ABC gambles on comedy Wednesday

LA SCREENINGS: For the 2008/09 television season, ABC claims four of the top 10 highest rated series in adults 18-49, including the top two scripted shows: Desperate Housewives and Grey’s Anatomy.

But since those peaks, the network has dipped to third place in adults 18-49, with few of the new shows introduced last season performing to expectation, with Samantha Who?, Cupid and The Unusuals among those failing to make renewal this week.

Returning freshman drama Castle to Monday nights, supported by a strong lead-in from Dancing With the Stars, president of ABC Entertainment Group Stephen McPherson said at the network’s Upfront on Tuesday that he is committed to nurturing the series. “It’s been a good asset for us and we think we can grow it. We’re excited about the two leads and the creative team behind it so we’re looking for a big sophomore bump on that.”

Network stalwarts Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, the final season of Lost, Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice remain in their previously scheduled time periods. However, Ugly Betty was moved to 21.00 on Fridays, with Supernanny opening the night at 20.00. Reality shows Dancing With the Stars, America’s Funniest Home Videos, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Wife Swap and 20/20 also remain on the schedule, as does The Bachelor, which airs on Mondays in the 20.00 slot after Dancing With the Stars completes its run. True Beauty is being held in the wings.

On Tuesday nights, ABC is introducing the new Mark Burnett show Shark Tank at 20.00. “I tried to make a deal with Mark years ago, before he’d even done Survivor or Eco Challenge, so this is the first time we’ve been able to get him over on ABC’s schedule,” said McPherson. ABC will be using Who Wants to be a Millionaire’s 10th anniversary as the launchpad for Shark Tank over the summer, moving the series into Tuesday nights at 20.00 in the fall.

Comedies Scrubs and Better Off Ted return to the 21.00 and 21.30 time periods respectively on Tuesdays, after the completion of the Dancing With the Stars results show. This also serves as a powerful lead-in for the new procedural crime drama series The Forgotten, from Bonanza Productions in association with Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Warner Bros Television.

“Bruckheimer has created a lot of things that beat up on me every week,” joked McPherson, “so it’s good to have on our team this year. With (NBC’s) SVU moving and the Leno move, we feel there is a real opportunity at 22.00 and a procedural is a big goal for us, not only for performance but also on the repeat side as well.”

Wednesday night, he continued, is “obviously a challenge for us coming into this year,” describing that night’s planned two-hour family comedy block – comprising all new shows and a new drama series in the 22.00 slot – as “the biggest risk for us.” McPherson, however, said he thinks the night could also be the network’s biggest upside as well.

Wednesday night kicks off at 20.00 with a new Kelsey Grammer comedy Hank, which speaks to real world issues as a titan of industry suddenly finds himself out of work. At 20.30, Warner Bros’ new comedy The Middle, about a middle class family living in middle America, will star Patricia Heaton (Everybody Loves Raymond). Modern Family, at 21.00, is shot from the perspective of an unseen documentary filmmaker and looks at the complications of being a family in 2009. Cougar Town, at 21.30, caps the comedy block with Courtney Cox starring as a recently divorced single mother “of a certain age,” faced with the harsh truths about dating and aging.

“We really wanted to get back into the family comedy business at ABC,” explained McPherson. “But we wanted the next generation of family comedy, not a retread or going back. We also wanted to make a statement that this is the kind of quality and commitment we have to comedy.”

The comedy block builds nicely into the new series Eastwick, from Warner Bros, at 22.00. Based on the popular feature film, the series has been given an update by executive producer and writer Maggie Friedman. “This is a series that can only be on ABC,” said McPherson. “It’s that kind of perfect mix of comedy and drama and character relationships and fun for which ABC has become known. It’s a good end to the evening and takes us into a more dramatic realm, but is still fun and light.”

Flash Forward debuts on Thursday nights at 20.00, a move that McPherson called “a big decision,” adding: “It’s the most buzzworthy show we have right now. We really wanted to build on the success of Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice and bolster our Thursday night,” said McPherson.

Commercials for Flash Forward have also been airing during Lost, and the network hopes the two shows’ similarities – both feature a time-travel element – will draw in the legion of Lost fans looking for new entertainment when that show ends next year. “We have plans for how we’re going to roll these shows out and how we’ll promote off our other shows and platforms,” concluded McPherson. “We think our chances are good and that there will be a lot of interest in the comedies.”

View the comparative fall season 2009 network schedules grid.

ABC primetime schedule: Fall 2009 (new shows in caps)

MONDAY

20.00-22.00 Dancing With the Stars (two-hour episode)

22.00-23.00 Castle

TUESDAY

20.00-21.00 SHARK TANK

21.00-22.00 Dancing With the Stars

22.00-23.00 THE FORGOTTEN

WEDNESDAY

20.00-20.30 HANK

20.30-21.00 THE MIDDLE