ABC Spring Line-Up; Spears to Guest Star on NBC's 'Will & Grace'

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

ABC Spring Line-Up; Spears to Guest Star on NBC's 'Will & Grace'

Late last week ABC announced that mid-season sitcom Sons & Daughters will air Tuesdays at 9 p.m. for six weeks starting March 7. In addition to that, ABC announced some more changes for this spring. First up among the new shows is the unscripted series The Miracle Workers, which debuts at 10 p.m. ET Monday, March 6, a week after The Bachelor: Paris concludes its season. The series follows a team of doctors and nurses who will help people overcome overwhelming medical issues. 4 episodes will air, then starting Monday, April 3, a new drama from J.J. Abrams (Lost, Alias) titled What About Brian will take over that 10 p.m. slot. What About Brian will get a special preview premiere following an all-new Desperate Housewives on Sunday, April 2 at 10 p.m. Brian stars Barry Watson as a single guy in his 30s whose friends are all married or about to be. Complicating matters, he has a massive crush on his best friend's (Matthew Davis) fiancee (Sarah Lancaster). Sticking to Mondays, ABC announced that Supernanny will return from hiatus and air Mondays at 9 p.m. starting Monday, March 6 (the same night as the premiere of The Miracle Workers).
Moving on to Thursdays, Dancing with the Stars 2 concludes its season on Thursdays on February 23. ABC has not yet announced what will air on Thursday, March 2 and Thursday, March 9, but on March 16 they will premiere another show--the two-hour debut of American Inventor, a series executive produced by American Idol's Simon Cowell. The show will give would-be Edisons a chance to show off their ideas to viewers and a panel of judges, with the winner getting a chance to bring his or her invention to consumers. The show will then move to its regular time period of 9 p.m. starting March 23. So what will air at 8 p.m. then on Thursdays? Well, for four weeks I know what will air there. ABC has made 4 very special episodes of blockbuster hit Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. The series of specials featuring the show's team helping disaster victims of Hurricane Katrina will debut in the 8 p.m. hour.
ABC's final midseason entry is The Evidence, a crime procedural from ER executive producer John Wells that debuts at 10 p.m. Wednesday, March 22 (Invasion will go on hiatus and return in late April to finish its season). The show follows two San Francisco detectives (Orlando Jones and Rob Estes) who reconstruct crimes based on the evidence collected at the scene.
Finally, ABC confirmed that Commander in Chief will return on Tuesday, April 18 after a six week hiatus. There are reports that only 18 episodes were made this season due to production issues. So about three episodes or so will air after it returns from hiatus.

So after all this, still there are some questions that need to be answered. The biggest one is Alias. I think we will see it either on Fridays or maybe Thursdays at 8 p.m. after the series of specials of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition finishes. Fridays is a big question mark right now. The high rated Dancing with the Stars: The Results will conclude in late February. Maybe after that they will have Hope & Faith and Less Than Perfect return, followed by Alias at 9 p.m. I am not sure how many episodes of In Justice would have aired by then, but it should be close to the end. Thursday's highest rated sitcom Crumbs is also missing, but I think they will finish the season by Thursday, March 16. After February, eight episodes would have aired. And on Thursday, March 2 and March 9 ABC has not announced what will air, but they can double up on Crumbs those two weeks at 9 p.m. and have like 12 episodes aired. A lot of questions and possibilities. I think Regis Philbin's This Is Your Life series of specials will probably be for May sweeps. And it doesn't look like Jake in Progress will return for the season. Maybe in the summer.

Pop star Britney Spears will join the long list of high-profile guest stars on NBC's Will & Grace this April. Spears will play a new, conservative Christian sidekick on Jack's (Sean Hayes) talk show in an episode scheduled for April. Spears and the cast are set to tape the episode later this month. This marks Britney's second sitcom guest appearance. She appeared as herself in 1999 on an episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Wednesday, May 18

The Goldbergs - "Adam Graduates!" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Graduation day is approaching and everyone, especially Adam, is ready – except for Beverly who is not coping well with the idea of an empty nest. Meanwhile, with Geoff’s encouragement, Erica decides to try out for Cyndi Lauper as a one-time backup singer replacement. Ultimately, resurrecting her singing dreams doesn’t manifest, but bigger and exciting new beginnings await her and the Goldbergs.

The Wonder Years - "Love, Dean" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
It’s the end of the school year, and summer excitement is all around. When Bill and Lillian each receive major career opportunities, tension builds as they decide who will handle more of the household responsibilities. Meanwhile, Dean and Keisa take shelter together as a tornado tears through Montgomery, providing the perfect moment for Dean to tell her how he really feels.

The Conners - "A Judge and a Priest Walk Into a Living Room..." (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT)
The Conners gear up for a megawedding! Jackie and Neville, Darlene and Ben, and Harris and Aldo are planning for a shared big day, but along the way they discover that some of the couples may not be on the same page about their happily ever afters. Meanwhile, Dan and the family have decked out the house for the occasion, but will all six of the lovebirds make it to “I do”?

Home Economics - "Ticket to Space, $1 Million" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Tom attempts to keep Connor grounded after he announces his plans to go to space then falls into a rough patch himself after learning some bad news. Meanwhile, Marina gets stuck while trying to transform their attic into a writing space for Tom.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Woman to Woman" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT)
When Christian wins Student of the Year, Laura gets him an autographed football jersey from a popular NFL player; Miranda takes umbrage with the gesture, citing the player's history of domestic violence.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Wobble Wobble" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT)
The Pleasant Days crew is worried about Vinny's libertine lifestyle of drinking, smoking, poor diet and no exercise; he's not as young as he used to be, so they want him to clean up his act.

The Ms. Pat Show - "Girls Night Out" (BET, 10:00PM ET/PT)
After Pat catches Terry watching porn on his phone, Denise decides they need a girls' night out, while the children wonder if their parents are going to split up.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of May 16)

Wednesday, May 18

John Mulaney (Mulaney) and Andy Samberg (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) - John and Andy guest host Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm/Son of Zorn/Suburgatory) - Cheryl is a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Sarah Silverman (The Sarah Silverman Program) - Sarah will be on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Rhea Seehorn (Whitney/I'm with Her) - Rhea appears on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Ricky Gervais (After Life/The Office) - Ricky unpacks his new comedy special SuperNature on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary) - Quinta returns to talk about the hit ABC series Abbott Elementary on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Caroline Rhea (Sydney to the Max/Sabrina the Teenage Witch) - Caroline guest co-hosts LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Ali Wentworth (Nightcap) - Ali appears on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Rose Mclver (Ghosts/Woke) and Utkarsh Ambudkar (Ghosts/White Famous/The Mindy Project) - Rose and Utkarsh are guests on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Mario Lopez (Saved by the Bell/Saved by the Bell: The College Years) - NBC's Today catches up with Mario in the 9am hour.
Hilary Duff (How I Met Your Father/Younger/Lizzie McGuire) - NBC's Today catches up with Hilary in the 10am hour.