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May 12, 2013
 

THE SKED 2013 UPFRONTS: The New NBC Schedule(s) – Instant Analysis & Grids

 

NBC’s formal Upfront presentation isn’t until tomorrow, but the network has already released both its Fall and Midseason 2013-14 schedules.  Let’s dig right in.

NBC Official Schedule Fall 2013

FALL

MONDAY: 

8PM:     THE VOICE

10PM:  THE BLACKLIST

Unsurprisingly, the showcase post-VOICE drama spot has gone to the network’s most-hyped new 1-hour, THE BLACKLIST with James Spader.  If this is the drama NBC really believes in, this is the place to put it.

TUESDAY: 

8PM:     THE BIGGEST LOSER

9PM:     THE VOICE

10PM:   CHICAGO FIRE

Much more interesting is the decision to give CHICAGO FIRE the Tuesday 10PM post-Voice slot (the Tuesday edition of The Voice moves to 9PM, after a 1-hour THE BIGGEST LOSER).  That’s a huge boost to Chicago Fire, which NBC clearly thinks can become a long-running franchise.  The network seems (rightly) concerned about marketing too many new sitcoms at once, and it’s holding the Voice as a launching pad for comedies until midseason.

WEDNESDAY: 

8PM:     REVOLUTION

9PM:     LAW & ORDER:  SVU

10PM:   IRONSIDE

Moving REVOLUTION, which until now has been a 10PM series, to an 8PM Wednesday slot leading in to two older-skewing procedurals is unexpected.  It’s likely to face strong competition on the other networks, and this may not end well for Revolution.  Pairing SVU with the new IRONSIDE makes plenty of sense (we had them together on our mock-schedule, albeit with Ironside at 8PM), although it signals a tacit acceptance that younger viewers will be in short supply.

THURSDAY: 

8PM:         PARKS & RECREATION

8:30PM:    WELCOME TO THE FAMILY

9PM:         SEAN SAVES THE WORLD

9:30PM:    THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW

10PM:        PARENTHOOD

PARKS & RECREATION starts the night with a bit of stability before what becomes a completely ripped-up Thursday.  Parks seems like it can be a good lead-in for the Mike O’Malley/Mary McCormick comedy WELCOME TO THE FAMILY.  The shocker is that rather than give THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW the night’s 9PM anchor slot, Fox has been put at 9:30PM, after the Sean Hayes sitcom SEAN SAVES THE WORLD.  Putting two “Must-See TV” icons together sells itself, but why give Hayes the more prominent slot?  It’s hard not to think that the network has doubts about the Fox vehicle, which would be very bad news, considering the huge investment it’s put into that show.  PARENTHOOD moves to Thursday 10PM, which will probably be a tough slot (very tough, if ABC keeps Scandal there), but the show’s long-suffering audience will likely find it.

FRIDAY:  

8PM:     DATELINE

9PM:     GRIMM

10PM:   DRACULA

DRACULA has been largely below the radar this pre-Upfront season, but it fits as a companion for GRIMM, which probably belongs in its Friday home rather than moving elsewhere.

SUNDAY:  NFL FOOTBALL, of course.

NBC Official Schedule Midseason 2013-14

MIDSEASON

MONDAY:  No changes.

TUESDAY: 

8PM:         THE VOICE

9PM:         ABOUT A BOY

9:30PM:    THE FAMILY GUIDE

10PM:       CHICAGO FIRE

With (it hopes) the new Thursday comedy night safely launched, the network will try two more newcomers for midseason, with THE VOICE as lead-in for its TV version of ABOUT A BOY and then another offbeat family comedy, THE FAMILY GUIDE.  (The latter one may need some time for retooling, since Parker Posey was just dropped as one of the leads.)

WEDNESDAY:  No changes.

THURSDAY:  No changes.

FRIDAY: 

8PM:     DATELINE

9PM:     GRIMM

10PM:   CROSSBONES

CROSSBONES, another international action adventure co-production–with pirates instead of vampires–is substituted in for Dracula. 

SUNDAY: 

7PM:     DATELINE

8PM:     AMERICAN DREAM BUILDERS

9PM:     BELIEVE

10PM:   CRISIS

Post-football, the reality show AMERICAN DREAM BUILDERS will lead in to a pair of new dramas, the J.J. Abrams-produced BELIEVE and the international conspiracy thriller CRISIS.  Whenever a network launches a night consisting entirely of new shows, it’s a crapshoot, although NBC will have the WINTER OLYMPICS as a springboard for marketing the series.  (Not that that helped Animal Practice last fall.)

Note:  the return of (naturally) COMMUNITY, the new comedy UNDATEABLE and dramas CHICAGO PD (the Chicago Fire spin-off) and THE NIGHT SHIFT, as well as reality shows THE MILLION DOLLAR QUIZ and FOOD FIGHTERS, are currently unscheduled, and will presumably be used to fill in gaps as needed.  For Community, this likely means another 13-episode season, just as it had this past year.

For those who like to keep track of these things, here’s the studio scorecard for the new NBC shows:

Universal Television (NBC’s in-house studio)3 comedies, 4 dramas (including the 2 international co-productions)

Sony Pictures Television:  2 comedies, 2 dramas

Warner Bros Television:  1 comedy, 1 drama

20th Century Fox Television:  1 drama

 

 



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."