ABC Wins Over More Women

With no big moves for existing hits this season, ABC looks to remain solid while putting the hopes of an improved Wednesday on the Grey's Anatomy spin-off Private Practice. It's a move that may pay off as ABC aggressively counters against American Idol, a show it cowered against this past year.

Early rumors suggested moves for Brothers & Sisters, Ugly Betty, and possibly even Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, but the final schedule emphasizes stability and means these series will stay put. Dancing with the Stars, in turn, remains on Monday and Tuesday nights. The performance editions will also be used to launch Sam I Am, a comedy starring Christina Applegate as an amnesiac.

Two returning series that are on the move are Men in Trees and October Road, which both had turns after Grey's Anatomy this season. The former returns to Fridays, paired with Women's Murder Club. Based on the James Patterson book series, the procedural almost didn't make it to the schedule after poor testing, but other considerations proved too costly. The series will likely get tweaked over the summer (a la Brothers & Sisters last year).

Wife Swap and October Road, meanwhile, joins the line-up after Dancing with the Stars and the returning Bachelor end their fall seasons. Paired with Sam I Am will be a second season of Notes from the Underbelly, the network's only returning comedy (though the fate of According to Jim remains up in the air). It's a scheduling strategy designed to cut down on repeats and make ABC more competitive on Mondays.

The new drama Cashmere Mafia, the season's other dramedy to be based on Candace Bushnell literature (along with NBC's Lipstick Jungle), likely will take over the Tuesday 9/8c slot once Dancing comes to an end. The show would join Boston Legal and, in a questionable move, two new comedies that start off the night: Carpoolers and Cavemen. The latter already has received both good and bad word of mouth, but the Geico-inspired sitcom should at least premiere well as curious viewers tune in. The laffers shouldn't have to worry about going up against American Idol: That task may fall to Lost, with 16 episodes slated to premiere in winter.

The Alphabet's biggest risk may be putting Private Practice on Wednesdays as ABC hopes to duplicate its Thursday success. Its fate may depend on how Addison's venture to California delivers, despite mixed reaction to May's sneak peak. Giving Kate Walsh & company a boost are the network's two highest-testing new dramas. Much like quirky Ugly Betty was used to start Thursdays after buzz grew for the series, what may be this fall's quirkiest new series in Pushing Daisies leads off Wednesday nights. A blend of romance, fantasy and a procedural, the project comes from Bryan Fuller (Heroes, Wonderfalls.

The all-star ensemble of Dirty Sexy Money caps Wednesday nights. With a cast that includes Peter Krause, Donald Sutherland and Jill Clayburgh, the buzz on the project should help offset Private Practice naysayers. More familiar faces fill the post-Grey's Anatomy slot as Michael Vartan and Dylan McDermott star in Big Shots.

Also ordered to midseason: the eight episode reality series Oprah's Big Give; drama Eli Stone, about a lawyer / possible prophet; and the comedy Miss/Guided, centered on a guidance counselor's return to her alma mater. Supernanny is also on order, as is an increase in movies and specials in an effort to up original programming throughout the season.

In the long-term, the Alphabet needs to diversify its schedule or risk falling behind when audiences grow tired of soaps. In the short-term, ABC may be the one to beat thanks to returning hits, a spin-off gamble and a strategy that uses less repeats throughout the season. Wednesdays and Fridays are most vulnerable, but with Pushing Daisies and Dirty Sexy Money already producing buzz, the net just might dominate watercooler talk all week long.