Upfront Answers, CBS

Last week, I did a series of pre-upfront posts called "Upfront Questions" in which I posed one question for each night of the schedule. My post-upfront coverage is called "Upfront Answers," in which I take a look at how they addressed my questions.

Other Upfront Answers: NBC | Fox | ABC

My CBS Upfront Questions

MONDAY
8:00-8:30 PM HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
8:30-9:00 PM 2 BROKE GIRLS (N)
9:00-9:30 PM TWO AND A HALF MEN
9:30-10:00 PM MIKE & MOLLY
10:00-11:00 PM HAWAII FIVE-0

My Question: What's up with that 9:00 show?

Since I wrote last week's post, CBS signed Ashton Kutcher to replace Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men. So they'll be able to talk about that at the upfronts and all will be well with the world (at least until September). Meanwhile, 2 Broke Girls is the only change on this night, as it looks to become the first newbie since The Big Bang Theory to do much of anything in the post-HIMYM slot.

TUESDAY
8:00-9:00 PM NCIS
9:00-10:00 PM NCIS: LOS ANGELES
10:00-11:00 PM UNFORGETTABLE (N)

My Question: How strong are the two sophomore shows?

I wasn't really sure what to guess about NCIS: LA, but I acknowledged the possibility that it might be one of those "not great, not bad" pairings that the networks keep together for a long time. That's happened. They don't even like it enough to bump it up to 10:00 and give the bigger lead-in and higher HUT to Unforgettable. Meanwhile, CBS will continue to try to make things happen with The Good Wife on a higher-priority night, but it's Sunday and not Tuesday (as many others predicted).

WEDNESDAY
8:00-9:00 PM SURVIVOR: SOUTH PACIFIC
9:00-10:00 PM CRIMINAL MINDS
10:00-11:00 PM CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION (NT)

My Question: How old will the 10:00 drama be?

Really old! CBS forms a three-hour night of veterans that is likely to be kinda reminiscent of their longtime Survivor/CSI/Without a Trace lineup. (That is, Survivor and CSI were both really strong, then Without a Trace took a dip but was still solid.) They shouldn't have to worry too much about this evening, though I'd imagine CSI takes another ratings step downward.

THURSDAY
8:00-8:30 PM THE BIG BANG THEORY
8:30-9:00 PM HOW TO BE A GENTLEMAN (N)
9:00-10:00 PM PERSON OF INTEREST (N)
10:00-11:00 PM THE MENTALIST

My Question: Are there any good options left for 9:00?

I ran through a lot of the returning possibilities for 9:00 in the Questions post and basically concluded there weren't any. Apparently CBS agrees. The Mentalist will continue to nail down the 10:00 hour, the comedies will continue to nail down the 8:00 hour, and it's J.J. Abrams crime thriller Person of Interest which will inherit the timeslot CSI has occupied for almost all of this millennium.

FRIDAY
8:00-9:00 PM A GIFTED MAN (N)
9:00-10:00 PM CSI: NY
10:00-11:00 PM BLUE BLOODS

My Question: Can CBS overhaul Fridays for a second straight year?

No! They'll return the 9:00-11:00 block intact, even though there was some thought for awhile that those two shows were on the bubble. But it's clear they're prioritizing keeping 9:00-11:00 solid over making real inroads at 8:00. It's tough to feel good about a new show on Friday at 8:00, one of the least-watched hours of primetime, so I can't say I'm high on medical newbie A Gifted Man. But maybe this one will have a better chance than clear dumps like The Defenders and Chaos.

SATURDAY
8:00-8:30 PM RULES OF ENGAGEMENT (NT)
8:30-9:00 PM COMEDYTIME SATURDAY
9:00-10:00 PM CRIMETIME SATURDAY
10:00-11:00 PM 48 HOURS MYSTERY

For the second time in four posts, I'm bringing in the Saturday schedule after I had no real expectation of doing so. CBS is gonna try original Rules of Engagement leading off the Saturday sked. My question is less, "Is this the beginning of a Saturday renaissance?" and more, "How long is this really gonna last?" It seems to me this works better as a show of upfront bravado (Kelly Kahl said, "We had too much product. We needed a place to get them.") than as an actual scheduling decision, and I'm not sure how long CBS is gonna put up with what will be some pretty ugly numbers from a show that's not really been good at anchoring any night, much less Saturday. I fully expect them to move Rules into one of the other comedy nights at midseason, but I kinda hope I'm wrong and it works.

SUNDAY
7:00-8:00 PM 60 MINUTES
8:00-9:00 PM THE AMAZING RACE
9:00-10:00 PM THE GOOD WIFE (NT)
10:00-11:00 PM CSI: MIAMI

My Question: Who's the real Undercover Boss?

Well, what we do know is that CBS doesn't think the Boss worthy of a fall spot anymore. How much of that was "We don't think the show is strong" and how much was "We need a spot for The Good Wife?" Hard to say. The Good Wife will certainly have a lower demo average next season than Boss did this season, but if CBS thinks that the 2.0 version of Undercover Boss (the one that showed up for the last two weeks of last season) is the real one, it may not even be that bad a move from a ratings standpoint.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS

Last year's upfront had a big shakeup - Big Bang to Thursday, Survivor to Wednesday. Nothing going on here rivals that in terms of excitement. The two moves (CSI and Good Wife) were both expected at least in some circles, and in a couple other cases it's clear the network is prioritizing the returning players (NCIS: LA on Tuesday, CSI: NY and Blue Bloods on Friday) over shoring up the trouble hour on the evening. The Saturday Rules of Engagement is definitely splashy, but I tend to doubt that's gonna end up being as big a deal as it might seem right now. Overall, pretty safe, relatively predictable, but there was no compelling reason for CBS not to be this year.