Archive

Fall TV Season

One month into the season, three shows have been canceled and at least nine more are on life support. What went wrong? Plus, a GALLERY of each show’s chance of survival and ad rate.

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ABC
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---the-whole-truth_kafjop

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $117,857

Prognosis: The Maura Tierney law show will soon head into the great beyond.

ABC
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---law-order-la_adxl7c

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $81,226

Prognosis: Ratings have been decent for this new edition in the franchise, and it bounced this week. Unless things change dramatically, consider it safe.

Dean Hendler / NBC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $115,173

Prognosis: Begin your goodbyes now.

Fox
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $133,900

Prognosis: Excellent. CBS has picked the show up for a full year, and it adds even more viewers when DVRs figure in. Could it be doing better? Yes: ABC’s Castle beat Five-0 this week among 18-to-49 year-olds. But for a new show in a 10 p.m. time slot, it’s doing well enough. Look for it to stick around beyond this season.

CBS
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---chase_dhvkfq

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $87,191

Prognosis: This show is doing terribly, and Jerry Bruckheimer-produced projects generally don’t come cheap. On any other network, it would be gone already; NBC puzzled many by ordering it for a full season. Still, if it continues to be as weak as it’s been, there’s no way they can keep it on the schedule.

Vivian Zink / NBC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $107,671

Prognosis: Decent. Ratings have fallen off since its premiere, but they steadied last week. ABC hasn’t picked up the show for the rest of the season yet, but did order more scripts.

ABC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $143,326

Prognosis: In the most-overplayed TV story of the fall, Lone Star is already gone.

Fox
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $61,584

Prognosis: Great. The lady spy remake is actually building off of the strong Vampire Diaries. This show is a CW-style hit.

Ben Mark Holzberg / The CW
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $112,170

Prognosis: Not good. The crime show hasn’t found any audience to speak of, and critics aren’t rallying around it either. But ABC has bigger problems with The Whole Truth.

ABC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $91,866

Prognosis: This expensive spy dramedy from J.J. Abrams could be the next show to go.

Chris Haston / NBC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $189,160

Prognosis: Very good. The weight sitcom has fit in seamlessly in CBS’ Monday comedy block.

Ron Tom / Warner Bros.
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---raising-hope_ktzce5

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $125,748

Prognosis: Fox clearly believes in this show, and has ordered a full season. Now the Greg Garcia-created comedy just needs to build its viewership.

Fox
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---the-defenders_abmikw

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $110,329

Prognosis: CBS ordered a full season of this Jim Belushi series, and critics like it. But ratings are down in the show’s Wednesdays at 10 time period compared with CSI:NY’s performance last season. We’re hazy on this one.

CBS
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $58,672

Prognosis: We hope you did not fall in love with this Jimmy Smits law drama because it is gone already.

Jordin Althaus / NBC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $113,000

Prognosis: The William Shatner comedy has, as with the other four new CBS shows, been ordered for a full season. But its ratings have fallen since a strong debut. Will the network squander a great lead-in from The Big Bang Theory on this critically-despised Twitter sitcom?

Michael Desmond / CBS
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---better-with-you_caxsby

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $114,443

Prognosis: On the chopping block. Its only hope is if ABC doesn’t want to put one of its midseason comedies here.

ABC
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---the-event_ng3jmc

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $137,210

Prognosis: Oh, The Event. The serialized science-fiction drama started off well enough. But has since fallen every week. NBC ordered a full season of the show, but unless it stabilizes or grows, it’s hard to imagine that there will be an Event come spring.

Justin Lubin / NBC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $59,521

Prognosis: Dead on arrival.

NBC
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $29,876

Prognosis: The CW has never been able to use America’s Next Top Model as a lead-in, but this cheerleading college series is doing nicely. Safe.

Sergei Bachlakov / The CW
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $68,882

Prognosis: Pro: It’s the only new show—or returning show, for that matter—on Friday nights that’s doing any business. Con: The Tom Selleck cop show draws a median age of 102. But if it doesn’t stay around all season, we’d be surprised. As far as a Season 2, that probably depends on CBS’ new series development.

John Paul Filo / CBS
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Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $122,916

Prognosis: NBC this week ordered a full season of Outsourced. But the network has a lot of new comedies coming in midseason—and Parks & Recreation needs a spot, too. If ratings continue to erode in its post-Office slot, then it will be yanked.

Jordin Althaus / NBC
galleries/2010/10/21/fall-tv-season/fall-tv-season---my-generation_gpdds0

Cost of a 30-Second Ad: $91,120

Prognosis: It’s dead!

ABC

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