see the following skit on Jay Leno’s version of Celebrity Jeopardy.
Answer: “100 QUESTIONS”
Celebrity #1 “What is a new show on NBC this season?”
Leno: “Sorry wrong”
Celebrity #2 “What do NBC executives have every time they look at their primetime schedule?”
Leno “Correct!”
Was ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’ already dumped?
We also had the Olympic promo for the summer olympics for Season 2 and we still lost millions of viewers from the strike.
The Beijing Olympics ended August 24. Chuck’s season started September 29. These situations are hardly analogous.
Ohhhh, I forgot that NBC had the Winter Olympics. Now we know the reason for Chuck’s short preorder of episodes and the “bad news” about the scheduling. The Winter Games interrupt their broadcast schedule.
I hope NBC does “Olympic Ice” and “Push Dick’s Button” again. Those were really funny, tongue-in-cheek reports on figure skating, lol.
I still think this is a huge gamble on the part of NBC to hold their shows until after the Olympics. I’m not sold that the Winter Olympics are the TV juggernaut that the Summer Olympics are.
CHUCK was saved by Subway. BS isn’t going to say that publicly, but it was saved by Subway. I’ve long thought that the future for Networks was the return to “sponsorship,” like in the beginning of TV. CHUCK is partnered/sponsored by SUBWAY now. I think that also means a future for CHUCK if the fans show support to SUBWAY.
As for webisodes my understanding is that they will be much higher quality than the crap NBC has had on in the past on their site. For it to work it needs to have a decent level of quality.
Here’s a question to ponder. If a fall show is canceled and Chuck has a chance to air episodes early, SHOULD THEY? The end of Season 2 set the show up for a sort of reboot in Season 3, a point in the series which could serve as a great time to introduce new viewers. If Chuck did start early, would any promotions it recieves during the olympics be as effective at catching new viewers if it is part way through the season? Chuck did get a big boost following the Superbowl last year in midseason, but as I recall, it did not retain many a huge portion of those. Do we existing fans want instant gratifcation of it coming back in the sooner or is patience key toward long-term sustainability of the show.
Also, do we know if Big Bang Theory/HIMYM will be returning to the same time slot? Despite the big House and DWTS numbers, I still feel the CBS comedies were the biggest obstacle.
However BS is an attention whore. As such I believe that he plans on taking full advantage of this whole CHUCK media thing. I really believe that NBC will promote the heck out of it during the Olympics in hopes of creating more hype on top of the renewal hype. You know pretty much the exact opposite of what CBS did with JERICHO.
CBS had a good thing with JERICHO and they could have totally taken advantage of the hype, but instead treated it poorly. I don’t see BS ignoring the vast attention potential because he is such an attention whore. So maybe that will be a good thing for CHUCK.
I think not putting it on Friday shows that he wants to do something with it.
Don’t worry, it WILL work out! Most everyone moaned about being put on Friday (the “death” spot for a show). Some talked about Sunday nights after the NFL season – which again wouldn’t be until the winter for the start of Season 3. Look at what LOST does? They come on after the new year and the dominate the 18-49 viewer ratings. Yes, I know CHUCK will still be up against stiff competition on Monday nights, but honestly, I think people are starting to tire a little of “Dancing with the Stars,” and maybe even HOUSE will start showing it’s “age” next season. If NBC uses the Olympics correctly and promotes the heck out of CHUCK, this could be a big help. And if NBC also uses all of their “late night shows” – which I still include Leno (and Conan, and Fallon, and Carson Daly) to put CHUCK cast members on for interviews – esp. Zach and YVONNE that would help tremendously. NBC is doing something completely different with what they’re doing with SUBWAY. And lets not forget that Subway is a MAJOR corporate sponsor (they either have more franchises than McDonalds or are right up there with McDonalds) – that is a BIG DEAL to have them backing a show so strongly.
Now we will continue to have to do our work of promoting the show. I’ve been advocating on as many CHUCK sites as possible a “CHUCK Christmas!” For Christmas (or whatever other holiday you may celebrate in December), give only CHUCK DVDs as gifts to friends and family! Give Season 1 or both 1 & 2. Get people watching the show in January and February – get them hooked and they’ll be primed for the start of Season 3 in March. This CAN succeed. If NBC does their part right and we continue to do the amazing work that we’ve done – and which NBC has already stated is responsible for CHUCK being renewed – we can make this work. Ben Silverman even said there’s a possibility of picking up more CHUCK episodes to run during the summer after the original 13 number. And let’s be honest – most “new” shows – and I don’t care what network you’re talking about – wind up tanking. It’s possible that CHUCK could be moved up on the schedule if too many of the new NBC shows tank. Not that we want that to happen. We want those shows to succeed. But if they should fail, something has to fill the void – and that something could be CHUCK. So be hopeful people – and HAPPY. We have a Season 3! Not every fan of every show can say that. We can and WILL make it work.
Just remember come December: “I’m dreaming of a “CHUCK” Christmas (or Hanakuh, or Kwanza or whatever else is celebrated then!). Be Happy! Peace, all! And congratualtions EVERYONE for helping save CHUCK. WE DID IT!!!
As far as the budget goes on chuck how much of that is spin on BS part when he said they weren’t looking to cut costs.
Is a quick burn through of 13 episodes and no season 4 then yes I will take the early schedule. How do you know that the layoff is going to be offset by the new viewers. Mark my words Chuck’s ratings will suck in Season 3. We are going to be wishing for that 2.4. That the finale got.
I just don’t see the Olympics as that big of a push to make up for the audience erosion. I am expecting that many of those Chuck fans will latch on to BBT/HIMYM. It happened before and it happened again.
Man Happy Chuck is back but seriously pissed off at the schedule.
Ok my thoughts, and this they really are just my opinions;
1) Leno may work 2 or 3 nights a week, 5 is asking for trouble
2) Anyone else notice how many “Heroes” fans are upset with the 8pm Mondays timeslot? A lot of people argue how well Chuck does due to House, DWTS, and CBS’s comedies, finally NBC is putting another show that should draw in some viewers (unlike DoND) so we’ll see the bariometer. (i pro bably mispelled that)
3) NBC is full of morons if they think this is a good schedule, I’m not saying I could do better, but I don’t get paid for producing a good schedule.
and thoughts about users comments on Chuck (because that and the Office are the only 2 nbc shows i watch and no one is debating the office);
1) Sarah working at Subway is a good idea
2) Subway promoting the crap outta the show will help attract a new audience
3) I think of Chuck as a cross-genre show so it could fit with any other shows, however moving it into a weaker timeslot would be benefically (shocking conclusion, i know)
4) Right now, forget the rumors and the ifs and buts, lets have all the chuck fans help recruit more and more viewers
5) FINALLY, and sorry for rambling, I like the USA reruns idea/moving Chuck to USA if it does not succeed next year, which god willing won’t be an issue!
I agree compeltely with NICK C , maybe this is a big risky game and it will fail , but I’m sure that the intention form BS is to squize any possible dollar from chuck with this new sponsorship from SUBWAY .
There is no reason to confirm the 8pm Monday time slot if they do not believe that CHUCK is a vualuable asset .
The only things we can say for sure is that this is NOT the same Jericho situation…said that there is room for failure of course
MEDIUM has been downgraded to SMALL – very small, as in its so small you wont be able to see it next season without an electron microscope.
Actually, a Jeffster show at a Whistler club would be a great “human interest/odd event of the week” during the Olympics. Is anyone at NBC listening?
As far as webisodes, BSG did what I thought was a good run of 10 or so Webisodes about New Caprica. If they are that quality, then it would be great. It might also also be the way to bridge the “Guys, I know Kung Fu” moment with the season 10 months later.
One last idea, if the Webisodes are done well, and I mean really well, they could be integrated with TV commercials. For example, Subway could have a commercial where with a character (Sarah) working at Subway making a $5 footlong (hence the commercial), with Casey and Chuck rushing in and all three going to the Castle. The commercial ends with a “For what happens next, go to http://www….” The webisode then becomes an extended commercial, but hopefully with quality content. The viewer then goes to Subway’s site, or NBC or Hulu, sees another Subway Commercial (talk about reinforcing the produce) and then sees some of the show. Link it to past episodes and some additional creative (not lame) on line content, and the commercial exposure could be multiples per person.
