Two days, two upfronts, two completely different programming strategies. On Tuesday, ABC introduced fifteen new shows, with all but five scheduled to premiere this fall. Today, on the other hand, CBS, secure in its first place position, introduced only seven new shows, four of which will bow in the fall. You heard that number right. This is the fewest number of fall premieres I've seen a network introduce in many, many years, and it seems that CBS has decided to use the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" axiom. They're in first place, so they have the right. But that schedule is built on the strength of procedural shows that don't seem to be all that different from one another. I mean, really: three CSIs, NCIS, Without A Trace, Close to Home, Cold Case, etc. It's pretty much the entire schedule. And, of the new shows introduced, only two -- The Class and Jericho -- look like they may hold my interest.
Compare that with the ABC schedule, which looks like it has some interesting possibilities, like Six Degrees, The Nine, Men In Trees, and Let's Rob. Heck, even NBC has more interesting stuff in store, but they're in last place; they can afford to experiment.
So, is CBS playing it too safe? Will people get bored of the procedurals and start leaving the network in droves? Or have they found the key to being in first place for years to come? Let me know in the comments.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-17-2006 @ 2:35PM
homey said...
this is the nature of tv. hit enough doubles and singles to stay in the game.
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5-17-2006 @ 3:10PM
The Mind Robber said...
TV is cyclical. CBS just has fewer shows it needs to replace this year because it's on top.
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5-17-2006 @ 3:23PM
polewog said...
Crime dramas [CSI etc] are a scourge on the TV landscape and must be dealt with accordingly. Enough already!!! If I have one more criminal investigator explain one more procedure to another investigator who, I hope, already knows this stuff...I'm going to gouge my eyes and ears out with a spoon.
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5-17-2006 @ 3:48PM
Sam said...
On the one hand, I don't watch too much CBS. On the other hand, for those who do watch certain shows that aren't high-rated on the network, it's kinda cool that they've decided to let some shows (The Unit, for instance) build an audience. While, of course, it helps that they have first place so they have the luxury of doing something like that, but nevertheless it's the exact opposite of what other networks (*cough*FOX*Cough*) have been doing over the past few years.
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5-17-2006 @ 4:31PM
Gordon Werner said...
NBC fell from grace becasue it concentrated too much energy on its hits and not enough in developing new ideas. The exception was Dateline NBC which they just added more nights to. Of course half the problem was that they were cornered into paying their top-performing stars WAY too much money ... regardless ...
when [most] of their hits finally were put down ... they were left with nothing.
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5-17-2006 @ 4:42PM
TIMMY said...
WITH SO MANY NEW SHOWS ON THE OTHER STATIONS AND SEEING AS HALF OS THESE OR MORE WONT MAKE IT I WILL STICK TO MY CSI'S ,NCIS, AND CRIMINAL MINDS....
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