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Fox, NBC, ABC All Make Midseason Adjustments

Posted on: Tuesday, 6 December 2005, 15:00 CST

By Scott D. Pierce Deseret Morning News

Fox chickened out. And NBC is really brave.

Or maybe Fox is really smart and NBC is desperate. It all depends on how you interpret what the two networks are planning with their schedules come January.

As for their competitors at ABC, it looks an awful lot like they're waaaay overestimating how big an appetite there is for "Dancing with the Stars."

After much speculation that Fox might try to take on CBS's Thursday dominance by putting one of two weekly editions of "American Idol" there, the network took a more conservative route -- beginning Jan. 17, the competition show will return to Tuesdays at 7 p.m.; on Jan. 18, the results show returns to Wednesdays at 8 p.m.

NBC, which is still struggling mightily in the ratings, is making some big changes and launching perhaps the single riskiest show of the season -- "The Book of Daniel," an hourlong drama about an Episcopalian minister named Daniel who -- in addition to dealing with his flock and a variety of family issues -- often talks to a manifestation of Jesus Christ. The series will air a two-hour debut on Friday, Jan. 6, at 8 p.m. and then air Fridays at 9 p.m. through Feb. 3. (The Winter Olympics begin on the network the following week.)

Oh, did I mention that "Book" was the single best pilot of any fall or midseason show on any network I've seen this year?

All three networks are making big changes after the first of the year. For Fox, it's becoming an annual event; for NBC, it's a matter of necessity; and for ABC, it's trying desperately to at least make some sort of impact on Thursday nights. Here's what to expect:

FOX will bring back "24" with two hours on Sunday, Jan. 15, and another two hours on Monday, Jan. 16. It begins airing Mondays at 8 p.m. on Jan. 22.

-- Really Good News Alert! "Prison Break" will be back sooner than originally announced -- which was supposed to be May. The most recent episode repeats Monday, March 13, at 7 p.m.; new episodes begin a week later. Fox Entertainment president Peter Ligouri apparently became the last person in America to realize "it's a fantastic companion for '24'," but whatever the reason, whoo-hoo!

-- Really Bad News Alert! The season (and, perhaps, series) finale of "Reunion" will air Thursday, Feb. 2 -- and that will cut short by several weeks the plan to have each episode cover a year in this 20-year murder mystery.

-- "Trading Spouses" returns on Fridays at 8 p.m. on Jan. 6.

-- Fox's Rip-off On Ice of ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" -- "Skating with Celebrities" (really!) -- debuts Monday, Jan. 23, and moves to Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on Jan. 25.

Of course, Fox ought to be charged with false advertising for the title of this show -- calling Dave Coulier, Bruce Jenner, Todd Bridges, Kristy Swanson, Deborah Gibson and Jillian Barberi "celebrities" is, at the very least, stretching the truth.

-- "Bones" moves to Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on Jan. 25.

-- "That '70s Show" and "Stacked" move to Thursday at 8 and 8:30 p.m. on March. 2.

-- Shows without a place on Fox's midseason schedule (and, apparently, without a future) include "Arrested Development,""Killer Instinct" and "Kitchen Confidential."

NBC is making a bunch of changes in January and a bunch more after the Olympics end in February. But they're not going to give us all that info until next month's TV critic's press tour. Hmmmmm . . .

Anyway, the announced changes include:

-- "My Name Is Earl" and "The Office" move to Thursdays at 8 and 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 5.

-- Also on Thursday, Jan. 5, "Will & Grace" (which is in its final season) moves up a half hour to 7 p.m. And the promising new sitcom "Four Kings" debuts at 7:30 p.m.

-- "The Apprentice" and "Joey" will return after the Olympics (scheduling TBA), which isn't necessarily a good sign. At least not for "Joey."

-- Back-to-back, original episodes of "Scrubs" will air Tuesdays at 8 and 8:30 p.m. beginning Jan. 3. (Which looks at least a little like they're just burning it off.)

-- The clip show "Most Outrageous TV Moments," which has been seen as a series of specials, becomes a weekly series on Friday, Jan. 6, at 7 p.m.

-- "The Biggest Loser" will return as a series of self-contained specials that will air Wednesdays at 8 p.m. for six weeks beginning Jan. 4.

-- "Dateline's" Friday edition moves back an hour to 8 p.m. on Jan 15, leaving "Three Wishes" in limbo until (you guess it!) after the Olympics.

ABC is putting an awful lot of faith in a show that probably doesn't deserve it -- are we really ready for two hours a week of "Dancing with the Stars"? This is, after all, a cheesy reality show that was a nice diversion during the summer months, but it wasn't that good, and it's ratings weren't that great.

So airing 90-minute editions on Thursdays at 7 p.m. beginning Jan. 5 -- with the last half hour going up against ratings juggernaut "CSI" -- seems a bit quixotic.

(Oh well, at least it's cheaper than "Alias" and "Nightstalker," which bombed there.)

There's no word yet on what, um, "stars" will actually sign up for the series this time around, but it's hard to imagine a lineup less glittering than the one on "Skating with Celebrities."

ABC is also adding a half-hour "Dancing" results show on Fridays at 7 p.m. on Jan. 6.

-- "Crumbs," a promising new sitcom about a fractured family (with a cast that includes Fred Savage, Jane Curtin and William Devane) premieres Thursday, Jan. 5, at 8:30 p.m. The pilot episode is a hoot!

-- Also on Jan. 6, "Hope & Faith" moves to Fridays at 7:30 p.m.

-- Also on Jan. 6, ABC adds the legal drama "In Justice" on Fridays at 8 p.m. It's about a "group of young lawyers and investigators (who) catch the bad guys and free the good," according to the network.

Their leader is played by Kyle MacLachlan, who, at the age of 46, wouldn't seem to qualify as "young." But there's always makeup.

-- "Alias" is off the air for January and February -- a planned hiatus to accommodate Jennifer Garner's pregnancy -- but will return sometime in the spring. The network has, however, announced that this will be the final season for the show.

-- Left in limbo at the moment is "Hot Properties," but its future looks dim. Which is a good thing.

-- As previously announced, after "Monday Night Football" ends the network's Monday-night lineup will feature "Wife Swap" at 7 p.m.; the new comedy "Emily's Reasons Why Not" at 8 p.m.; the returning comedy "Jake In Progress" at 8:30 p.m.; and another season of the remarkably tiresome "Bachelor" at 9 p.m.

E-mail: pierce@desnews.com

Source: Deseret News (Salt Lake City)

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