by kellie abrahamson kabrahamson1@aol.com
When the writers went on strike, TV fans knew we were headed for a cold, lonely winter. Those days, sadly, are here. Having run out of most of their scripts, the networks are headed into what I like to call a code red. They need programming and they need it stat. With all the writers looking to get paid instead of sitting complacently at their computers, happy with their tiny residuals like good little sweatshop workers (can you tell I’m all for the WGA here?), the Big Three and the netlets are turning to reality TV to save them until the strike is over. So what can you expect to see (or, more likely, turn off) come January?
The Alphabet Net kills when it comes to scripted entertainment so it’s sad to see fan favorites like Grey’s Anatomy, Pushing Daisies and Desperate Housewives get shelved right in the middle of their seasons. Thankfully someone over at ABC had the good sense to save their biggest hit for mid-season. According to Jim returns on January 1st but the big news is Lost is coming back on January 31st with seven brand new episodes. Hallelujah! Two new shows will premiere in January as well, making the reality TV list coming up a little easier to swallow (but not by much). The much buzzed about Cashmere Mafia, starring Lucy Liu, Frances O’Connor, Miranda Otto and Bonnie Sommerville, arrives on January 3rd, while the legal drama Eli Stone starring Jonny Lee Miller debuts on January 31st.
Reality TV gets integrated into the schedule immediately. January 1st brings Just for Laughs, a hidden-camera show, and the second brings back Wife Swap and Supernanny. Dipping into the Dancing with the Stars well comes a spin-off, Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann, on January 7th. Oprah will be giving away stuff beginning on March 7th with her new show cleverly titled Oprah’s Big Give. Finally, both Dancing with the Stars and The Bachelor will come back on March 17th.
Unlike most of the networks, CBS will rely heavily on reruns for most of the mid-season months. Still, there will be some new programming sprinkled throughout. New Adventures of Old Christine comes back on January 28th and brings with it promising new comedy The Captain starring Jeffrey Tambor. The miraculously resurrected Jericho, saved by fans at the 11th hour over the summer, will begin its abbreviated 7 episode season on February 12th.
Reality shows making it into the mix include games show Power of 10 (January 2) and old stand-bys Survivor (February 7) and Big Brother (February 12). Yet another game show, Do You Trust Me, is also in production but a firm release date has yet to be announced.
There are still a lot of question marks over what the C-Dub is going to do during the strike. We know that One Tree Hill is coming back on January 8th with nearly a complete season ready to air (the show was granted a reprieve from cancellation but was only given a 13 episode season) and the beauty pageant reality series Crowned has already begun stinking up the airwaves. What else do they have planned? Well, nothing’s been officially confirmed but its been speculated that Beauty and the Geek and a new installment of the Pussycat Dolls “talent” search will come back and that a fascinating new dating show called Farmer Wants a Wife (no, I’m not kidding) will also make an appearance at some point. The only other show that could possibly show up in the next couple of months is the Sean Hayes-produced comedy Eight Days a Week which looks like it could be pretty good if it ever sees the light of day.
Fox is about to rule in the ratings in the next few weeks thanks to the triumphant return of American Idol (January 15), but that doesn’t mean they’re slacking with their mid-season schedule. Out of all of the networks, this one seems to be the most promising which, considering who we’re talking about here, is downright shocking. Lots of new scripted shows will be premiering beginning with the surprisingly fun Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles on January 13th. February 22nd brings New Amsterdam, an intriguing series about an immortal NYC homicide detective. Parker Posey stars in The Return of Jezebel James and the Farrelly Brothers try their hands at the sitcom with Unhitched. Both shows will air in March. Finally, the highly anticipated (and this time the buzz is actually legitimate- the show is excellent) legal drama Canterbury’s Law will take the stand on April 11th.
Idol is the big one for Fox, but other reality shows will begin their seasons as well. Game show The Moment of Truth will air on January 23rd and a Survivor-type series When Women Rule the World will begin on March 3rd. Finally, Chef Ramsey will be cooking up trouble in Hell’s Kitchen beginning April 1st.
We’ve saved the worst possible line-up for last. The Peacock almost redeemed itself in the eyes of the world with shows like Heroes and The Office but the reality sludge they’ve scraped off of the bottom of the barrel for the coming months is sure to ruin much of the network’s recently earned credibility. We’ll start with the bad news first so this rundown ends on a somewhat high note. Goofy music-related shows Clash of the Choirs and The Singing Bee kick off mid-season in mid-December. The Biggest Loser then returns on January 1st. Things begin to go down hill on January 3rd when Donald Trump’s pathetic excuse for a comeback, Celebrity Apprentice, begins. The moderately entertaining 1 vs. 100 starts back up on January 4th but then everything goes to hell in a hand basket on January 6th when American Gladiators returns to the airwaves after over 10 blissful years without it. Then on February 18th, NBC gives a bunch of teen couples babies in the lawsuit-waiting-to-happen series The Baby Borrowers.
The good news is the always great Law & Order will return on January 2nd and Medium will come back on January 7th. Law & Order: Criminal Intent, which already aired its season on USA earlier this year, will premiere those episodes beginning January 9th. Last and certainly not least is Lipstick Jungle, an excellent new series starring Brooke Shields. The show is almost good enough to redeem the network from bringing American Gladiators back. I said almost.
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