Now that David Duchovny has signed on for another season of "The X-Files," his character Agent Mulder can get to the bottom of a new mystery:
    Why on earth is Fox getting so over-aggressive with its 2000-01 schedule?
    Perhaps the midseason success of "Malcolm in the Middle" and "Titus" failed to overshadow Fox's disastrous 1999, when nearly all of its new series were canceled. Adding at least seven new series, including two nights comprised entirely of all new shows, is the act of a desperate network. Fox certainly needs improvement, but it's not desperate.
     Too many nights lack sufficient lead-ins. David E. Kelley's "Boston Public" anchors Monday, where Fox  would have been better served sliding "Ally  McBeal" to 8 p.m. and moving it out of the way of CBS's "Everybody Loves Raymond," which has been gaining fast.
     "Public" has a better chance with "Ally" behind it.
     Good move, though, transferring "That '70s Show" and "Titus" to Tuesday because their audience is better suited for a male-skewing series. Watch them pull "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire's?" younger demo out from under ABC.
     That said, Fox still has more pilots worth seeing than any other network.
      Top names like Kelley, James Cameron, Darren Star, and the creators of "The Blair Witch Project" all have new shows on the air. Producers with pedigree tend to attract viewers.
       Two cancellations that shocked me: The ratings-deprived drama "Get Real" won't return, which is surprising considering how gung-ho Fox has been on nurturing it, as it did another critically acclaimed but initially weak series, "Party of Five." It's a sign of how impatient the networks are getting about developing hits.
     Another unexpected exit: the game show "Greed," which ends this summer. This "Millionaire" ripoff performed well in some tough time slots. 
     Fox should have kept it around to help launch one of its new Thursday or Friday dramas. A double dose of new sci-fi on the weekend is a good idea, considering NBC dropped all three of its Saturday thrillers, but Fox has had a rotten track record as of late with developing new hours on Friday.
    In stark contrast to Fox's brinkmanship, UPN scheduled its 2000-01 better than any other network.
     Terrific idea to snatch ABC's canceled "The  Hughleys" for its Monday ethnic-targeted block; this sitcom will be a better fit than the underwhelming "Grown Ups." Tuesday, which was beyond awful in 1999-2000, will get a movie block that should stop the bleeding.
    Friday used to host the old movie night, but that never made sense considering it should have been stocked with series that would appeal to the young males who came flocking to "WWF Smackdown!" the night before. 
    UPN corrected that mistake by adding two action dramas to Friday.
    Wednesday is unchanged, and there's no reason to change it, given how solid "Seven Days" and "StarTrek: Voyager" have been.
    All in all, UPN really made a strong case for moving beyond the perception of being a one-show network by building on the incredible success of "Smackdown!" 
   The only false move might be the new Sunday expansion, which will see action from the WWF's new football spinoff. NBC is doing the same on Saturday, and that's just one too many nights of a league that hasn't been properly tested.

- Andrew Wallenstein is the television critic for Media Life.

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