Sarah’s a hottie : for sure you are not a “glass half full ” man
I suggest to look to MEDIUM and MNIE … and then please look to the “OMGhowyoucanputlenoeveryday!” schedule
I think the bad news was to do not see on this schedule CHUCK at all …and from what I’m reading …without Subway CHUCK was out togheter with MEDIUM and MNIE .
Does anyone remember that deal with Hilary Duff, the show was called Barely Legal. Is that not happening anymore?
Subway supported Chuck, because the fans supported Subway. So Chuck is left standing because of Team Bartowsky. I think Chuck will do fine on this schedule.
Now the question in, can ‘Chucks’ online fans equate to solid ratings?
They have not yet…why now?
Nick, it seems that NBC CAN fit 19 episodes of “Heroes” in if it runs all the way to the Olympics. And they’d even be able to take a couple of weeks off for the Holidays. If Fuller can right the ship, I see a fifth season as a distinct possibility. These uninterrupted runs are a good thing.
mwa , maybe the question is ( and maybe NICK C or Robert or Bill can answer much better then me ) …. does CHUCK 3 need exactly the same rating of CHUCK 2 to have a CHUCK 4?
My understanding is that NBC is going to spend less money for CHUCK , so are we sure we need 6 MM viewers and 2,4 rating ?
If i’m right , the important is that SUBWAY has a payback …and I have understood that the online fans succeed to give this to SUBWAY already
so….
“2) Subway promoting the crap outta the show will help attract a new audience”
I’m not sure you understand the concept of a sponsorship deal – Subway isn’t paying NBC (or WB I’m not sure who they struck the deal with) for the right to promote Chuck, it works the other way around Subway is paying to be promoted. There will no doubt be Chuck related stuff within Subway but I’m not seeing them promoting the hell out of Chuck because that’s not really how it works. And I’m not sure if the cast of Chuck appearing in Subway commercials (which seems a logical next step) is really going to help boost the show that much… but maybe I’m wrong on that.
“5) FINALLY, and sorry for rambling, I like the USA reruns idea/moving Chuck to USA if it does not succeed next year, which god willing won’t be an issue!”
If Chuck doesn’t pan out next season then its dead or The WB is actually giving the show to NBC for free. Exactly what the definition of panning out will be for Chuck next season is a matter open for debate but if you give the show three seasons, which includes Super Bowl promotion, a sponsorship deal with Subway and promotion from the Olympics plus a campaign to save it from cancellation and it still doesn’t work out then its probably time to cut your loses.
And David1 Parenthood is I suspect on a similar deal to Heroes (and I’d guess Trauma) with an episode order of around 19 that will see it run through to the Olympics before being replaced by Mercy. I can’t see any other way NBC is going to make this schedule work if that’s not the case. As has been said already midseason for NBC at least next season means March not January.
NBC is placing Southland on Fridays at 9, and ABC has Ugly Betty there. Looks like Dollhouse just got some more drama competition. So either the public will change their Friday viewing habits or all 3 shows are doomed to 1.0 demo’s.
Question to someone in the know. What kind of ratings would Chuck need to get a back 9 and a season 4. Second question are these ratings attainable given the place Chuck is put in. Does Subway lower that threshold because they have a sponsorship deal with Chuck.
I am just trying to makes sense of this bombshell. Now don’t get me wrong I am estatic that Chuck is back but Mondays at 8 in 10 months not as happy as I once was.
UH what Chuck needs to survive will depend on what the rest of the schedule does, how the Subway deal works out and quite possibly how Leno pans out at 10. If everything else on the schedule does much better than Chuck next season then it could average a 2.4 and still get canned if NBC needs to space next year. Alternatively if Leno bombs and they don’t want him back next year Chuck could average a 2.0 and in theory still be back because NBC needs to fill the schedule.
At this point I’d think this years average is a good sign of where Chuck needs to be next year and if it doesn’t at least match that then you should probably be worried, smaller license fee or not.
I guess Heroes and Chuck will get limited episode orders and will be treated more like serial series with Heroes airing in the fall and Chuck in midseason, good move. The biggest loser airing 2 hours on tuesday was expected along with the 2 hour comedy block for thursdays. Wednesday combo of Parenthood and SVU should turn out OK, but Parenthood will likely not do so well. Friday combo of Southland & Law & order looks good too but since its fridays, hopefully the shows will get a break. All I hope is that the cancelled Medium moves to CBS and the cancelled Earl moves to FOX.
LA Times is reporting that CBS will pick up Medium; CBS Television Studios releases an (appropriately) huffy statement about NBC’s treatment of the show:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/
Could Subway become to Chuck what DirecTV became to FNL for a Season 4 if ratings are mediocre?
I see this Subway deal as a good thing as long as they don’t screw up the integration part. If it’s done well then fans will not feel like it’s one big Subway commercial and keep watching. If fans can continue a support campaign during the season for Subway then I think ratings become less an issue than before. In either case they have to hope the buzz around all of this doesn’t go away in the next 10 months.
Nick C is right, we might be seeing a return to the old model of sponsorship that worked in the past.
Last thought: Doesn’t this prove that the Nielsen system needs to be re-thought or at least become only part of the equation when measuring a show’s value in the future?
Chuck was doing great then House came and then it all went down hill. Then the last two episodes it was up again. Now 10 months and when you return you still have to face the same competition that was kicking it’a ass last year.
Smart very smart NBC. Either Chuck has a lower renewal threshold or it is real trouble.
Patrick , maybe I’m wrong , but this is from CBS Television Studios ( seller ) that need to sell to CBS the show …. We have seen in this days ( Dollhouse docet ) that the performance are not everythings
And Alex , maybe you are right , but in this case I did not undesrtood nothing of the partnership agreement between NBC and SUBWAY
BOTTOM LINE CHUCK FANS is that NBC showed its true colors by not putting Chuck on its fall lineup. THEY FEARED A BACKLASH IF THEY CANCELED CHUCK(which they wanted to do), so they threw a bone to Chuck fans by the show being a midseason replacement.
To Chuck haters on this board, hear me out. If Chuck was scheduled for the fall and after 13 episodes the ratings didn’t justify to NBC to keep the show on, I’d be all right. Chuck fans (like me) would be thankful that the show lasted for 2 1/2 seasons.
Alex, I understand that Chuck will promote Subway, however I would think it would be in Subway’s best interest to have a “Chuck Bartowski Special” or something to that effect, because if Chuck’s numbers dwindle then Subway wasted money which could have been used advertising elsewhere. That’s my thinking into why Subway would help promote the show, while the show promotes Subway.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2009/05/cbs-tv-studios-to-nbc-cancellation-of-medium-is-inexplicable.html
Show Tracker: What you’re watching
« Critic’s Notebook: ‘Gossip Girl’ at season’s end | Main
CBS picks up NBC’s ‘Medium,’ says cancellation is ‘inexplicable’
12:06 PM PT, May 19 2009
NBC may have canceled ‘Medium,’ but the show’s producer, CBS Television Studios, is not ready to pull the plug just yet.
Corporate sibling CBS will pick up the show.
But either way, the studio is not happy, releasing the following statement Tuesday morning: “NBC’s cancellation of ‘Medium’ is inexplicable to us.”
Then it got ugly: “The ratings don’t lie. ‘Medium’ outperforms many of NBC’s renewed shows. Despite inconsistent scheduling, ‘Medium,’ under the creative vision of Glenn Gordon Caron, one of the most preeminent producers in television, has always performed with distinction both creatively and commercially. Multiple award-winning actress Patricia Arquette and the cast have delivered a stellar series for five consistent seasons. The awards and ratings speak for themselves. We believe the show has a significant future and await developments.”
Developing …
– Denise Martin
This is GOOD news for ‘Medium’ fans!
@JT
Nielson is quickly becoming a thing of the past. However, they have time to change their model, and I imagine they will take into account other factors. Either that or someone else will swoop in and try to take their empire.
