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Boston Herald

By MARK A. PERIGARD

In the biggest shakeup to commercial television in more than a decade, it's unclear yet who the winners are. It's a certainty who the losers are: viewers.

CBS and Warner Bros.' decision to shut down UPN and the WB by the end of summer and launch a new network in the fall called the CW means there will be one less free viewing choice on the dial.

Which shows will appear on this network? From the joint press release yesterday, it seems the WB's shows have an edge over UPN's slate, and the network neighborhood may end up looking a whole lot whiter, as most of UPN's black comedies appear to be certain casualties.

The WB's "Smallville," "Supernatural," "Beauty and the Geek" and "Reba" are specifically named as safe in the press release. So is the drama "Gilmore Girls," but given the creator instability on that show, don't take that as an absolute.

On the UPN side, "America's Next Top Model," "Veronica Mars," "Everybody Hates Chris" and "Girlfriends" seem sure to find homes. And the new network promises to find a place for the wrestling show "Smackdown," although it may have a hard time finding an open time slot.

WB shows likely to be getting an eviction notice include the teen soap "One Tree Hill," "Twins" (twice as unfunny as the average sitcom), "Charmed" (too old), "What I Like About You" (not much, apparently) and that rumored "7th Heaven" spinoff (sorry, the pearly gates are closed).

On the UPN side, start getting ready to say goodbye to most of the network's black comedies, including "All of Us," "Eve," "Cuts" and "One on One." The climate doesn't look too good for the new soap "South Beach."

The WB has a slate of midseason shows, including the drama "Pepper Dennis" with Rebecca Romijn, scheduled for March rollout, but why should it bother? Not one of them seems likely to generate the freshman buzz of, say, UPN's "Everybody Hates Chris."

Neither UPN nor the WB was a widely successful network, but each managed to carve out loyal niche audiences.

The other losers here are those producers and writers with quirky ideas for shows that just wouldn't fly at one of the big four. UPN's "Veronica Mars" would never have found a home on ABC, CBS, NBC or even Fox. Now there is one less outlet.

Of course, cable networks such as FX may sense the slack and act on it.

Don't bet the cable bill.