What is it with networks turning their backs on scripted programming? Just yesterday, representatives from TBS announced they were declining additional episodes after the season 21 of American Dad finale which airs on Monday, March 24. The leading cable network, known in past lifetimes as cable's super station, acquired American Dad in 2014 as FOX sought to shake up their Animation Domination block. The series continued successfully for another 10 seasons on TBS, rating highly until recent seasons. Ratings were not to blame per se but rather the network decided to do away with original scripted programming, because filler reality shows like Impractical Jokers are FAR superior. Right....
15 years ago, cable networks had an embarrassment of riches with hit programming which paved the way for hits such as Bates Motel, Breaking Bad, American Horror Story and Walking Dead. During this trend, American Dad found the perfect niche on TBS which invested in securing original comedies. Flash forward to the end of the decade, and several cable networks decided to turn their backs on scripted programming following decreasing subscriptions from fed-up viewers tired of price increases and cutting the cord. While alternative services such as DirectTV Now, YouTube and Sling displayed cable networks, price hikes hit all providers and cancellations continued to ensue. First, networks such as A&E pulled their name out of the scripted runners instead shifting to unscripted. It seemed like a small trickle of what was to come.
Only 5 short years ago, original scripted series could be located on several channels from not only TBS and TNT, but also FX, USA, TV Land, Freeform, SyFy and too many worthy mentions. After several scandalous mergers such as the Warner Bros./Discovery consolidated and caused divides, cable networks opted to cut costs and turned off the free-flowing faucet of creative scripted series. And now, TBS, once the gold standard which helped found and drive cable, joins them and turned their backs on American Dad.
Out of this insulting dismissal, a beacon of hope has come for broadcast TV. FOX, which is in ruins with aging animated series, underwhelming dramas and too many frivolous unscripted series to count, has a chance to enhance their sagging lineup. True, majority of the "successful" animated series are all over 15 seasons and the newbies such as critically panned Krapopolis proliferating over the newer entries, it could lead to an expansion on other evenings or building a sturdier Sunday lineup throughout the season. Given NBC is out of the ring with scripted programming on Tuesdays and CBS apparently needs to rebuild following discarding the FBI spinoffs, FOX may have a fertile ground to regrow the ruins of this evening.
FOX has opted against moving The Simpsons, despite years earlier they used it as the perfect weapon to take a bite out of Must-See-TV Thursdays and juxtaposed it against aging hit The Cosby Show. Would moving Simpsons to Tuesday at 8pm for the earlier part of the season during NFL present a glowing opportunity to not only allow viewers to recommit to the aged series without games disrupting? It has lost much of lead-in power in recent seasons to launch hits, but may be paired nicely during the earlier portions of the season with Family Guy in a power lineup. And over on Sundays, let viewers fall in love with American Dad again on Sundays at 8pm, followed by a newer series sandwiched between Bob's Burgers at 9:00 and another filler after.
This configuration would not only allow the weaker of the animated helpings enjoy the NFL-inflated numbers, but also call upon a strategy CBS used in the early 2010's when they were seeking to colonize a new Thursday Night evening of comedies and sent The Big Bang Theory on a train to a new evening where its audience amassed. CBS moved sturdy hits Two and a Half Men and TBBT to 8:00 on Thursdays, branding it as America's best comedy hour. The strategy worked as ABC struggled for years to locate a hit during that hour, and NBC lost its branding dominance of Must-See-TV. As the block gained momentum, CBS split the comedies with TBBT anchoring 8:00 and Two and a Half Men holding down 9:00 during the 2013-14 season. Results were mixed as Two and a Half Men aged, but it did allot CBS to hold a solid bed of two hours of comedies straight through to 2022.
The move of course would not be permanent for Simpsons, which could slide back to Sundays in February and allot another show to take their timeslot (or rotate American Dad). CBS used rotation powers with The Big Bang Theory after acquiring Thursday Night Football for the first 5 weeks of the season starting in 2014, rotating TBBT to Mondays to lead the block and establish newer pilots on that evening. While Simpsons doesn't quite possess the power to launch new series, it could present comfort food paired with fellow aging companion Family Guy in a Tuesday colony and help FOX give its series longer displays of episodes.
Can the animated series help bring FOX into a positive chapter and give it some clout again? And would moving a worthy and strong show like The Simpsons to Tuesdays help re-energize not only FOX's tired lineup but get viewers to pay attention again? Sound off and pick a bone with conversations in the comments below.
