Articles

May 14, 2015
 

NIELSENWAR: The CW Fall Schedule

 

CW had a successful season in 2014-15. launching the smash hit THE FLASH and the critical darling JANE THE VIRGIN.  There wasn’t reason to change much, and the network didn’t.  Here’s a look (new shows are in ALL CAPS, new timeslots are in italics):

MONDAY

8PM:  CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND (trailer here)

9PM:  Jane the Virgin

The comic Crazy should be much more compatible with Jane than the gothic, violent The Originals ever was, although the night is still likely to be moderate in the ratings.

TUESDAY

8PM:  The Flash

9PM:  IZombie

The network wise kept its hands off a night that’s working beautifully.

WEDNESDAY

8PM:  Arrow

9PM:  Supernatural

Ditto.  Eventually, Supernatural will run out of steam, but it’s not there yet.

THURSDAY

8PM:  The Vampire Diaries

9PM:  The Originals

Vampire‘s ratings have tumbled, and now it faces the loss of leading lady Nina Dobrev.  Pairing it with the most compatible show possible should allow each of them to support the other.

FRIDAY

8PM:  Reign

9PM:  America’s Next Top Model

Mary, Queen of Scots knew all about being on the chopping block, and now her TV show does too.  Few CW series have survived the move to Fridays, and Reign‘s dim 2d season may mean it won’t move past a 3rd.

MIDSEASON:  The latest thriller from VAMPIRE DIARIES/ORIGINALS honcho Julie Plex, CONTAINMENT, which is basically CONTAGION The Series.  And the network’s big gun, ARROW/FLASH spin-off LEGENDS OF TOMORROW.  (Trailers here.)

OVERALL:  Musical, slightly twisted CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND is an unknown quantity (it was originally developed as a half-hour at Showtime, so a fair amount of rejiggering is going to be required), but otherwise the fall should be much like last season.  The real excitement, if there’s going to be any, will be with the arrival of LEGENDS at midseason.



About the Author

Mitch Salem
MITCH SALEM has worked on the business side of the entertainment industry for 20 years, as a senior business affairs executive and attorney for such companies as NBC, ABC, USA, Syfy, Bravo, and BermanBraun Productions, and before that, at the NY law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges. During all that, he has more or less constantly been going to the movies and watching TV, and writing about both since the 1980s. His film reviews also currently appear on screened.com and the-burg.com. In addition, he is co-writer of an episode of the television series "Felicity."