Bruce W …. what is this backlash BS should worry about ? BS as ANY net exec in the world, cares of fans only if they can really bring money to the network , if he does not see this opportunity he just ( correctly )ignores the fans …as FOX has done with TSCC fans …this is businnes
NBC can fit 19 eps and it looks like they will.
I’m not specially mad at the move to 8PM. But, it looks like a poker bet that could go either way.
House is a big problem, but I’m getting tired of it (and I’m not the only one), which could be in favor of Heroes … or BBT-HIMYM that could then be a bigger problem.
The beginning of the season will tell us quickly if we can expect the ratings to go up (if it’s REALLY good – Fuller is the one who can right the ship) with the eventuality of a fifth season, or sink to death.
Wait. No Knight Rider?
Heroes went off the deep end this year, I won’t be watching except maybe on HULU when I have time. Unless they right the writing ship it will be a goner next year.
read this:
http://sepinwall.blogspot.com/2009/05/chuc…vs-renewal.html
An interview with Chris, plus a partial transcript of what BS had to say about Chuck (click on the NJ.com link).
From everything I’m reading NBC is behind Chuck 100%. Webisodes, negating the budget cuts, I think all we can do is hope for the best now. A lot of shows that became great hits like Seinfeld and X Files had to go through some growing pains. We all know what a quality show Chuck is, we just have to help people find their way to it, and hope that the Winter Olympics is the launching pad NBC is hoping it will be. That’s all we can do.
Read it but how can Chuck do better with 10 months off in the same time slot that it occupied this year and had one week off and it almost killed the show.
Chuck in March for only 13 is a sure way to kill the show.
With the webisodes think of all the stuff you will miss if this show picks up with team Chuck 10 months later.
March is not the same as September. That is almost a year long hiatus.
Allot can happen on a show and between characters during that time.
The Webisodes almost gurantee that.
Imkeh …the link does not work , can you send it again ?
I think Chuck in it’s normal timeslot come midseason is a lot better than Fridays. We all thought that it was going to Fridays to die and looks like Southland got that treatment instead. I can’t imagine waiting until midseason will hurt the show has much as a Friday night airing, it is after all stable in that timeslot.
My guess is that the 9 month wait won’t impact the ratings much. The show is never going to be a top 10 or even top 20 show — it’s too quirky and mythology-laden for that. It seems to me, however, that Chuck has a hard core fan base of about 6 million who would tune in any time.
As long as NBC/WB can keep finding a way to make the $$ work with 6+ million viewers (would it be too much to ask for 8M ala “Bones”?), Chuck will have a place on the schedule.
Imkeh says:From everything I’m reading NBC is behind Chuck 100%. Webisodes, negating the budget cuts, I think all we can do is hope for the best now. A lot of shows that became great hits like Seinfeld and X Files had to go through some growing pains. We all know what a quality show Chuck is, we just have to help people find their way to it, and hope that the Winter Olympics is the launching pad NBC is hoping it will be. That’s all we can do.
The difference is that Seinfeld and the X-Files never had their Network have an almost 11 month gap between seasons.
With NBC’s recent track record, I’m worried.
Apologies to Alan’s liver, but CHUCK will do fine and get the extra 9 episode pickup if:
* NBC promotes the show heavily during the Winter Olympics
* The webisodes are frequent (at least a new one each week during the fall– hopefully NBC is paying for these!)
A plus would be a little blurb before Heroes saying Chuck will return in this time slot after the Olympics.
The fans wouldn’t have worked this hard to let it fail. CHUCK is paid for by NBC and Subway. Get some more viewers and a Season 4 pickup (and more) will be easy.
UH go here:
http://sepinwall.blogspot.com/
So the schedule so far, with most interesting hours to see:
Tuesday at 9. Reality^3. Wednesday at 8: If Top Model returns there, will it still occasionally get #1 in young people thanks to weak competition? Wednesday at 9: Will SVU succeed in a new day/time & will Glee do decently enough to deserve a post-Idol slot?
Thursday at 9 will likely be the most interesting. Friday at 9 is tons more competitive than before.
Sunday at 9 will probably be about the same as this season, but the # of high-rated shows there still intrigues.
So, um, every night at 9 basically.
Okay….I’m sure this has been explained before, but I just don’t understand the Jay Leno thing. He’s retiring from his talk show airing 5 nights a week to having another talk show 5 nights a week? Or is it NOT a talk show? Is it a variety show? Why is NBC giving this guy another show?
We don’t now the depth of the Subway integration yet and how much money they put up to get whatever they are getting. Since they let Medium and Earl go I would be willing to bet that whatever the deal is, NBC did it because they are probably making money on Chuck now. This is business and as much as BS says the fans saved the show, the money behind the scenes must now make sense.
The long layoff hurts the core fan but but new viewers might be more likely to try a show if the new shows on during the Fall don’t impress. Also, having to break multiple times(holidays) and then stop for the Olympics would be much worse to me than getting a consecutive 13 show run, and maybe 9 more for the summer.
If Fox wants to Kill NBC once and for all they need to do is institute a thirs hour of primetime at 7:00 making NBC the only major network with 2 hours of primetime.
How does having webisodes of Chuck help the show get new viewers? It only appeases (somewhat) the fan base. NBC and it’s executives deserve all the bad karma its getting.
domajoho, Leno retired. Conan got his spot. Then Leno decided to not retire, so NBC gave him another show to revent him from going to another network.
@Nick C
It’s impressive that everything you’ve been saying about Chuck has come to pass. Hijacking this NBC post to satisfy my own curiosity – you tell Julia above that “Body Politic” over at CW will either be on Fridays or midseason. Does that mean “Light Years” is dead? And you’ve actually watched the BP pilot? I’d like to get in on that…
But back to NBC: great news about “Chuck.” Guess all those boxes of Nerds had an effect.
The link is too long so the board truncates it resulting in an incorrect link.
http://sepinwall.blogspot.com/2009/05/chuck-chris-fedak-vs-renewal.html
with a space between the 9 and /
http://sepinwall.blogspot.com/2009 /05/chuck-chris-fedak-vs-renewal.html
I knew I would be right about Chuck being a mid-season replacement.
I definitively do not understand all this bad karma ( and I’m not an optimist by nature ) , I see a quite big difference with what happened with the poor Jericho and the plans for CHUCK .
NBC,SUBWAY and the showrunners will be able to use properly this opportunity ? I do not know of course , but everyone seems to be on board to make this show successfull ….they can fail ? YES ! but at least i have 13 hours of Yvonne
Thanks Godparticle I got it …and again it’s look like there is potential there …we will see…
Sorry UH, you can use the link above or
http://sepinwall.blogspot.com/2009/05/chuck-chris-fedak-vs-renewal.html
NBC is taking a gamble. it’s important to differentiate that NBC is taking a gamble not just with CHUCK, but with all the shows of their midseason. NO matter how you slice it, the Winter Olympics would have put a long break in there somewhere once it arrived.
Show me some numbers that show that a 10 month hiatus and then consecutive runs is better than an 8 months hiatus, then a run, then another few months hiatus before it finishes the season. You can’t. It’s all a matter of opinion and conjectures at this point.
Tell me that Chuck can’t perform awesomely in the 13 eps time-frame its INITIALLY given. You can’t tell me that. Cable shows have phenomenal seasons that run 13 eps long and Fedak and Schwartz are now prepared for it.
When you say that Chuck is dead-man walking because of this, that, or another, you’re all really just letting the worst scenario seep in. I believe in the quality of the show, and I have hopes that the Olympics will be an awesome launching pad for the show. I take is a great sign that Subway is now a sponsor. Gives CHuck extra cushion. I have no problem seeing Sarah in a Subway store because I trust that the writers won’t have it in our faces, and that they can make it funny. In short, I choose to be optimistic.
