Our analysis articles about the new Fall 2015-2016 TV schedules continue today with ABC, who earlier in the day announced when their premieres will be happening.
Visiting these new lineups, while referencing our schedule predictions from last month, are Shilo Adams and Craig Byrne. Let us begin to explore the schedule that Paul Lee will call a “four-quadrant” success!
SUNDAY
CRAIG’s PREDICTION: 7:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos; 8:00 Once Upon a Time; 9:00 Blood & Oil; 10:00 Nashville
SHILO’s PREDICTION: 7:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos; 8:00 Once Upon a Time; 9:00 Of Kings and Prophets; 10:00 Nashville
ACTUAL SCHEDULE: 7:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos; 8:00 Once Upon a Time; 9:00 Blood & Oil; 10:00 Quantico
CRAIG: I think you deserve some points for having Of Kings and Prophets on Sunday night, even though ABC changed that plan. I still think the notion of running it AFTER Blood & Oil, in the 10PM slot, was kind of ridiculous, and I think the midseason plan of The Family at 10 is the best choice for that spot, if they’re not going to move Nashville to Sundays. BUT ANYWAY. I’m fairly okay with the schedule as it is now. Blood & Oil just needs the right people watching and I think it’ll be fine. Quantico was probably a better Tuesday night show, but I’m not Paul Lee, so I can’t tell you how or why they came to that choice.
SHILO: I understand why ABC wants to be so aggressive on Sundays. CBS has given up on making the night work as anything but a syndication factory and FOX targets a completely different demographic, so the lane for the next big broadcast show on Sundays is wide open. I just don’t know if these are the shows ABC needs in order to make this move; Of Kings and Prophets was the closest thing they had to a compatible show for Once Upon a Time and it is apparently awful, given the original 10:00 time slot, the trimmed episode order, and the imminent recastings. Blood & Oil will have to hope that Once catches a little bit of that Frozen fire that helped it last fall, otherwise it feels like a show too slow and muddled to become ABC’s next Sunday anchor. Quantico, meanwhile, is a show right in line with what’s been working for ABC dramas lately, so naturally, they bury it in one of the most difficult time slots for broadcast shows and give it an unproven lead-in.
Next: Monday and Tuesday!
1 Comment
Agree with most of what you guys are saying here. Quantico should be on Tuesdays, and Nashville on Sundays. Though I disagree about the Tuesday comedies working better at 9—both are seemingly very family-friendly that could benefit from airing at an earlier hour.
The Muppets was kind of like the Cristela of this year’s bunch—a pilot presentation pitched to ABC that tested through the roof, though there was little hype about them in development season amongst the public. I think everyone expects The Muppets to do good based on their brand, while also helping out Fresh Off The Boat. If that is indeed the case, and Fresh Off The Boat can hold decently mid-season, I think we are finally into the second ABC Comedy Wednesday era.
The Muppets is a mockumentary, as is Modern Family. If it’s as good as we all think it will be, or rates high at least, ABC has the next Modern Family-rated comedy on their hands. We saw the same exact thing happen to The Goldbergs this year, which now looks to be a suitable Middle replacement when it becomes time. And down the line, I foresee Blackish and Fresh Off The Boat being those much-needed second tier comedies, a la Suburgatory or Season 2 Cougar Town.
I think The Middle has two seasons left, and Modern Family three (maybe four if they really want to stretch out those storylines) before ABC can retire them. Here’s my reasoning: it always helps to have a couple of your first-run comedies in syndication. Whether or not tat syndication money is going to you or not, it still may help in first-run ratings. We know The Goldbergs is getting to syndication in two seasons, which can help retire The Middle. Modern Family will wait out another year or two for Blackish or Fresh Off The Boat (I have to imagine at least one will make it).