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Fox Announces Midseason Schedule, Moving Dollhouse To Fridays

By fred | November 7, 2008

Fox’s plans for 2009 have now made public, and there are two things that are really worth nothing, two changes that took place compared to the original plans the Network had, two changes actually quite linked to each other : Originally, Bones was set to move on Fridays.

No really, it was, those idiots at Fox keep moving it around and treat the show like it wasn’t the little awesome thing it is, pulling 10 million viewers each week. And maybe that’s why they change their minds, when realizing that even without House near-by, the show was still a hit. That’s for the good news, now the bad news comes from who’s taking over that infamous death slot.

No other than Joss Whedon’s latest sci-fi creation, Dollhouse, is set to air on Fridays, premiering Friday, January 13th. No really. I’ll give you a minute to scream away as those horrible flashbacks and memories of Firefly come to mind…

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles will indeed moving to Fridays at 8.00 and lead in to new series Dollhouse.

Okay, so this is obviously bad news, it clearly sucks, and shows a lack of confidence in the show from Fox. There’s no denial here, but I myself am deciding to look at this on the “positive” side, to see one, to see hope in there somewhere, I need to.

I need to believe that change is possible, I need to believe that Fox has changed, that Whedon was right when he agreed to work with Fox again, when he said the people in place were and the way he was treated was nothing like with Firefly, I need to believe that Fox is different now, and that they did not renew Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles for a second season, and then gave a full season order to that sophomore season, if they were the same trigger-happy morons they used to be.

I need to believe that with Kevin Reilly in charge, we can have faith. Because Reilly is known to be a good guy, and one who has in the past battled for good shows because he believed in them, even if they didn’t look like instant hits and were struggling in the ratings. If we can enjoy The Office today, you can thank Reilly for supporting and fighting for the show when, in its first season, it was struggling in ratings.

So here’s how I’m choosing to look at things : Fox recognize that there’s an undeniable quality in both Terminator and Dollhouse, and they want to support the show. At the same time, and as illustrated by Terminator’s ratings struggle on Mondays right now, they also realize that the shows are probably targeting somewhat of a niche audience, and that as such putting them on a Monday or Thursday night could mean poor ratings and a cancellation to follow.

Instead, they’ve decided to create a sci-fi block and to air both shows together, which didn’t leave many alternatives but Fridays, all things considered. And doing so creates an attracting night for all sci-fi fans around, that famous niche they’re looking for, and a real alternative to what’s on Fridays. After all, while Fridays are the death slots, some shows can survive there. In its days The X Files was on Fridays, and currently CBS found Ghost Whisperer and Numb3rs which have both managed to find their audience there (and one could add that Moonlight did, before CBS pulled the plug).

Posted in News
Shows: 24, Bones, Cleveland, Dollhouse, Fringe, House, Lie To Me, Prison Break, Sit Down Shut Up, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Til Death