Why are the TV shows I like always on opposite the other TV shows I like?
It’s a question as old as TV, or at least as old as 1948, when there were only three television networks, and viewers were still forced to choose between “Toast of the Town” Sunday nights on CBS and “Philco TV Playhouse” on NBC.
Those 1948 viewers had it worse than we do — they had no way to record a show, no on-demand or online viewing, and few reruns, since most programs aired live.
Today, we have many more ways to watch, but we also have many more shows. And yes, many of the most noteworthy are scheduled opposite one another.
Consider 10 p.m. Tuesday. Three broadcast dramas call the time slot home: “Parenthood” on NBC, “Unforgettable” on CBS and “Body of Proof” on ABC.
Then, as of last week, three popular cable dramas returned, also at 10 p.m. Tuesday: “Justified” on FX, “Southland” on TNT and “White Collar” on USA. And, of course, there are first-run episodes of any number of unscripted shows on cable, from “Chopped” on the Food Network to “Storage Wars” on A&E to “Extreme Couponing All-Stars” on TLC.
Logic would seem to dictate that a TV network could get better ratings by taking the path of least resistance: Find a time slot where the competition is light, or where existing programming attracts different viewers, and let your show shine there.
Programmers do look at their schedules and at competitors’, trying to decide on the best lineups and thinking about “flow,” with one show fitting neatly into the next, as if viewers still had to get up to change the channel.
Cable networks, on the other hand, think mostly about their own game plan when scheduling their shows. A cable network such as TNT or USA typically branches out into original programming night by night, scheduling at least two shows together to create a “destination.” Sunday is a popular night for first-run shows on the premium cable networks and AMC; ABC Family focuses on Monday and Tuesday; Syfy programmed Friday, then Monday.
The result: a logjam of worthy shows on some nights and slim pickings on others. Here’s a look at some of TV’s other “toughest time slots” this season.
Sunday prime time:
“Once Upon a Time,” “Desperate Housewives” and “Pan Am” on ABC, versus “Undercover Boss,” “The Good Wife” and “CSI: Miami” on CBS, versus animation on Fox, versus the NFL on NBC.
The problem season hasn’t been the scheduled clashes so much as the crunch caused by football overruns on CBS. But with the NFL season ending, NBC will move “Harry’s Law” to 8 p.m. Sundays as of March 4 to lead into “Celebrity Apprentice,” which returns Feb. 12. On Feb. 19, “The Amazing Race” begins its new season on CBS.
On cable, “Luck” debuts at 9 p.m. Jan. 29 on HBO, and “Shameless” continues its run at 9 p.m. Sundays on Showtime. “The Walking Dead” returns to AMC at 9 p.m. Feb. 12, followed on March 25 by “Mad Men.”
8 p.m. Thursday
“The Big Bang Theory” on CBS, versus “30 Rock” and “Parks and Recreation” on NBC, versus “American Idol” on Fox.
So far, cable networks have tended to keep their scripted originals away from Thursday, a much-watched night for the broadcast networks. If you’re still watching “Idol,” though, you’ll be pinched.
10 p.m. Monday
The battle of “Castle” on ABC versus “Hawaii Five-0” on CBS will get complicated on Feb. 6 when NBC slides its much-buzzed-about new musical drama “Smash” into the 10 p.m. slot. Also that night, “The Voice” returns at 8 p.m. on NBC to battle “The Bachelor” (ABC), “How I Met Your Mother” (CBS) and “House” (Fox).
Friday prime time
A move to Friday used to mean certain death for a network show. But this season, Friday prime time offers competitive viewing choices, especially at 9 p.m., with “CSI: NY” on CBS versus “Fringe” on Fox, “Grimm” on NBC, and “Nikita” on the CW. And at 8 p.m. Fridays, strong unscripted shows — “Who Do You Think You Are?” (returning Feb. 3 on NBC) versus “Shark Tank” on ABC and “Kitchen Nightmares” on Fox.
STRATEGIES FOR COPING WITH TV TIME-SLOT CLASHES
Opt for network over cable. Cable shows air many repeats, so it’s possible to catch an episode in a later slot.
Go for shows most likely to be “spoiled,” or those who just can’t wait to watch. Put off a show people aren’t so likely to be talking about.
Check to see whether a show is available on-demand on cable or satellite, or easily accessed online. With an eight-day delay, Fox shows require the most patience of online viewers, so record those if you can.
Get a second DVR or one that records four shows at once, as AT&T’s U-verse DVR does.
Get a Netflix Roku box, Apple TV or a Blu-ray player or game system that streams online shows onto your TV.
Or wait. At the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, DISH Network announced a device called The Hopper that will automatically save all prime-time episodes of every network show for eight days and make them available on demand. With a 2 TB hard drive and the ability to record three shows at once, The Hopper (“coming soon,” DISH says) will let you grab so much TV, you might have to quit your job to have time to watch.
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