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Fall 2004-2005 ABC TV Network Programming Schedule

 Descriptions and Analysis

New Series in blue.

Click on underlined titles for information.

Here's the link to ABC's own 2004 Schedule website.

Midseason:  Eyes, John Stamos sitcom

New Series

The Benefactor:  Really lucky Internet billionaire and Dallas Mavericks football team owner Mark Cuban tries for a more philanthropic and perhaps humane version of Donald Trump's star reality show turn.  He's giving away one million dollars to the contestant who makes the best impression on him.  Will it become a talent show, a beauty pageant, a buddy comedy, a sad story parade, or some as yet unimagined amalgamation of all of the above?  Viewers seem to be unquenchably into competitions of any sort these days, and with the rainbow on the The Benefactor leading right to the pot of gold in Cuban's lap, don't bet this one won't make a ratings impression.  Designed as a companion piece to Monday Night Football.  Premiere Date:  9/13/04.  Update 10/15/04:  Looks like Cuban won't be reaping another bonanza in his network TV debut -- ABC's cutting the run short, with the final episode set to air on 10/25, with only six of eight produced episodes airing.   

Boston Legal aka The Practice: Fleet Street:  After almost single-handedly reviving interest last season in David E. Kelley's faltering The Practice, the talented James Spader (as one-of-a-kind lawyer Alan Shore) gets his own spinoff with Boston Legal.  Joining him will be veteran thesp and certified pop culture icon William Shatner as the slightly daft head of the firm Denny Crane, also spun-off from his successful string of guest star appearances on The Practice.  Along for the ride are Rhona Mitra, coming over The Practice, and Lake Bell (Miss Match), ditto.  No doubt Spader is one of the most intriguing actors gracing the small screen these days, and it will be great to see Shatner sinking his teeth into the role of Denny on a long-term basis.  These performers helped The Practice rise from the dead this past season, and viewers are once again entranced with the series.  Good for it.  Without a doubt this is one of the must-watch carryovers this season.   Connoisseurs of the slightly weird school of acting have a bonanza on Sunday nights, what with Vincent D'Onofrio  plying his mannered wares on NBC at 9p on Law & Order: Criminal Intent and now Spader a regular at 10pm on ABC.  Rejoice!  Premiere Date:  10/3/04.  Update 8/30:  The title of the show is officially Boston Legal.  Update 9/2/04:  Actress Monica Potter (Along Came a Spider, Patch Adams {ugh!}) has joined the cast as a junior partner in the Boston Legal firm.  Update 10/15/04:  Boston Legal is doing very well this season, benefiting from Desperate Housewives strong showing on Sundays nights, but also in its own right.    

Complete Savages, aka The Savages:  Keith Carradine stars in this comedy as a single father who's raising five boys on his own.  Produced by Mel Gibson's company, this family-oriented sitcom will probably be better (and couldn't help but be funnier) than its lead-in, 8 Simple Rules, and ought to solidify ABC's comedy presence on Friday night.  Carradine is a pro, with enough masculine charm to enrapture female viewers, and the rough-and-tumble bad boy humor should keep the show amusing enough to get some new ones.  Not sure it's going to find its strongest audience tucked in between clearly-female appeal 8 Simple Rules and Hope and Faith; Complete Savages probably belongs thematically on Wednesday but will certainly help ABC on Friday.  Carradine, as the best looking of all the ABC male comedy stars, probably will fit in just fine, come to think of it.  Premiere Date:  9/24/04.  Update 8/30:  Title is now Complete Savages.  Update 11/14:  No hands-down hit but certainly holding its own, Complete Savages has been given a complete season order for a total of 22.       

Desperate Housewives:  The buzz on this sophisticated, sorta-American Beauty-esque premise is plenty positive.  Mary Alice Scott (Sheryl Lee -- who's being replaced, as of 6/10/04) commits suicide, and all her neighbors try to figure out what went wrong in their affluent, it-couldn't-happen-here suburb, all the while being observed by the late Mrs. Scott from the beyond.  This classy soap opera from writers and producers of Melrose Place and General Hospital certainly has the right provenance, and a cast of ladies ripe for a TV Guide cover:  Felicity Huffman (Sports Night), Nicolette Sheridan (Knot's Landing), Teri Hatcher (Lois & Clark, those Radio Shack ads), Marcia Cross (Everwood), Ms. Lee (Twin Peaks, Kingpin) and Eva Longoria (The Young and the Restless).  ABC has never quite been able to make Alias the hit that it should be in the Sunday 9pm time slot, so let's see if Desperate Housewives does the trick.  (Alias takes over the slot after DH departs in midseason).  Premiere Date:  10/3/04.  Update 10/15/04:  This critics' darling is also reaping audience gold for ABC, giving the network a Sunday triple-crown win with Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Desperate Housewives and Boston Legal, at least at this point two weeks into the season.  Update 11/16/04:  DH's incredible buzz and ratings dominance have changed ABC's plan to slip Alias back into the Sunday 9pm slot come January; now Desperate Housewives will continue in its winning timeslot and producer J.J. Abrams' Alias will be slotted in behind his -- and ABC's -- big Wednesday night hit Lost.  Good news for both nights!  

