ABC hit some major highs and some serious lows during the 2017-18 season. The network was able to get a reboot of American Idol off the ground to (fairly) solid numbers, freshman medical drama The Good Doctor was a major step forward in their brand rejuvenation, and Roseanne shocked the industry with its sky high ratings. However, ABC didn’t find much else this season as ratings for its other new series were tepid at best (and mostly terrible), while veterans Agents of SHIELD, Designated Survivor, Once Upon a Time, Quantico, and Speechless all suffered significant declines. Will ABC be able to use what strengths it does have to continue rebuilding and refreshing its schedule? Or could the rigidity of their schedule and their newfound focus on procedurals keep them mired in fourth place for yet another season?
That’s what KSiteTV’s Craig Byrne and Shilo Adams will be trying to figure out. For the 48th year in a row, the two have combed through the Hollywood trades and utilized their years of following TV news to put together a fantasy fall schedule for every network. Meant to be an amalgamation of what we think could, should, and will happen, the schedules are not constructed with any insider information; they’re just a product of two guys who love talking about the TV industry.
KSiteTV 2018-2019 Fantasy Schedule Articles: NBC | FOX | CBS | The CW
SUNDAY
SHILO: 7:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos; 8:00 Child Support; 9:00 Shark Tank; 10:00 Sundays with Alec Baldwin
CRAIG: 7:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos; 8:00 Child Support; 9:00 Shark Tank; 10:00 False Profits
SHILO: In order to prepare for the return of American Idol, ABC reconfigured their Sundays last fall to be predominantly unscripted, with America’s Funniest Home Videos and Shark Tank producing strong results. With American Idol likely returning for a second go-around, which will premiere even earlier than this season did, I think ABC will go a step further and make Sundays their unscripted haven in the fall. It’s a cost effective way of keeping Sundays with a pulse, makes for a compatible bridge to Idol, and allows them to focus their scripted strength on other nights. Friday holdover Child Support wasn’t a world beater during its first season this year, but I think it put up good enough numbers, and got renewed early enough, for them to give it an upgrade and see what they have. If it’s a flop, then Home Videos can easily air repeats and keep the night afloat. At 10:00 I have Alec Baldwin’s upcoming talk show, which has been confirmed to air in the fall; I suppose there’s a chance they give it a late night slot and opt to use 10:00 on a low-priority drama, but I think they’ll try to appease Baldwin and keep their relationship with him as strong as can be.
CRAIG: If the Alec Baldwin thing is for sure airing in the Fall, then you’ll be the one right in this prediction. I am taking a bigger swing here and putting False Profits on the schedule, though watch and it’ll be saved for midseason to follow Idol. It has a known ABC quantity (Bellamy Young of Scandal) and a possibly soapy feel in the vein of Desperate Housewives. Like I said, I’m probably wrong in my prediction, but sometimes it’s fun to take risks.