Conan is so much better then Jay Why NBC WHy
i gotta say im unimpressed
and we will see if the affiliates sit for jay
i expect jay with either be a HUGE and surprising success or the biggest flop and NBC will be scrambling as affilites cry bloody murder
i think the latter is most likely
wow medium and earl got thrown under the bus
and seems chuck just got a stay of execution like dollhouse
i know they want their sdhows to succeed
but with some of these decisons i have to wonder
what they think they know that we dont
seems like they are set to fail
we will see
shaking the magic eight ball now
“…During a conference call with reporters today, Ben Silverman, co-chairman of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, said the network opted to cancel “Earl” and “Medium” because neither the fans nor the advertisers had waged a campaign to save them the way viewers and the Subway restaurant chain did for “Chuck.”…”
WHAT! In order to save a show now it’s all up to fans? We have to set up a campaign? Pathetic.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2009/05/my-name-is-earl-creator-greg-garcia-is-a-writer-because-he-has-a-way-with-wordsasked-for-his-take-on-nbcs-unceremonious-canc.html
Imkeh says :I have no problem seeing Sarah in a Subway store because I trust that the writers won’t have it in our faces, and that they can make it funny.
me too, but I want a sexy SUBWAY suite like for Wienerlicious and Orange Orange !!
UH, I was never a fan of the wienerlicious outfit but the orange orange one was great! They could just turn the top of it green and it’s subway! she’ll keep her white pants, and of course have green chucks on.
Quote of the day from L.A Times Entertainment Blog
Asked for his take on NBC’s unceremonious cancellation of his single-camera comedy today, Greg Garcia (show runner) didn’t miss a beat: “It’s hard to be too upset about being thrown off the Titanic”.
I will follow Sarah even if she’s wearing a garbage can without any problem…
imkeh, on the subject of Sarah’s chucks, I think Converse should become a sponsor for the show.
Wow…Medium and MNIE guys are really upset
WORD OF MOUTH is the best promoter. It can either help or hurt a TV Show or Movie (plus it’s free). The momentum the show had with the campaigns to save it were huge. It would’ve carried over the summer and into the fall. Now, it’s all for naught.
BS is coming out of Ben Silverman’s mouth.
And btw i dont follow medium, but it wolud be great if CBS take it; i think everyone need his/her night of relax and fun..maybe not in march but…
Well UH they have the right to be upset, immagine us in the same situation
All I have to say is screw NBC for cancelling Medium.
But, according to Ausiello, Nikki Finke, and Hollywood Reporter, CBS has picked up Medium for 16-22 episodes to air on Fridays at 9pm. With 3 sources reporting it, I think tomorrow will be a very good day for Medium fans!
And really, wouldn’t you rather see it air on CBS anyways? NBC is a bad network for any show to be on. If CBS puts Medium Fridays at 9pm, it’ll no doubt kick Southland’s ass, and show NBC what a mistake they made.
Bruce you have a point on the word of mouth stuff.
I do not know Silverman but clearly is nickname could be BSBS
however after the scheduling for 2009-2010 it was clear that the “Leno affair ” really reduced the room for scripted shows …. no space for 3 avarage performer so he made a choice and he decided for the show with more potential ( and sponsorship) and this was CHUCK … if this is due to SUBWAY sponsorship and ultimately to the fans this just means that the fans have found the right leverage …($$$$$$$$ and only $$$$$$$) so I understand if the guys are pissed off but ….
Crane, if LIGHT YEARS isn’t dead then everyone at the CW needs to be fired. I want that 40 minutes back from my life. To know that one day I’m going to die and have to answer for my sins… I don’t know how I’ll explain to the powers that be that I watched LIGHT YEARS.
In all seriousness LIGHT YEARS is awful, just awful. The CW is picking up 2 series for mid-season and BODY POLITIC is likely one. The CW has put some awful stuff on in the last 2 years so I’m sure LIGHT YEARS still has a chance!
Bruce W, CHUCK survived a 9 month hiatus, and it will survive this hiatus. All it has to do is get the back 9 for the summer and I think it’s golden.
BS will promote the hell out of the return of CHUCK. Word of Mouth and hype can be recreated. A long wait can also (and usually does) increase hype.
Couldn’t agree more about the Heroes comments. With the way the show has played out, it’s already limping. As I said before, I canceled Heroes this year and I know of a lot of friends that are looking for more than what they’re doing with the show.
I am, however, disappointed that they’re going to put Chuck back in that slot. Was looking forward to a “fresh” start even after giving them the shaft. I’m still hopeful that maybe it will get a different opportunity earlier in the season but that’s normally not the case if they have it set in a specific slot… It’s really starting to feel like Jericho all over again for Chuck.
CBS picked up Medium, according to two articles. So now I no longer have to watch NBC. I can’t believe they kept Parks & Recreation, Southland, Chuck and Southland over Medium. Another fail for them.
Imkeh:
Nice post!
I know that Josh and Chris will make Season three great no matter what the schedule so we have that to look forward to next march. lol.
I would love to see Medium following Ghost Whisperer. Thank you, CBS.
What happens if after Day One who only had 13, Chuck gets more episodes. Would Chuck air double episodes on Monday?
So Medium wil go to CBS and MNIE maybe to FOX …where is the problem ?
I would like to count all the posts : ” now I will not have any reaosn to watch the XXX network ” I read in all the threads about FOX, CBS , ABC and NBC and make a balance to see the results
i hope CBS picks up Medium and it beats southland at 9 pm.?’m a Chuck fan but i hate Nbc.They do everything to cancel shows performing well and support shows falling.
Even SNF is not as appealing to me this season too much since John Madden retired. That unfortunately wasn’t any fault of NBC though. I’m not too much of a Cris Collinsworth fan… I still like Al Michaels though, but Madden will be sorely missed by me. ESPN made a GREAT move of getting rid of Tony Kornheiser and putting on Jon Gruden for Monday nights!
Well G i tried, as a Chuck fan, to be happy for you, Medium fan, for the CBS picking up; but after what you wrote well i wish you a bad series finale full of clifhanger..btw the worst thing made by NBC, this year, was starting this war between fans of shows on same network; you must compete with your opponent not with yourself … i think a basic rule in ecomomy
With respect to the webisodes dor Chuck during the autumn, think there is no way for non-US viewers to see them legitimately if the ones currently on the NBC site are any indication. Guess all non-US fans will have to depend upon youtube or something else though i haven’t really seen any of the existing webisodes available on anything other than the NBC site.
Think these next 13 episodes will be the last ones we will ever see. Only way I see chuck getting the exposure is if it got moved up for viewing in Novemember (due to the failure of some other show) to give it enough of a following prior to the holidays and the Olympics which might also allow it enough time to pick up an additional 9 episodes in the Spring. However, has a show ever been moved up from “mid-season replacement” status and instead air in November AND pick up more than the originally intended 13 episodes?
wow big suprise, medium is cancelled, and law and order is renewed.
but cbs production owns medium, so there’s a chance cbs will pick it up and pair it with ghost whisperer. i would love to see that pairing
but nbc is kinda stupid for not picking up medium you know, it’s a decent performer on monday rating race (**cough cough compare to chuck and heroes) so big schocker!
I agree with some people’s comment here” NBC is officially the dumpest station”
with this schedule
I am pretty sure they will have another lose
fail hard NBC!!
Well medium did not so good in chuck or heros place
imkeh:
nice link…’romance won’t be lacking in season three’…okay I am optimistic on that front, lol.
Nemo says : but nbc is kinda stupid for not picking up medium you know, it’s a decent performer on monday rating race (**cough cough compare to chuck and heroes) so big schocker!
So where Robert and Bill got this numbers ?
PROGRAM Net STD 18-49 Rating Network Avg. STD 18-49 rating
CHUCK NBC 2.4 2.31
MEDIUM NBC 2.4 2.31
MNIE NBC 2.4 2.31
OK the cut and paste did not worked well but you know what I mean
I am a big fan of Chuck and I enjoy Joss Whedon’s stuff (more Firefly than Dollhouse). I think this is an interesting trend – with Dollhouse and Chuck – their success is not so directly tied with Nielsen ratings (Dollhouse being more of the shocker here). I mean, this site is built on the idea that the ratings will determine the shows that get picked up…
I wonder if Robert/others running the site have thought about the possibility of this change. Maybe I’m way off though.
just read this article. cbs studios respond to nbc cancellation of medium and to ben silverman statement:
“NBC’s cancellation of ‘Medium’ is inexplicable to us,”… “The RATINGS don’t lie: ‘Medium’ outperforms many of NBC’s renewed shows.”
i agree
boo nbc!!!!!!!!! for cancelling one my fav show
CBS ON MEDIUM!!!!!
anyways, is deal or no deal cancelled too?? i dont see the show on the fall or mid season schedule
Sure here the list of the shows MEDIUM outpermors :
CRUSOE finished
KINGS cancelled
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS renewwd with Direct tv agreement
LIPSTICK JUNGLE canceled
LIFE (WED) canceled
KNIGHT RIDER cancelled
MY OWN WORST ENEMY canceled
KATH & KIM cancelled
So ?