Hope and Faith: Daytime Darling Kelly Ripa teams up with Faith Ford (Murphy Brown) in a high concept, high energy family sitcom which will provide the tentpole for ABC's revamped TGIF.  In a life-imitates-art (somewhat) plot point, Ripa plays a washed-up soap opera star who retreats into suburbia to live with her stay-at-home-mom sister and her husband, their three kids, and the sisters' older father who lives with them.  Egos clash, sibling rivalries are rekindled, and I have to admit that the clip I saw had some funny if less-than-subtle moments.  It looks like the gals aren't afraid of some old-fashioned physical humor, and if they have any skill it could be a welcome return of something we just don't see much of anymore, at least not using women over thirty.  It's also wonderful to to see veteran actor Harve Presnell in the cast.  After his movie debut back in 1964 with Debbie Reynolds in The Unsinkable Molly Brown, this singer-actor did mostly stage work until he returned with a vengeance with his role in the Coen Brothers Fargo in 1996, and he hasn't stopped working since.  He and Sean Connery are a great advertisement for men over 70!  If ABC gets their Friday strategy going strong, Hope and Faith looks like it has a great chance to attract viewers.  And it won't hurt having Kelly Ripa plugging the show on her daytime gig with Regis, either.  HaF looks like much more of a sure thing than Life with Bonnie; that made it to season two, and is in fact the lead-out here.  And in case you're confused who's who, Kelly is Faith and Faith is Hope.  Update 6/30/03:  Veteran TV personality Ted McGinley joins the cast as Ford's husband, replacing Josh Stamberg who played the role in the pilot.  Premiere Date:  9/26/03.  Review 10/2:  Well, so much for my kind words about Harve Presnell.  He seems to be out of the picture -- hey, how many kids have grandparents around today, anyway, right? -- and that's a shame.  There's nothing novel on Hope and Faith, except perhaps further evidence of the new family TV list of acceptable subjects which now obviously includes crotchless panties, to be or not to be a slut, little girls' boob-talk, and noontime parental sex breaks.  I'm far from a prude, but really, is that kind of stuff necessary?  If Ripa and Ford would just stick to bickering and throwing around cookie dough, I'd be a lot more pleased to see this one make it.  Faith Ford is a pro, as always, but we're forced to listen to her character's implausible complaints that after having three kids her breasts are sagging and she's too out of shape to wear a teddie, and what does Ford weigh, like 95 pounds or something?  It's a visual disconnect that just doesn't cut it.  Let's hope she doesn't go lingerie shopping again, for any number of reasons!  Hope and Faith isn't bad; it's silly to the max and that's okay.  Kelly Ripa has just about enough comedienne in her to pass muster, and if we're not going to exactly see comedy history being made here, at least nobody's turned up gay so far, and that's in itself makes Hope and Faith a unique experience this season.  Update 10/17/03:  ABC has ordered four more scripts.  Update 10/30/03:  Got its full season order.  Update 5/19/04:  Remains in its current time period for the 2004/2005 season, its second.

life as we know it:  Even though the novel upon which it's based, Melvin Burgess' Doing It, deals with the love lives of three teenaged boys across the pond in Britain, ABC is betting that sexual coming-of-age travails are the same the world over -- namely, highly entertaining.  Produced by one of the writer/producers of the late and much-lamented, sweetly clever Freaks and Geeks, life as we know it has an attractive cast of young actors -- Sean Faris (MTV's Undressed, Sleepover), Jon Foster (Life as a House), and Chris Lowell -- with veteran actor D.B. Sweeney (8 Men Out, The Cutting Edge) now taking that long, slow and probably mildly depressing walk into playing father roles instead of the lead.  Ozzy Osbourne girl-spawn Kelly also has a recurring role as a chubette with an active libido, not the most original characterization ever but maybe she'll bring something different to it.  With liberal doses of direct address and self-effacing humor, life as we know It should definitely attract the young ladies with the male eye candy and schoolyard romances, and if lawki can pry the young men away from their videogame consoles, they might see themselves -- or some wittier version thereof -- in the intrepid trio.  ABC's hoping that teens, lacking anything else to watch, may give it a tumble.  Not so sure that it'll resonate with viewers of its lead-in program Extreme Makeover, but you never know.  Tough time period!  And the show title is actually written all in lower case....  Premiere Date:  10/7/04.

