"Back to You" Back on FOX

The Kelsey Grammer & Patricia Heaton sitcom "Back to You" returns with all-new episodes as part of the FOX February sweeps, which also bring you a very special post-Super Bowl "House," the winter finale of "Prison Break" and "Idol's" Top-24.

The rookie sitcom will be back on Tuesday, February 26 (following a 90-minute edition of "American Idol" at 9:30 p.m., special day and time). The network will then air the follow-up episode on Wednesday, February 27, also at 9:30 p.m.

In the first episode titled "Business or Pleasure," when the rival news station's dashing young anchor asks Kelly out, Chuck (Kelsey Grammer) wonders if the anchor has ulterior motives; Gary is assigned to cover a convention for people who wear animal costumes; and Marsh experiments with some original sign-off lines.

Then in the episode "Date Night," as Kelly prepares for her third date with rival anchor Craig St. Claire, Chuck accuses her of going for a younger version of himself, claiming she is obsessed with him. When Chuck and his date end up at the same restaurant as Kelly and Craig, the much-anticipated date night becomes a showdown.

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Full Season for FOX's "Back to You"

Not only has FOX decided to pick up its Wednesday night freshman comedy "Back to You" starring comedy veterans Kelsey Grammer ("Frasier") and Patricia Heaton ("Everybody Loves Raymond") for a full season, but instead of the standard back-9 order they have given it a back-11 order, bringing the total number of episodes to 24.

Although the laugher has had a very slow start averaging only 7.2 million viewers (it currently ranks #62 on the top-100 chart), the show is FOX's highest rated new series among a bunch of duds.

Given the caliber of actors, "Back to You" is also one of this fall's highest-profile shows, so its full season renewal comes as no surprise.

The production however appears to be plagued by the rumored feud between Grammer and Heaton as, according to L.A. Weekly, they loathe one another with a passion driving showrunner Steve Levitan insane.

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TV Ratings: "Back to You" Hot; "Gossip Girl" Not

Kelsey Grammer's ("Frasier") new old-school style comedy "Back to You" got off to a great start last night on FOX winning its 8pm timeslot with 9.44 million viewers. Meanwhile, The CW's hot new soap "Gossip Girl" kicked things off on a disappointing note.

The sitcom managed to beat CBS' controversial new reality show "Kid Nation" (9.07 million) which, given all the publicity, should have generated stronger numbers.

Josh Schwartz's ("The O.C.") new soap "Gossip Girl" (3.65 million) lost a great chunk of its "America's Top Model" lead-in audience (5.15 million). Although that's on a par with what "One Tree Hill" used to average in the timeslot, the expectations were higher.

Next week, ABC unleashes its "Grey's Anatomy" spin-off, while NBC launches a re-imagined "Bionic Woman," so those numbers may go down.

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Can "Frasier" Save Comedy?

Kelsey Grammar, whom viewers across the world still associate (and will perhaps always associate) with that cranky but lovable radio doc Frasier, is coming back to prime-time television in yet another network attempt to salvage the traditional sitcom, a genre currently endangered by hour-long dramedy and reality. But do viewers still care?




Three years ago "Frasier" ended its 11-season run along with NBC's other mega-popular sitcom "Friends" which anchored a "Must-See TV" night of programming for over a decade.

TV's other high-profile laughers "Will & Grace" and "Everybody Loves Raymond" shortly followed suit, marking an end of an era. Gone was the Nilesen firepower of the 30-minute sitcom as TV's current greatest hit "Two and a Half Men" rarely makes it to the Top-10.

Creatively, comedy is anything but dead. ABC successfully launched hour-long dramedies "Desperate Housewives" and "Ugly Betty" which redefined the genre, and NBC revamped its Thursday night comedy block with critical darlings "My Name Is Earl," "30 Rock," "The Office" and "Scrubs." Even The CW came up with a brilliant comedy, the Chris Rock-narrated series "Everybody Hates Chris."



But none of these shows have managed to generate the sort of Earth-shattering numbers that once made classics like "The Cosby Show," "Cheers," "Frasier," "Seinfeld" and "Friends" global megahits. The networks are launching only 6 new comedies this fall. With less than 20 comedies on air (about half as many as five seasons ago) is the genre really dead?

I personally believe that is not the case. The viewer today may have become more sophisticated and demanding and the networks will have to try harder, but once a well-written comedy with relatable characters at its heart comes along, I am sure the viewers will embrace it and make it the kind of a megahit we have not seen in years.



For the time being, as a die-hard "Frasier" fan, I will certainly wish Kelsey Grammer and his new comedy "Back To You" (co-starring Patricia Heaton of "Everbody Loves Raymond" fame) the best of luck.

Grammer plays an egotistical TV news anchorman Chuck Darling who, following an on-air blunder in Los Angeles, reunites with his former Pittsburgh TV news co-anchor Kelly Carr, an uptight single mom with a 10-year old daughter.

The comedy is written by Frasier alums Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan and helmed by top sitcom director James Burrows in front of a live studio audience. Just like in good old days. "Back To You" premieres Wednesday, September 19 at 8/7c on FOX.

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