After 14 seasons on the air, Grey's Anatomy is still one of the most popular and most heavily talked-about dramas on TV. As such, ABC has zero problems rewarding the medical drama with a bit of an episode extension, which is the case here. ABC has tacked on two additional episodes to Grey's Anatomy Season 14, and the network also expanded the seasons of two of its bigger comedy hits, black-ish and American Housewife.
With two more episodes added to the current roster, Grey's Anatomy Season 14 will run for a total of 24 episodes, which is pretty astounding for a network drama in 2017. Not only because of all the work and effort that goes into putting up that many episodes of any TV show, but because Grey's Anatomy isn't invested in being a procedural series, keeping its large and constantly changing ensemble going with serialized plots and more than just the occasional shocking twist.
Grey's Anatomy regularly gets additional episodes added to its yearly seasons, which creator Shonda Rhimes and her team seem to fully embrace without stressing over how to stretch the narratives. One assumes that having 7-8 million dependable viewers a week helps keep the worries down. And the hit drama is closing in onits 300th episode, so stress is likely old hat for so many people working on this show anyway.
Now in its fourth season, the comedy black-ish also received an additional two episodes to its former count, bringing it up to 24. Strangely, this is basically how it's worked for black-ish each year, making one wonder why ABC doesn't just give this show and Grey's an initial order of 24 episodes every time. But there's probably some business-related reason to keep doing things like this, as all three of the shows in question come from ABC Studios. In any case, fans will get all the black-ish they can handle this season in its new-ish timeslot, giving Emmy winner Tracee Ellis Ross more time to shine as Bow Johnson. And we can't wait for that spinoff, either.
The youngest of these three shows, American Housewife just started Season 2 back in September, and it will also get two more episodes tacked on, bringing it to 24 total. Starring Katy Mixon and Diedrich Bader, American Housewife also hit a new timeslot this season, airing behind Modern Family, and the comedy is maintaining a consistent viewership that matches up with the second half of the successful Season 1. Hopefully the audience sticks with it, so that it can also continue getting additional episodes in future seasons.
Grey's Anatomy airs Thursday nights on ABC at 8:00 p.m. ET. black-ish airs Tuesday nights at 9:00 p.m. ET, while American Housewife pops up on Wednesday nights at 9:30 p.m. ET. To see when all the other new and returning shows are hitting primetime soon, head to our fall TV premiere schedule.
