NBC New Fall Schedule Looks Promising

NBC has had a rough way to go. It's been a hard couple of years for the network since they ended the runs of classics like Frasier and Friends, even great new shows like 30 Rock, The Office and My Name is Earl are struggling. This past season NBC introduced only one show that ended up catching on, Heroes, but their programming line up for the fall of 2007 looks like a small step in a better direction.

NBC is hoping for more in the Monday night, 10 p.m. time slot in the new season after the cursed slot killed all three shows unlucky enough to fill it this past season, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, The Black Donnellys and The Real Wedding Crashers. After watching all three of these NBC failures, I can't say that I'm surprised to see them go. In the new fall schedule NBC is introducing Journeyman, a drama about a successful man who had it all and suddenly ends up time traveling and helping people of the past put their lives back on track. Sound familiar? Apparently it is loosely based off a game of the same name, but all I can think of is Quantum Leap. Of course, Quantum Leap was huge, so maybe a more current version of the show would be a good thing. However, it's not going to beat out CBS's CSI: Miami and it's going to have a tough battle with the Bachelor, but I'll watch it. At least until the Curse of the NBC Time Slot kills it off.

Speaking of old shows getting a new look, on Wednesday nights NBC has added a new Bionic Woman to their fall schedule. The 1976 classic has had an NBC makeover, but it's still the same old story of girl meets boy, boy turns girl into cyborg. But, the theme of normal people suddenly awakening to super human powers seems to have worked once before for NBC, and after this last season I can't blame them for searching for the next Heroes. If the plot of the Bionic Woman is as suspenseful as Heroes, it'll be on my TiVo for sure.

On Tuesday nights NBC is bringing in Chuck, an action packed, fish out of water drama about a Geek Squad-esque techie who ends up thrown into the world of international espionage. It's whole premise is completely unbelievable, but things will blow up and the comedy is going to be fantastic. It's not my most favorite on the new shows list, but it looks like pure entertainment, and the world needs that every once in a while.

Joining the Bionic Woman on Wednesday nights is Life, another new crime drama for NBC and my most anticipated new show in their entire fall line up. Detective Charlie Crewes is a cop who has just spent 12 years of a life sentence in prison for a crime he didn't commit. Once his innocence came out, he rejoined the police force and is now back on the streets solving crimes. But the synopsis doesn't do the show justice. Charlie has an almost Dr. House kind of sarcasm, except more zen than caustic. From the limited previews we've been allowed on the NBC website, the characters look engaging and well written, and as long as the plot is half as engaging as the characters it should do well. I'll be watching, that's for sure.

The final new show in NBC's Fall Schedule is yet another singing reality show, The Singing Bee on Friday nights. After forcing myself to sit through numerous episodes of America's Got Talent (until I came to the conclusion that America does not in fact have talent) the thought of another singing competition was already giving me a migraine. But, I have to admit this NBC new show has me intrigued. The challenge behind The Singing Bee is not necessarily to sing the song well, but to get the lyrics and the melody right. Anyone who has ever seen American Idol (and that's everyone in the country, I think) knows that remembering lyrics is apparently quite difficult. As the queen of misheard lyrics myself, I know this show is going to provide plenty of humorous moments and is the one new show this fall that I know I can sit and watch with my kids.

NBC's new fall schedule probably won't be enough to slingshot them back into the top network position, but their strategy of playing it safe and scheduling just a few new shows with a decent appeal will probably pay off for them in the long run.