• by Steve Sternberg , Featured Columnist, June 9, 2015

My friends and family think its cool that I get to see all the new series pilots before they air on television. It actually is pretty cool, but it's not always fun. That's because I have to watch them all — the good, the bad, and the very bad.  After examining the fall schedules and watching most of the pilots, here are a few takeaways — keeping in mind that hits are almost always a surprise:

Scheduling Trumps Buzz, Part 1:  I’m not sure why ABC’s The Muppets is getting so much buzz this pre-season, or why anyone thinks it will be a hit.  But airing opposite NCIS, The Voice, and The Flash, does not bode well for its chances.

Weak Comedy Development:  How else to explain scheduling NBC’s People Are Talking (not a single funny moment in the pilot – although my 16-year-old son says there was one funny scene) and CBS’ Angel From Hell, starring Jane Lynch, which I really wanted to like, but just couldn’t? 

CBS’ Life in Pieces is a Modern Family wannabe, which might be helped marginally by following Big Bang Theory.  It has a good cast (James Brolin, Diane Wiest, Colin Hanks), so maybe subsequent episodes will be better than the pilot.  For some reason, NBC will have a revival of Coach in midseason (can Nielsen even measure a median age over 70?). ABC’s Dr. Ken has some potential, but the network is basically throwing it away on Friday behind the incompatible Last Man Standing.

On the other hand, I didn’t expect much from a comedy starring Rob Lowe and Fred Savage, but Fox’s The Grinder looks good. I really enjoyed the pilot.  Another Fox comedy, Grandfathered, starring John Stamos, also has potential, particularly if Criminal Minds alumna, Paget Brewster continues to have a strong presence in the show.

CBS will likely need to bring back Odd Couple, 2 Broke Girls, and Mike & Molly sooner than they expect to.

Vagina is the new Penis:  Several years ago, when the word “penis” was first allowed on ad-supported television, it became so overused in network comedies that it quickly subsided.  One hopes that the same will be true with “vagina,” which has already stopped being funny or shocking.

Scheduling Trumps Buzz, Part 2:  CBS’ Supergirl is probably the most buzzed-about new series on the five-network schedule.  The pilot is very good. So hey, let’s schedule it opposite Fox’s Gotham.  While it might be true that Supergirl will attract a slightly younger viewer, the bulk of its potential audience is exactly the same as Gotham’s.  But it will also air opposite Dancing With the Stars (median age 60+) and The Voice (median age 53), so there may be room for two superhero-based series here.  It would undoubtedly do better in a different time slot though.

It will be interesting to see where CW places DC’s Legends of Tomorrow in midseason.

Crime/FBI Dramas are Still Strong:  The broadcast networks are still able to produce high quality dramas. NBC’s Blindspot, ABC’s Quantico, and Fox’s Rosewood are best of the bunch.  On the non-crime front, CBS’ Limitless and Code Black are worth a look.

At this writing, NBC’s Heroes Reborn and Fox’s Scream Queens have not yet been made available for screening.  Both will get a lot of buzz, which, as usual, will have no relation to whether or not they succeed.