Fox touts stability; The CW lauds change

The buzz word at Fox this fall is "stability" as the network returns 14 shows to its schedule. Meanwhile, at The CW, that fledgling network is planning something for its second season that it went largely without for its first — new shows.

As opposed to a year ago, when the successor to The WB and UPN started up with a schedule made up almost entirely of returning series from those two networks, The CW is replacing a third of its schedule with six new series.

FOX'S FALL SCHEDULE

Still riding a wave of "American Idol" success, the folks at Fox are feeling confident headed into the 2007-08 season.

"This is the most stable and most vibrant schedule ever presented by Fox — one that is sure to help us secure our fourth-consecutive season as the No. 1 network in key demos," Fox Entertainment president Peter Liguori hyperbolized for advertisers.

Given that Fox's ratings always improve dramatically when "American Idol" debuts in January, it's no surprise that the network is trying to replicate that success in the fall. Although a child-contestant version of "Idol" — "American Juniors" — failed to draw much attention in 2003, Fox will try what amounts to "American Idol" for groups when it adds "The Search for the Next Great American Band."

NEW SHOWS

K-ville (Mondays, 8 p.m.) is a cop drama about two officers in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans. One (Anthony Anderson) is a longtime member of the city's police department who stayed on the job when his fellow cops fled; the other (Cole Hauser) was a soldier in Afghanistan before joining the NOPD.

New Amsterdam (Wednesdays, 7 p.m.) is another cop drama. Homicide detective John Amsterdam is "brilliant, mysterious, reckless, magnetic, unknowable" — and immortal. In 1642, he saved the life of a Native American girl who cast a spell on him that he would not age until he found his one true love. And he may be about to find her.

Back to You (Tuesdays, 7 p.m.) is a sitcom featuring two very familiar sitcom stars — Kelsey Grammer ("Frasier") and Patricia Heaton ("Everybody Loves Raymond"). They play TV news anchors who were once the biggest thing in Pittsburgh until he moved on to bigger and better things. But an embarrassing on-air gaffe puts his career on the downslide and now he's back in Pittsburgh, reteamed with his old sparring partner. From the producers of "Frasier" and "Just Shoot Me."

Kitchen Nightmares (Thursdays, 8 p.m.) is a reality show that features chef Gordon Ramsay ("Hell's Kitchen") traveling from struggling restaurant to struggling restaurant around the country and delivering more of his bad behavior.