Monday, May 05, 2008

SitcomsOnline.com 2008-09 Upfront Preview: ABC; Sci Fi and WE tv Acquire Ghost Whisperer, Classics Coming to Sci Fi Such As Mork & Mindy

NBC is the first network going at upfront, which will be next Monday, but they have already announced their 2008-09 schedule last month so we can't preview and make predictions for NBC...so we decided to go with the next network ... ABC (which will go next Tuesday). With the writers' strike causing a lot of delays to the pilot season, many pilots won't be ready before the upfronts, thus we won't see many new shows this fall, unfortunately. I think mid-season will see a lot more shows than normal. So, ABC will likely build on their sophomore shows (the current freshman series such as Pushing Daisies, Private Practice, Dirty Sexy Money, and Samantha Who?). Most of those have not returned after the strike ended, so they will likely do large return promotions for these. New shows wise, I expect maybe 1-2 new dramas or 1-2 new sitcoms on ABC this fall, with lots of new shows being ordered for mid-season. Here is the SitcomsOnline.com ABC 2008-09 preview: New Series Already Picked-Up: Section 8 (6 episode order, but doesn't mean it will be on in the fall). New Series We Think That Are Almost Good To Go: Good Behavior (drama), Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas (drama), My Brother's Hot And Other Dilemas (wt for Milano series) (sitcom). New Series Perhaps Picked-Up for Mid-Season: Prince of Motor City (drama), Life on Mars (drama), Cupid (dramedy), Bad Mother's Handbook (sitcom), Never Better (sitcom), This Might Hurt (sitcom). OUR FALL 2008 PREDICTION: Sundays 7:00PM America's Funniest Home Videos 8:00PM Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 9:00PM Desperate Housewives 10:00PM Dirty Sexy Money Mondays 8:00PM Dancing with the Stars 9:30PM Samantha Who? 10:00PM Good Behavior (NEW!) Tuesdays 8:00PM My Brother's Hot (And Other Dilemas) (NEW!) 8:30PM Miss Guided 9:00PM Dancing with the Stars: The Results 10:00PM Boston Legal Wednesdays 8:00PM Pushing Daisies 9:00PM Private Practice 10:00PM Brothers & Sisters Thursdays 8:00PM Ugly Betty 9:00PM Grey's Anatomy 10:00PM Eli Stone Fridays 8:00PM Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas (NEW!) 9:00PM According to Jim 9:30PM According to Jim or Cedric the Entertainer Project (NEW!) 10:00PM 20/20 Saturdays 8:00PM College Football Comments: It is really hard to predict what shows will be ready for the fall since the strike has caused a lot of production delays. I'm hoping new dramas Good Behavior and Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas will be ready for the fall...they sound very good. For Mondays, I'm leaving 8-10 intact right now but 10pm needs a change. The Bachelor is an average performer, but they can do better...especially with the high profile Good Behavior, which is the Outrageous Fortune Australian remake. The Bachelor would come back in January. My Brother's Hot (And Other Dilemas) is the new Kristin Newman sitcom project that will star Alyssa Milano! I think Miss Guided should return. It was fed to the strike and it had to start itself off without any support and besides it is very funny and should be given another chance. It would do well out of Milano's show. However, if there is a chance CBS drops Old Christine, then I think ABC should really go after it and air it 9:30 Mondays after Dancing with the Stars because I think a multi-camera sitcom would do better. Thus if that happens, then I would slide Samantha Who in the 8pm hour on Tuesdays paired with Alyssa Milano's sitcom, and hold on to Miss Guided for later. ABC should start Boston Legal in the Tuesday at 10 slot for the fall since not many new shows will be available, and this show proves it can do decent in this slot out of Stars..so don't mess with it until mid-season. Wednesdays ABC should bring back the combo of Pushing Daisies and Private Practice from 8-10pm because they were very solid and helped ABC win this past fall on Wednesday nights. Closing the night I think the addictive Brothers & Sisters should move to this night and give a nice flow to the night...as it has proven itself already on Sunday nights. As for Thursdays, Betty and Grey's are a given, but I think Eli Stone should return for a second season and air in the fall at least. If it doesn't work, then try something else...but it should be tried because the show is high class and deserves to be given a shot after Grey's. If Betty continues to slide (which I think it will perk up when Lohan comes), they could try something else in the slot mid-season. Lost will return in February most likely for 16 or 17 straight weeks, possibly Thursdays at 10 again? Or maybe on another night? I don't see that happening though unless they want to have an all male night with Scrubs and a new comedy (possibly This Might Hurt). Speaking of Scrubs, I think ABC will indeed pick it up but not air it until January. I have no idea where they would slot it, too. Tuesdays at 8 