No Knight Rider! I’m sad.
Medium has outperformed Chuck and Heroes in total viewers since returning in February, and has tied Chuck in the demo. It’s also beat out newcomer Southland bigtime, yet SL got renewed, and all 4 Thursday comedies in total viewers. It’s also right on par with Law & Order’s ratings, almost exactly in both viewers and demos.
Clearly, in the tough state NBC is in, Medium was one of their better performers. And they cancelled it, why? Because it wasn’t getting enough twitters??
There are 5 or 6 sources now confirming CBS has officially picked up Medium for 16-22 episodes for next season. I’m guessing this is a pretty firm thing, then. I wonder if CBS will repeat it this summer.
Nick C says:Bruce W, CHUCK survived a 9 month hiatus, and it will survive this hiatus. All it has to do is get the back 9 for the summer and I think it’s golden.
BS will promote the hell out of the return of CHUCK. Word of Mouth and hype can be recreated. A long wait can also (and usually does) increase hype.
It’s going to take a MIRACLE for a show like Chuck (that was a bubble show) to survive a 10 month hiatus and do well enough to pick up the back 9 and a fourth season to boot. On a struggling Network I might add. If it all works out, would Chuck fans have to wait another 10 months for the fourth season? That’s the real question.
BS can say whatever for spin. He’s just trying to save face. How’d the promotion for Chuck last Olympics and past Superbowl Sunday work out? It took a save a Chuck campaign by the fanbase for Chuck to get renewed. Is he going to have Zach Levi host SNL?( I can’t believe he hasn’t done so already.)
NBC should’ve just had Chuck make a two hour series finale and then cancel it. The only REMAINING LOOSE END to tie up was the Chuck and Sarah relationship.
It’s going to be real interesting to see how other Networks treat bubble shows that are saved by their fanbases in the future. One things for certain, they sure won’t follow NBC’s model.
Julie , since I check TVBTN I read hundreds of time that for the Network the 18-49 is the index of success and by the way we should also consider the time slots …
So ..why we compare now total viewers ?
And yes L&O was renewd but just to reach the 20th season . SL ? Yeas was a surprise also for me but now is in the 10 pm friday slots = almost dead
NBC now means the No Body Cares network!!!!
Chuck will make us proud and Team Bartowsky will be there to support him. I predict a 9 million premier (I believe Chuck’s fan base has grown significantly from the save Chuck campaign). Not to mention there will be “premier and a footlong” which will make Subway’s week. Go Chuck Go!
Wow, Friday at 9 just got more crowded. NBC really messed up renewing Southland too early. Medium should have taken SL’s slot. Now CBS gets to rub NBC’s faces in it every week.
You have your Medium on CBS, we have our Chuck on NBC ( and sadly it will not survive the 10 months move )lets all be be happy.
I’m not sure about the outrage regarding Medium’s cancellation.
Medium was on par with Chuck and Law & Order in the demos but unlike both of those shows didn’t have add incentives to bring it back. Had Medium been about to embark on season 20 I’m sure NBC would have been more inclined to bring it back. Or if Medium were being sponsored by Subway and able to give them leverage in regards to a $2 million penalty for not picking up Legally Mad I’m sure they’d be more inclined to pick it up as well.
I also wouldn’t read anything into Ben Silverman’s comments that the lack of a fan campaign doomed Medium – there’s probably very little if any truth to that and in reality he was probably just trying to steer the conversation back onto the renewal of Chuck rather than the cancellation of Medium. Media training 101, always steer back to the positive and away from the negative so when someone asks why you cancelled show x you answer by talking about renewing show y, which is exactly what Silverman did with that answer.
The much bigger reason Medium didn’t get picked up will be because CBS Studios weren’t willing to go low enough on the license fee to give it away, presumably because they knew they’d be able to get it on the air at CBS instead.
Bruce W,
There’s a big difference with the Summer/Winter Olympics. For one, the Summer Olympics ended a month before Chuck premiered. After the Olympics, no one was watching NBC anymore, so any promotions they did after that was useless. Remember, people have a short attention span regarding commercials. This isn’t me making an excuse. There’s a reason why advertisers think that their ads are useless after SEVEN days.
The Winter Olympics is right smack dab in the middle of the TV season. Chuck gets the benefit of the promotional platform that is the Olympics without that one month gap for it’s premiere. Chuck will air the next day after the closing ceremony. There will be no gap, it will be like the Super Bowl promotion. We all saw how well Chuck did (for NBC).
Nick C, while we’re still on the topic of CW, eonline makes it seem like CW won’t be making their midseason decisions yet. Any truth to that or am I reading it wrong?
Can I also just say that I amazed at how pessimistic Chuck fans are. After months of talking up the show, how great it and how stupid NBC would be not to renew it you’re now predicting its death because its been renewed but not coming back until March – where it will presumably be promoted during the Olympics.
If the show is as fantastical as you repeatedly claim, why the hell won’t it survive a 10 month hiatus? Nobody is going to be able to convince me that a 10 month hiatus is going to kill Chuck or any other show, if the audience is there now it’ll still be there in 10 months. Hell as a Heroes fan I wish it was getting a 10 month hiatus.
This whole thing is Chuck things pre-emptively making excuses for the bad ratings to come…
VYuci,
sorry but 10 month are really too much and i consider myself a mad fan of the show
I agree with Alex completely , I believe that the season 2 was great , the fan base is solid , the cast is excellent and now there are all the pre requisites for a good promotional campaign … what do you want more for show close to be cancelled ?
Alex, don’t waste your breath. The pessimists are likely pessimistic in real life and have to be hand-held all the time. Good luck to the people in their real life who have to put up with it.
Just for the people that are hating on NBC for dropping Medium. NBC actually did renew Medium for 13 episodes (like many of the other shows including Chuck) CBS-Paramount said no we want 22 episodes, and when CBS said that they would order more episodes NBC let it go. So had the studio been more flexible we would have seen Medium on NBC, but let it go to CBS….their older skewing audience is perfect for this show. And you think NBC was hard on it, it’s going to have to pull better ratings their but at least then you’ll be bitching at CBS for dropping it when it’s on the bubble next season.
Alex because they are called serial for a reason, if is no more a serial it will die thats all and we are not making excuses the fan are not interested in how many people watchs their show we only want more and more and more of it even if we are a total of 3 people in the world.
Nick C, Robert and/or Bill would you be so kind and share your thoughts and predictions on what NBC pilots will fly and which pilots will sink?
I have my own opinions, but I would love your guys insight!
Thanks, Kate
Also, Nick C. – any news yet on anything else for the CW? Like what the status is for EHC or The Game? Is the GG spinoff dead or maybe midseason? There’s all kinds of conflicting reports and I’m really desperate to know what the chances are for Body Politic and when we’ll find out for sure.
BTW.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
CHUCK!
AD there’s going to be more of the show, just 10 months from now rather than 8 or 6 and I really don’t buy the idea that an additional 2-4 months is going to kill the show. If the audience is there for it now it’ll still be there in 10 months time and if Chuck can’t bring that audience back then it doesn’t deserve to still be on the air – the same goes for any show.
I completely agree Alex. I’m sure there will be Watch Chuck campaigns. I’m pretty sure that Subway will heavily promote it too. So I think it’s a win that it gets to stay on Mondays. Midseason Mondays are better than Fall Fridays. And we should all be thankful that we even have the show back to begin with.
Tommy I don’t think Medium has to do better on CBS – if the rumours of it landing Friday at 9 are true then it probably needs to pull the same kind of numbers that its doing now and I think it could probably do that assuming the audience knows its moved network.
