Mid
Season Preview Part
2
As the nets look towards
mid-season,
so am I. with falling ratings and utterly frustrating results from the
fall, the next few editions of tv talk will examine just how each
network
is planning on coming back in the spring.

How The Fall
Went: Not
too badly for the network all things considered. It lost the fewest
viewers
of all the networks (CBS, of course, gained) and actually has a stable
of solid performing shows.
What's On Tap:
ABC
will likely stay the course, like CBS, but there will be some tweaks.
Kingdom
Hospital:
The
new Stephen King show (or mini-series to develope into a series, still
not sure) will come out in March and will likely have a huge initial
impact.
The
DA: ABC
has six episodes of this series ready and able to go.
The
Bachelorette/Bachelor:
Like
American Idol, there's really no reason to explain, right?
The
Drew
Carey Show:
ABC still has 26 episodes of this show ready to go.
Where?
God only knows, but it did show some promise last season.
Karen
Sisco:
The
network has promised a March re-launch. I sure hope so, this show was
great!
I'm guessing Sundays at 10pm.
Others:
ABC
has a few others sitcoms in the can ready to air. My guess is Tuesdays,
Wednesdays and Fridays at 8:30pm, ABC's weakest links.
What Gets Left
Behind: Some
sitcoms, like I'm With Her, It's All Relative and Married To The
Kelley's.
The rest of ABC's shows are reasonably strong, although the "Matrix"
may
be in threat. "10-8" is also as good as gone.
The
Prognoisis: Unlike
previous years, ABC won't die in the spring. It's good a solid number
of
upcoming series and a good stable of veterans. Still, it will be fourth.

How The Fall
Went: The
UPN got off to a very, very bad start, but managed to curtail losses by
December. With two strong blocks on comedies, things are looking at
least
better than the WB for mid season.
What's On Tap:
I
haven't heard much from the UPN about mid-season, but they usually have
a few series up their sleaves that air to alost nobody. This year will
be no exception. Well, there is an exception- "America's Next Top
Model."
America's
Next Top Model:
One of the UPN's few catty, on the pulse critical
darlings
is coming back this week, Tuesdays at 9pm.
What Gets Left
Behind: The
Mullets won't be coming back anytime soon, and "Model" leaves "Rock Me
Baby" out in the cold. Say what you want about the quality of the
series,
it has been doing okay numbers all things considered.
The
Prognoisis: It's
comedies repeat better than it's dramas, so the UPN should have a
pretty
good spring. It just has to fix Wednesdays and Fridays now. Good luck.
Got some ideas of
your own? Talk about
it on the message
board!
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