FOX's Fall 2006

Here's what FOX is doing with their schedule this year. As always, remember that FOX's line-up is (how shall I put this) schizophrenic. Things change in January with the end of football and the debut of 24 and American Idol. Beyond that FOX seems to be a number of series on a short term basis, with the end of the short term occurring in January. And of course all of the changes go by the wayside come the first cancellation of the year. Which since this is FOX will undoubtedly come quickly.

Cancelled:
The Winner, Standoff, Drive, The War at Home, The O.C., Justice, Happy Hour, The Rich List, Vanished, The Wedding Balls, The Loop.

Renewed:
Prison Break, American Dad, American Idol, Family Guy, House, The Simpsons, 24, King Of The Hill, `Til Death, Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?

Moved:
Bones (come January)

New: (Shows debuting in January are marked with a 'J') The Sarah Connor Chronicles (J), K-Ville, New Amsterdam (J), Back To You, Kitchen Nightmares, The Search For The Next Great American Band, Canterbury's Law.

Also, FOX has yet to announce the status of Trading Spouses and Nanny 911. The Return of Jezebel James, Anchorwoman, and The Rules for Starting Over were also announced but without a definite time slot.

Complete Schedule: (Changes in January as noted)

Monday
8:00-9:00 p.m. Prison Break (January: Prison Break/K-VILLE)
9:00-10:00 p.m. K-VILLE (January: 24)

Tuesday
8:00-9:00 p.m. NEW AMSTERDAM (January: American Idol)
9:00-10:00 p.m. House

Wednesday
8:00-8:30 p.m. BACK TO YOU
8:30-9:00 p.m. `Til Death
10:00-11:00 p.m. Bones (January: American Idol)

Thursday
8:00-9:00 p.m. Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader
9:00-10:00 p.m. KITCHEN NIGHTMARES (January: CANTERBURY'S LAW)

Friday
8:00-9:00 p.m. THE SEARCH FOR THE NEXT GREAT AMERICAN BAND (January: Bones)
9:00-10:00 p.m. NASHVILLE (January: NEW AMSTERDAM)

Saturday
8:00-8:30 p.m. Cops
8:30-9:00 p.m. Cops
9:00-10:00 p.m. America`s Most Wanted

Sunday
7:00-8:00 p.m. The OT (NFL Post-Game) (January: The Simpsons followed by King of The Hill)
8:00-8:30 p.m. The Simpsons (January: Family Guy)
8:30-9:00 p.m. King Of The Hill (January: American Dad)
9:00-9:30 p.m. Family Guy (January: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES)
9:30-10:00 p.m American Dad

K-Ville is a new cop drama set in New Orleans two years after Hurricane Katrina. Centered around the NOPD's Felony Squad, the series follows Detective Marlin Boulet (Anthony Andrews) a tough brash in your face cop who stayed at his post during the hurricane while his former partner deserted. Boulet's new partner is Trevor Cobb (Cole Hauser) a veteran of the war in Afghanistan before he joined the police. He has trouble with Boulet's rule-breaking style, but he has his own dark secret which drew him to New Orleans seeking redemption. Also stars Maximiliano Hernandez, Blake Shields, Tawny Cypress and John Carroll Lynch.

New Amsterdam was the Dutch name for what eventually became New York City and it's fitting for this new series. John Amsterdam (Nikolaj Coster Waldau) was a Dutch soldier in the town of New Amsterdam in 1642 when he stepped in from of sword to save the life of an Indian girl. In return she used an ancient spell to confer immortality on him until he "finds his one true love" which has turned out to be a blessing and a curse as he becomes increasingly isolated. Amsterdam's one confidant is club owner Omar (Stephen Henderson) who has a few secrets of his own. Then one day Amsterdam experiences what looks to just about everyone to be a fatal heart attack – a sign that his true love is near. Zuleikha Robinson and Alexie Gilmore also star.

Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton return to TV in Back To You as Chuck Darling and Kelly Carr, a local TV news team who had real chemistry on screen even if off-screen he was an egotistical womanizer and she was an uptight know-it-all. Eventually Chuck got the call to move out of the Pittsburgh market to a bigger town, but after a tirade then wound up on the Internet he found himself back in Pittsburgh hoping to revive the old onscreen magic with Kelly. Josh Gad, Fred Willard and Ty Burrell co-star.

Kitchen Nightmares keeps Gordon Ramsay on American TV screens. This is an American version of Ramsay's British hit where he attempts to revive ailing restaurants. Expect to hearthe phrase "Get off your lazy arses!" at least once per episode.

The Search for the Next Great American Band pretty much says what it is in its title – unknown bands from a variety of genres compete to make it big.

Nashville is described as a "high-stakes, high-drama docu-soap set in 'the biggest small town in America.'" According to the press release the diverse young cast is "perched on the cusp of achieving their greatest successes in a town that can make you or break you.... Behind every song there's a story waiting to be told, and there are many such stories in Nashville."

Julianna Marguilies stars in Canterbury's Law, a series created by Dennis Leary and Jim Serpico, as Elizabeth Canterbury, a rebellious female defense attorney willing to bend the law and put her career on the line to protect the wrongly accused. After relocating to Providence Rhode Island with her Law professor husband Matthew (Linus Roache) following the disappearance of their young son, Elizabeth's work frequently provides a stark reminder of the justice that is missing in her life. Also stars Ben Shenkman, Jocko Sims and Trieste Dunn.

The story of Sarah Connor after the events in Terminator 2 are told in The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Sarah and her 15 year-old son John take the offensive against the evolving technological enemy bent on destroying the world. John finds himself drawn to Cameron (Summer Glau) who soon assumes the role of John and Sarah's fearless protector. Richard T. Jones appears as James Ellison, a tough intelligent FBI agent who is pursuing the Connors but is also an ally.

Comments:
K-Ville sounds like it has some dramatic potential although there's something a little uncomfortable about doing a series about a city that has been devastated by a natural disaster.

New Amsterdam has more than a bit of a fantasy-science fiction air to it, although the premise has a cop-romance angle to it. How much do you want to bet that (a) there'll be flashbacks to his life before the present day in most episodes in the style of Highlander and that (b) his true love will turn out to be the female doctor who discovers his heart attack?

Back To You looks like it could be a real winner thanks to an absolutely amazing cast. It does have an Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy feel to it, but is that necessarily a bad thing since it has Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton instead of Will Ferrell and Christina Applegate?

I'm a Gordon Ramsay fan, and if Kitchen Nightmares is anything like the British show it was based on it should at least give us a more balanced perception othe guy. My big problem with the show is that FOX seems to be basically throwing it away on a night they can't win.

The Search for the Next Great American Band? American Idol redux. And haven't other networks tried this already?

Nashville: a "docu-soap?" Here's an idea – why not do a nighttime soap with real actors and plotlines that you can control based on the premise that you're trying here? Oh wait, that's what Robert Altman did in his Nashville. You know, the one that's light years better than this is going to be.

In reading the plot summary for Canterbury's Law I can't help feeling as though I've seen this all before. It has a touch of In Justice about it but there's another quality that I can't put my finger on that makes it a bit different. Could work.

I'm not sure we really need a series set in the world of Terminator although it's always nice to see Summer Glau in a show. The difficulty as I see it is that we're seeing the middle of the story trapped between Terminator 2 and Terminator 3 meaning that there's no real hope that John and Sarah (and Cameron and James) can have any effect on the eventual outcome – can win any real victory. I won't be accepting bets on whether "Cameron" turns out to be some new version of a Terminator sent by John to protect himself and his mother in this period.