Fallen Fridays
At the beginning of last season, a few networks were actually pulling some decent numbers on Friday nights. NBC was winning the night on the strength of "Providence" & "Law & Order: SVU," CBS had a huge rookie hit in "CSI" and WB flew high with back-to-back airings of "Sabrina." By the end of the season, the only show doing well on Fridays was "SVU." So what happened?
    Moving "CSI" off the night was the deathknell for CBS, the WB slipped up when it aired "Popstars" instead of "Sabrina," and NBC's "Providence" took an inexplicable dive. The only winner was ABC and "Millionaire," but even that couldn't light a fire underneath "Norm" nor "Two Guys & A Girl." And by the end of the season, even the once-mighty "Millionaire" was down into record low territory.

The (potential) new line-up...
      8:00          8:30          9:00           9:30           10:00
CBS |      (new drama)         |       (new drama)          | Nash      |
____|                          |                            |   Bridges |
ABC |      (new drama)         |       Once & Again         |   20/20   |
NBC |        Providence        |       Dateline NBC         |Law &      |
    |                          |                            |Order: SVU |
Fox |   Wildest Police Videos  |       The X-Files          |
UPN |             UPN Friday Night Movie                    |
WB  |  Sabrina   | (new comedy)|  Popstars  | (new comedy)  |

Next season...nearly no network is going to look the same. So here is goes (with some very wishful thinking to boot)...

Not exacetly doing well on the night with "Diagnosis Murder" & "The Fugitive," CBS will likely scrap all two, leaving the ailing "Nash Bridges" as the last man standing. Things really can't get any worse for the eye on the night- "The Fugitive" barely averaged 7 million viewers during the spring, while "DM" never cracked a 2.5 rating in adults. Besides, "CSI" proved last year that a good drama can succeed on this night, giving CBS all the proof it needs to start all over again.

ABC is going to change alot on Fridays too. When all is said and done, "20/20" will probably be the only man left standing. At 8pm, a new drama will be likely. ABC is looking to pair down "Millionaire," and it died from 8-10pm last season with sitcoms. Ditto for "Once & Again." ABC called it a "signature series" last season when it was renewed, and it's still looking that way. Though it was well off in viewers this season, it didn't do too shabily in adults. Moreover, it could make the perfect bridge between NBC's "Providence" & "Law & Order: SVU." Not to mention that it woudn't have to do too much to be considered a Friday success. At the beginning of last season, the 9pm sitcom block hovered around the 6 million viewer mark.

Now here's the real leap of faith. "The X-Files" back on Fridays? Nah... But look at the facts: The series is declining on Sundays even as the "Simpsons/Malcolm" block is climbing up the Neilson ladder, the show will be in its eight and likely final season (therefore, Fox needs a replacement), and the show started on Fridays to begin with. The bar is already low enough: the "Freakylinks/Lone Gunman" combo averaged below 5 million viewers in the slot this season.

Over on the WB, the line-up is pretty much set. "Sabrina" will return at 8pm, and the second season of "Popstars" will air at 9pm. In the tweenie slots, two new teen comedies are likely, one probably being the "Sabrina" spin-off slated for next season.

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