When it comes to suspense, primetime TV has always delivered--just not on screen. 
   While no show is better at supplying chills and thrills than "The X-Files," even that Fox series pales in comparison to the suspense of this week's upfront presentations, where media buyers will get the first glimpse at the fall lineups.
    The 2001-02 season should be no exception to the rule, as the Big Six have over 100 pilots to pick from, while the current schedule is filled with deadbeats just begging for cancellation. No one can predict what will happen, but that sure as hell isn't going to stop me from trying.
   Now that the union strikes appear to have been averted in Hollywood, the networks have a surplus of reality series that didn't require writers or actors. 
   Will that mean the genre will loom large over the fall schedule? 
    Not necessarily, although obviously there will be more than usual simply because the usual output on reality shows hovered somewhere around zero.
    If the networks are smart--insert your own joke there--some of the reality shows will get pushed to summer premiere dates. 
    Not only would that ease any concerns about the long-term viability of the genre, but summer launches might also correct the widely held belief that network executives spend July working from lounge chairs in the Hamptons. 
    Look for CBS to rush both the second season of "Big Brother" and the new adventure series "The Amazing Race" into the summer schedule.
    As for the rest, like ABC's "The Runner" and the WB's "That's Incredible," expect premiere dates staggered throughout the season going well into 2002.
    Unlike a sitcom filled with newsy jokes, reality series can sit on the shelf indefinitely. Plus, the networks don't want something they've developed so carefully to get lost in the annual September overload.
    Also on the reality front, consider the fate of the game show. 
    ABC's "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" is still a solid performer, but the series has drawn a lot of flak for increasing the median age of the network's audience.
    ABC will probably bring its weekly allotment down to two, and the same goes for NBC's new "Weakest Link." The show doesn't deserve a double dose yet, but the Peacock appears to be ditching its Sunday movie, and its schedule is already too drama-heavy.
    If you often confuse the WB and UPN, the situation will only worsen in the fall, now that UPN has grabbed "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" away from the competing netlet.
    But another interesting development to watch is whether UPN will also manage to get hold of "Buffy" counterpart "Angel" or the WB castoff "Roswell," which are both rumored to be exiting. 
    Either sci-fi series would make a wonderful lead-out to UPN's new "Star Trek" franchise "Enterprise," but something tells me the WB will hold onto "Angel" just to spite UPN.
    There are plenty of other question marks on the WB, which seems to have put its entire schedule "on the bubble." 
    Even the once-ballyhooed "Felicity" may see its demise, but don't count on it. This coming season could be so turbulent for the WB that it pays for it to hold onto whatever familiar faces it's got.
    Which leaves Fox, a network coming off a quiet but strong year. "Dark Angel" and "Boston Public" were high-performance rookies that will probably get moved to new time slots in order to support fresh programming.
    Sunday night is a question mark with the uncertain fate of "The X-Files," which provides the biggest irony of all: The most suspenseful series on TV manages to spread nervous anticipation even when it isn't on.

May 14, 2001 © 2001 Media Life

-Andrew Wallenstein is the television critic for Media Life.

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