Lost:  Now, this one looks like a lot of fun!  J.J. Abrams, creator of Alias, gives us a spectacular airplane crash, a deserted island, a mismatched group of survivors, and something out there in the jungle with a big scary roar.  My kind of show!   The cast is very nearly enormous -- actress Evangeline Lilly (former Judgement Day girl on the G4 network, Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital) gets her big break here, along with co-stars Ian Somerhalder (Smallville, the never-aired Fearless), Dominic Monaghan (Hobbit Merry in LOTR), Jorge Garcia (Becker)  Maggie Grace (Oliver Beene), Naveen Andrews (The English Patient, Rollerball), Harold Perrineau (Oz, The Matrix trilogy, Romeo + Juliet), Matthew Fox (Party of Five), Terry O'Quinn (Alias, Harsh Realm, Millennium, and about a million other roles), Daniel Dae Kim (24, Angel, Enterprise) -- and one guesses that not all of them will make ultimately make it. That'll be too bad; it's a great group of charismatic acting talent.  We know that Abrams knows how to put together surprising, action-packed, thrilling yet intelligent television; though American viewers have shown again and again lately that they just may not be up to such a rich entertainment package, Lost will be a found treasure for those of us who crave more than just procedural plodding on the small screen.  Can it pull young viewers from Smallville?  Will people spurn that other island, Hawaii (on NBC) also running against it?  Give this one a chance -- Abrams hasn't let us down yet, though some of the early buzz is less than gleeful.  Premiere Date:  9/22/04.  Update 10/15/04:  In its three outings so far, Lost looks to be another hit for ABC this season, with solid numbers and the kind of attractive demos networks crave.  Review 10/15/04:  Although ABC has never quite been able to make Alias the hit it should be, J.J. Abrams has got to admit that they've been doing something right with his newest opus Lost, which has most definitely found its audience on Wednesday nights.  This Juraissic Park/real-life Survivor/Lord of the Flies/Twilight Zone-influenced hour is highly watchable, with its large cast plenty enough attractive, soulful, spunky, mysterious, menacing, haunted and heroic to make this the kind of exciting TV that's a welcome respite from the now-too-common police procedurals parade.  Lost producers are getting plenty of mileage out of the harrowing jet crash sequence from the pilot -- flashbacks of it turn up in every episode -- and if you've seen that, you know that the series isn't afraid to ramp up the terror quotient, though it's almost funny to see whatever huge beastie's lurking out there being heralded primarily by frantic bush-shaking.  But hey, it works, corny as it is.  Matthew Fox has grown up into a credible leading man in his role as a stalwart medico, Ms. Lilly is sweaty, sexy and dangerous as a woman with a mysterious criminal past, Dominic Monaghan convincingly and appealingly makes the could-have-been-difficult transition from darling of the Hobbit set to jaded yet plucky rock star (with an unfortunate coke habit), and of course Terry O'Quinn is his usual intriguing self as a he man-in-the-making who, we've discovered, has the crash to thank for miraculously giving him back the use of his paralyzed legs.  By god, I can't wait to see what happens in the next episode, and that's not something that happens very often.  There's a real plot here, and action, and excitement -- old-fashioned entertainment elements that happily have come together this year and found an audience.  We all know that's not always the case; let's just be glad it's happening now.  Update 11/6/04:  Come January, Lost's lead-out will be J.J. Abrams' other exciting series Alias, starting its third season.  Alias, previously set to move into the Sunday night 9pm Desperate Housewives slot at the first of the year, should be a great companion piece to Lost, which has become a somewhat surprise hit on Wednesday nights, helping give ABC its renewed vigor this year as a purveyor of popular dramas.        

Rodney:  Down-home stand-up comedian Rodney Carrington gets his chance at network TV stardom with this look at family life in Middle America, geographically and financially speaking.  Carrington, whose stage act is considerably more saucy than (presumably) his TV show will be, has a bland yet appealing good 'ol boy look, and the show should fit right in with the other male star comedies on Wednesday night.  It sure doesn't look like there's anything new and different going on here, but it's all about how much the audience takes to Rodney, both the series and the man.  Aimed at the salt-of-the-earth crowd who's been wearing black since Roseanne went off the air -- but who wouldn't watch UPN's The Mullets last year -- at least it's good to see some people on TV who aren't rolling in dough (except behind the scenes, of course.)  Premiere Date:  0/21/04.  Update 11/14:  Rodney has been given a full 22 episode season order.     

