All About
24Reality was harsh for the American Idol network, which loaded up on the genre that's kept it afloat for the past few seasons…and then, for the most part, sunk. There were modest hits, like Nanny 911 (No. 48) and summer holdover Trading Spouses (No. 56) — and then there was The Rebel Billionaire (No. 95), The Next Great Champ (No. 96), Renovate My Family (No. 99), My Big Fat Obnoxious Boss (No. 103), and The Complex: Malibu (No. 124). ''I think we put all our eggs in a basket that was already starting to wear,'' says Fox exec VP Preston Beckman. Fox's scant scripted offerings fared better: Sophomore soap The O.C. (No. 63) held its own in a tough new Thursday slot (though ratings are down 24 percent from its Wednesday berth last season), and doctor drama House (No. 73) garnered good reviews, if not viewers.
''We maybe overdid it with unscripted,'' Beckman says, ''and as a result we didn't have a platform for promotion for shows like House.'' To be fair, the net's real season has barely begun: Because of baseball play-offs, most shows didn't start until November — which also meant critics' darling Arrested Development (No. 73) couldn't capitalize on its Emmy win. Plus, much-feared ratings machine Idol returns at midseason, as does cult fave 24. ''Every year we keep hoping it will be different, but we don't really get going until January,'' Beckman says. ''This is like a bipolar network.''
Other Winners None that we can think of
Other Losers That '70s Show, down 3.6 million; Swan 2, down 2.3 million
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