It wasn't long ago that The WB was touting itself as a haven for scripted programming as the big four networks were increasingly devoting time to reality shows.

That's not exactly the case anymore. Although the dramas the network is known for will, for the most part, be back next season, The WB is expanding its commitment to unscripted or not-entirely-scripted series as it searches for a way to reverse the ratings decline it's suffered this season.

Its schedule for the coming season, unveiled Tuesday (May 18), includes a new hour of comedy on Wednesday nights, a game show/"Real World" hybrid on Thursdays and the return of six drama series and three comedies.

"This fall season, we celebrate our first decade by diversifying our unique portfolio of distinctive programming," says Jordan Levin, The WB's CEO. "From marquee dramas to sketch-comedy, animation to improv, variety to game shows, we have an eclectic, exciting mix of scripted and reality series."

The biggest change, in both tone and philosophy, comes on Wednesday nights, where the brooding drama "Angel" will be replaced by two comedy series. "Blue Collar TV," which is set for a summer premiere, stars Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Larry the Cable Guy -- compadres from the "Blue Collar Comedy Tour." Each episode of the sketch-comedy show will be organized around a theme; Foxworthy will outline the week's topic in a stand-up routine at the top of each show.

It will be followed by "Drew Carey's Green Screen Show," which combines the improv elements of "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" with animation. Carey and a cast of "Whose Line" regulars will play improv games in front of a green screen, with animators adding backgrounds and other characters later to "bring to life the details going on in their vivid imaginations," the network says.

The WB also has a Mark Burnett-produced show on its schedule, but it's actually one of the net's new scripted series. "Commando Nanny" is a comedy loosely based on Burnett's first job -- as a nanny -- after leaving the British military and moving to Los Angeles. It joins the network's Friday comedy block, sandwiched between returning shows "What I Like About You" and "Reba."

The two new dramas on the schedule, "Jack & Bobby" and "The Mountain," are already enjoying support. The network picked both up prior to the upfronts and has already sent copies of the pilots to critics. "Jack & Bobby" will air after "Charmed" on Sundays, while "The Mountain" gets a tough assignment at 8 p.m. Thursdays.

Following "The Mountain" on Thursdays will be "Studio 7," a new take on game shows from "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" producer Michael Davies. Seven people will compete in a high-stakes game show -- after having lived together for a week in a posh Manhattan apartment (cameras rolling all the while, of course). Davies wants to test whether the relationships formed in that week affect the way the contestants play the game.

For midseason, The WB has the comedy "Shacking Up," which stars Fran Drescher as a woman whose boyfriend is the same age as her son; the Hawaii-set drama "Rocky Point"; and "Global Frequency," a scripted adventure series based on the comic book of the same name from Burnett.

Several more unscripted shows, including a third "High School Reunion" and a new show from Burnett, are in The WB's hopper as well. Jamie Kennedy's hidden-camera show is gone, but he's working on a new unscripted series called "Wannabes." Two "secret" projects from Bruce Nash ("Meet My Folks") and British company RDF Media ("Wife Swap," "Faking It").