Skip to main content

QUICK HITS: My NBC Midseason Schedule Suggestion

Here are my midseason thoughts for NBC!

NBC has had an interesting fall because a lot of their veterans (especially the Chicago shows) are holding up well, but their new class has arguably been the worst on any network. Sunnyside is cancelled, Bluff City Law has had production shut down after 10 episodes instead of 13 and Perfect Harmony is one of the lowest rated shows on the big four now that Sunnyside is gone.

Once again, I will state this a suggestion, not a prediction!

MONDAYS
8:00 (Jan) America's Got Talent: The Champions/(Mar) The Voice
10:00 (Jan) Council of Dads/(Apr) Manifest
It seems obvious that NBC is going to give Council of Dads the same treatment they had for Rise and The Village: a few weeks airing after This is Us and then taking the 9pm slot. But I think Council of Dads has more potential and that plan clearly doesn't work. If it is their most promising drama (which it very well could be), why not give it a better slot by letting it air after the winter run of America's Got Talent: The Champions. When it finishes its run (or if it doesn't work), Manifest is on the bench and can air into the summer.

TUESDAYS
8:00 (Jan) Ellen's Game of Games/(Mar) The Voice
9:00 (Jan) This is Us/(Apr) Lincoln
10:00 (Jan) Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist/(Mar) New Amsterdam
I also think Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist has potential and would die on Sunday nights. I'd give it a shot airing after This is Us in January and put New Amsterdam on hiatus. When This is Us ends, I would give the slot to Lincoln, which doesn't sound as promising but would still be given a decent enough slot.

WEDNESDAYS
8:00 Chicago Med
9:00 Chicago Fire
10:00 Chicago PD
Chicago shows on Wednesdays are one of broadcast TV's few shining bright spots. No reason to change a thing.

THURSDAYS
(Jan)
8:00 Superstore
8:30 Perfect Harmony
9:00 The Good Place
9:30 Will & Grace
10:00 Law & Order: SVU

(Feb)
8:00 Superstore
8:30 Brooklyn Nine-Nine
9:00 Will & Grace
9:30 Indebted
10:00 Law & Order: SVU
I heard that Superstore only has 18 episodes this season. I certainly hope it ups it to 22 because it is NBC's only solid comedy. This is going to be a rough night no matter how things shake out so I don't think there's any great option here but putting two compatible single cams followed by two multi-cams seems like the best option in a sea of bad ones. Cutting the comedy block could be an option too but I don't love the idea of NBC only have one comedy hour.

FRIDAYS
8:00 The Blacklist
9:00 Blindspot
10:00 Dateline NBC
I would leave Fridays alone except to add Blindspot to the night at some point. Leaving Blindspot until summer wouldn't be terrible either.

SUNDAYS
(Jan) Various

(Mar)
7:00 Dateline NBC
8:00 Little Big Shots
9:00 The Titan Games
10:00 Good Girls
I think NBC should go with mostly unscripted on Sundays after the many weeks of preemptions in January and February. I don't think anything will work on Sundays at 10pm so sticking with last spring's Good Girls is ok.

SAVE FOR SUMMER: The Kenan Show, Who Do You Think You Are?, World of Dance

CANCEL: Bluff City Law, Sunnyside

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

SEASON IN REVIEW: 2017-18 Miscellaneous Awards

As usual, I am ending the season with a few miscellaneous awards. The blog will be quiet this summer but I will continue to do the week ahead posts with broadcast TV news as it happens this summer. Then I'll be back for previews, pilot reviews, and more in the fall! BEST RETURNING COMEDY Superstore (NBC) - Superstore was awarded my "Best Returning Comedy" last year, but it only got better in season three. The funniest ensemble on TV took another step forward with some truly hilarious moments (the season premiere, the Golden Globes party, and the Christmas episode to name a few) and some major plot points moving forward. It also has the potential to be surprisingly sentimental at times. I think back to the first year of the show and how I felt like it had so many funny elements but didn't always bring it completely together. Well now it does on a weekly basis and it is one of those shows that just seems to be in the sweet spot of what will hopefully be a long run. ...

EPISODE GUIDES: Happy Days Season Five (Part 1)

On Thursdays, I take a detailed and critical look at a TV show by season. Today I am looking at Season 5 (Part 1) of  Happy Days ! HAPPY DAYS: SEASON FIVE 1977-1978 27 episodes Season Five is the year where Fonzie infamously jumps the shark. It happens at the beginning of the season and while  Happy Days  does eventually decline in quality, it is not this season. In fact, this season graded out slightly higher than the previous season even though it doesn't feel as strong. I think that's because there's not a lot of outright stinkers in this season. It's a very solid season with the show continuing to hum along. There are some signs of the troubles to come but it doesn't happen on a regular basis in the fifth season. Starring Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham  (27 episodes) Henry Winkler as Arthur Fonzarelli  (27 episodes) Tom Bosley as Howard Cunningham  (27 episodes) Marion Ross as Marion Cunningham  (27 episodes) Anson Williams as Potsie Webber  ...

EPISODE GUIDES: That 70s Show Season Seven

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Seven of  That 70s Show ! THAT 70s SHOW: SEASON SEVEN 2004-2005 25 episodes The seventh season of  That 70s Show  is the final season with Topher Grace as a series regular and also the final full season for Ashton Kutcher. Despite still having both of those cast member, the show finds itself flailing especially with Topher Grace's Eric, who is stuck in a terrible arc for most of the season. The show also brings many characters back at one point or another but everything just feels tired. This season actually graded out the worst for me. Even worse than the often maligned final season (more on that next week). Every title this season is named for a Rolling Stones song. Starring Topher Grace as Eric Forman  (25 episodes) Mila Kunis as Jackie Burkhart  (25 episodes) Ashton Kutcher as Michael Kelso  (25 episodes) Danny Masterson as Steven Hyde  (25 e...