NBC Announces Changes to Fall Schedule

The broadcast networks take center stage at the annual TCA Summer Press Tour this week, with NBC being the first at bat, announcing several changes to their previously announced fall schedule.

According to Mediaweek, new drama Chuck, which was originally scheduled for Tuesdays at 9PM, will now lead off Monday nights at 8PM, followed by Heroes and Journeyman. The Biggest Loser, then, will expand to 90-minutes (Tuesday 8-9:30PM), leading into surprise summer hit The Singing Bee at 9:30PM. Deal or No Deal will replace The Singing Bee on Fridays at 8PM, followed by Friday Night Lights and Las Vegas (which are swapping timeslots).
Here are the three rescheduled nights on NBC (with new shows in caps):

Monday
8:00 p.m. CHUCK (new day and time)
9:00 p.m. Heroes
10:00 p.m. JOURNEYMAN

Tuesday
8:00 p.m. The Biggest Loser (90-minutes)
9:30 p.m. THE SINGING BEE (new day and time)
10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU

Friday
8:00 p.m. Deal or No Deal (new day)
9:00 p.m. Friday Night Lights (new time)
10:00 p.m. Las Vegas (new time)

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Forget About 'Don't Forget The Lyrics'

Despite my initial apprehension, I watched The Singing Bee on Tuesday night and loved it, so I was prepared to give into Fox's Don't Forget the Lyrics as well. Problem is, it wasn't nearly as entertaining.

Where The Singing Bee combines elements of The Price is Right, Wheel of Fortune, and American Idol, Don't Forget the Lyrics simply seems to be a blatant rip-off of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, complete with escalating prize scale and three lifelines. The general concept is the same -- you have to sing along to a song, until it comes time to fill in the lyrics, word-for-word.

I'm not going to say Don't Forget the Lyrics was terrible -- it wasn't. Wayne Brady is certainly a capable (and appropriate) host, and there is great fun to be had in extended karaoke moments, complete with lyrics on the bottom of the screen. Yes, for the second night in a row I was singing on the top of my lungs in my apartment (if any of my neighbors happen to be Idol Thoughts readers -- sorry!)

No, the show is not an abomination. The problem is that The Singing Bee's structure, starting with six contestants and whittling it down to one person who will compete for the $50K prize, allows the show to move so much faster than Don't Forget the Lyrics that the latter show seems slow and kind of boring by comparison. Sure, the stakes are higher on the Fox show, but, like Millionaire, there is so much time spent determining whether or not a contestant should use a lifeline or "lock in their lyrics," that I found myself growing a bit bored -- never a good thing in a 30 minute show.

So basically, if you're going to choose one of these shows to watch, I'd make it The Singing Bee. But for those of you who can't get enough karaoke in your lives, it looks like you'll have two opportunities to get your vocalizing on this summer.

Which show do you prefer -- The Singing Bee or Don't Forget the Lyrics?

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Okay, I Admit It -- I Loved The Singing Bee!

When I was reading about The Singing Bee last week, my eyes rolled back instinctively in my head. While I am an unabashed lover of reality television, I've never really gotten into the primetime gameshows. If the show doesn't feature people who are talented in some way (Ido, So You Think You Can Dance, Top Model), or who are participating in some sort of social experiment (Survivor, Big Brother), I'm not interested. Yes, I realize shows like Deal or No Deal, 1 vs. 100, and Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? are big hits, but they've never been even remotely appealing to me.

But what do ya know -- I loved The Singing Bee! And apparently I wasn't alone -- the show brought in nearly 14 million viewers last night!

A cross between Wheel of Fortune, The Price is Right, and American Idol, the show requires its contestants to fill in the lyrics, word-for-word, to well-known songs. Who knew that would be so entertaining? I was in my apartment, singing on the top of my lungs, congratulating myself when I got the lyrics correct, and figuratively beating myself up when I screwed them up. Joey Fatone was a high energy hoot as the host, and the contestants were totally game and easy to root for. All in all, the show had me smiling from ear-to-ear.

I mean, the show wasn't perfect -- the dancers seem a bit unneccesary, and the process of selecting the contestants seemed a bit arbitrary. But, all in all, it was a pretty damn entertaining half-hour, and I'll definitely be tuning in again next week. Heck, I may even check out Fox's Don't Forget the Lyrics tonight. What can I say, I'm on the game show bandwagon!

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