Just as the fall shows belatedly arrive, there’s a bonus: Two networks – ABC and Fox – have announced mid-season plans.
For ABC, that ranges from “The Bachelor” on Jan. 4 to “American Idol” on Valentine’s Day. For Fox, it includes January starts for six scripted shows – five of them returning, plus a new comedy that Jim Parsons is producing, with Mayim Bialik (his “Big Bang” wife) as star – along with “Hell’s Kitchen” and the new (shown here) “Masked Dancer.”
ABC has taken the same approach as CBS and NBC – gradually easing shows back in the line-up as they emerge from COVID shutdowns. Most of its dramas arrive this week or next; now it has set plans for mid-season reality and game shows, with more scripted shows coming later.
Fox, however, has taken the same approach as CW: Create a complete (albeit temporary) line-up for the fall, allowing most shows to wait until January. Its new phase starts Dec. 27 and Jan. 3 – Sundays when the shows can have a football lead-in, before moving to their regular spotss. Combining the two, here are the debuts or season-openers:
– Dec. 27: “The Masked Dancer,” 8 p.m., Fox. It’s a “Masked Singer” variation, again with Ken Jeong as one of the hosts; he’s joined by Paula Abdul, Ashley Tisdale and the recently unmasked Brian Austin Green. The show then waits until Jan. 6 for its temporary Wednesday slot.
– Jan. 3: “Call Me Kat” and “Last Man Standing,” 8 and 8:30 p.m., Fox. The latter starts its ninth and final year, but “Kat” is one of the season’s few new, scripted shows; Bialik starts a cat cafe. Both comedies then move to 9 and 9:30 p.m. Thursdays.
– Jan. 4: “The Bachelor,” 8-10 p.m., ABC. It’s the 25th season, but the first with a Black bachelor (Matt James).
– Jan. 7: “Hell’s Kitchen,” 8 p.m., Fox, leading into the comedies.
– Jan. 7: A three-game night, 8-11 p.m., ABC. Giving “Grey’s Anatomy” and other dramas a rest, this has “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune” and two new shows – “The Chase” (with “Jeopardy” champions Ken Jennings. Brad Rutter and James Holzhauer) and “The Hustler.”
– Jan. 12: “The Resident” and “Prodigal Son,” 8 and 9 p.m., Fox.
– Jan. 18: “9-1-1” and “9-1-1: Lonestar,” 8 and 9 p.m., Fox.
– Jan. 26: “To Tell the Truth,” 8 p.m., ABC.
– Feb. 14: “American Idol,” 8-10 p.m., Fox.