Fox Unveiled Its Midseason Lineup

Fox unveiled its midseason lineup Tuesday, giving homes to new entries "Our Little Genius," "Human Target," "Past Life" and "Sons of Tucson."

Given its limited shelf space and the need to accommodate the return of "American Idol," Fox is forced to do a bit of scheduling musical chairs in midseason -- although less so this year, as "Idol" will follow the scheduling pattern of "So You Think You Can Dance" in the fall.

That also means that unlike past years, much of Fox's midseason schedule looks like the lineup the net announced at the May upfronts (save Tuesday and Friday nights).

Meanwhile, with several new shows waiting in the wings, a handful of incumbents will take a hiatus -- most notably, "Glee," which will go dark between December 9th and April 13th. (On the bright side, net execs note that "Glee" originally wasn't even on the midseason sked that Fox unveiled in May.)

The net's midseason kicks off on Tuesday, January 12th with the two-hour premiere of "American Idol," now Paula Abdul-free. The show also airs the following night, January 13th, at 8:00 pm (EST).

That leads into new reality skein "Our Little Genius," the show from Mark Burnett and Zoo Prods. that tests tykes on their knowledge of certain topics. Reality czar Mike Darnell had promised that the show would get a post-"American Idol" boost, and this indeed will be the case.

"Genius" will shift to Tuesdays behind "Idol" on January 19th, when "Idol" pares down to an hour. (Expect frequent pre-emptions of "Genius," however, as "Idol" frequently expands to two hours.)

Then, on April 13th, "Glee," which takes a break after December 9th, will assume that post-"Idol" slot Tuesdays at 9:00 pm (EST).

New drama "Human Target," based on the comic book franchise, will get a special preview on Sunday, January 17th at 8:00 pm (EST), behind the NFC Divisional Playoff game.

That same night, "24" returns at 9:00 pm (EST) for the first half of its two-night, four-hour season premiere. (Making for a rare instance of Fox programming extending into the 10:00 pm hour for a night.)
"24" will also air for two hours on Monday, January 18th, before settling into its normal 9:00 pm (EST) slot the following week, on January 25th.

"Human Target" will then take over the Wednesday 9:00 pm (EST) slot behind "Idol" starting January 20th.

In February, "Fringe" will take a hiatus after its Febuary 4th episode, leaving room for "Past Life," which will debut with a two-hour premiere on Thursday, February 11th at 8:00 pm (EST), before settling into its 9:00 pm (EST) slot on February 18th. (As announced last May, "Past Life" was originally slated for Tuesdays at 9:00 pm)

"Fringe" will return on Thursday, April 1th, after "Past Life" completes its run.

Live-action comedy "Sons of Tucson" will invade Fox's "Animation Domination" Sunday lineup on March 4th, airing at 8:30 pm (EST) in the plum spot between "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy."

"Sons of Tucson" pushes "The Cleveland Show" to 9:30 pm (EST); that means "American Dad" will be temporarily without a timeslot.

Also returning to the net in January is Gordon Ramsay's "Kitchen Nightmares," which will air Fridays at 9:00 pm (EST) starting January 29th. That's the slot formerly held by "Dollhouse," which airs its series finale on January 22nd.

Fox will air drama repeats (first, "Bones," and later, "House") on Fridays at 8:00 pm (EST) -- rather than comedies "Brothers" and "'TIl Death," as had originally been announced.

Shows on the bench include "Lie to Me," which will return later in the season, as well as "'Til Death," which the net would only say "will return to the schedule at a later date."

Fox also said its one-hour special "The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special in 3-D! On Ice!" will now air on January 10th at 8:30 pm (EST), behind the 450th episode of "The Simpsons."