Schedule Rewind: A look back at the Prime Time schedule from seasons past and network decisions impacting sci fi and fantasy shows.
FOX’s The X-Files had its debut in the Fall of 1993 and would quickly become a cult favorite that just barely avoided cancellation after its low-rated first season (more on that at this link). Its popularity and influence would grow over the next few years and it would enter into the Top 20 in the 1996-97 season, ultimately becoming one of the few successful genre entries on the Big Four broadcast nets (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX) in the ’90s. The other networks were noticing the buzz from the show and started working on their own conspiracy-laden sci fi entries that they hoped would tap into the same audience. Those began to hit the schedule the 1996-97 season and would continue for a few more years before eventually fading. Several had promise, but none lasted very long with Chris Carter’s own Millennium as the longest-lived successor to the X-Files legacy, though even that one was cut short.
ABC
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (Sundays 6 PM EST/7 PM EST)
Sabrina the Teenage Witch (Fridays 8:30 PM EST/9 PM EST)
ABC did not get in on the X-Files bandwagon this season, but would in the 1997-98 season with Prey and later with Strange World (the latter counting as a sci fi TV gem that is worth seeking out). Lois & Clark was in its fourth season and had performed relatively well for the network over the prior years. A fifth season was announced, but the network execs did an about-face and cancelled the show, ending it on a cliffhanger after four years. Also on the network’s schedule was the comedy Sabrina the Teenage Witch (based on the Archie comic) which had its debut that season and would run for four years on ABC before shifting to The WB to complete its seven-season run.
CBS
Touched by an Angel (Sundays 8 PM EST)
Early Edition (Saturdays 9 PM EST)
CBS had no interest in adding an X-Files-type series to its schedule, especially after supernatural entry American Gothic failed to find much of an audience the prior year, and had little to offer to genre fans as has been typical for the network. Touched by an Angel was in its third season and ranked Number 10 for the year, but barely counts as a genre entry. In addition, Early Edition debuted in the 1996-97 season and would have a four-year run on the network. It had a similar premise to Touched by Angel with one person aiding others with help from beyond, and that one perhaps had more appeal to genre fans.
FOX
The X-Files (Sundays 9 PM EST)
Roar (Mondays 9 PM EST)
Sliders (Fridays 8 PM EST)
Millennium (Fridays 9 PM EST)
FOX moved The X-Files to Sundays for the 1996-97 season where it would finish the season in the Top 20 for the first time. The network asked Chris Carter for one more show, hoping for another hit, and he delivered Millennium. While definitely not an X-Files clone, it had that dark and gritty look and feel and also followed investigations with paranormal twists thrown in. It would never achieve the same popularity as Carter’s other show and was sadly cancelled after three seasons, leaving it on a cliffhanger ending (read more about Millennium at this link).
Sliders was in its third year on the network and that one would be cancelled by FOX at season end, though it would be picked up by the Sci Fi Channel for two more seasons (read more about Sliders at this link). Also of note that year is the Summer entry Roar. That fantasy series from Shaun Cassidy (American Gothic) tried to capitalize on the success of Hercules the Legendary Journeys and Xena Warrior Princess, though it would fade quickly after only eight episodes were aired. It starred a young Heath Ledger in one of his first lead roles.
NBC
3rd Rock from the Sun (Sundays 8 PM EST)
Dark Skies (Saturdays 8 PM EST)
The Pretender (Saturdays 9 PM EST)
NBC was the first of the Big Four broadcast networks other than FOX to try to capitalize on the popularity of The X-Files, offering the conspiracy-laden, aliens-among-us show Dark Skies. That show aired at 8 PM EST on Saturdays which was proving to be a difficult night to program for the networks by the ’90s. It failed to develop much of a following and was cancelled by season end, though it has since become sowmewhat of a cult show. Co-star Jeri Ryan would jump networks the next season to play Seven of Nine on UPN’s Star Trek: Voyager.
NBC would have more success with the quasi-genre entry The Pretender which premiered the very next hour on Saturday nights. That Fugitive-style series with a genre twist would run for four seasons plus an additional three TV movies. Also on NBC that season was the comedy 3rd Rock from the Sun. It was in its second year and still in the Top 30 and would run for six total seasons on the network.
UPN
Homeboys from Outer Space (Tuesdays 8:30 PM)
The Burning Zone (Tuesdays 9 PM)
The Sentinel (Wednesdays 8 PM EST)
Star Trek: Voyager (Wednesdays 9 PM EST)
For the first of the two part-time networks, The Burning Zone was UPN’s answer to The X-Files to an extent, though it took a very different direction than the Chris Carter show. It followed a team dealing with viral outbreaks during a time known as the “Plague Wars”, but it had the same dark, moodiness as well as its share of conspiracies (and it also starred a young Jeffrey Dean Morgan). But the ratings were low even by UPN standards, airing against top comedies on ABC and NBC, and it was cancelled by season end. The show has since been mostly forgotten.
UPN also had Star Trek: Voyager and Sentinel airing that year, both in their second seasons. The former would go on for a seven-year run while the latter would cap out at four seasons. That network also had the short-lived “comedy” Homeboys in Outer Space, but the less said about that one the better.
The WB
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Mondays 9 PM EST)
The other part-time network did not go the X-Files-clone route, but its one genre entry certainly drew some inspiration from the Chris Carter series. Joss Whedon’s reboot of his own feature film that he was never happy with adopted the dark and moody visual style and offered a supernatural foe of the week. But the show also offered a nice mix of humor and would go on to establish itself as a genre classic in its own right. But certainly network execs hoped that Buffy would attract some of the same viewers tuning into The X-Files, and it definitely did. The show would continue for four more seasons on The WB and then would jump networks to UPN to finish out its acclaimed seven-year run (read more about Buffy the Vampire Slayer at this link).
More X-Files-like shows would follow in the coming seasons, though it would be fewer and fewer and the Big Four broadcast networks would mostly lose interest by the end of the decade. But this did lead to a mini-resurgence of sci fi and fantasy shows on the airwaves in the ’90s, and the part-time networks would keep that alive with the Star Trek entries (Voyager and Enterprise) along with Buffy and its spin-off Angel. And genre shows would continue to do well in syndication that decade. By the early 2000s, sci fi was mostly unwelcome on the Big Four again, but that would change after the 2004-05 season when a little show named Lost became a big hit (more on that at this link).
More Schedule Rewinds At This link
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