NBC; Fox; ABC; CBSWhere does the time go?
It feels like just yesterday we were welcoming the new season of fall TV with open arms and minds, and yet, here we are, smack dab in the middle of renewal season. Orders for new seasons of some of our faves have been slowly trickling in for a few months now, but with today's massive announcement by CBS that 16 of the network's shows would return in the 2017-2018 season, it's now become a matter of what hasn't been renewed yet.
With that in mind, let's take a look at what shows still remain on the bubble at the big five networks and examine their chances of returning for another year!
CBS
Though it may seem the Eye network renewed everything in its arsenal today, there are still quite a few shows in CBS' inventory awaiting to hear their fate. On the drama side, veterans Criminal Minds, its spin-off Beyond Borders, Code Black and Elementary remain on the chopping block, alongside veteran comedies 2 Broke Girls and The Odd Couple and reality stalwart The Amazing Race.
As for their odds on returning, we'd say Criminal Minds is the safest bet, provided financial talks on the pricy series work in the network's favor. Its renewal came down to the 11th hour last season, as well. Beyond Borders could remain a midseason utility player, but that all depends on this season's crop of drama pilots, most likely, while Code Black has probably flatlined. Elementary remains the wild card here. This one could go either way and we've got a feeling it'll all come down to financial negotiations, as well. As for comedies, we wouldn't be surprised to see 2 Broke Girls shift to midseason with a truncated episode order. And The Odd Couple? Say your goodbyes. The Amazing Race should be back, but probably with only one cycle per season.
As for the network's freshman offerings still on the line—Pure Genius, The Great Indoors, Doubt and Training Day—don't hold your breath.
NBC
The Peacock hasn't handed out as many renewals as its competitors, leaving quite a few shows on the bubble on the road to Upfronts in May. On the drama side, veterans The Blacklist, Blindspot, Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, Chicago PD and Law & Order: SVU, as well as freshman series Blacklist Redemption, Chicago Justice, Emerald City, Taken and Timeless, all await news. Meanwhile, midseason entries Powerless and Trial & Error stand as the only comedies on the chopping block.
As for our predictions for renewal, SVU isn't going anywhere and anything with the word Chicago in its title is also probably safe as well. The Blacklist will likely return, but its spin-off probably won't. Blindspot and Timeless will likely come down to how well the drama pilots are received at the network, while you can probably start saying goodbye to Emerald City and Taken now. And as for those comedies, it's too early to tell for Trial & Error, but we wouldn't get too attached to Powerless if we were you.
ABC
The Alphabet network tends to hold all their renewal news until just before Upfronts, but new network boss Channing Dungey has actually handed out a few early renewals to its dependable TGIT line-up and veteran comedy The Middle. Of course, that still leaves a great many shows with unclear fates. On the drama side, we have veterans Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., American Crime, The Catch, Once Upon a Time, Quantico and Secrets and Lies, as well as newbies Conviction, Designated Survivor, Notorious and Time After Time. Frankly, aside from The Catch, Designated Survivor and a heavily rebooted OUAT, we'd be surprised to see any of the rest of these return. Much as we love S.H.I.E.L.D., its ratings don't make it easy to argue for its survival, though we could envision a world in which it serves as midseason replacement once straight-to-series The Inhumans takes its leave in the winter. Could American Crime ride its award season love to another season? Maybe, but the drama pilots will have to be especially weak this year to justify it.
As for comedies, vets Black-ish, Dr. Ken, Fresh Off the Boat, The Goldbergs, Last Man Standing, Modern Family and The Real O'Neals remain on the chopping block, along with newbies American Housewife and Speechless. We'd frankly be surprised to see any of these get the chop, but The Real O'Neals could be in trouble. It was the only returning comedy not to get a full order this season and it's ratings didn't improve.
Fox
While a few shows have been given renewals by Fox in the past few weeks, much of their line-up remains on the bubble. On the drama side, veterans Gotham, Rosewood, Scream Queens and Sleepy Hollow join newcomers APB, The Exorcist, Pitch, Shots Fired and 24: Legacy on the chopping block and outside of Gotham and possibly Rosewood, we'd be surprised to see any of them return. Pitch never caught on the way the network had hoped and the reinvention of 24 seems to be going in the same direction, while the Sleepy Hollow reboot landed with a total thud. The rest were either DOA or pitched as event series to begin with.
On the comedy side, veterans Bob's Burgers, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Family Guy, The Last Man on Earth and New Girl are joined by freshmen shows Making History and Son of Zorn as they play the waiting game. Don't expect the animated vets to go anywhere, while we've got a feeling the three live-action vets are fighting for one or two time slots. New Girl might be the odd man out this time around. And those two freshmen comedies? Don't hold your breath.
The CW
With nearly their entire line-up either renewed or in its final seasons, there are very shows left to wonder about on the CW. For vets The Originals and iZombie, it remains too early to tell as one has only just returned and the other doesn't come back for another few weeks. And as for freshman series No Tomorrow and Frequency, they're dunzo.
Which bubble series are you most worried about? Let us know in the comments below!