The summer months between May and September are usually boring and filled with repeats on our television networks. In recent years, some of the networks have offered us new summer programming, but most offerings have us begging for the fall to come. ABC was lucky with one such program, Dancing with the Stars, but the ending result of that show left some of its viewers just a little bit burned.
Some cable networks have offered new programming such as the Real World on MTV and Queer as Folk on Showtime. Showtime has new shows premiering in mid-August as well. However, most of the network television stations don’t have much to offer.
That will soon change. Today three of the major networks have announced their fall programming premiere schedules, and the other two are sure to follow soon. For those waiting for their favorite shows to return or those who are just interested in the new offerings previewing on their networks now, it looks like the wait is almost over. Some premieres are slated as early as September, and some are as late as the first week of October.
I am anxiously awaiting the return of several of my own favorites including ABC’s Lost and Grey’s Anatomy, set for premieres on September 21st and September 25, respectively.
ABC’s Alias moves this season to Thursday nights, and it will be interesting to see it following the news that star Jennifer Garner’s pregnancy is being written into the show. Lost also announced this week the identity of whatever was under the mysterious hatch from last season will be released during the show’s second season premiere.
As for new shows, ABC’s much hyped shows Invasion and Night Stalker premiere on September 21st and September 29th. ABC looks to put a woman into the country’s most important office with Commander-in-Chief starting September 27th.
Article comments
1 - NancyGail
CIC starts a week after Boston Legal? I would think the powers that be would want them shown together. They are on the same night, after all.
2 - Eric Berlin
Time is really flying.
I would add that there was truly terrific summer programs out there: Rescue Me and The Inside chief among them.
3 - Joe
It's about time. As a huge television nut, I'm excited that I can start scribbling premiere dates on my calendar.
Not that I'm a complete loser or anything...
4 - Bob A. Booey
I don't get Grey's Anatomy. I think it tries to hard to be cutesy and clever, although I'm sure it gets plenty of women viewers.
As far as sitcoms go, I really hope this one works for Chris Rock as a producer. The title of the show is just plain hilarious. I've heard very little buzz about this show after the upfronts and didn't even know about it until I read this article the other day. The odds are against it, though, since it's on UPN Thursday nights against all the other 7 pm shows like OC, Joey and Survivor. I do think there's an opening for a big comedy hit on Thursdays, though, and I hope the show has Rock's touch on it.
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000989802
Rock: I'm Committed to UPN's Everybody Hates Chris
July 22, 2005
By John Consoli at TCA in Los Angeles
Chris Rock told a Television Critics Association summer press tour audience July 21 that he plans to stay committed to the new UPN show, Everybody Hates Chris, loosely based on his life, and is not just lending his name and helping with the launch.
In addition to narrarating all the episodes, Rock said he has been going through all the scripts, "making sure I like all the jokes, try to be there for pretty much all of the tapings. I'll be around, my name is on the show."
Rock added, "I've been working for a while. I don't think I've ever done anything and walked out. My name's Rock, not Chappelle. Are you confusing me with another black man?" Rock's reference was to David Chappelle who walked out on his Comedy Central show before it began taping the upcoming season.
Another plus for Rock is that Ali LeRoi, a friend of his for 20 years, is the show's co-creator, writer, and executive producer. "I've known him for 20 years, and we've worked together and talked and been around each other a lot. The show is about a father and a mother dealing with trying to raise kids in a difficult situation, who don't have alot of money and have to make do. That's really all the show is. Chris adds a particular point of view and some particular things that make Chris the guy he is today, and we try to draw from that."
Rock added, "I grew up in a very loving, two-parent household in the middle of one of the worst ghettos in New York City, Bedford-Stuyvesant. I was bused to school like the kid in the show, but I had so much love in my household. I didn't know I lived in the ghetto until I was like 20."
LeRoi said the show really needs to establish the cast to the viewing audience without Rock. "This is about his life, and he'll be very, very present in terms of voice. But in order for people to get to know this cast, he can't be standing there, because then the majority of the attention will go to him. In order for the show to work, it really has to be about [the cast]."
Asked if there is a little irony in the fact that he is connected with a family-friendly show on TV now, when his comedy is not known for being G-rated, Rock said, "You know people that curse have families too," which brought laughter from the audience. "I've got kids, I grew up in a family. I don't see a problem."
5 - Tan The Man
Scrubs gets no love. Damn you NBC for making it a midseason premiere!
6 - Dave Nalle
At least the morons didn't cancel Scrubs. It's the only decent sitcom to hit the TV since Seinfeld.
Dave
7 - Gina
Time is flying, and we're still waiting for the premiere dates of CBS, UPN and FOX as well.
Thanks for sharing the Chris Rock article.
8 - Pam Avoledo
The show I miss:
Jack & Bobby (WB) - An intelligent drama about a the life of Bobby before he became President. It was in a documentary format, with people in the future telling the stories (the episodes.) Naturally, what happened to him then affected him in the future.
The shows I can't wait to come back:
The O.C. -- It's fun and doesn't take itself seriously.
Veronica Mars -- A dark teen drama which is the exact opposite of the O.C. Characters are gray, moral dilemmas ensue, and witty writing.
9 - Chris Beaumont
This summer has had some good original series. Among them:
The Closer
The Inside: another Fox victim....
Rescue Me
The 4400
Dead Zone
Monk
Stargate: SG-1
Battlestar Galactica
10 - Bob A. Booey
I hate to admit this because I hate sci-fi, but I watched Battlestar Galactica when they played it on NBC a couple weeks ago, and it was good. I think I'd heard the name before, but I assumed it was just like every other geeky scifi show I never watched, like Stargate, Andromeda and all the Star Treks.
I won't go out of my way to watch it on SciFi, but it was a well-written show that hired some primo actors for cable TV. They also seem to avoid a lot of the more ridiculous aspects to sci-fi, but then again I've only seen 2 shows.
I think the big networks have a really good synergistic idea with playing some of their critically-acclaimed hits from their smaller corporate sister networks during the summer for one-time primetime airings. It allows the shows to increase exposure and also gives the networks a "What If?" for seeing how the show would do ratings-wise on the big network. CBS did that with Veronica Mars this weekend as well, and I thought it was a pretty good show, even though I again won't go out of my way to watch it.
That is all.
11 - Bob A. Booey
Veronica Mars is like Buffy without the sex and kung fu violence.
That is all.
12 - Jenn
The problem with how they aired Veronica Mars on CBS was that they skipped episodes and kept changing the time. I followed it the entire time and they started with episode 1 and then jumped to like 8. It was completely unbelievable.