UPN, which is having an awful year, will try to remedy that by bringing back one of its old shows, bringing back a show that failed on Fox and adding a new animated series.
"The Sentinel," a show that UPN canceled last spring but revived in the face of a fan protest, returns on Monday, Jan. 25 at 8 p.m. Fans will have to wait a couple more weeks to see a new episode, however. UPN will rerun "The Sentinel's" pilot on Jan. 25 and repeat this past spring's cliffhanging season ender on Feb. 1.It'll be Feb. 8 before that cliffhanger is resolved.
Also on Jan. 25, UPN will premiere the animated comedy "Dilbert," based on the popular comic strip. "Dilbert" will be seen Mondays at 7 p.m., followed by "DiResta" at 7:30 p.m.
("Guys Like Us" has been sent on hiatus -- and most likely sent to the TV graveyard.)
UPN's other Monday-night sitcom, "Malcolm & Eddie," is headed for Tuesdays. As of Jan. 19, it will take over the 8 p.m. timeslot.
And it will be joined on Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. by "Between Brothers," a sitcom that aired last season on Fox -- but drew ratings too small to merit renewal by that network.
"Malcolm & Eddie" and "Between Brothers" will be the third attempt UPN has made this season to program the 8 p.m. hour on Tuesdays. The sci-fi series "Mercy Point" got horrid ratings and a quick hook, and the last set of replacement shows -- the sitcom "Reunited" and the reality series "America's Greatest Pets" failed to do any better.
Overall, these changes do appear to improve UPN's schedule. But everything is relative -- the network-wannabe could double its ratings and still be struggling.
WHAT'S IN A NAME? The WB has changed the title of its upcoming midseason replacement sitcom "Zoe Bean" to "Zoe, Duncan, Jack & Jane." The official reason, according to WB Entertainment President Susanne Daniels, is that "the title change more reflects the true nature of the show, which is an ensemble comedy that captures the distinct point of view of all four main characters."
It will also be much harder to remember, and does a network really want the title of one of its shows to be hard to remember?
"Zoe" and Co. follows the adventures of four New York teens and comes to us from the producers of "Boy Meets World."
"ZDJ&J" is scheduled to debut on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 8 p.m. "Unhappily Ever After" will slide back to 8:30 p.m. and the utterly abominable "Army Show" is going off the air -- thank goodness.
CASTING ABOUT: In an upcoming episode of the CBS sitcom "Becker," Ted Danson's cantankerous doctor gets a father -- played by guest star Dick Van Dyke.
The joke is that dear old dad is as nice as his son is unpleasant. And who is better cast as a nice guy than Van Dyke?
No airdate has been set.
CASTING ABOUT (PART 2): "L.A. Doctors" star Ken Olin will be joined by his former "thirtysomething" co-star, Patricia Wettig, in an upcoming episode of the CBS series.
In the Dec. 14 installment, Roger (Olin) unexpectedly meets his old college flame (Wettig) and learns she has an inoperable brain tumor.
Oh, and Wetting is not only Olin's former co-star -- she's also his real-life wife.
CASTING ABOUT (PART 3): Jason Brooks, who played that nasty Peter Blake on the soap "Days of Our Lives," is joining the NBC series "The Pretender" in a recurring role. He'll play a love interest for Miss Parker (Andrea Parker) in several episodes, beginning with the one scheduled for Jan. 16.
So Miss Parker is going to get a boyfriend. Maybe someday she'll get a first name.
CASTING ABOUT (PART 4): The episode of USA's series "Pacific Blue" scheduled for Jan. 24 is just chock full of familiar TV faces:
Former "Partridge Family" star Danny Bonaduce guest stars as Johnny Osiris, a former '70s TV star who is "down on his luck" and has "taken to robbing stores along the boardwalk."
Former "Brady Bunch" star Susan Olsen (Cindy) guest stars as Johnny's TV sister.
Former "Batman" star Adam West guest stars as Johnny's father.
Former "ChiPs" star Erik Estrada guest stars as Johnny's defense attorney.
Just think of it as Has-Been Theater.