Hits & Misses of New TV Season
Two NBC shows among media agency's picks for new season; CBS said to have two of the losers
NEW YORK, Sept. 13, 2007 -- The buyers at leading independent media
agency TargetCast tcm have picked the five new network shows they think will
be hits, along with the five they think will fall to the bottom of the heap as the
primetime season begins next month.
NBC has two new shows that should do very well, according to Steve Farella,
CEO of TargetCast tcm, a media planning and buying agency. "Chuck"
(Mondays at 8 Eastern), a comedy about a computer geek who becomes the
government's most valuable secret agent, looks promising, the agency says.
Also on NBC, "Bionic Woman" (Weds, 9 p.m.) should prove popular, borrowing
from the mid-70s hit "Six Million Dollar Man."
ABC's "Dirty Sexy Money" (Thurs, 10 p.m.), the story of a super-rich New York
family, makes the winners' list bolstered by a stellar cast including Peter Krause,
Donald Sutherland, Jill Clayburgh and William Baldwin. Farella says the series
will also benefit from strong lead-in and lead-out shows.
FOX has a hit with "Back to You" (Weds, 8 p.m.), starring Kelsey Grammer and
Patricia Heaton, with Fred Willard. The strong cast and the concept of a TV
anchor team struggling to get along should work well, says Farella.
Fledgling network The CW may have a hit with "Gossip Girl" (Weds, 9 p.m.), the
story of a prep school girl who secretly blogs, spilling gossip about the young
New York party set. The agency expects it to do well with the young
demographics the CW targets.
NBC and CBS each have two shows that TargetCast tcm doesn't expect to do
well this season. NBC's "Journeyman" (Mon., 10 p.m.), about a reporter who
time-travels and changes people's lives, and "Life" (Weds, 10 p.m.), about a
detective who gets a second chance after being in prison for a crime he didn't
commit, just don't have what it takes, the agency says.
On CBS, much-touted reality show "Kid Nation" (Weds, 8 p.m.) and "Viva
Laughlin" (Sun., 8 p.m.), despite the star power of executive producer Hugh
Jackman and Melanie Griffith, are not expected to make the cut. "Viva Laughlin"
profiles a man trying to build a casino in Laughlin, Nevada.
ABC's much talked-about "Cavemen" (Tuesday, 8 p.m.) looks like it will return to
the Stone Age. The show has undergone many last-minute changes, but the
agency does not expect it to survive. "It's a one-joke show," Farella notes.
"Cane" (Tuesday, 10 p.m.) has the ingredients to make it on CBS — star power
with Jimmy Smits, and soap opera storylines. But the show is up against two
established hits, "Law & Order SVU" and "Boston Legal," and its lead-in, "The
Unit," is not compatible. "Stay tuned. Time will tell," says Farella.
More than 26 new shows will appear on the networks this fall season, says
TargetCast tcm. Last year, the networks introduced 27 new shows, and only ten
are returning this season.
TargetCast tcm serves a diverse range of strong independent brands including
TIAA-CREF, Wyeth Consumer Healthcare, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth
Animal Health, Ruby Tuesday Restaurants, 1-800-Flowers.com, The Wharton
School, Dominican Republic Tourism, MSG Network, and Muscular Dystrophy
Association.
TargetCast tcm was recently named to Inc. Magazine's Inc. 500 list of America's
fastest-growing private companies.
* * *
|
