It's impossible to watch everything on TV today. With the sheer volume of programs on network, cable, and streaming services it can feel futile for audiences to invest themselves in a new show before it's been renewed for at least a second season.
The five major networks have so far canceled18 of the 39 freshman scripted series they ordered last year. Those same networks just ordered 37 new shows for the 2018-2019 season. Not all of those series will survive beyond a single season, nor should they. There will undoubtedly be some unjustified casualties in the mix, but the increased demand for content means networks are sometimes just throwing everything out there and seeing what sticks — and you don't have time for that.
Below are the new shows that probably won't make it past season 1.
"A Million Little Things" (ABC)
Networks are still trying to find their own version of NBC's megahit "This Is Us." That seems to mean focusing on emotional, interconnected storylines that prioritizes making the audience cry above all else. "A Million Little Things" follows a large group of friends who get a wake-up call to "finally start living" after one of them dies by suicide (Ron Livingston). It's immediately reminiscent of "The Big Chill" and the trailer hints at some sort of mystery aspect to the suicide that invites at least a cursory comparison to Netflix's "13 Reasons Why."
Though the new ABC show seems just as emotionally manipulative as "This Is Us," it doesn't feel like it's going to last, let alone be a real competitor for the weepy NBC family drama.
Watch the trailer here.
"Fam" (CBS)
Aw, look at CBS trying to be young and hip and aware of slang. "Fam" stars Nina Dobrev as a woman whose picture-perfect life hits a snag when her out-of-control teenage half-sister unexpectedly comes to live with her and her fiancé. A trailer for "Fam" has yet to be released, but the odds this show makes it beyond the first season are very slim, especially when you consider CBS' recent track record with multi-camera family comedies.
"The Fix" (ABC)
"The People v. O.J. Simpson" was a success for FX and the seven-hour ESPN documentary "O.J.: Made In America"won an Oscar, but does that mean we need a sequel?
"The Fix" feels like a fantasy vehicle for executive producer and former Simpson-prosecutor Marcia Clark to try Simpson for murder yet again.
The series stars Robin Tunney as a Los Angeles district attorney who suffered a devastating defeat while prosecuting an A-list actor (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) for double murder. Eight years later, she is determine to put him behind bars when he is suspected of murdering his new girlfriend.
It's difficult to imagine the series sustaining itself in an interesting way when every aspect of Simpson's story has already been thoroughly mined and explored. It's even more difficult to imagine viewers consistently tuning in since the public's interest in the case seems to have considerably waned.
Watch the trailer here.
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