Necessity, we’re told, is the mother of invention … and of desperation and foolishness.
That was evident when networks pieced together makeshift schedules, because of the writers’ and actors’ strikes. Some steps were wise, others (including the British “Ghosts,” shown here) were not.
That phase is finally concluding now, as shows gradually start their post-strike seasons. But first, we should pause and look at that time and its interesting quirks.
We’ll stick to the five commercial broadcast networks, because the others were less affected by the strikes. Among other things we learned:
1) Other countries make pretty good dramas.
PBS always knew this, of course. It’s Sunday shows have stayed strong; so have the line-ups on such cable networks as Acorn and Britbox. But now there’s been more:
— CBS’ “NCIS: Sydney” turned out to be passably good entertainment. Lots of crime-show cliches were bundled together as American and Australian casts combined.
— NBC’s “Transplant,” a Canadian show about a Syrian refugee doctor, started as a summer substitute, but keeps getting better. By now, it’s developed a deep set of characters. It plugged a Thursday hole during the strikes and is now at 8 p.m. Fridays.
— And CW, which has new owners looking for lower-cost shows, has been big on this. It’s had “The Swarm,” a strong European eco-thriller, and gentler Canadian shows.
“Moonshine” was inconsistent, as is “Family Law” (currently 9 p.m. Wednesdays), but “Sullivan’s Crossing” gradually became involving. “Wild Cards” (currently 8 p.m. Wednesdays) and “The Spencer Sisters” reminded us that crime shows can be fun.
2) But those countries have trouble with comedies.
Americans are scoffed at for insisting that characters to be likable. That seems silly … until you see the alternative.
CBS ran the original, British version of “Ghosts.” Its own version has molded the ghosts into an amiable bunch; in the British one, they’re mostly just ghastly.
CW also found that the people in the British “Everyone Else Burns” are hard to like or to watch. Otherwise, it has stuck with Canadian comedies, some okay (“Son of a Critch” and “Children Ruin Everything,” now at 8 and 9:30 p.m. Thursdays) and one not (“Run the Burbs”).
3) Movie nights are back.
In the old days, networks could simply show a movie. CBS tried that a couple times during the pandemic, using hits from the vaults of its parent company, Paramount.
CW is trying that on Sundays, but going cheap. It started with the 2001 “Wedding Planner”; next (7 p.m. Jan. 21) is the witless, 2003 “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.”
But ABC has wisely turned Sundays into Disney movie nights. That’s a good night for families to settle in with “Encanto” or “Cruella”; coming are “Soul” at 9 p.m. Jan,. 21 and Lindsay Lohan’s 1998 “Parent Trap” remake, at 8 p.m. Jan. 28.
4) Cable or streaming can help.
It seemed like sheer desperation when CBS put Kevin Costner’s “Yellowstone” on Sundays. The show had already been shown – and re-shown and re-re-shown — on the Paramount Network and on Paramount+.
But it worked again, so CBS now has a new season of the show’s reruns on Sundays.
Other shows have also been borrowed: Hulu’s delightful “Only Murders in the Building” is Tuesdays on ABC, through Jan. 22; the non-fiction “FBI True,” from Paramount+, is 10 p.m. Wednesdays on CBS.
5) There’s more sports (and then more).
Ever since TV started to decline, sports events have grown. They’re the best way to keep viewers from time-shifting … and almost the only way to find young males.
Even the CW network had college football (via the Atlantic Coast Conference). On a couple of bizarre Saturday nights during the strikes, all five networks had games.
ABC suddenly joined ESPN, its corporate partner, in carrying the Monday pro games. Now it sometimes has pro basketball twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays.
That goes further. College football has made inroads into Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays. Fox is devoting Saturday nights to college basketball, men and women. Other sports (soccer, golf, etc.) have reached prime time.
6) But new reality is iffy.
Lacking scripted shows, networks mostly went with the familiar.
CBS expanded its giants (“Survivor” and “The Amazing Race”) to 90 minutes each. NBC gave “The Voice” four hour a week. ABC stuck with long-ago game shows.
But CBS was the one network that gambled on three new reality or game shows. The likable “Buddy Games” did last its season, but CBS soon pulled episodes of “Loteria Loca” and “Raid the Cage” … and should have pulled the awful “Superfan.” Soon, it was settling for primetime versions of “The Price is Right” and “Let’s Make a Deal.”
Still, networks keep trying new reality. Now Fox has Rob Lowe hosting “The Floor” and Anthony Anderson hosting “We Are Family,” at 9 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Both are fairly interesting; something might stick.