May 21, 2007

Looking at the Monday Network Upfronts

Last week, the networks all announced their initial schedules for next season. Beginning September 2007, this is what the Monday grid is going to look like, at least tentatively. There is always the chance of reshuffling and other various changes to be made before the schedules actually go live. Now rather than take a look at each of the networks, I thought it would be better to take a look at the daily grids. Better to see how the networks stack up against one another. Today is Monday, so let's see how it looks.

Bold= New Show | Italics= What I plan to watch
Mon8:008:309:009:3010:0010:30
ABCDancing with the StarsSam I AmThe Bachelor
CBSHow I Met Your MotherThe Big Bang TheoryTwo and a Half MenRules of EngagementCSI: Miami
NBCDeal or No DealHeroesJourneyman
FOX Prison BreakK-VilleLocal Programming
CWEverybody Hates ChrisAliens in AmericaGirlfriendsThe GameLocal Programming


Well, at first glance there are only a few shows that are going to be attracting me, including the returning Prison Break and Heroes. Most of the networks schedules remain unchanged from last year, though each of them do add one new show to the mix.

ABC is wedging in a new Jenny McCarthy sitcom, Sam I Am, in between a pair of reality series. The synopsis reads like a comedy take on Memento. An accident leaves Samantha (McCarthy) with amnesia, now she has to pick through the pieces of her life, questioning relatives who may have something to hide. It may be fun, but McCarthy hasn't had a great track record, and it is sandwiched between a pair of reality series that I have absolutely zero interest in.

CBS is introducing The Big Band Theory, a new sitcom replacing the cancelled Jason Ritter comedy The Class. The funny thing is that of all of their Monday comedies, The Class was the only only one that I watched on any regular basis. Sure, it wasn't all that good, but it offered a bit of goofiness. Anyway, I am not surprised that it was cancelled, now it will be interesting to see how long this one lasts. The new series stars Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons and Kaley Cuoco. It is about a couple of science geeks with little experience in the dating world, they get some help from their attractive neighbor (Cuoco). I cannot say that the synopsis grabs me, but hey, maybe I'll give it a shot. This joins the same lineup from last season, anchored by CSI: Miami.

NBC may have the most interesting new addition to the Monday landscape with Journeyman. It reads like a retread of Quantum Leap, but that doesn't take away the good concept. It features a man, Dan Vassar, who finds himself sent to the past where he impacts the lives those around him, and allows him to reconnect with past loves. Will this knowledge help him in his present? This is on in place of the sadly cancelled Aaron Sorkin series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and the failed The Black Donnellys. This seems like a better fit with the huge hit, Heroes.

Fox enters the new series fray with K-Ville, a new police drama about the New Orleans Police Department in a post-Katrina world. Anthony Anderson and Cole Hauser star. It could be an interesting take on the police drama, although I am not sure I want another police drama. It will hold the post-Prison Break slot until 24 returns in January.

The CW is primed to start its second season as a network bringing Aliens in America to run after the excellent Everybody Hates Chris (entering its third season). This new show seems to be a reaction to all of the events of the modern world, I just wonder if it will be any good. It is about a family that enters the academic exchange program, and are shocked when they are to house a Pakistani Muslim. I think thbe concept has plenty of promise, but I only suspect that it will be superficial and not all that funny.

Monday has some good shows, but, for me, they are spread out across the night so I do not have much in the way of conflict, aside from Chris and Prison Break. You will see on the chart what I plan to watch, but I am also thinking of checking out K-Ville and The Big Bang Theory, although I doubt they will become regulars on my schedule.