Slowly but surely, NBC has been rolling out information about their upcoming schedule for this coming fall, starting with an announcement months ago that Jay Leno will be taking up permanent residence in the 10 PM hour. In addition, NBC has announced its plans to renew or cancel many of its current shows (no official word yet on the fates of Chuck or My Name is Earl) and announced that it will be picking up 6 new scripted series (more on these later)and a handful of reality shows. After being the dominant network for much of the 80’s and the 90’s, NBC has fallen to 4^th place over the last several years and it seems like they are willing to shake things up and break the mold of the traditional broadcast network. Let’s take a look.

First up, the Jay Leno move. NBC has taken considerable heat for this decision with many critics voicing their opinions that NBC is killing network television with this move. I think that these opinions are quite extreme. In fact, I think NBC is the only major network that is helping the evolution of network TV. Viewership for the big 4 networks (sorry CW) has been slipping for years now, with the rise of the cable networks, internet viewership and most shows available on DVD. This is a problem for all the networks, not just NBC, but they are the only network doing anything about it. The Jay Leno move is good for NBC in many ways. First and foremost, the cost of the The Jay Leno Show (its official title) is way cheaper than it would be to produce 5 hour long dramas a week. This leads to less pressure on the network to achieve high ratings in the 10 PM timeslot to capture high advertising rates. Jay Leno will still achieve decent ratings and even if NBC is in third place every night at 10PM they will be sufficient enough to bring in average advertising rates all year round. The move also benefits ABC and CBS, who are now the only real game in town at 10. It relieves the ratings pressure when they are in essence only competing against each other. Even if ratings slip for them, they can still command higher advertising rates, which leads to less pressure on their 10PM slate to perform. This being the case allows the networks to stick with underperforming shows awhile longer and not have to cancel them after 3 airings. Remember it took Seinfeld 3 or 4 seasons to hit its stride and Cheers was the lowest rated show on television its first year. Can you imagine if those shows never reached their full potential? It is evident to me that NBC remembers this lesson, renewing low rated sitcoms like The Office and 30 Rock and more recently Amy Poehler’s new sitcom, Parks and Recreation. The only scary part of this equation to me is if airing The Jay Leno Show turns out to be way more lucrative than airing scripted series. If that’s the case, it won’t be long before David Letterman and others will be moving into primetime. Of course, NBC now has 5 hours less of programming to worry about which means they can focus more on quality and not quantity. Really, does anyone need 2 hours of Celebrity Apprentice or The Biggest Loser that NBC now uses to pad its schedule? Do we need more Dateline or Deal or No Deal? The simple answer is no. 

NBC has also announced that it will be renewing serialized show, Heroes, albeit with a smaller amount of episodes (probably 18) and will air them back to back with no repeats like 24 on FOX or Lost on ABC. This is a smart move and they should do more of the same. Every show they air should be shown back to back with no repeats. With this model, they could air new shows year round much like the cable networks do. This would be a bold move as it would eradicate the traditional TV season as we know it and force the network to commit to the shows they are airing. The thing is they don’t have to commit to 22 episode seasons doing this. They could shorten each of their shows seasons to about 13 episodes. Of course if they have a show that is a big hit that they want to capitalize on, they could increase the order of episodes as needed. This would allow NBC the freedom to continue to air fan favorite shows like Chuck and Life. I’ll gladly take 13 episodes of Chuck a year versus none. 

With that being said, let’s take a look at the new series that NBC has announced for the fall TV season. It is important to note that I have not seen any of these shows and any opinions I have about them are based on gut feeling. Let’s take a look.

Day One
PREMISE - In the aftermath of a global catastrophe that has devastated the world's infrastructures, a band of survivors who all live in the same apartment building in suburban Van Nuys, California, strives to rebuild society as they unravel the mysteries of what happened and face their uncertain future.
STARRING - Adam Campbell (Harper’s Island), Catherine Dent (The Shield), Julie Gonzalo (Eli Stone, Veronica Mars), David Lyons (ER), Derek Mio (Greek), Carly Pope (24, Dirt)
BILL’S TAKE – I’m a big fan of serialized shows so Day One sounds right up my alley. Although the premise does sound rather close to Jericho, a show which failed in the ratings, this is the perfect show for NBC to run back to back and test what I think should be the new network model. Truth is if Jericho had been shown this way, it would probably be entering its fourth season now.

Community
PREMISE - At Greendale Community College, a fast-talking lawyer whose degree has been revoked forms a study group made up of a band of misfits and they end up learning a lot more about themselves than they do about their course work.
STARRING -  Joel McHale (The Soup), Chevy Chase (Do I really have to tell you who Chevy Chase is?), Gillian Jacobs (The Book of Daniel), Yvette Nicole Brown (Rules of Engagement), Danny Pudi (Greek), Alison Brie (Mad Men)
BILL’S TAKE – A silly comedy starring Chevy Chase could be the perfect companion for NBC’s Thursday lineup. The show is said to be funny but poignant, probably much like Scrubs although slightly less goofy.

100 Questions
PREMISE - Charlotte Payne has rejected multiple marriage proposals in her quest for life, so she turns to online dating and a dating counselor who makes her take a 100-question compatibility test. As she answers each question, it makes her reflect on her life with her friends and what she really wants out of a relationship.
STARRING -  Sophie Winkleman (Peep Show), Amir Talai (The Ex List), Elizabeth Ho (Women's Murder Club), Joy Suprano (Law & Order), Christopher Moynihan (For Your Consideration), David Walton (Quarterlife)
BILL’s TAKE – I’m not too positive about this one. 100 Questions seems like a throwback to Caroline in the City or Suddenly Susan, which is not a good thing.

Mercy
PREMISE - The lives and staff at Mercy Hospital as told through the eyes of the nurses.
STARRING -  Taylor Schilling (Dark Matter), Jamie Lee Kirchner (Rescue Me), Michelle Trachtenberg (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), James Tupper (Men in Trees), Diego Klattenhoff (Supernatural), Guillermo Diaz (Weeds)
BILL’S TAKE – Does NBC need another hospital drama so soon after ER left the airwaves? Despite the originality of being told through the eyes of nurses, I don’t think so. This show will be on life support STAT.

Parenthood
PREMISE – In this remake of the 1989 movie starring Steve Martin, financially strapped single mom Sarah Braverman uproots her two kids and returns to her hometown in California, where her dysfunctional family awaits her.
STARRING -  Peter Krause (Dirty Sexy Money, Six Feet Under), Maura Tierney (ER, Newsradio), Craig T. Nelson (Coach), Dax Shepard ( Baby Mama), Bonnie Bedelia (Die Hard), Monica Potter (Boston Legal), Erika Christensen (Traffic)
BILL’S TAKE – This is not the first time Parenthood has been brought to the small screen, a sitcom based on the movie starring Ed Begley Jr. aired on NBC for 12 episodes on NBC back in 1990. I expect this version to perform much better due to its stellar cast and its dramedy, not sitcom, format. I believe NBC has a modest hit on their hands.

Trauma
PREMISE – An action packed medical drama about first-responder paramedics from the San Francisco General trauma team who rush by land, sea or air to reach their victims on time.
STARRING - Derek Luke (Notorious), Cliff Curtis (10,000 B.C), Anastasia Griffith (Damages), Aimee Garcia (George Lopez), Kevin Rankin (Friday Night Lights) Jamey Sheridan (Law & Order: Criminal Intent)
BILL’S TAKE – It sounds a lot like Third Watch, another NBC show from season’s past albeit with more action and explosions. Yet another medical show that I think will be on life support after only a few airings.