Wife Swap:  Americans once again get their hands on a proven British award-winning TV show premise; this one actually sounds like it's more like PBS' Manor House or Colonial House rather than Big Brother, though surely ABC execs are hoping it skews towards the latter.  Two moms from different lifestyles swap families (conjugal privileges not included, presumably) for ten days, and after five adjustment days they get to impose their own rules on the households.  Veggie vs. meat-lovers, tidy vs. slob, quiet time vs. Playstation break -- either this show will foster a new tolerance for differences or some less pleasant alternative.  I hope this one doesn't emphasize families with money vs. those with less -- that would hardly be fair or anything less than repugnant -- but I'll admit that this series could a lot of appeal for many viewers.  It's on fairly late though, and will have insane competition -- the original Law & Order (could this be the year it takes a hit?), and CBS' newly-minted CSI: New York with the too-good-for-TV Gary Sinise.  Let's hope ABC replays Wife Swap on Saturdays -- at a time where younger viewers can catch it -- to get more exposure for what could turn out to be one of the more interesting breakout hits of the year.  There's no end to the fascination with the mundane rituals of life on TV these days, so this show's got the goods.  Buzz is very high on this one.  Premiere Date:  9/29/04.       

Mid-Season Shows

Blind Justice:  It's been a long time since James Franciscus trod the (TV circuit) boards as blind detective Longstreet (with his trusty dog Pax), but that's no reason not to give a chance here to the interesting actor Ron Eldard as a blinded policeman who refuses to give up his career.  Rena Sofer (The Chronicle, the U.S. Coupling -- ouch!), and Marisol Nichols (Cold Case, Resurrection Blvd.) play his wife and partner respectively; Reno Wilson (The Chronicle) also stars.  If you're a fan of the police genre and looking for something that's not just a spin-off of something else, Blind Justice is a great candidate for your must-watch list.  Premieres after NYPD Blue completes its run.     

Eyes:  Tim Daly (Wings, Basic) is back on TV after trying his hand at the unsuccessful remake of The Fugitive in 2000.   This time around he's the head honcho of an ultra-high-tech private investigations firm with ultra-high-stakes clients.  Daly's got an attractive cast to help things along -- Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon (NYPD Blue), Reg Rogers, Rick Worthy (Enterprise, Felicity), Natalie Zea (Passions), A.J. Langer, and Laura Leighton (Melrose Place) -- and the only problem I see is that ABC didn't have a clue what to do with a similarly clever and action-packed series last year by the name of Karen Sisco.  That entertaining show ended up on the trash heap; let's pray that ABC has figured out how not to let that happen again.  The clips I've seen make it look like a lighthearted version of Alias/24/Mission Impossible, and that might be bunch of fun, something that the cop/detective genre could certainly use a little -- make that a lot -- of these days. 

Grey's Anatomy:  A group of talented female recent medical school grads suffer the trials and defibrillations of their tough first year of residency in this intense hospital drama.  Ellen Pompeo (Old School, Moonlight Mile) plays the most beautiful one, daughter of a famous female surgeon and trying to live it down, Sandra Oh (Under The Tuscan Sun, Judging Amy) plays the blunt, cynical one, and Katherine Heigl (Roswell) -- wait, maybe she's supposed to be the prettiest one -- rounds out the trio.  Patrick Dempsey (Sweet Home Alabama, Once and Again) is on hand as an instructor who's bedded by one of the gals, Chandra Wilson (Bob Patterson) is in as a tough administrator, and Isaiah Washington (Soul Food, Hollywood Homicide) gruffs it up as an even tougher head doc.  Looking like a sexy, rock n' roll grrrl take on the same-old, same-old doctor biz, Grey's Anatomy at least gets my vote for trying to reverse the inexorable trend towards grim police drama.  The potential success of this show could be hurt by any lousy numbers for the movie that precedes it, as if simply being in the Monday 10pm slot weren't difficult enough.   

John Stamos sitcom: This as yet untitled sitcom stars Stamos (Full House) as a hotshot NYC publicist with an active social and professional life.  Originally envisioned as a romantic take on a 24-like treatment of a day-long date, it's back to a traditional sitcom format.  Co-starring with Stamos are Madchen Amick (Twin Peaks, Gilmore Girls), Rick Hoffman (The Practice, The Street), Bess Meyer and Ian Gomez.