Among the shows returning are the Canadian soap "The City" (20 new episodes), the hockey comedy/drama "Power Play" (13 new episodes), and the Vancouver cop drama "Cold Squad" (13 new episodes). In fact, together, the three will comprise CTV's new "all-Canadian" Friday night line-up, from 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm. There are also some hit American shows returning to CTV airwaves this fall, which include the primetime soaps "ER", "Ally McBeal", and "Felicity", as well as the NBC cop drama "Law & Order".
In addition to the returning shows, there will be a number of new shows added to the 1999 - 2000 roster. The majority are American, but there are some Canadian shows being added as well. "Little Men", a Canadian series that has aired on PAX since 1998, will be joining the CTV line-up in January with 13 new episodes. "Twice in a Lifetime", which is Canada's version of "Mr. Destiny" meets "Touched by an Angel", will premiere in the fall and carry a 22 episode season.
Among the American shows premiering this fall, there seems to be an even distribution of hits and misses. The shows with the best likelihood of survival are "Ally" (a half-hour clips/out-takes show drawn from "Ally McBeal"), "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (a spin-off of "Law & Order" with the sex crimes unit as it's central viewpoint), and "Third Watch" (an action/drama from "ER" creator John Welles). The maybes include "Manchester Prep" (a series based on the movie "Cruel Intentions" starring Ryan Philippe and wife Reese Witherspoon) and "Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place" (an import from ABC that aired a mildly successful first season in 1998 - 1999). The rest -- "Oh, Grow Up", "Once and Again", "Roswell", "Snoops", "The West Wing", and "Then Came You" -- appear to be the typical new season fare -- at least three of them are unlikely to survive to see the end of 1999. At best, they can be described as "been there, done that, move on". "Snoops", from "Ally McBeal"'s David E. Kelley, has been done twice in the last few years -- once in 1997 with "Total Security", and again in 1998 with "Buddy Faro" (neither finished out the season). Kelley's name may help in finish the year, but word has it he doesn't plan on getting too involved.
