TV This Fall: Tuesdays

In keeping with the daily tradition, it's time to analyze TV Tuesdays. While Thursdays used to be a big night for television (and it still is), Tuesday is making the rush this fall to be the hottest night of TV, and with good reason. With hot reality shows and the biggest comedy bloodbath we've ever seen, TV viewership will be hot on Tuesdays. So let's jump right in!

TUESDAYS:
8:00-9:00
NCIS (CBS, premieres 9/25), The Voice (NBC, 9/11), Raising Hope/Ben and Kate (Fox, 10/2 for Hope, 9/25 for Ben), Dancing with the Stars (ABC, 9/25), Hart of Dixie (The CW, 10/16)
9:00-10:00
NCIS: LA (CBS, 9/25), Go On/The New Normal (NBC, 9/11), New Girl/The Mindy Project (Fox, 9/25), Happy Endings/Don't Trust the B-- in Apt. 23 (ABC, 10/23), Emily Owens, M.D. (The CW, 10/16)
10:00-11:00
Vegas (CBS, 9/25), Parenthood (NBC, 9/11), Private Practice (ABC, 9/25)

The 8:00 hour starts off harmless for the most part. First, let's shuffle out Hart of Dixie, which got a second season, but faces such stiff competition this season that it's unsure if the show will make it again for 2013. Fox starts the night off with reliable family comedy Raising Hope and it's newest partner, the surprise of the season, Ben and Kate, so they should get good support from families. The final three networks all pulled out their strongest guns. NBC has it's second night of The Voice, which, as I detailed yesterday, should start off very strong. ABC has the results for Dancing with the Stars, which are never as strong as the performance episodes. That all makes the case for CBS' powerhouse NCIS to keep its title as the highest-rated scripted show on television.

The 9:00 hour is where things get really...REALLY messy. Once again, The CW is chilling at the bottom, this time with new drama Emily Owens, M.D. which could actually benefit from the comedy overload. Yep, if you're reading the schedule above correctly, NBC, ABC, and Fox are all airing comedy blocks during the 9-10 hour this fall. NBC starts first, next week, with their two strongest pilots, Go On and The New Normal. Both projects have an immense amount of buzz and their pilot episodes have already been aired, and they get two weeks before they face competition. Next, Fox brings back the most popular series among 18-34 year olds from last season, New Girl, and their new wannabe hit, The Mindy Project. The Mindy Project has also already previewed it's pilot, and paired with New Girl, it makes for a potentially killer block for Fox. But their last competitor has one thing neither block has: ABC is the only network with a comedy block of two returning shows. Of course, the only problem would have to be that these comedies are the network's most struggling in terms of ratings. Happy Endings, a slowburner, just started to gain traction last season, but the fact that it's anchoring this block shows that ABC definitely has faith in the show. Don't Trust the B-- only aired seven episodes last year, but the network must have seen something great in the show (I know I did!), so hopefully new viewers jump on board this season. But ultimately, which block has the best chance of winning? I'm gonna go out on a limb here and predict...Fox! New Girl was huge last year and the obsession should only continue this fall, and it's paired with the hot Mindy Project which attracts the same audience. NBC has the potential to surprise if Go On and The New Normal become the big hits the network desperately needs, and of course, ABC could always come from behind and take this race!

Finally, the 10:00 hour is much calmer. ABC is airing (what many predict will be) the final season of Private Practice, so that could attract viewers to the show once more, after it moved last year. NBC has the reliable Parenthood which could finally benefit in this time slot by being the veteran of the hour. But it's certainly looking like CBS is priming Vegas to be a hit for them, and with star power like Michael Chiklis and Dennis Quaid, I can't see why it wouldn't be!

That's all for Tuesdays! What does your TV Tuesday schedule look like? I know mine is heavy (all six comedies in the 9:00 hour, plus Raising Hope and Ben and Kate, and Parenthood!), but how packed will your DVR be? Let me know in the comments section below!

Evan