There's a blueprint available for saving network television. And it lies in an unlikely place: the struggles of fourth-place network NBC.
Stop laughing. What ails network TV in general is what's really hurting the onetime home of Must-See TV: a lack of inspired ideas, inability to break a hit drama and a lineup of crackling comedies that struggle to draw a broad audience.
We've already seen half of the network's attempt to reboot with a lineup of unreality shows unveiled last Sunday, "America's Next Great Restaurant" and "Celebrity Apprentice." Made necessary by the offseason loss of "Sunday Night Football," these shows feel more like a tourniquet than a way forward -- a rearranging of deck chairs trying to spin ratings gold out of Gary Busey's rants and Donald Trump's questionable hairline.
So the challenge is clear: Save network TV by saving NBC.
Here's the doctor's five-point prescription, which includes some bitter medicine.
Tactic 1: Stop with the comic book stuff.
NBC's "The Event" returned last week after a three-month break, continuing its complex tale of a long-hidden U.S. conspiracy to imprison aliens in a Guantanamo-style detention center. Unfortunately, you can almost feel the tight budgets forcing "The Event" to become a typical action/suspense drama, with just enough explosions and political intrigue to feel like a bad "24" clone.
NBC keeps walking down this road to disappointing results. The spy comedy "Chuck" is a fun romp. But the just-canceled superhero adventure "The Cape" played more like a parody, trapped in its own world of nonsensical plots and shoddy effects, mostly highlighting how much better movies are at science fiction and superhero stuff.