in January or Thursdays at 8 giving Betty a break in January? I think ABC should go after Fridays. They shouldn't give up. They should go after the family audience. And new adventure drama Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas is exactly what they should air...especially in the the colder months between October-February when viewership is higher. I think According to Jim should wrap up its series run in the fall rather than being fed to American Idol in the winter/spring. I would double up on it because I'm too scared to launch a new sitcom, like Cedric the Entertainer's new sitcom. I guess they could double pump Jim for a while then bring in Cedric in one of the slots if this night clicks. Finally, on Sundays...I would leave 7-10pm alone. I think Dirty Sexy Money would be a better fit out of Desperate Housewives than Private Practice was...so yes it is a risk to move Brothers & Sisters, but I think that drama can do well on another night, too. Series that will be canceled or are ending include: Notes from the Underbelly, October Road, Women's Murder Club, Big Shots, Cashmere Mafia, Cavemen, Carpoolers, Duel, MEN IN TREES. The Bachelor, Wife Swap & Supernanny will all return for mid-season or maybe December/January on Monday nights. Other reality shows like Oprah's Big Give, Here Come the Newlyweds, and Dance War all did decent, and should be tried again for mid-season or maybe next summer. Looking at the fall line-up, ABC is pretty stacked with shows that are hits and sophomores that could build and be big hits...but with the strike it is very hard to tell what new shows will be available in the fall. Some shows that should make it sometime this season that I haven't mentioned yet are dramas Prince of Motor City, Life on Mars, Section 8 (has a 6 episode order), and comedies Bad Mother's Handbook, Cupid, Never Better, and the animated Goode Family. Anyway, this season ABC had some decent hits like Private Practice, Samantha Who, Pushing Daises and some promising shows such as Eli Stone, Miss Guided and Dirty Sexy Money. But this coming year will have ABC trying to build on those even more with their mega hits like Dancing with the Stars, Desperate Housewives, and Grey's Anatomy. Hopefully there isn't an actors strike to mess the TV landscape again. Discuss your thoughts on our prediction and feel free to make suggestions of your own, by clicking HERE! Remember, next Tuesday (May 13) is the actual date when we will find out ABC's plans for the 2008-09 season. So, come on back next Tuesday and we will let you know the details and you can see how much we were right (or wrong). Stay tuned tomorrow for a preview on The CW's upfront. Turning to the news, Ghost Whisperer was acquired by ION Television starting in September 2009 for broadcast rights, but now the show has been sold to cable as well! Both Sci Fi Channel and WE tv will share the show in a joint contract. Sci Fi Channel will air the show in four hour marathon blocks once a week, while WE tv will air it daily, similar to ION. We will have more on WE tv's part soon, but Sci Fi has already announced their plans this morning. SCI FI Channel has secured off-network cable rights to CBS's Emmy-nominated series, Ghost Whisperer, from CBS Television Distribution. SCI FI will launch the series in the fall of 2009. In addition, SCI FI will have access to shows in the CBS-Paramount library, including Star Trek: The Next Generation, which will premiere Monday June 2, 2008 on SCI FI, Charmed, Early Edition, Highlander, Highlander: The Raven, Seven Days, The Sentinel, The Invaders, Friday the Thirteenth: The Series and the classic Robin Williams sitcom Mork & Mindy, among others. We will have more details on those classic series later, but we know Star Trek: The Next Generation starts Monday, June 2 and will air Mondays from 7-11pm. SCI FI likes to air shows in marathon blocks, so they have something fresh each day. Look for the classic series to be rotated into their morning daytime rotation slots. Nice to have a sitcom on SCI FI! Maybe they can get Webster from CBS-Paramount as well? We all know Webster was secretly an alien...just kidding! Seriously, they should get more sitcoms of this nature from other studios like Debmar-Mercury's ALF, 20th Century Fox's Small Wonder and Universal's Out of this World...just my suggestions and thoughts. Mork & Mindy is a nice start, though! We will keep you up to date on these library shows. Yes, the Charmed deal will be shared with TNT ... so SCI and TNT can air it. In other news, WE tv has also secured rights to the last three seasons of the sitcom Girlfriends! BET will have rights to the other seasons still. We will have more on this shortly. We already mentioned WE tv has acquired The Golden Girls for March 2009, in a shared deal with Hallmark, so it seems WE Tv is loading up more on off-net programming. Meanwhile, SCI FI will launch Lost this fall, as we stated previously.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Thursday, March 28

