NBC announced changes for its mid-season primetime schedule in order to keep high ratings and successfully introduce new shows.
With three new shows premiering, seven shows returning, and the fall’s new shows up in the air, NBC has a lot of schedule shuffling to do. The network has to balance a total of 27 shows with only 18 hours a week to air them.
Replacing Sunday Night Football in March, The Celebrity Apprentice will return along with a new show, Ready for Love executive produced by Eva Longoria. Ready for Love is a new relationship show about “making real connections”, according to the NBC press release.
Ready for Love has chosen three single men who are willing to find true love via a Facebook campaign. That’s right, the women get to apply on Facebook and will be narrowed down by tree matchmakers and the men to a few lucky women and flown out to meet the men in person.
Each week, one women will get sent home and on the season finale the men get to decide which woman they want to marry, engage, or date.
The show’s premise seems somewhat familiar, but NBC hopes that, unlike ABC’s The Bachelor, the men will make long lasting relationships with help from the world’s three best matchmakers. But will the show hold it’s target audience?
“Having three men and all those women will make for a ton of drama” said Alanna Kilroy, FHS Junior and avid Bachelor fan “and it will be interesting to hear all the gossip between the men as well as the women”
The show hopes to get a ratings boost from the preceding reality show, Donald Trump‘s The Celebrity Apprentice: All Stars which will feature a cast of winners from past seasons. “The Apprentice” normally dominates ratings on Sundays, but will be competing for ratings against ABC’s hit dramas Once Appon a Time and Revenge.
On Mondays, The Biggest Loser will return followed by the new drama Deception (formally Infamous) which is set to premiere January 7 at 10 pm. the show stars Meagan Good, Victor Garber, Tate Donovan, and Katherine LaNasa.
The show is a murder-mystery drama about a wealthy socialite who overdoses. Two FBI agents, one of whom was once the girls best friend, suspects foul play and looks into the family only to find dark and suspicious clues relating to the girls death.
Deception hopes to keep do as well as NBC’s other dramas, Grimm and Revolution, which have been the networks biggest hits.
Then, on March 25, Deception be replaced by the hit fall drama Revolution and The Biggest Loser will be replaced by The Voice. The Voice begins it’s forth season with new judges Usher and Shakira and will return on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Surprisingly, NBC puts its biggest new hit, Revolution on hold for four months after finishing it’s November episodes. NBC seems to think the show won’t do as well without The Voice as it’s lead in.
On Tuesdays, starting in March, The Voice will be followed Smash will return along with Betty White’s Off Their Rockers. Both shows were not expected to make the cut due to poor ratings last year.
Thursdays are also getting shuffled starting in January to make room for the new sit-com 1600 Penn, which follows the first family that adjusts to new life in the white house. The Office, in it’s final season, will lead into 1600 Penn.
The most anticipated returning show of the year is Community, which ended it’s last season in controversy. Chevy Chase, an original Saturday Night Live cast member, got in a feud with the show’s producer, Dan Harmon. In the end, Harmon was fired, upsetting many of the show’s super fans and leaving the feature of the show in question.
Many critics and fans will be to see if the show will be able to keep up it’s genius humor without Harmon. It is also to be noted that Community will be replacing Tina Fey’s 30 Rock which will air it’s final episode in January with an hour long season finale.
Community will be followed by Parks and Recreation starring Amy Polar, Rob Lowe, and Nick Offerman and Rock Center With Brian Williams.
Wednesday’s staple shows Whitney, Up All Night, and Law and Order: SVU are expected to return along with Dateline NBC and Grimm on Fridays. Two new shows The New Normal and Go On will have full seasons. The fall’s new shows Chicago Fire, Guys With Kids, Parenthood and Animal Practice seem to be up in the air.
With all these new schedule changes, NBC appears to be trying to find what show will stick and what shows will be duds. With The Office and 30 Rock ending, NBC is attempting to find sit-coms to replace them permanently while also trying to be come a ratings power house like it was in it’s Seinfeld and Friends days.
The only show that seems to remain set in stone for the Peacock network is Saturday Night Live, which you can watch any given Saturday night.