The Networks Unveil Their Lineups - ABC, NBC, and The CW

I thought I'd go ahead and post the news on the upfronts going on from the networks as they roll out their presentations with their schedules. Plus, I'll give my thoughts on what I see.

NBC:
NBC has previously already rolled out their schedule a while back but here it is again.

Returning shows: Heroes, Chuck, The Biggest Loser, Law & Order: SVU, Deal Or No Deal, Lipstick Jungle, My Name Is Earl, 30 Rock, The Office, ER, Life, Dateline Saturday, The Celebrity Apprentice, Friday Night Lights (the previous discussed deal with DirecTV), Law & Order, Medium, American Gladiators, Nashville Star, Monk.

New shows: Knight Rider (the remake of the hit 80's series which we have seen some of with the recent movie), America's Toughest Jobs (reality show about people taking on various tough jobs), Chopping Block (cooking reality show), Crusoe (drama about a man on an island who is determined to get back to his regular life), Kath & Kim (comedy starring Molly Shannon about a divorced woman moving back home with her mom), Kings (drama about a soldier who saves the king's son), The Listener (drama about a paramedic who reads minds to solves crimes), Merlin (drama about following Merlin and Arthur in Camelot as they were young which stars Anthony Stewart Head of Buffy fame), My Own Worst Enemy (drama which from what I understand is similar to the Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde type story starring Christian Slater), The Office Spinoff (not much information on this other than the obvious that it is a spinoff of The Office), The Philanthropist (drama about a billionaire who helps those in need after the death of his child), Shark Taggers (reality show on marine biologists tracking sharks).

Canceled shows: Journeyman (still so sad over that show not coming back), 1 vs. 100, Amne$ia, The Singing Bee, Scrubs (going to ABC), Clash of the Choirs, Bionic Woman, Las Vegas, My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad, Phenomenon, and quarterlife.

Overall thoughts: Nothing surprising here. NBC sure does have a lot of new shows. I just wonder how the shows will perform initially and in the long term. Case and point? Bionic Woman. It started really big and faded fast. Not sure if there is anything on their new show list that really intrigues me to watch. I'd have to see some clips before I decided on whether to check out any of them. I highly advise them to put the pilots of these new shows up On Demand like last year. I found myself watching shows that I normally wouldn't have went to the trouble of watching but because it was so easy to access, I watched the first episodes and got hooked on several shows including Chuck and Journeyman before they even aired on actual TV. Expect Heroes and Chuck to get a huge relaunch in the fall and I'm glad that they're sticking with that lineup on Monday nights. Heroes is launching with a three hour season premiere which I can't wait to see. Chuck is a fun show that I enjoy watching. It isn't can't miss but I do enjoy it. I am curious to see how both of those shows perform upon their return after a LONG hiatus due to the strike. I liked the Knight Rider movie and how it tied to the original series so we'll see how it does.

ABC:
ABC has announced their fall schedule and the big news is that Scrubs is moving over to ABC from NBC. This has talked about for a while now. However, it won't return until midseason. The only shows getting new timeslots are Boston Legal which will move to Mondays at 9pm (all times are central time), Eli Stone moves to Tuesdays at 9pm, and a Friday block of Wife Swap, Supernanny, and 20/20.

Returning shows: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, Dancing With The Stars, Samantha Who?, Eli Stone, Boston Legal, America's Funniest Home Videos, Pushing Daisies, Private Practice, Dirty Sexy Money, Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, Wife Swap, Supernanny, 20/20, According To Jim, The Bachelor, and Lost.

New Shows: Life On Mars (drama about a detective who gets in a car crash and finds himself in 1973 but is still a detective in a different time), Opportunity Knocks (game show where a random family around the country will get to play a game show right there in their neighborhood), The Goode Family, (Mike Judge animated comedy), Scrubs (new show for ABC anyway), and the untitled show from Ashton Kutcher and Tyra Banks which is supposed to be a beauty pageant type show.

Canceled shows: October Road, Men In Trees, Miss Guided, Big Shots, Cashmere Mafia, Dance War, Here Come The Newlyweds, Just For Laughs, Women's Murder Club, Notes From The Underbelly, Carpoolers, and Cavemen.

Overall thoughts: Hmm, I actually don't watch ABC in prime time at all. Just nothing that really grabs me but I'm sure there are shows that I would like if I watched them. Just have other commitments, I guess. LOL. Scrubs is obviously a huge pickup for them. Good mix of drama and comedy on the network. Dancing With The Stars is obviously a ratings blockbuster. I've seen Samantha Who? and thought it was a solid show. According To Jim is the show that has nine lives is what everyone says. How many times has that show been brought back now when it was said to be done? Cavemen was doomed from the start. Carpoolers was a show that I thought was ok but not enough to make me want to watch it. I watched a couple of episodes of it with one being funny while the other was just kind of eh. I know a lot of people are disappointed over the cancellation of October Road. ABC will be in solid shape with their major hit shows that have been huge for them for many years with Lost, Desperate Housewives, and others. Any new shows that I'd check out? Well, there aren't many to pick from so I don't know. I know a lot of people are hyping Life On Mars.

The CW:
Here is what The CW has announced for the fall.

Returning shows: Smallville, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, America's Next Top Model, Supernatural, Everybody Hates Chris, The Game, and Reaper.

New shows: Beverly Hills 90210 (Yeah, if you follow the entertainment world and you haven't heard about this, you're living under a rock. LOL. This is the new spinoff of the original series), Stylista (reality show with people competing for a job with Elle Magazine), and Surviving The Filthy Rich (Reba alum, JoAnna Garcia, stars in this show about a Yale graduate who ends up having to be a live-in tutor for a rich woman's granddaughters).

Canceled shows: CW Now, Online Nation, Pussycat Dolls, Beauty and The Geek, Life Is Wild, Crowned, Girlfriends, Farmer Wants A Wife, and WWE Friday Night Smackdown (which is going to My Network TV).

Overall thoughts: Oh, The CW. Yeah, it's the one year anniversary since they left me VERY bitter over the cancellation of Veronica Mars. I've yet to watch any new shows on that network in my stubborn boycott. LOL. They have me for Smallville and that is it. I will however give one show a new chance due to the fact that I was such a huge fan of the original. I'm obviously talking about 90210 and that is the huge buzz from The CW. The show will air on Tuesday nights pairing it up with Surviving The Filthy Rich. With wrestling being vacated on Fridays, they are moving the comedies there with Everybody Hates Chris and The Game along with an encore episode of Top Model. It will be interesting to see the ratings on Friday night and see what the comedies do against what Smackdown was doing. Reaper, which has a good cult following, was picked up at the last minute and will return at midseason. One Tree Hill has a dedicated fan base and was a show that I loved for many years but just quit watching a couple of years back. Gossip Girl has been a hit for The CW and they are trying to build the ratings up for the show by cutting out the online viewing.

CBS has already made some moves but I'll get to that later when they've done all their hoopla. Let's just say that after the news from CBS, I'm feeling good about this week with my shows.