Upfronts Week — NBC

Today begins a week where hope springs eternal for all the major networks as they unveil the trailers for new shows and set their schedule for the fall. Each day I'll take a look at the network's presentation and offer some thoughts.

NBC
For all the panic about the state of NBC — the fact it can't find comedies to stick and cancelled almost all its new shows — it's easy to forget it's not in all that bad of shape. Thanks to "The Voice," the fall airings of "The Blacklist," and NFL Football, the Peacock was the belle of the ball in the prized 18-49 viewers. CBS led in overall viewers, but NBC had the crown in the category that matters most to advertisers. So for as bad as people perceive the network to have been in the 2014-2015 season, they actually are operating from a place of strength — at least on paper. The Spring hasn't been kind to NBC, or any other network. "The Voice" has posted series lows as has "The Blacklist," with the move to Thursdays failing amid new shows that couldn't hold up. But NBC plans to do it again in the fall, this time putting arguably its buzziest scripted show against football on CBS, flanked again by newish offerings. It marks the end of Must-See TV Thursdays, as the networks' lone hour of comedies will be on Friday nights at 8 p.m. This is a very different NBC, but with "The Voice" and the NFL holding up a chunk of the Sunday/Monday/Tuesday hours, NBC will likely be a big player in the 18-49 demographic once again. That buys plenty of latitude.

Most Interesting Scheduling Move: NBC was once known for comedy, especially on Thursday nights. Those days are over. It only has one hour of comedy in the fall, the block from 8 to 9 p.m. on Friday nights. Into that void, it's sending "Undateable," the only comedy that's managed to stick in the last two years. "Undateable" began as a summer burn off that drew solid numbers. It was renewed and dumped into the Spring lineup, managing to be the only Tuesday comedy all season that didn't wither and die. Now it's again paired with a questionable show — the new sitcom "People Are Talking" — but it's taking a bold new step. All of the third season episodes will air live, a take off on an experiment "Undateable" did this week to great success. That will certainly get people talking and, just maybe, draw some eyes to Fridays on NBC.

Riskiest Scheduling Move: NBC's Thursdays as we've known it for decades are gone. The process that began this Spring is made complete with the new schedule — which features three dramas on the night. "The Blacklist," which has seen its ratings ebb since moving to 9 p.m. on Thursdays, will remain there in the fall, asked to anchor a night of newish shows. And in the fall, the NBC lineup will face the NFL on CBS — at least for eight weeks — and likely the TGIT lineup on ABC. It's a bold, risky move that hasn't panned out this Spring. And now "The Blacklist" is paired with a re-boot of "Heroes" at 8 p.m. and a poor man's knock off of "Person of Interest" in the Wesley Snipes fronted drama "The Player" at 10 p.m. If it works, it's genius. But I don't think it's gonna work.

Most Intriguing New Show: This comes from the everything is relative department as I wasn't overly impressed by any of NBC's new shows. However, "Blindspot" has the most potential, and might also be the biggest risk. The premise is a woman is found in a duffle bag in Times Square, naked and covered in tattoos that offer cryptic clues to a deeper plot. I like the lead, Jamie Alexander, and I'm intrigued by the idea. But this sounds like the kind of high-concept idea that works as a movie or a mini-series but will be tough to sustain for a long-term series. After all, "Prison Break" — the last show featuring a protagonist covered in clue-rich tattoos — wasn't the same after the first season. Still, airing behind "The Voice" on Mondays at 10 p.m. with a good cast and at least a unique premise, "Blindspot" seems like it has some potential.

Least Interesting New Show: Again, this is a toss up with a lot of contenders. But I'm gonna go with "People Are Talking," the lone new sitcom. NBC's brand used to be comedy, now they're the fourth option, at best. The reason is shows like "People Are Talking," a strange pilot concept that had an utterly unfunny trailer. This feels like the kind of show that could be a contender for first cancelled in the new season. But, then again, NBC might have a lot of contenders, even though they only have six new fall shows...