The Conners - "Keep On Truckin' Six Feet Apart" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
The Conners are dealing with the pandemic and life's financial troubles.

The Conners - "Halloween and the Election vs the Pandemic" (The CW, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Halloween has been canceled, so the family works to create an unforgettable experience.

Son of a Critch - "Airing Out" (The CW, 9:00PM ET/PT)
The Critches are doing their annual airing-out-the-house ritual; some family secrets are uncovered.

Son of a Critch - "Cabaret" (The CW, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Mark finally gets the chance to take the stage as a stand-up comedian.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 25)

Thursday, March 28

  • Joey King (Bent) - Joey talks about We Were the Lucky Ones on ABC's Good Morning America some time between 7-9am.
  • Giancarlo Esposito (Bakersfield P.D.) - Giancarlo discusses his starring role in the AMC crime-thriller series Parish on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
  • Niecy Nash-Betts (Reno 911!/Getting On/The Soul Man/Do Not Disturb) - Niecy stops by to talk about her upcoming starring turn in Ryan Murphy's horror drama Grotesquerie on Sherri, so check your local listings.
  • Lisa Ann Walter (Abbott Elementary/Emeril) - Lisa talks about Abbott Elementary on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • Lorraine Toussaint (Where I Live) - Lorraine is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.


New on DVD/Blu-ray (November-March)

Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Father Knows Best - The Complete Series The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Three's Company - The Official 40th Anniversary Collection Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

11/07 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Sixth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/14 - Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/05 - Father Knows Best - The Complete Series
12/05 - The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/12 - The Dick Van Dyke Show - The Complete Series
12/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
12/12 - That Girl - The Complete Series
12/15 - Letterkenny - Season 11
12/19 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series
12/22 - Three's Company - The Official 40th Anniversary Collection (includes The Ropers and Three's a Crowd)
01/09 - South Park - Seasons 11-15 (Blu-ray)
01/16 - Ghosts (UK) - Season Five
02/13 - Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/27 - The Really Loud House - Season One
03/12 - Ghosts (UK) - The Complete Series
03/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 3 (Blu-ray)
03/12 - Rick and Morty - Season 7 (Blu-ray Steelbook) (Blu-ray) (DVD)

That Girl - The Complete Series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series

More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

03/28 - Netflix's Good Times Animated Comedy Trailer; Too Close for Comfort and Check It Out! Complete Series on DVD
03/27 - The Upshaws Part 5 This April; Max Orders Noah Wyle Medical Drama
03/26 - Apple TV+ Orders Star-Studded Comedy; Elizabeth Banks Joins New Peacock Series
03/25 - Disney Channel Orders Wizards of Waverly Place Revival; Paramount+ Animated Comedy Ark: The Animated Series
03/24 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 25, 2024)
03/23 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Netflix Sets Premiere Date for Good Times Animated Reboot; NBC Renews Several Popular Series
03/22 - NBC Renews Nearly All Chicago and Law & Order Series; Goosebumps Season 2 Cast Update
03/21 - Hallmark Renews The Way Home; You Final Season Sets Cast
03/20 - Community Arrives on Peacock April 1, Movie Coming Soon; Hulu Premieres New Comedy Dinosaur April 5
03/19 - NBC Summer 2024 Schedule; Starz Drama Rounds Out All-Star Cast
03/18 - Shout! TV Celebrates 25 Years of Farscape; AMC Acquires Snowpiercer
03/17 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 18, 2024)
03/16 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Ty Burrell Sitcom in the Works at ABC; CBS Renews Ghosts
03/15 - Netflix Heads to the Arctic for Comedy Series; Neal Brennan's 3rd Comedy Special
03/14 - SNL Announces Second to Last 3 Episode Set of Season; Bill Maher Renewed for 2 More Seasons
03/13 - CBS Renews Ghosts and Fire Country; Apple TV+ Orders Owen Wilson Comedy
03/12 - Roseanne Couch Week on COZI TV; The CW Orders Leighton Meester Series for 2025
03/11 - Every Grey's Anatomy Episode Now on Hulu; You Season 5 Casting Update
03/10 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 11, 2024)
03/09 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Tim Allen Headlining ABC Comedy Pilot; NBC Developing Bewitched Inspired Sitcom
03/08 - Amazon Freevee Gets New Comedy Series; Apple TV+ Loot Returns April 3
03/07 - Jim Parsons and Mayim Bialik Reprising Their Characters from Big Bang; Monsters at Work Returns for Season 2
03/06 - CBS Orders Multi-Camera Spin-off of Young Sheldon; FETV Acquires Highway Patrol
03/05 - Fox Summer 2024 Schedule, In-Season Finales; CBS Renews Tracker for Season 2
03/04 - Laff Acquires Matthew Perry and Will Arnett Sitcoms; Lisa Whelchel Returns for MeTV Series
03/03 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 4, 2024)
03/02 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Pluto TV Adds More Channels Including Universal Action; CBS Renews Young and the Restless for Four More Years
03/01 - Lopez vs Lopez Season 2 Brings Out the Stars; Prime Video's Música Drops April 4
02/29 - Season 3 of Hacks Adds Star Power; Remembering Richard Lewis
02/28 - BUZZR Celebrates Women's History Month in March; 10th Anniversary of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon