Fox, NBC, ABC all make midseason adjustments

Fox chickened out. And NBC is really brave.

Or maybe Fox is really smart and NBC is desperate. It all depends on how you interpret what the two networks are planning with their schedules come January.

As for their competitors at ABC, it looks an awful lot like they're waaaay overestimating how big an appetite there is for "Dancing with the Stars."

After much speculation that Fox might try to take on CBS's Thursday dominance by putting one of two weekly editions of "American Idol" there, the network took a more conservative route — beginning Jan. 17, the competition show will return to Tuesdays at 7 p.m.; on Jan. 18, the results show returns to Wednesdays at 8 p.m.

NBC, which is still struggling mightily in the ratings, is making some big changes and launching perhaps the single riskiest show of the season — "The Book of Daniel," an hourlong drama about an Episcopalian minister named Daniel who — in addition to dealing with his flock and a variety of family issues — often talks to a manifestation of Jesus Christ. The series will air a two-hour debut on Friday, Jan. 6, at 8 p.m. and then air Fridays at 9 p.m. through Feb. 3. (The Winter Olympics begin on the network the following week.)

Oh, did I mention that "Book" was the single best pilot of any fall or midseason show on any network I've seen this year?

All three networks are making big changes after the first of the year. For Fox, it's becoming an annual event; for NBC, it's a matter of necessity; and for ABC, it's trying desperately to at least make some sort of impact on Thursday nights. Here's what to expect:

FOX will bring back "24" with two hours on Sunday, Jan. 15, and another two hours on Monday, Jan. 16. It begins airing Mondays at 8 p.m. on Jan. 22.

• Really Good News Alert! "Prison Break" will be back sooner than originally announced — which was supposed to be May. The most recent episode repeats Monday, March 13, at 7 p.m.; new episodes begin a week later. Fox Entertainment president Peter Ligouri apparently became the last person in America to realize "it's a fantastic companion for '24'," but whatever the reason, whoo-hoo!

• Really Bad News Alert! The season (and, perhaps, series) finale of "Reunion" will air Thursday, Feb. 2 — and that will cut short by several weeks the plan to have each episode cover a year in this 20-year murder mystery.

• "Trading Spouses" returns on Fridays at 8 p.m. on Jan. 6.