We're now a little over a month into the fall TV season, which means the networks have had just enough time to evaluate how their new series are performing and can start making some decisions about whether or not to order additional episodes. Most new shows start off with a 13-episode order, with the option for a back nine if the ratings are good enough.
This year, though, "good enough" doesn't set the bar very high. Primetime broadcast ratings are down almost across the board, and NBC, in particular, is struggling. On Monday, the network announced full-season pickups of "The Event," "Law & Order: Los Angeles" and "Outsourced," even though none are averaging over a 3.0 rating in the coveted 18-49 demographic.
On Tuesday, NBC followed up with more pickup news. The network ordered 11 additional episodes of fan-favorite "Chuck," bringing the total episode count to 24 for the season.
"Chase," despite low ratings and lack of critical support, also received a full-season order. (Apparently, NBC really wants to stay in business with producer Jerry Bruckheimer.) And "Undercovers" got an order for four more episodes, even though the show fell flat after a big marketing push over the summer (same goes for J. J. Abrams).
The concern now is what NBC will do with its midseason shows. It already has "Parks and Recreation" waiting in the wings from last season — the sooner we see Ron Swanson again, the better — and a large crop of new series is waiting for time slots as well. Something's gotta give.
Over on cable, ABC Family decided to pull "Friday Night Lights" off its schedule. The network had been airing the syndicated repeats of the critically acclaimed football drama; it cited low ratings as the reason for its quick disappearance.
Finally, AMC aired the season finales of two of its original series on Sunday night. After last week's explosive penultimate episode, "Rubicon" wrapped up its season-long conspiracy in a fairly uneventful and disappointing fashion. The drama grew over its 13 episodes from a tedious start to a compelling look at the world of intelligence analysis, but its ratings were low — even by AMC's standards — so it will be interesting to see what happens with the second season.
"Mad Men" also wrapped its fourth season, and while I haven't caught up on the show, judging from reactions on Twitter, it was quite the season-capper.
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by Ben Phelps
