By Rob N. LeDonne
With November sweeps in full swing, and more than two months into the new TV season, it’s the time of year to size up what’s hot, what’s not and what’s in limbo.
ABC: With past season’s good fortune of instant hits “Desperate Housewives” and “Lost”, another show can be added to that list- “Ugly Betty”. The show’s success has been a complete surprise. With a relatively unknown actress (America Ferrara) in the lead role and a quirky title, it has highly exceeded expectations and has been enjoying high ratings in its plum Thursday night slot. The same cannot be said for “Six Degrees” and “The Nine”- both high-concept, one hour series which viewers are staying away from.
CBS: “Smith”, a drama starring Ray Liotta and Virginia Madsen was the first show to be canceled this season due to paltry ratings. It came as a shock to many, considering the star power of Liotta, who has starred in such films as “Hannibal”, “Goodfellas” and “Field Of Dreams”. “Jericho” a drama about an atomic apocalypse in America, on the other hand has been a surprise draw for the network, with lesser-known star Skeet Ulrich. Meanwhile, on the comedy front, Monday nights are still quite strong, with the exception of freshman comedy “The Class” which, according to CBS exec Les Moonves, is on the fence.
NBC: The struggling network has at least one hit on its hands with “Heroes”. Before the one-hour drama premiered, expectations were low. With a cast of relative unknowns, it is slowly but surely winning Monday nights. It easily outperforms the highly anticipated “Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip”. “Studio 60” features such stars as Matthew Perry and Amanda Peet and was supposed to be “West Wing” creator Aaron Sorkin’s triumphant return to TV. But after the premiere, ratings plummeted and the show is on the verge of cancellation. Meanwhile on Wednesdays, the hour comedy block of “30 Rock” and “Twenty Good Years” have brought in nothing but paltry ratings, with “Twenty” being sent on an “‘indefinite hiatus’ and “30” being shuffled to Thursday nights- starting in a few weeks, it will be paired with “Scrubs”.
FOX: Most of the fall season has been occupied by baseball play-offs, but the network has been garnering moderate ratings with such shows as “Justice” and “Standoff”. However, freshman drama “Vanished”, which is centered around a senator’s wife going missing, is also missing viewers and the show’s fate in limbo. There is no doubt that FOX is waiting patiently for January when ratings power houses “American Idol” and “24” premiere.
The CW: The first year of the new network has gotten off to a rocky start, with ratings being as low as they were in the former days on UPN. Some bright spots on the schedule include “America’s Next Top Model” and “WWE: Smackdown”, while the Donnie Wahlberg vehicle “Runaway” being axed after only a few episodes.
Surprise hits like NBC’s “Heroes” have bested other big-budget dramas this fall