News > Comedies get the cold shoulder during pilot season
May 10, 2007
Very few comedy pilots -- possibly "as few as five" the is saying -- will be picked up for the fall season. As previously reported here, reality shows and serial dramas have taken up most of the air time, inching out the space for comedies more and more.ABC has three contenders, with "Sam I Am," the Geico "Caveman" show and "Miss/Guided." For a comedy fan, that lineup is bittersweet -- ABC is being supportive of comedies...but the "Caveman" show? ARgh.
CBS is looking at "Fugly," "the Big Bang Theory," "The Captain," "The Giants of Radio" and "I'm in Hell." NBC has "The IT Crowd," "Business Class" and the horridly titled "Lipshitz Saves the World" and Fox is looking at one new comedy, "Action News."
Times are tough for TV comedy fans. Just as shows like "30 Rock" and "The Office" start popping up, the networks get cold feet. At the very least, movie comedies are having a renaissance right now...and as long as they keep bringing in bank, studios won't be fucking with them.
