Analyzing the 2016 Fall Schedule: FOX

TUESDAY

SHILO’S PREDICTIONS: 8:00 New Girl; 8:30 The Mick; 9:00 Scream Queens
CRAIG’S PREDICTIONS: 8:00 Pitch; 9:00 Scream Queens
ACTUAL SCHEDULE: 8:00 Brooklyn Nine-Nine; 8:30 New Girl; 9:00 Scream Queens

SHILO: I understand when networks want to lay low on a night and put their firepower elsewhere. You can’t fix a schedule in 15 minutes, so when a network is going through a rebuilding process, there are going to be nights that get less attention some years. And where FOX doesn’t have much in the way of pre-existing assets, I get not wanting to throw 35 new shows against the wall in the fall and not have anything come midseason. All that being said, what FOX is doing on Tuesdays this fall is about as lame duck as it gets, with two comedies incapable of being lead-ins and linear ratings disappointment Scream Queens, the latter getting something of a makeover for its upcoming second season.

It’s surprising that New Girl is given the 8:30 slot since it was stronger that Brooklyn Nine-Nine when Tuesday expanded to four comedies this season, but I suppose that New Girl‘s audience composition is closer to Scream Queens and the prospect of a cop comedy might be more enticing to the casual affiliate audience than a hangout comedy five seasons of inside jokes deep. But Scream Queens, which arguably shouldn’t even be on the fall schedule, isn’t suddenly going to become the breakout it was supposed to be this past season and the comedies are coming off a pretty weak season, so this lineup feels more like rearranging chairs on the Titanic than anything with a shot for progress or even a pulse. If this lineup averages 1.0 in the demo by November, I’ll be surprised.

CRAIG: While at least half of the shows on FOX Tuesday nights are quality shows, it is weird that there’s a two-hour block of mediocre ratings. I liked your suggestion of New Girl with The Mick a lot better. Sadly, though, FOX Tuesdays will probably fall at a consistent #4 in the ratings on Tuesdays and that’s unfortunate.