ABC takes big risk, moves ‘Happy Endings,’ ‘Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23’

While the headline at first may sound troublesome for fans of such shows as “Happy Endings” and “Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23,” at the end of the day the only way that we can describe this move by ABC is as a very good thing in an attempt to give two very strong comedies a chance to actually find an audience.

Weeks after both shows started to flop hard in the ratings on Tuesday night, the network announced Friday that beginning on Sunday, January 6, the two shows will air back-to-back following a new episode of “Revenge,” and will stay there for at least two more weeks on January 13 and 20.

The Big Three networks have not really been very willing to put comedies in this timeslot over the years, with NBC trying it once in spring 2011 to very limited results. However, HBO and Showtime have proven over the years that comedy is something that mature viewers look for on Sunday nights, and considering that these shows are geared more towards adults, it is possible that this stronger lead-in (especially in the 18-49 demographic) will help them. Both programs will probably need to up their averages to at least a 1.6 rating to have any sort of chance at coming back for more episodes later on, at least on this network.

Of course, with every action comes a reaction, and thanks to this move we are going to be seeing “666 Park Avenue” shelved until summer, where it will air the remaining episodes of its run. This show had already been canceled, and ABC does not want to give up on these two just yet.

What do you think about the move? If you want to see who is going to be visiting “Happy Endings” in the future, you can do so over at the link here. Update: The show will also continue to air on Tuesdays, which was not clear in initial reports. This makes the news slightly less good, since it could cause overload.

Photo: ABC