Friday, November 09, 2018

Fri-Yay: When Is It Time to Stop Looking at Live Ratings?; NBC Sets and Shifts January 2019 Lineup

It's time for another edition of Fri-Yay! That means we will take a look back on some sitcom happenings in recent days or weeks or other fun sitcomy stuff. It's a sitcom lover's paradise! Happy Fri-Yay!

ABC, NBC, The CW, Fox and CBS

by Vincent

This fall has been disastrous for network TV ratings. Huge, giant sitcoms like Modern Family and The Big Bang Theory are down to all-time low numbers. Veteran hits like The Goldbergs and Superstore are at levels well below even just last season. And while there have been new sitcoms such as The Neighborhood and The Kids Are Alright to do fairly well, their numbers would've been deemed cancel-worthy just a few seasons ago. Not to mention shows like Fresh Off the Boat and Speechless, moved to Friday nights only to see almost their entire live audience abandon them. It's been a grim fall for sitcoms on network TV, even ones generally doing well, at least if your name isn't The Conners. And yet, when everything is so low, one has to ask...is it time to stop looking at live ratings as a measure for success?

There's no doubt that the live, overnight ratings (the ones that are still highly publicized) are still key to networks. These ratings are the best measures we have of how many people are watching the advertisements that make these shows profitable and keep networks in business. And yet...how many people do you know in the year 2018 that actually make it a priority to watch shows live? Probably a lot less than in 2008, or even just 5 years ago. Every year, more people turn to DVR and streaming, to the point where DVR and streaming numbers are double and triple what people are watching live. It seems that networks are slowly figuring out how to make money off these methods too, particularly streaming. You look at a network like The CW - a network whose shows all have fairly tiny live viewership numbers - and see a network that is basically still profitable because it makes deals with Netflix to air its shows, likely because Netflix knows their shows attract audiences on streaming, particularly young audiences who are not watching shows live. That's how shows like iZombie or Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - shows that very, very few people are watching live - manage to make multiple seasons. That would've been unthinkable ten years ago, but it's where things are heading.

Other networks are not quite at that level yet, but we're certainly getting close. Granted, we haven't progressed enough that we're free of high-profile cancellations - remember when Fox wiped out nearly its entire comedy slate last year? - but we're certainly getting to a point where networks are looking at other metrics to bring shows back. For example, there's no live ratings reason why CBS should've held onto Madam Secretary for as long as it has (it's consistently one of broadcast TV's lowest-rated shows in the key 18-49 demo) but syndication money keeps it profitable for CBS. It's also why we're nearly at the halfway point of November and we've yet to see a show cancelled - and this is the third year in a row where networks waited that long or nearly that long to cancel the first show of the season. (Previously, it was rare to make it through the first 2 weeks of the season without a show receiving the ax.) It's not all about live ratings anymore - it's about growing and building and audience. Live ratings aren't completely irrelevant (even if they're not cancelled yet, you can bet miserably-rated shows like I Feel Bad and The Alec Baldwin Show will not make it to the end of the 2018-2019 season) but we're finally at a place where they really no longer tell the whole story.


NBC

NBC is shifting the premiere of Dwayne Johnson's new athletic competition series The Titan Games to Thursday, Jan. 3 from 8-10 p.m. ET/PT. The series will air in its regular timeslot on Thursdays from 8-9 p.m. beginning Jan. 10. The move of The Titan Games to Thursday keeps NBC's highly successful all-Chicago Wednesday lineup intact. Brooklyn Nine-Nine will premiere Thursday, Jan. 10 at 9 p.m. and air weekly in that timeslot thru May 16. The Good Place will shift to 9:30 p.m. beginning Thursday, Jan. 10 and air in that timeslot through its season finale on Jan. 24. Will & Grace will move to 9:30 p.m. beginning Thursday, Jan. 31 and will air thru April 4. Superstore will be preempted before returning March 7 (thru May 16) when the 8-10 p.m. two-hour comedy block returns with all original programming.

I Feel Bad, which was always intended as a 13-episode season because a pair of upcoming comedies still need to be scheduled (Abby's, A.P. Bio), will conclude in December. A decision on its future will be determined at a later date. In the recent past, NBC has ordered 13-episode seasons for a handful of comedies, including The Good Place and A.P. Bio.




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

03/27 - 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
02/27 - Little House on the Prairie Big 5-0 Stunt on COZI TV; Netflix Orders Tires Starring Shane Gillis