While Wednesday brought bad news for several new shows, ABC had a positive report for "Malibu Country" and the second-year sitcom "Last Man Standing."
Last in the afternoon, after the effective cancellations of FOX's "The Mob Doctor" and The CW's "Emily Owens, MD," ABC announced that it was picking up five additional episodes for the Friday night comedy pair. That isn't quite a full season for either show, but given their late premiere dates, it's basically a full season.
"Last Man Standing" and "Malibu Country" join "Nashville," "The Neighbors" and "Scandal" in getting extended pickups from ABC this fall. The network has already confirmed that both "Last Resort" and "666 Park Avenue" will air their 13 episodes, but won't get back-end orders.
For the season, "Malibu Country" is averaging 8.7 million viewers, making it the year's most watched freshman comedy, along with a 2.1 rating among adults 18-49, tied with "Last Man Standing." Both comedies have provided massive time period bumps for ABC, allowing the network to push "Shark Tank" to greater success in the 9 p.m. hour.