ABC 'Wife Swap' promises to be hot

Despite the title, there is no sleaze in the show.
By JONATHAN STORM
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Next season's hottest new show is almost sure to be ABC's "Wife Swap," a phonality show in which the mothers in two very different families trade places. For the first week, each must live by her new family's rules. For the second, each sets the agenda.
The series drew oohs and ahhs from advertisers at May's "upfront" presentations, when networks unveil their wares and try to sell commercial time. The chances of a big "Swap" splash are good, given the lack of original or dynamic new scripted shows.
ABC, which has a history of overplaying its golden-egg shows, is already busy developing "Boss Swap" and "Husband Swap." Fox, known for poaching hot ideas and slapping slipshod copies on the air, has fast-tracked "Trading Spouses," hoping to get it ready before the announced "Wife Swap" premiere, Sept. 29.
"Wife Swap" was developed overseas, following the pattern of many phonality shows. Not only did the British version rock the ratings last season, it also won a bucketful of awards.
Like "Survivor," which took on "Friends" on Thursday nights, the show is scheduled in a tough slot, Wednesdays at 10 p.m., opposite NBC's "Law & amp; Order" and CBS' latest "CSI" clone, set in New York.
Family interactions
While those two duke it out for the crime audience, "Wife Swap" should appeal to an entirely different crowd. It's about family interactions, and if the first episode is any indication, the possibilities run deep.
In it, a spoiled New York City millionaire with three kids and four nannies swaps spots with a rural Atlantic County, N.J., mother of two who drives a school bus, sells firewood, and does all the household chores. The culture shock runs deep, but it's surprising, and heartwarming, to see most of the guinea pigs adapt to the new situation.
Despite the suggestive title, there's no sex. In fact, the sleaze quotient is zero, proving once again that in the world of phonality, it takes all kinds.