The end is in sight for ABC's long-running comic book series Agents of SHIELD, as the series has been confirmed to end with its upcoming 7th season. The show scored a (very) early renewal last year for the seventh season, over half a year before the show began its season 6 run on Fridays during summer. The show hasn't been a strong performer for the network for some time, and it didn't have a successful syndication run, but the show was an important one for ABC and Marvel, both of which are owned by Disney. Like with season 6, the final, seventh season of the series will run for 13 episodes. So far in season 6, SHIELD has averaged a 0.42 and has been one of the very few original series to air on Fridays this summer. Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, and Chloe Bennet star in the series.
What do you think of this news? Will you miss Agents of SHIELD when it leaves the airwaves next season? Let us know in the comments below!
In what is bound to be the highest-profile show of the season, ABC has ordered straight-to-series
Marvel's The Inhumans. The series is set to air next fall, and will not serve as a bridge/filler show. ABC has had initial success with Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, though it since has settled with low ratings. Marvel's Agent Carter was also a modest performer in its first season and got canceled about two. They also had shows in development that did not make it to series.
What do you think of this news? Does this spell doom for SHIELD? Let us know in the comments below!
Welcome to a segment I call "The Future of the Night". The format is I take a look at a night on the network's schedule, see what could use improvement, and come up with scenarios which could potentially solve it. First, I present a short argument as to why it could work, then play Devil's Advocate with my reasoning, and then present the bottom line. Enjoy, and fee free to leave your opinions by leaving a comment!
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Tuesday is arguably ABC's worst night. It starts off with Fresh Off Th eBoat, a marginal player that is way below the ratings of its Wednesday siblings, yet is still the highest-rated show of the night. The Real O'Neals is barely struggling to not go fractional, Marvel's Agents of SHIELD has gone fractional, and nothing can EVER break a 1.0 demo rating at 10pm. ABC has a real problem on the night, and several ways to potentially fix it.
Option 1: Grow Fresh Off The Boat, Push SHIELD to 10pm Why It Will Work: SHIELD and its low ratings are probably on their way out anyways, so why not just push it to 10pm and let it take the hit instead of a new show? Also, FOTB getting renewed probably means ABC has plans for it other than leading off the night with low 1s. Shifting it to 8:30 and moving a Wednesday comedy to 8pm could create a strong(er) Tuesday hour. Stay tuned for tomorrow's edition, where there will be a more complete analysis on the pros and cons of moving each comedy (if any).
Why It Won't: Disney owns both ABC and Marvel; will they really allow one of their shows to be shifted to the 10pm death slot? Also, a Wednesday comedy could crumble on Tuesday, leaving nothing for FOTB to gain and a lost Wednesday dynamic.
Bottom Line: This is probably the most plausible option for ABC, making necessary changes while also opening up a spot at 9pm for a new show. It's a safe choice, but not the safest.
Option 2: Stay Steady
Why It Will Work: Statistically, half of the network's shows have to be below average. Not every night has to include high-rated comedies or be called TGIT. Leave Tuesday alone for now (including Beyond the Tank at 10pm) and work out Sunday and Monday first.
Why It Won't: Really? Does ABC really want Fractional Tuesday? I don't think so, and advertisers don't as well. Something has to be done, whether that's a complete overhaul or just an improvement in one hour.
Bottom Line: ABC is known for stability, but this is one night where stability may not be the best option. The safest? Yes. But not the best.
Option 3: New Drama(s)
Why It Will Work: Once again, if you schedule a show that intrigue people and promote it right, viewers will at the very least sample it. We saw that with The Muppets. But just because Tuesday hasn't had success as of late doesn't mean they never will. Put one or two promising drama pilots on Tuesdays, and chances are at least one will stick.
Why It Won't: Marvel's Agents of SHIELD is not a good lead-in for a drama. The other options aren't the greatest either; a comedy isn't bound to help a drama all that much, and the last thing you want is to make a promising pilot self-start and crumble. Also, ABC tried this strategy with Sunday this season, and one of them was DOA.
Bottom Line: Whatever happens, ABC should try to do some shifting on Tuesday. Maybe two new dramas back-to-back isn't the best, but it will at least be a chance to get something working.
Option 4: Move a Veteran Drama
Why It Will Work: Of all the dramas ABC has tried on Tuesday in the past 4 seasons, only 1 has been renewed. Time to try a show with a solid following instead of throwing another newbie to the wolves.
Why It Won't: What veteran is strong enough to move to Tuesday, but not strong enough to be more needed somewhere else?
