No one seems to agree on when summer starts.
Many people say June, but the TV networks disagree. Two (NBC and Fox) started their summers in May; the others aited until July.
So now we get a mid-summer surge on ABC and CBS. It includes new seasons of– five game shows, plus “Big Brother” (shown here from last season), “The Bachelorette,” a light-hearted judge show and even a few specials.
NBC has always started its summer early, but this time it had extra motivation. This is an Olympics year, taking up four-plus weeks – two for the trials and two-plus (July 26 to Aug. 11) for the event itself. As a result, the network’s summer shows start early, pause once or twice, and finish late.
Fox also needed a summer boost. It was hit especially hard by the strikes; two of its better shows (“9-1-1: Lone Star” and “Accused”) were simply delayed until the fall. So it rushed into a fairly strong summer line-up, including two Gordon Ramsay shows (8 and 9 p.m. Wednesdays) and the surprisingly entertaining “The 1% Club” (9 p.m. Mondays).
But ABC set aside much of June for the basketball and hockey playoffs. After waiting for the July 4 week (when viewership is low), it was finally ready for summer. And CBS has always had a late summer (built around “Big Brother”), pushing into fall.
That makes this sort of “Summer Start, The Sequel.” It includes:
ABC
— Things start with Jenn Tran as the first Asian-American “Bachelorette.” That’s 8-10 p.m. Mondays, starting July 8.
— The network has already started showing movies on Sundays, something it will continue in the fall. Coming are two 1993 films at 9 p.m. — “Homeward Bound” on July 7 and “The Sandlot” on July 14.
— Since Sundays used to be its prime spot for game shows, ABC can now spread them over the week. Tuesdays have “Celebrity Family Feud,” at 9 p.m. July 9 and then at 8 p.m. a week later. Wednesdays have “Who Wants To Be a Millionaire” at 8 p.m. and “Claim to Fame” at 9, starting July 10. Thursdays, starting July 18, have “Press Your Luck” at 8 p.m. and the new “Lucky 13” – hosted by Shaquille O’Neal and Gina Rodriguez – at 9,.
— There’s lso a light-hearted judge show — “Judge Steve Harvey,” 9 p.m. Tuesdays, starting July 16 … neatly following Harvey hosting “Feud” at 8.
And there are specials – one looking at some of the funnier “Feud” moments (8 p.m. Tuesday, July 9) and the ESPY awards (8-11 p.m. Thursday, July 11).
CBS
— “Big Brother” is the centerpiece of every CBS summer. This time, it airs at 9 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, starting July 17.
— On Sundays, it will be preceded transplanted reruns of “Tulsa King,” the streaming series with Sylvester Stallone as an ex-con, sent by the Mob to find business in Tulsa. It’s at 8 p.m., starting July 14.
— One show did start earlier; “The Real CSI Miami,:” a true-crime series, is at 10 p.m. Wednesdays. Also, “Let’s Make a Deal” plans new primetime hours for 8 p.m. Wednesdaus, starting Aug. 7.
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Missing from all of this are scripted shows. They exist mainly in reruns, including CBS’ transplanted “Tulsa King.”
The exceptions – new, scripted hours in the summer – are on:
— CW. “All American: Homecoming” starts its third and final season at 9 p.m. Monday, July 8; while “All American” (8 p.m. Mondays) is in its last couple episodes of the season. On July 22, “Homecoming” moves to 8 p.m. and “61st Street” – with Courtney Vance as a Chicago lawyer facing steep odds – starts its second season at 9.
— PBS, which packs Sundays with new British drama hours. Currently, there are three excellent mystery hours – “Professor T” at 8 p.m., “Grantchester” at 9 and “D.I Ray” at 10. “Grantchester” continues through Aug. 4, but the others end on July 21 – replaced a week later by a new season of “Hotel Portofino,” with an odd mix of soap opera and melodrama.