I was ever so excited last night as Katie and I watched our TiVosode (hey, cut me some slack, it's easier than typing "TiVo-recorded episode," right? - I think I should trademark that or offer to sell it to TiVo for the right price) of My Name is Earl. The news that excited me so? A commercial declaring that Scrubs is returning to NBC on Tuesday, January 3.
We have both missed that show soooo much. It's one of our favorites and its absence from the primetime lineup has been very noticeable.
But, it seems like NBC is making up for this hiatus. Yep, we are getting two back-to-back episodes of Scrubs each week that it airs. I can handle that. One solid hour of J.D., Elliott, Turk, and Carla being hassled and harrassed by Dr. Cox, Dr. Kelso, and the Janitor? Hells yes!
What does this mean for Earl? Nothing terrible, it would seem. You see, Earl is moving to NBC's meager Thursday night lineup. NBC really wants to reclaim the "Must See" crown that they once owned that night. So they are moving Will & Grace to 7 p.m., some new show called The Four Kings from the creators of W&G at 7:30 p.m., Earl at 8:00 p.m., and The Office at 8:30 p.m.
Notice anything? Yeah, Joey is gone. But only temporarily. It should be coming back in March, or so NBC is saying. Just a brief hiatus. With the poor ratings that show has been receiving, it wouldn't surprise me to see it disappear entirely. It's not horrible, mind you, just not nearly what I'd hoped for when they announced the show way back when. It's definitely going to need some work.
I'm not sure what I think of these moves so far. Yes, I absolutely love having double doses of Scrubs. But I'm not sure I like seeing Earl pitted up against the CSI juggernaut. This could be the kiss of death for Earl. I pray it isn't, but you never know how network execs think. If they don't have immediate results, they'll pull the plug on a show despite critical praise and Emmy wins. Just look at Arrested Development.
I've been enjoying the heck out of My Name is Earl and I'd hate to see it go the way of the dodo because of NBC's pathetic attempt to reclaim a ratings crown they know they have no chance of grabbing. CSI is an impossible show to beat. There's little to no point in even trying. Just keep Joey and Will and Grace where they are and let them die. God knows that W&G hasn't been the same for a few years now. It deserves to die.
Guess it's time to get that second TiVo hooked up, eh? (No, we haven't done it yet; so sue us).
