New TV shows get their renewal notices
BY GARY LEVIN November 19, 2012 3:18PM
Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) - The Walking Dead - Season 3, Episode 1 - Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC
Updated: December 21, 2012 6:12AM
It’s a Thanksgiving ritual: Major TV networks must separate the haves from the have-nots among their freshman crop.
New TV series are promised an initial run of 13 episodes. In success, nine more are ordered in late fall to fill out the entire September-to-May season; in failure, the show ends there (CBS’ “Partners” and ABC’s “Last Resort”), or sooner if it’s a quick bomb (CBS’ “Made in Jersey” and NBC’s “Animal Practice”).
Among shows earning full seasons: CBS’ “Elementary” and “Vegas”; Fox comedies “Ben & Kate” and “The Mindy Project”; NBC’s “Revolution,” “Chicago Fire,” “Go On” and “The New Normal”; ABC’s “The Neighbors” and “Nashville”; and CW’s “Beauty and the Beast” and “Arrow.” NBC’s “Guys With Kids” won four additional episodes.
Fox’s “Mob Doctor” remains on the air for now but will not produce additional episodes; neither, likely, will the CW’s “Emily Owens, M.D.”
This fall has been largely lackluster. Though climbing DVR usage provides eventual boosts to ratings for many shows, none has been the kind of buzzy, genre-defying hit on which networks depend. That mantle has been claimed by AMC’s “The Walking Dead,” which has eclipsed all other TV dramas in terms of young-adult viewership, a first for cable.
On the bigger networks, “Vegas” and “Elementary” are the most popular new shows, and “Revolution” is tops among young adults. But more newcomers are persevering with borderline ratings.
“A lot of series that have been picked up for the year have shown the standards are lower” for longevity, says Sam Armando, analyst at Chicago ad firm SMGx.
CBS remains tops overall, but is down 10 percent from last year.
NBC alone has reason to cheer; it is up 20 percent from last year, and has moved from fourth to first among young-adult viewers.
Gannett News Service
