Monday, January 14, 2013

The Question, Monday 1/14/13: Will Tonight Carrie the CW Back Into Teen Soaps?


In the last couple years, the Mark Pedowitz regime has been phasing out the heavily female-skewing soaps for which previous head Dawn Ostroff became infamous. And yet, here we are again, with the CDub kicking off its midseason with Sex and the City prequel The Carrie Diaries. Beyond the SatC packaging, it sounds like there's another reason they picked it up: it's actually good. Will tonight "Carrie" the CW back into the teen soap game? That's The Question for Monday, January 14, 2013.

Recent CW Drama Premieres 90210 In Timeslot This Fall
1.2 (Hellcats, 9/8/10)
1.4 (Nikita, 9/9/10)
1.2 (Ringer, 9/13/11)
1.3 (The Secret Circle, 9/15/11)
0.8 (Hart of Dixie, 9/26/11)
1.3 (Arrow, 10/10/12)
1.2 (Beauty and the Beast, 10/11/12)
0.5 (Emily Owens M.D., 10/16/12)
0.49 average
0.4 season premiere, 10/8/12
0.6 fall finale, 12/10/12

I'm not a Sex and the City fan, so perhaps that biases me somewhat, but 1) I feel like the CW promos aren't making the SatC connection as much as I'd expect; and 2) even if they were, I'd be dubious about that connection's ability to draw viewers to the CW. Apart from that, though, what Carrie does have going for it is the reviews. I have not seen it, but I got a sorta vaguely positive vibe over the last few weeks. And once its TCA panel hit yesterday, it became apparent that there are a lot of people who really enjoy this and feel it nails that "old-school WB" vibe. So I don't see a huge premiere in the offing, but the reviews and a touch of SatC nostalgia should help the premiere significantly improve upon the usual Monday occupants. I mean, that's not much to ask, right?

Over/Under: 0.85.

No entries accepted after 6:00am ET the morning after the date in the headline. If editing your pick, please leave a separate comment.

12 comments:

Spot said...

For tonight, I think audiences will embrace Junior Footface. Over.

Spot said...

Over.

Spot said...

Really tricky. For tonight, i will go with over, a 0.9. But could be way off.

Spot said...

I was thinking .9, and even that seemed to be on the low end of expectations, so I'll go with over.

Spot said...

Hmm, this is a tough one...I'm gonna go with slightly over.

Spot said...

Over, .9.

Spot said...

This is tough, as I watch nothing on The CW, so I have no idea how much it has been advertised. I am a little behind in the standings, so I will go UNDER in a (futile?) attempt to make up ground.

Spot said...

I'll go against the crowd and say under with a 0.8. Isn't it repeated straight after as well - could split some viewers maybe?

Spot said...

Under.

Really can't see over here, while DOA ratings wouldn't surprise me.

Spot said...

I'll go under at .7, then it hangs around at .6 until May.

Spot said...

I feel like this is right in The CW's wheelhouse. And given that it's only this and Cult for midseason, the network is probably throwing more of its promotional dollars here. Over.

Spot said...

Over.

That said, I think it's a particularly tricky show to judge and wouldn't be suprised if it hits, bombs, or anything in-between.

I'm not convinced by the long-term prospects of this show because I'm not sure who it appeals to, since the 80s aspect will put off young women, the teen soap aspect will put off older women, and no men will watch due to the SatC connection. Period pieces also have a weak track record in modern times.

That said, it might hit enough different niche demographics and stand out enough and do well. A show doesn't exactly need to set the Nielsen's alight to succeed on The CW.

I like the general direction Pedowitz is taking The CW, developing a mix of programming that appeals to broader demographics, and taking a few chances. It feels more WB than CW.

Sure, this is a teen soap, but having one or two teen soaps was never the problem, the issue was when they had a glut of them at the expense of other genres. They programmed themselves into a very narrow genre and demographic corner.

Post a Comment

© SpottedRatings.com 2009-2022. All Rights Reserved.