Mr. TV: Seasonal Shifts

October 13, 2008 The show features Simon Baker as a man with psychic abilities who works as an independent contractor for the police. Since The Mentalist, however, is not “young and sexy” like Grey’s Anatomy or Desperate Housewives on ABC or 24 and Fringe on Fox, expect a long run with minimal fanfare similar to NCIS, which opened the season as the most-watched show on CBS. Assuming ratings for The Mentalist hold up (and they have so far), I doubt CBS will make the same mistake it did with Baker’s former drama, The Guardian, which also aired smack in the middle of the Tuesday lineup and was axed prematurely because it skewed too old.

Subscribe to the Hollywood Reporter and see the entertainment industry from its best angle: the inside looking out. Complete access to real-time news and exclusive analysis that goes behind the scenes from film to television, home video to digital media.

   Subscribe now.