FRESHMAN SCORECARD: October 2012

The Freshman Scorecard is back! As I have the past two years, I will rank each new series by network in terms of their chances of survival.

Check out past October Freshman Scorecards: 2010 and 2011!

ABC
Last Resort - This is a tough one as ABC has had only three series premiere to ratings that are hard to decipher after one week. Still, I think ABC really likes this show and wants it to work and the threshold is low in a slot that is continuously a problem for them.

The Neighbors - The sitcom certainly had a decent premiere behind Modern Family but I don't think a big portion of that audience will come back after The Middle this week especially for a show that was so critically panned.

666 Park Avenue - I don't think this is all that far below Last Resort and The Neighbors. I could easily make a case for a different order but it premiered with (preliminary) the same demo as Last Resort with a much bigger lead-in. With Nashville coming too, this drama might be on the shakiest ground because I think ABC will take its time with comedy.

CBS 

Elementary - As many (including myself) predicted, Elementary fit perfectly into the CBS lineup with the best premiere from actual premiere week. With a well known topic and a good cast, it seems the closest thing to an early lock.

Vegas - The show skewed ancient but compared to the other two new CBS shows, it's in a much better position. If it can continue to get high viewer marks even if the demo is low, maybe a move to Friday is in store down the road?

Partners - Uh oh. This comedy really hurt CBS Monday as a huge number of people tuned out this show after watching How I Met Your Mother and then came back again for 2 Broke Girls. If CBS feels like this show is bringing down its new anchor show in Girls then it will be gone faster than you can say... Rules of Engagement?

Made in Jersey - CBS's new Friday entry delivered DOA numbers with a 1.1 demo. Still, CBS has shown a tendency to be patient with Friday shows but they haven't been this low before and CBS hasn't had Undercover Boss on the bench before.

NBC

Go On - It was a toss up between this and Revolution for the top of this list but I went with Go On because I think NBC is really committed to comedy and this is their best hope. I think they'll be extremely patient with it.

Revolution - NBC's new drama series has gotten off to a thrilling start but everyone is questioning what it will look like in a few weeks. If it can stay above Smash levels from the spring, I think a renewal is a sure thing.

The New Normal - The other new Tuesday comedy hasn't been as strong but the drop wasn't as big during premiere week so that's promising. I think they will be almost as patient with this show as with Go On.

Guys with Kids - This show avoided the bottom of the list by being a slightly better performer on a terrible Wednesday hour for NBC. I do think they will try this show with Whitney before they give up on it.

Animal Practice - NBC's shows have overperformed for the most part so far but Animal Practice was dead in the water on Wednesday night. I'll be surprised if this is still on the air by the time we get to the November scorecard.

FOX

The Mindy Project - None of FOX's new shows have captivated audiences but this is the closest one as it at least got a better sampling than the other two and it's FOX's top priority among the new shows. I think FOX will be very patient with this one.

Ben and Kate - The other new Tuesday comedy didn't have as strong a premiere and has to follow Raising Hope. But the good news for these shows is that FOX has only one comedy on the bench for midseason right now so I think we'll see both new comedies for awhile even if they drop.

The Mob Doctor - This show is completely dead after two poor airings. I would be absolutely shocked if it is still airing on Mondays by the end of the month. It might get yanked as soon as this week.