Gah 9 months still for Chuck….
and BTW I can wait 12 months to see again Sarah Walker
As a Heroes fan, I agree with Alex. If I were asked, I’d love to switch Chuck’s and Heroes’s places. A hiatus that big gives them time to work on the quality (I’d rather have fewer better episodes, but maybe it’s just me).
I don’t get why people are so pessimistic. Many things in the hiatus could benefit Chuck (DVDs with word-to-mouth, Olympics promo, eventually Heroes watchers tuning to Chuck instead of catching up on something else).
Personnally, I’m more optimistic about Chuck’s number than Heroes’ personnally. But in any case, I’ll enjoy what I get, even if I know it could be the end.
True, but I don’t see it having the audience retention from one network to another. Scrubs suffered moving from NBC to ABC, and it wasn’t on a Friday. I know I’m not comparing Apples to Apples with that but it’s the best comparison I can think of. A lot of it will depend on how CBS promotes the show.
I feel history’s repeating itself. We saw the same things happen to Kyle XY. The random scheduling, the very-short seasons, the “will they or won’t they renew” guessing games.
Hopefully, NBC won’t cheap out on promotion like ABC Family. The stars asked the fans to start a word-of-mouth advertising campaign a few days before the season 3 premiere. The network spent all their money on promoting Secret Life, adding just a small afterthought tag for Kyle XY.
I think the Chuck fans would be wise to start publicizing the return date NOW and keep it up through the off-season. KXY lost a lot of fans who just weren’t expecting the show to return in January, or who had thought it was already cancelled.
If someone could set up something to let people sign up for Chuck reminders, that would help keep the fans involved during the wait and have them ready to return with the show.
Do you blame CBS for wanting a full season, or at least more than 13 episodes though? If I were them, I’d be sick of these shortened seasons NBC wants.
Nonetheless, CBS will be a better home for it.
Alex 10 months are too much for any serial, on march the first i will watch chuck and next monday i will be there too and so on for 13 mondays and due to the great chuck team i think i will be satisfied, but i dont count on “summer fun”..we will see
Chuck’s Back!!!!!!!!!!
Alex, Imkeh, hope you’re right… its just that chuck was basically in the same situation after season 1 with the long lay off and look what a struggle it was to get it renewed for season 3, even after the exposure of a 22 episode run starting in September when everyone’s viewing habits were not yet established. That said, perhaps the winter olympics can help promote it; we’ll know more in OVER a YEAR’s time.
This upfront has been soo shocking, networks picking up shows that are destined to die and cancelling many beloved shows.
What would Chuck be up against if it came on after the Olympics? If it’s still against DWTS… hmmmm… it would be a stroke of genius and/or luck that DWTS is a dancing show, and since the most watched event in the Winter Olympics is women’s figure skating by female viewers… immediately after the Olympics, the same crowd who watched the Olympics will still go back to watching DTWS on ABC for their dancing fix. That’d be a pretty bad break for NBC if that happened. Shawn Johnson is on this season’s DTWS, and even though she was on NBC, women’s gymnastics also being one of the most watched events in the Summer Olympics, ABC still got her! Then later on perhaps DWTS will even get one of the 2010 Olympic figure skaters on a future season… they did it with Kristi Yamaguchi who won the whole thing back in 1992 and recently in DWTS, maybe they’ll do it again in the future!
bt Chuck started Season 2 great, it was a long hiatus is the middle of the season that it never really bounced back from.
Tommy I think Medium is in a better position than something like Scrubs, if nothing else the Medium audience has proven remarkably good in the past at finding the show on the schedule. Plus it seems it’ll have the Ghost Whisperer lead-in (which should be a big help), limited competition (Dollhouse, Southland and Ugly Betty) plus its going from NBC to CBS and at this stage that’s very much trading up. I think Medium should hold up well unless by some miracle Southland, Dollhouse or Ugly Betty have some kind of turn around next season – I’m not holding my breath, which is unfortunate for Southland at least.
NBC didn’t promote Chuck all that much during the Summer Olympics, at least not during prime-time coverage. I watched nearly every hour of prime-time coverage via my DVR (didn’t take long, skipped all the fluff), and was actively looking for Chuck promos to upload to youtube. I didn’t see many.
What I did see was tons of promos for My own worst enemy and Kath & Kim. Those turned out to be a total waste for NBC.
Bruce W, so no one will be watching the Olympics? I’m positive CHUCK can survive the hiatus. If and when it does pick up the back 9, NBC will have a financial hit on their hands. HEROES in the Fall/Winter, and CHUCK in the SPRING/SUMMER that is if HEROES can survive.
It’s smart. It is what has worked with their cable networks and it’s not a bad idea to convert broadcast to it.
Unfortunately their pilot process isn’t that good at all as previous years have shown us.
“bt Chuck started Season 2 great, it was a long hiatus is the middle of the season that it never really bounced back from.”
No Chuck didn’t start season two great – I don’t however think that was down to the hiatus but down it being Chuck. That’s me though.
So Julie,if CBS is a better home for MEDIUM you should be happy ! So don’t worry ! Be happy ! Don’t care about BSBS
The hiatus in the middle was not what hurt CHUCK. It was HOUSE. HOUSE knocked CHUCK cold and it took weeks for it to slowly start to build back up to the season average. I think CHUCK can bounce back fine for next season.
VYuci:
First thing, the Summer Olympics have a waaay bigger audience than the Winter Olympics. The only Chuck promo I caught once during the Summer Olympics was the funny promotion with Hellboy. Mens and Womens Ice Skating is the only ratings getter for the Winter Games. I’m sure NBC will promote another show heavily during that time. Chuck will probably be promoted during the bobsled racing.
The Superbowl promotion was a disaster for Chuck. The 3D episode was the worst episode of the second season. This website has the numbers to back it up. NBC wanted to cancel Chuck but didn’t. The reason: an ANGRY fanbase has a LONG MEMORY.
Alex:
I’m not making excuses for the show, I’m talking about how a Network treats a fanbase(viewers) that saves a show, then rewards them by treating the show as being only good enough as midseason replacement. The promise of picking up the back 9 episodes is BS and they know it. NBC should’ve just canceled Chuck and allowed the show to film a two hour series finale instead of one. Maybe even film additional scenes for the season two dvd. Chuck fans would’ve been disappointed but thankful that they let the show tie up the loose ends.
Julia, they have to pick them up soon or they won’t have episodes produced for mid-season! We should hear by Thursday. I expect a lot of movement in the mid-season category for the CW tomorrow. The GOSSIP GIRL spinoff is dead.
Alex you very well may be correct. I think Medium is a better fit for CBS to begin with. I agree moving to CBS is a step up and I wish the show luck. I still think it will be hard for it to pull the same numbers on a friday night, not that expectations are as high on fridays, but Mediums numbers (and many other NBC #’s) would be crap on CBS.
If I’m not mistaken, aren’t Olympics ratings pretty darn high by network TV standards?
Anyone remember off hand the 2006 Winter Olympics ratings?
Thanks, Nick. I figured, but eonline said to look for news on Body Politic and Gossip Girl spin off midseason. Probably just phrasing it stupidly, but it made me think I won’t be put out of my misery for a long time.
Bruce W, you sir need to be educated. Summer Olympics ran a month before the new NBC season. The winter olympics run up until the night before CHUCK would premier. The winter olympics aren’t the summer olympics but they aren’t bad for ratings either. Also the Super Bowl promo for CHUCK worked. It worked better than Super Bowl promos have done on average in the last 30 years. CHUCK did much better than the average show’s bump from Super Bowl advertising. It was the most watched show of CHUCK all year. That means the advertising worked. The episode was the worst in quality not in viewers.
Tommy.
i was under the impression the first bunch of chuck episodes in season 2 did fairly poorly in the 18-49 demo and/or total viewers. I thought it was not until later on in the autumn 2008 that ratings started picking up and reached a peak after the superbowl. Still, guess chuck fans can all agree that we hope chuck can do ok for its season 3 in march 2010.