Bottom Line: The drama that comes to mind here is How to Get Away with Murder. It's strong enough as to that it'll improve the time slot, but not strong enough that Thursday is guaranteed to crumble without it. Still a big risk though.
What do you think? Are there any other somewhat-plausible options that I didn't cover? Let me know in the comments below!
Welcome to a segment I call "The Future of the Night". The format is I take a look at a night on the network's schedule, see what could use improvement, and come up with scenarios which could potentially solve it. First, I present a short argument as to why it could work, then play Devil's Advocate with my reasoning, and then present the bottom line. Enjoy, and fee free to leave your opinions by leaving a comment!
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Right now, ABC gets respectable 7pm ratings out of America's Funniest Home Videos, which probably costs pennies. Thing is, the way things are going it will be ABC Sunday's #1 show! And that's not a good thing for the rest of the line-up. Once Upon a Time is showing its age at marginal numbers, Quantico is hanging in there in the low 1s but never really became the breakout hit it had potential to be, and nothing will resonate at 9pm. Sunday doesn't have to be a Wednesday or Thursday for ABC, but the network should also think about making itself a little more competitive on the night. Once Upon a Time might not have much left in it, and we can't have a night where the highlight is America's Funniest Home Videos. Here are a couple options ABC has:
Option 1: How to Get Away with Murder Why It Will Work: How to Get Away with Murder, despite ratings declines, still remains a solid player for ABC and could be able to bring ratings above a 1.0 to Sunday nights. Which sad as it is, would be an improvement over what's there now.
Why It Won't: Being a serialized drama that's losing buzz, can we really trust HTGAWM all that much away from TGIT? And that they'll find something to replace it on Thursday?
Bottom Line: This could be a solid option, as it'll provide a solid lead-in to Quantico, which will no longer have to stand 100% by itself, and will save a new show from having to be launched out of Once Upon a Time.
Option 2: Marvel's Agents of SHIELD
Why It Will Work: It will stop from ABC have to try a new show on Sundays, so why not try the struggling SHIELD here? During breaks, the time slot could be kept warm by a Marvel bridge series or even Marvel movies.
Why It Won't: If SHIELD is fractional now, why would it do better on Sunday? To add on to that, it's a male-skewing show airing on an hour already dominated by male-skewing shows.
Bottom Line: They probably won't see much time slot improvement here, though at the very least it won't be worse nor at the expense of a new show.
Option 3: New Drama
Why It Will Work: If ABC just schedules the right show here, people will find it. A political drama like ordered-to-series Designated Survivor or pilot Conviction could work, as fans of The Good Wife will be looking for something new to watch. Well, unless CBS moves Madam Secretary there. But we can't make assumptions.
Why It Won't: Ever hear of the "throw it against the wall and hope it sticks" theory? It's one that's been tried before and failed. If networks want a new show to work, they have to give it lead-in support, and Once Upon a Time isn't that.
Bottom Line: This is the conservative option, and it's what they've been doing for the past couple years. It hasn't worked. I think it's time to move on from this option.
Option 4: Comedy Hour Why It Will Work: America's Funniest Home Videos is a cheap, retro comedy-variety show. That could pair nicely with 80s Goldbergs and 90s Fresh Off The Boat at 8pm, shifting Once Upon a Time to 9pm.
Why It Won't: Too many moves? Possibly. ABC is a network that needs to focus on dramas, so I'm
not sure how radical they'll get with comedy.
Bottom Line: Compatibility-wise this seems like a nice match. But if we move The Goldbergs and FOTB to Sunday, we're leaving holes somewhere else. It's a puzzle that can't be solved. Unless ABC does a schedule overhaul, I think they'll shy away from a comedy hour. For now, at least.
What do you think? Are there any other somewhat-plausible options that I didn't cover? Let me know in the comments below!
Why It Will Work: SHIELD and its low ratings are probably on their way out anyways, so why not just push it to 10pm and let it take the hit instead of a new show? Also, FOTB getting renewed probably means ABC has plans for it other than leading off the night with low 1s. Shifting it to 8:30 and moving a Wednesday comedy to 8pm could create a strong(er) Tuesday hour. Stay tuned for tomorrow's edition, where there will be a more complete analysis on the pros and cons of moving each comedy (if any).
Why It Will Work: How to Get Away with Murder, despite ratings declines, still remains a solid player for ABC and could be able to bring ratings above a 1.0 to Sunday nights. Which sad as it is, would be an improvement over what's there now.
Why It Will Work: America's Funniest Home Videos is a cheap, retro comedy-variety show. That could pair nicely with 80s Goldbergs and 90s Fresh Off The Boat at 8pm, shifting Once Upon a Time to 9pm.