ABC
SHILO: When I first heard that ABC was considering going more procedural, I admittedly got a little worried. With CBS, NBC, and FOX all leaning on the tried and true format to mixed results, ABC is the last of the Big Four to hold on to their serialized dramas and it would be a sad day if that type of drama essentially had no place at broadcast. However, while I don’t want every drama on ABC to further the already accelerating homogenization of broadcast television, I do think that the network would benefit from finding new procedurals (or serial-procedural hybrids) that fit their pre-established drama brand. This would allow them to keep the lights on throughout the year via repeats and sturdier Live + Same Day ratings while not abandoning their core audience, thereby lessening the pressure to keep as many bridge shows as they have.
Plus, several of ABC’s serialized dramas already have procedural elements (Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder, Quantico), which could make the adoption of more procedurals (or serial-procedural hybrids) feel more natural and less like a ratings mandated move.
What could also help ABC is stronger branding throughout the week. Wednesday and Thursday have thrived on the way they’ve been branded, but the rest of ABC’s lineup feels more disparate and less connected than their two big guns. Not every night needs a catchy name or a barrage of joint promos, but there are flow issues that could be solved with some scheduling tweaks and smart marketing. As much as we hear about live ratings being down and how everyone watches television in alternative ways, there’s nothing more powerful a network can do than present a night that makes sense and allows every hour to feed off of one another.
Which will mean that ABC has to use its assets more thoughtfully. For instance, they’re never going to get a foothold on Tuesdays without moving a Wednesday comedy over; as good a show as Fresh Off the Boat might be, it doesn’t have enough ratings juice to become an anchor in the way that The Middle and Modern Family have. ABC does well enough with comedy, and has a strong enough comedy brand, that they would be able to expand on Tuesdays without losing their Wednesday mojo by introducing a new comedy. It’s understandable that ABC wouldn’t want to mess with a night that works well for them, but to dig themselves out of the ratings hole they’re in, they’re going to have to use the stronger shows, along with some conscientious development, in order to build their weaker nights back up again.
CRAIG: The appointment of Channing Dungey, replacing Paul Lee, implies to me that ABC knows what the rest of us have been thinking: They need some new blood and a new approach. ABC’s biggest hits, either of the sitcom or hour-long variety, are all getting to be a bit on the old side — a problem that several networks are facing, sadly; but in this case, where there’s a consideration to continue Castle without one of its two leads, that’s a problem.
Castle actually brings up one of the things I think they need the most: They need a show like Castle. Forever might’ve fit that mold, but it wasn’t owned by ABC. However, it would be nice if ABC could develop another light procedural of its ilk for people to enjoy after they are done seeing their stars dancing.
I’m also going to take a big swing and suggest that the ABC-Marvel partnership is not bringing the network the kinds of shows they need. I love the Marvel character Mockingbird though I hate the title Marvel’s Most Wanted, but it’s still symptomatic of Marvel TV on ABC, it seems: spies, spies, and more spies. The CW gets heavy DC hitters like The Flash and at least at the start S.H.I.E.L.D. seemed shy about even bringing in D-list Marvel characters. As it stands, Most Wanted is liable to be more of the same that S.H.I.E.L.D. has brought – getting below an 1.0 in the 18-49 demo some weeks. Marvel is known for innovation; innovate. I’m not going to expect a Miles Morales: Spider-Man series – THOUGH IT WOULD BE AWESOME – but it isn’t fair that Netflix (and now Freeform) get better characters to play with. So, I’ll say they need a Marvel show that will give them a lot of buzz.
And, please, no more period piece shows. Pan Am, Agent Carter, Wicked City – the ABC audience seems to have rejected time period shows, yet they keep going back to that. With the exception of The Goldbergs, which might be my favorite of the sitcom lineup, and Fresh Off The Boat, which really would be funny in any time period. Maybe the “no time period pieces” thing only applies to hour-long dramas.
Ultimately, I think ABC needs to be broad, and they need to try and create more things that appeal to people in the same way most of their Wednesday sitcoms do. There are times to be artsy and highbrow — it is an American crime that American Crime didn’t get better ratings than it did — but especially in the time periods where audiences just want to relax, there need to be more light and broad shows, like what Castle was at its height.
CBS
CRAIG: CBS also seems to be a network where certain nights are so locked in it’s hard to get too much wiggle room. This will be an interesting year to see as it’s the first season developed during Glenn Geller’s first year in charge.
I feel like CBS is trying to create projects that may skew younger, and I guess we’ll see the final result. Supergirl was definitely an effort in that direction, though I don’t know if it ultimately got the ratings that they were expecting. (That said, they had better renew it.)
Even more than ABC, CBS has had some luck with some of their half-hours, including some that I never expected to fly, so I guess focusing on those might be a good idea, too, as there’s a lot of afterlife in syndication if they own the series. (Of course, most of CBS’ most popular sitcoms come from Warner Bros. Television, but hey!) So, I guess high on the “need” list might be more sitcoms developed in-house by CBS Studios.
Whereas with ABC and The CW I complained about shows wearing out their welcomes, CBS’ long-running series seem to be an asset. Big Bang, the NCIS series – if people keep watching them, I say they should keep making them. I guess the challenge or “need” should be coming up with strong lineups on the nights where the long-running shows do not exist. I do think it might be interesting for a show like Survivor to take a year or two off to re-energize the excitement, but if it works, and it’s not expensive to make, there’s no real reason to rock the boat.
Ultimately, and I credit previous president Nina Tassler for this, CBS has had a lot of stability for a while, and the main “need” is probably to keep that stability and that momentum.
SHILO: I get why CBS would want to go younger with their development. Despite their ratings success, the perception is that they’re the old folks network and that they’re lacking in the watercooler-y, buzzworthy shows of an ABC or a CW. Not only would finding more demo-friendly shows help their bottom line, it would take the monkey off their back about lagging behind in the cultural conversation. But CBS is in a weird place, in that their reputation is so set in stone that when they try for younger programming, it can fall through the cracks of being too different for their core while not generating the type of heat necessary to get outside viewers. If they’re going to continue developing like this, there has to be a stronger understanding of who exactly they’re programming for, because they’re not really replenishing their ranks and their pillars are getting up there in years. Everything can’t be a “we’ll get this show to season two and then drag it to syndication” type of project.
Otherwise, the biggest need for CBS has to be better treatment for their comedies. Workhorse Mike & Molly gets cancelled with little fanfare and a truncated order that gets thrown around the schedule; 2 Broke Girls got a late start this season and found itself jerked around the schedule along with Mike & Molly; Angel From Hell was cancelled after only a handful of episodes while pulling in better ratings than several CBS dramas, despite the network owning the show; and The Odd Couple gets an 11-month hiatus, comes back against the American Idol finale, and has an absurd roll-out for its final nine episodes, which air across the span of three weeks. I know that there’s a certain amount of comfort that comes with having a show the size of The Big Bang Theory, but it feels like CBS is strangely complacent despite saying goodbye to the likes of Molly, Two and a Half Men, and How I Met Your Mother in recent seasons. If they’re going to have any type of comedic presence after Big Bang Theory is concluded, they’re going to need to be as kind, in terms of scheduling and renewal decisions, to their comedies as they are their procedurals.
