A potential blood bath is brewing on network television and it will be aired at 9:00 pm on Thursdays! ABC and NBC have already announced their fall lineups and both networks have decided to go mano y mano with CSI. ABC is moving “Grey’s Anatomy” to that slot while NBC brings Tom Sorkin’s “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” to the air. Is this a good move for the networks or the fans? You decide after I break down the contenders and decide who will blink first.
CBS hasn’t announced its schedule yet but I seriously doubt they’ll move the venerable hit. CSI has a built in audience so it’s the odds on favorite to survive the three way dance between network shows. However, CBS has to keep an eye on the numbers. Are fans getting tired of the numerous forensic science shows? Will they be ready to try something else? Personally, I think CSI will do fine but it might take a drop in the ratings. CBS can afford to lose a little bit of ratings and it will not easily relinquish its Thursday timeslot to the other networks.
NBC’s “Studio 60” is a megahit waiting to happen. We discussed it here last week but NBC will not let this show fail. If it begins to get squeezed by “Grey’s” and “CSI,” expect it to be moved quickly. However, NBC, traditionally, has owned Thursday nights with its “Must See TV” staples of the past. This year, “My Name is Earl” and “The Office” move to the 8 o’clock hour while “Studio 60” is tucked in between two great comedies and “ER.” I think NBC can rebuild its Thursday nights with this lineup and it showed last year that “Earl” and “The Office” could stand up against CSI, relatively well.
ABC is the network with the most to lose, I feel. “Grey’s Anatomy,” its medical hit, is moving from Sunday nights. Part of me is pissed about this and the other part of me thinks ABC is making a major mistake here. Can Grey’s win the timeslot? Sure, but at what cost? Fans are already grumbling and it’s always a bad sign to move a young show up against a seasoned hit. For God’s sake, if you are going to move it to Thursday, put it up against “ER” at 10. “ER” has sucked since even before Dr. Greene died. Please put it out of its misery. Don't take my gripes as a shot at "Grey's". I really like it now. I just don't think this move does it or its fans any favors.
In the end, I think CSI will make it out with the least amount of damage while “Grey’s Anatomy” is taking the biggest risk. The only certain fact is that viewers are the unanimous losers when three great shows with multilevel appeal have to go up against each other. Hopefully, one of the networks comes to its senses. Who am I kidding? Fox will probably move “American Idol” to the same timeslot just so they can enjoy hurting three networks at once.
