GOOD WEEK/BAD WEEK: January 11, 2014

GOOD WEEK: CBS TUESDAY AND THURSDAY
CBS had a low rated finale night for Hostages on Monday and a so-so result from the People's Choice Awards on Wednesday but they were on fire on Tuesday and Thursday. TV's two most watched shows - NCIS and The Big Bang Theory - both topped 20 million viewers for season highs. Tuesday also had the series premiere of Intelligence garner the best total viewer count of any new show this season alongside a respectable demo premiere, though it must now face Castle and The Blacklist on Monday. Every single show on Thursday was up with all four sitcoms posting their best numbers since at least mid-October. The Millers, which was looking weaker, came all the way back to tie its season premiere numbers. While January is a great time for many shows as the viewership totals tend to rise, other shows are proving that not everything works. For these two lineups, everything was chugging along.

BAD WEEK: ABC MIDSEASON PREMIERES
It has been a tough season for ABC. Everything on this side of Scandal seems to be either DOA or showing its age. And it has been really brutal for the new shows. After a fall that saw numbers ranging from disappointing (Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and The Goldbergs) to outright horrendous (Lucky 7 and Betrayal), ABC's midseason is looking even worse. Their limited replacement for Scandal, The Assets, premiered to the worst in-season numbers ever. It dropped in week two and was swiftly cancelled today after two episodes. Then Killer Women premiered on Tuesday following tons of promotion. If it was not for The Assets, it would have tied the lowest in-season premiere ever. It premiered well short of what Lucky 7 bombed to. And their remaining new shows don't look very promising. I contend however that a lot of this is ABC's own fault. They consistently premiere shows in the same slots where they continue to fail (look at Thursday 8pm and Tuesday 10pm). They air incompatible stuff like the slew of young adult sitcoms that have followed family comedies on Wednesdays. And their development, especially in the drama department, was pretty bad this year. So there may be bigger changes necessary at the Alphabet network.

Comments

SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1995-1996 Thursdays

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Thursdays in the 1995-96 season! ABC 8:00 8:30 9:00 10:00 Sep Charlie Grace The Monroes Various Programs Oct Murder One Nov Various Programs Dec Various Programs Thursday Night Movie Jan Feb World’s Funniest Videos Before They Were Stars! Mar Apr May NBC was the powerhouse on Thursday nights but ABC still gave it the old college try in the Fall of 1995 with a trio of new dramas that they hoped would help them cut into the Peacock's dominance. Headlining their night was Murder One , a high profile new show from Steven Bochco that received much of the network's attention before the season started. The series focused on one murder case for an entire season, whi...

EPISODE GUIDES: Rhoda Season Five

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Five (the final season) of Rhoda ! RHODA: SEASON FIVE 1978 13 episodes Rhoda' s final season was a truncated one as the show was cancelled in December 1978 after only 13 episodes had been produced (and only nine had aired). This feels like a continuation from season four in many ways except with the ill-advised split between Ida and Martin (more on that below). While Rhoda has an occasional good moment and even a couple decent episodes, it is a show that seems so wildly different from season one and not in a good way. Rhoda could never figure out what it fully wanted to be and only made it four and a half seasons as a result. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern (13 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern (13 episodes) Ray Buktenica as Benny Goodwin (11 episodes) Kenneth McMillan as Jack Doyle (9 episodes) Nancy Wa...

DECADE IN REVIEW: The Best Comedies of the 2010s

During the month of December, I will be looking back at the decade that was the 2010s on TV. I will be sharing my favorite sitcoms, dramas, the best episodes, the best performances and the worst shows of the decade. To be eligible for this list, a show had to air the majority of its episodes in the 2010s. However, for the rankings and determination, all episodes were taken into account, including ones that may have aired before 2010. I will also preface that there are comedies that have aired this decade that I haven't watched yet so this is the best of what I have watched. To be fair, that preface is more true for dramas. There's not a ton of unwatched comedies sitting in my Netflix or Amazon watchlist. So here are my Top 10 comedies of the 2010s! Close Calls: Master of None (Netflix) - An inconsistent but occasionally fascinating commentary on many life issues done so with innovative storytelling. The Good Place (NBC) - A show that aims high with a fascinating premis...

Benjamonster's TV

Search This Blog