James Hibberd

There’s a bunch of complicating factors swirling around Fox’s decision to push “New Amsterdam” to midseason, and all of them make the move a good idea.

First the official reason: “Don’t Forget the Lyrics” has been an unexpected blessing, a modest summer success that proves once again Fox has a tough time losing with a musical reality show. Meanwhile Wednesdays at 9 p.m. this fall was turning into a drama series Thunderdome. So moving “Bones” out of Wednesdays, sliding “Kitchen Nightmares” (a show Fox is very excited about) into the 9 p.m. slot as reality counter-programming, then partnering “Lyrics” with “5th Grader” on Thursdays all makes sense.

This means “Amsterdam,” through no fault of its own, simply lost a game of fall schedule musical chairs, right?

Well, not exactly. The network has several pliable, one-hour reality shows this fall (“American Band,” “Kitchen,” “Nashville,” “5th Grader,” “Lyrics”) that have been chosen for its first-string bench rather than as traditional mid-season hole-fillers. More than anything, Fox does not want yet another fourth-place finish this fall. They’re picking the lineup they think will give the network its best chance to break their fall losing streak – and that clearly does not include “Amsterdam.” If their choice also means going heavy on reality while other networks push scripted, no problem.

Other factors: “Amsterdam” is a drama about an immortal detective, which has a similar logline to CBS’s Friday night fall drama “Moonlight,” about an immortal vampire private detective. By launching in 2008, Fox plans to preview “Amsterdam” behind “American Idol” (which worked great for “5th Grader,” though not so much for “Wedding Bells”). Also, since the “Amsterdam” is already in production, it provides some writers strike protection.