The ABC Upfront

So...

Today was ABC's (or the Alphabet's, as it is sometimes called in the entertainment industry) 2010 upfront. Of the big networks ABC has the best shows on right now hands down. They do pretty well in the ratings, too. ;) I don't see that trend changing based on their schedule for next season, which (despite the huge loss of LOST) looks pretty solid.

First, here's a rundown of ABC's just cancelled shows:

Flashforward. It started out with a catchy concept and then by episode two just lost it's way - the kiss of death for a serialized show. The pilot, about what happens when everyone on earth blacks out for over two minutes and sees their future 6 months from now, ends with a mysterious figure revealed to have actually, gasp!, not blacked out during the blackout. And when do they follow up on that cool idea... the very next episode you say?? Nope. And I honestly don't know because I gave up watching five loooooong episodes into the series. Instead, in the 5 preceeding episodes we are treated to some Nazi (of course, this is Hollywood, after all) prison visit and a boring family plotline about a wife who may or may not cheat on her husband in the future. Also, one of the main characters "flash forward's" is of himself sitting on the toilet. Awesome! Hey, writers, I know that sounds funny, but doesn't that sort of limit the story possibilities with his character? Given that the show has just been axed, I guess the answer is yes.

Scrubs was also cancelled. Deja vu? And so was Better Off Ted - a semi-funny show that didn't stand out enough and got lost in the shuffle. Brothers and Sisters should have been cancelled, but instead received a reduced episode order. Instead of the usually 22 episode, it will get something like 13... and then probably fade out in time for next year's upfronts.

Returning:

We have the usual suspects (Desperate Housewives, a bunch of reality shows geared toward desperate housewives, and Grey's Anatomy.) There's a also Castle and breakout comedy hit that put ABC comedy back on the map - Modern Family. Left with no other choice it seems, ABC brought back V. I'm guessing it won't last long; ever since they put Scott Rosenbaum as show runner it's dragging its feet. It wants so bad to be Battlestar Galactica in terms of moral complexity, but everyone watching just wants it to be more like the fun action adventure that the original was. Also, the good guys never do anything to advance the story!

New shows:

No Ordinary Family. This is a live-action version of The Incredibles, with a great cast. I'll check it out for the cast, and hope it's not too much of a rip off. This is a show I actually would like to see explore a darker area than The Incredibles tackled.

Body of Proof stars Dana Delany as a medical examiner who gets involved with crimes. It's on Friday nights, which is usually considered the death slot, but CBS has had success there with both strong female lead shows (Medium and Ghost Whispered) and with crime procedurals (Numb3rs). Plus, Dana Delany's star is hotter than it's been in year's right now, so this could be a good time slot for it.

There's some more stuff coming mid-season, but since so much is subject to change I'll skip those shows for now. Anything not mentioned new show wise isn't, to me, worth talking about becuase I don't think it's going to stick around. Some of them even sound like "didn't that show already come out?"

That said, ABC does have a pretty good looking schedule for next fall. Basically, if you like ABC now you will like it next year.