OMG Bruce W …I’m starting to miss the Chuck haters trolls
and even the crazy TSCC fans !!:)
Julia, I know that the GG spin off is dead. Which means to me if PRIVILEGED is dead (and I hear it finally is now) that BODY POLITIC is likely the mid-season show. As soon as I hear I’ll tell you guys.
bt they may be right about Chuck not doing well at the beginning of Season 2, I remember reading somewhere that it did well, but can’t remember where I read that so I will stand corrected on that front since I can’t back it up.
I really can’t believe they gave Earl the axe, what the hell is wrong with them? was Earls ratings even bad? I thought theyd been pretty consistent. it makes me nervous that if someday the Office dips a little bit they will up and cancel it. and also, no one gives a shit about weekend update thursdays, the only reason it might have done good last season was because it was a presidential election year. Ive also, all ready given up on parks and rec. like 5 episodes ago,cause it stinks worse than my sweaty balls do. and although I had come to like 30 Rock, I’m starting to loose interest. this week I have seen a ton of crap get renewed and I have lost two of my Favs. the other being T:TSCC of course. After Lost ends next year and I think 24 will end after Day 8, I think im done with network tv. except for the Office which I guess I could just watch online anyway.
I can’t believe the number of people who don’t seem to understand this, but Heroes is getting 18-20 episodes this season, not 13. Chuck is getting at least 13. Stop confusing the two.
Also, too bad about Earl.
Ah ok Alex you dont like Chuck, thats make sense; you must be happy about how well is treated; so in may 2010 you will be happy that DWTS won the season
Maybe some of us just don’t want to talk about Chuck 23.5 hours of the day.
Chuck Nerds, repel!! Go and watch Star Trek again.
I really, really appreciate fast news on Body Politic, Nick! Thanks so much. I just hope that it’s good news when you do know for sure.
WOW. People are talking like their hearts have been broken. Chuck. Was. RENEWED!!!
My God…
That said, will a 9-10 month break really do anything? I was worried at first, but if people chose to watch Chuck over all those other popular shows at 8pm, I doubt they’d forget about the show during the hiatus.
Isn’t the Winter Olympics going to be in Vancouver? Won’t the fact that its in a North American time zone help out the ratings?
I find it so amusing that people throw out things like being a fan of DWTS as if it were an insult.
Alex and Imkeh: Ditto what you said about the pessimists. For God’s sake, we could have been cancelled!! We’re coming back. It’s not a “mid-season replacement.” That isn’t how they schedule anymore. They’re breaking the programming year down into two seasons more or less. Yes there are some shows that get a full season right off the bat – but they DESERVE it based on their ratings. NBC is trying something different, something groundbreaking with SUBWAY – a MAJOR corporation – not some schlub sponsor. Subway either has more franchises than McDonalds or they’re right up there with them. IF NBC promotes the show properly during the Olympics (and on it’s 4 evening/night talk shows – Leno, Conan, Fallon, and Daly with Zach & Yvonne interviews) things will be fine. I still say that it’s an advantage to be in a mid-season spot. NBC has no idea how the fall line up will pan out. Let’s say Leno does mediocre or tanks and winds up bringing other NBC shows down with him. Not saying we want that to happen, but if it does, then you have the chance for CHUCK to be “moved up” on the schedule. If the Leno experiment succeeds and helps NBCs shows overall, then you jump on the “success” bandwagon after the Olympics (where NBC is going to promote their mid/2nd season shows) and you’re off and running. In the meantime, get more people turned onto CHUCK. And I’ll say it again, “I’m dreaming of a CHUCK Christmas!” Use Christmas/Hanakuh/Kwanza or whatever you celebrate in December to give Season 1&2 DVDs as gifts – you’re going to have to be buying gifts for people anyway. This way you give them January and February to “get hooked” on Chuck – and by March they’re primed and ready for the start of Season 3. I still think we have the luxury of sitting back and seeing what happens during the fall with the Leno experiment. If it tanks, they move CHUCK up to an earlier start and order more episodes. If it succeeds, then you jump on the bandwagon and have a better chance at getting better ratings and a Season 4. So STOP BEING PESSIMISTIC. I SWEAR, YOU’D THINK WE’D BEEN CANCELLED! We got renewed – and even if it winds up that all we ever get is 13 more episodes of CHUCK, it’s better than a big fat zero – which is what we could have legitimately got! BE HAPPY! We’re coming back!!
CHUCK had a strong premier then dipped then picked back up. Then it hit its high after the SUPERBOWL then HOUSE and DWTS combo hit it and it took weeks before it recovered to its season average for the final 2 episodes at 2.4 which for NBC wasn’t bad (and much better if you take the SUPERBOWL out of the equation).
UH, you’re absolutely right. I am happy, and I can’t wait until tomorrow to make it all official!
Rick Holy, someone needs to edit your posts with some carriage returns!
Nick C thanks for clearing that up….I knew something was good about the beginning of the 2nd Seasons ratings…lol
The superbowl promotion was silly because of the 3D thing…I did not want to be caught wearing those 3D glasses back in the 1980’s, let alone go hunt down a pair now that I am in my thirties. Just a cheesy idea all around. That was the entire extent of NBC advertising that I ever saw for ‘Chuck’.
NBC hopefully will really advertise the show this time around. They have all of the fall season to put Yvonne and Zach and Adam on a ton of talk shows. I mean is it possible that maybe Leno has some spare time to kill, for instance?
I read some nice things from Fedak and Schwartz, and they are very happy about the upcoming season. So I think it will be another amazing season.
Die chuck die, why you came in an nbc post if you dont want talking about chuck and medium? you wanna talk about medium? this place is full of posts..think about it you can even talk about American Idol
So who here knows anything about running web sites/blogs?
I m sorry Julia if i unsulted you
Nick, you want to start one? I recommend WordPress, which TVBTN is run on.
Nick C.
Sorry I get “gabby.”
But I will say to you –
thanks for your insight.
You’re helping to set some people straight.
Is that enough carriage returns???
Peace, bro!
AD, I’ve seen about two episodes of DWTS ever. I just find it hilarious that it’s supposed to be insulting. Or that if you don’t like Chuck you automatically must like DWTS.
@Nick, definitely not Robert or I, we’re just visiting
Well not insulting, but erm sorry got to go
Rick Holy, I just like what you write, it’s just hard to read. I think some should read, especially about the CHUCK Christmas because that might help. It’s a good idea. Maybe Julia will add some carriage returns in there for us.
BTW ..410 posts and no crash …:)
Sorry, Nick, you’ll have to ask Bill or Robert to do that. I can only stand so much Chuck in one day.
AD, to be fair to Die Chuck Die, this is suppose to be a post for the NBC 2009/2010 schedule and not specifically a chuck forum. That said, am thrilled there is some place on this site we can discuss the season 3 chuck placement
.
Rick Holly, just curious – how often have they moved a “mid-season” show up in the schedule to replace a failing autumn show? I was under the impression that if they cancelled a show in mid-november they would replace it with a rerun of something else (but i could be wrong… you would be surprised what they do with networks and affiliates up here in Canada)
Julia, I’m thinking about it. I just don’t have the time to deal with mysql and everything else. So I’d need someone who wanted to run it and I suppose try and make money off it. So they’d have to know how to take advantage of RSS and everything else so it wasn’t a waste of time/money.
Bill, I know you guys do, but I’m not going to ask you guys for help when your site takes up so much of your time. Plus I’m not sure I want to do it. I like posting here just fine. However I wouldn’t mind going off on big Fire Dawn rants for people to read!
You can start with a free WordPress blog and get a feel for it you really will be blogging on a regular basis. While all the Google rank and such is great and all, the real key to success is actually being able to put out content on a very regular basis.
Thanks again, Nick C. I’ve got to say, I REALLY do love this site. I never thought I would get involved in something like this and honestly, it’s more entertaining than most of the crap on TV today!! So “THANKS” tvbythenumbers – and to EVERYONE who posts on the site. Even the “CHUCK-haters.” Just remember folks, in the end – IT’S ONLY T.V. It’s supposed to be FUN!! (That’s why I like CHUCK so much. It’s FUN baby, it’s FUN)!! Peace, all!
Julia, are you kidding as long as BS and Dawn are running a network there would be ton to blog about.
I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but i agree with Alex – about Medium. I think a move to CBS is a good thing for the show. I wouldn’t be suprised if CBS Studios was willing to give their sister network a deal on the price if they were willing to commit to the 22-episode order. After all, doesn’t the studio get to keep the syndication fees (and if I’ve read some of the comments on her correctly I believe Medium is already airing on some cable channel(s))?
I agree with the comment that the order of Chuck and Heroes should have been switched. I love both shows but i think heroes needs more time to be revamped. As a long time fan of X-men I know the potential greatness heroes as a concept could reach but the writers have failed. They keep killing of good characters with interesting powers and finding contrived ways to keep the likes of Sylar. Chuck is at a creative high and they should have allowed it to keep that momentum whilst giving Heroes more time to get better writers whose idea of a season finale won’t be to find another way to kill Nathan.
Also concerning the summer scheduling I think it could work well. Psych, The Secret Life, leverage and a bunch of other good shows do well in the summer. Damages which is an awesome show had better ratings when it aired in the summer as opposed to the winter.
In the end I’m glad both are back and I hope both last for a few more years.
Ljo Medium has a lucrative syndication deal with Lifetime
Having stuff to blog about and actually doing it are two very different things.
Nick C. I second your motion to get a blog!
I know alot of people who would definately check it out
I think that CHUCKS fate is still squarely on the shoulders of the internet. There has to be a buzz for and leading up to the begining of the season. Because of Subway Subsudizing the show, I believe that the florr in respect to ratings will be a little more flexible. But honestly, who wants to depend on NBC to run a proper marketing campaign? Seriously I am looking forward to the Webisodes, I think that it is agreat tool to be used for viral promotion that we as fans will have to undertake in order to ensure the back 9, plus further season renewals.
In my opinion, it was either mid-season on Monday or the Friday Night Deathslot opposite of Southland on it’s own death march. I also have to believe that Chuck is first off the bench, with the loyal following and again the cost of the show.
Why not sell Chuck DVD’s inside of Subway’s stores???
Subway seems like a great sponsor and if they want to make this partnership as successful as possible then why not sell the DVD’s directly to their customers? It would be a great way to bring Chuck to the attention of new fans. Perhaps they might even create a promotion where purchasing the DVD entitles the buyer to one free footlong?
I know nothing of advertising, but it would seem to me that success builds on itself and the more successful Chuck is then the more people will think to go to Subway, or go more frequently if they were already customers.
Hey Nick C what are the chances of this blowing up in nbc’s face since this is after all nbc we’re talking about.
Love the first trackback on this post from the German site (I assume it’s German), where the only recognizable word is “Chuck” as well as the numeral “13.” That about says it all!
@ Nick C.,
Why get your own blog? Just ask Robert and Bill to set you up a nice little corner of this site. “Nick C. by the Numbers” kind of has a nice ring to it
Seriously though, thanks for giving Chuck fans your honest analysis of the situation. I agree with you – after hearing what you had to say and reading the quotes from BS, I think NBC really is behind the show, and I don’t think airing episodes into the summer is that bad of an idea. I wouldn’t be shocked either if Chuck comes in early to replace one of the tanking new (or not quite so new – I second your prediction for Southland) shows.
I don’t like to brag, but I remember saying repeatedly that 30 Rock wouldn’t move out of it’s 9:30 slot this year, despite most people predicting it would.
I think NBC feels like they have a hit with Community and that’s why it gets the post-Office slot for a little while. I’m inclined to agree with them.
Grace, Nick said he’d like to make money from it. We wouldn’t give him any
Hey Nick C that is an idea! I agree with AO’s idea, you said you work for NBC (or a subsidary) Nick C? Why not sell Chuck DVD’s inside of Subway’s stores??? You could suggest it, float the idea around the office. If Subway can be on Chuck then Subway should promote it. I’m not too worried, I agree that its quite possible Chuck can do well if NBC do it right…a big if of course! That is all….
Robert,
Good point.
How about a countdown clock widget for Facebook and Myspace that links to either Subway’s Chuck Facebook or Myspace page (if it has one), or to Chuck’s Facebook or Myspace page. The widget could be a backwards running clock, have Subway’s and NBC’s logos on it and display Chuck. Maybe it could look like the Chuck (not Spies Like Us) GLG-20. Kids, and even some adults, love that kind of stuff for social media. I don’t have the tech skills or contacts, but if someone has either (Nick C. for contacts), it might be a way to start the hype rolling. Look what a 15 day countdown did here!
does anyone know of a link or site that lists all the upfronts side by side so you can see what shows will be against what shows?
Chet, The Futon Critic will have something like that up sometime after all the schedules are announced.
thx julia as always
Chet, Hibberd has some schedule grids (in some cases, still speculative) up in this post:
http://www.thrfeed.com/2009/05/abc-fall-schedule.html
NickC., do you think that Dollhouse can survive for a full season pick up?
AHH! 9 MONTHS? I’m soo gonna go nuts!
thank you NBC for letting me watch ABC or CBS at 10
Nikki Finke says that Medium was canceled because NBC wanted only 13 episodes. But, Endeavor Talent Agency wanted 16 episodes and that is why NBC canceled and CBS picked it up. CBS picks up Medium, while canceling Eleventh Hour and Without a Trace which had more viewers than Medium. That I don’t get.
“UPDATE: I’ve just learned that NBC did pickup Medium last Friday, but only for 13 episodes. But Endeavor Talent Agency which packages the show wanted 16 episodes (and Patricia Arquette’s contract called for 22 episodes). A difficult negotiation ensued, and now CBS has bought Medium, which is produced by CBS Paramount TV, to air it with Ghost Whisperer. NBC is now spinning that Medium is best suited for the CBS demo than for the NBC audience, and that it rated lower than 2 shows CBS cancelled –- Eleventh Hour and Without A Trace.”
not happy about Meduim hope Cbs takes it
Well I still think AO’s subway dvd idea is a good one…but that’s just me…
Meduim would be good on Fridays
After reading through all the Chuck comments, I think I am the only one here who is smart. NBC actually has a very good solid schedule here to compete for 3rd place next season. Its actually better than ABC’s garbage schedule. NBC has plenty of holes that they still need to fill but this is good for a network in a rebuilding process. Only thing that kills it is Jay on every damn night. I think Jay would work only once or twice a week but not 5 times.
NBC should pick up either Trace or 11th Hour from CBS.
Sunday Night Football always a top NBC show every season.
The new shows on NBC except Community should perform well in the ratings as I really like 100 Questions bringing the multi-cams back to NBC where they belong in a really good spot behind The Biggest Loser which needs to be utilized. Parenthood brings back the family drama to TV which is needed and SVU will do okay against CM since its the only procedural that can compete with CBS’. Watch out for NBC Friday as I think with L&O there not to compete against a CBS procedural it should setup a new destination for Friday Nights outside of CBS and SouthLAnd will comeback with the ratings next season. I don’t buy SouthLAnd’s ratings the last few weeks since it went up against CBS procedurals and increased competition after its first 3 weeks.
Heroes should be able to die out this season but the 3 shows that I think won’t struggle are Day One, Trauma and Mercy these three shows will do very well for NBC.
NBC no doubt about it built for the future and finally has a schedule that makes sense but I think the last thing that they need to do is rebuild Saturdays which still has an audience waiting as long as you program aggressively and promote just look at iCarly and True Jackson, VP over on NICK.
what about Jay leno show from 8 to 11 , monday through friday
that would be a sure hit , NBC!!
I am so sick of NBC right now , cancelling my favorite show “Medium”
those so called executive person should resign …..
they are digging a deeper hole for NBC
who is watching NBC now ??
I wonder when CBS will be able to announce having ‘Medium’ to air? I heard NBC technically still has the show until the end of the week, so CBS cannot say another word.
Anyone know???
The REAL REASON for the shortened episode order for shows like Chuck or canceled ones like Medium is…………..
JAY LENO!!!!!!! Remove him from the equation, Chuck starts in the fall and Medium doesn’t get cancelled.