2013 Fall TV Preview: FOX

RETURNING SHOWS:

• The X Factor (9/11)
• Bones (9/16)
• New Girl (9/17)
• The Mindy Project (9/17)
• Glee (9/26)
• The Simpsons (9/29)
• Bob’s Burgers (9/29)
• Family Guy (9/29)
• American Dad (9/29)
• Raising Hope (11/8)

NEW SHOWS:

• Sleepy Hollow (9/16)
• Dads (9/17)
• Brooklyn Nine-Nine (9/17)
• Junior Master Chef (9/26)
• Almost Human (11/4)
• Enlisted (1/10)

SHOWS I AM MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO:

• Brooklyn Nine-Nine
• New Girl
• Sleepy Hollow
• Enlisted
• Almost Human

SHOWS I AM LOSING INTEREST IN BUT WILL GIVE ONE MORE SEASON TO:

• Bones (wow does that pucker my butt to put that here)

SHOWS I COULDN’T CARE LESS ABOUT:

• The X Factor
• Glee (except for one episode)
• The Mindy Project
• All the Animated Shows
• Dads
• Junior Master Chef

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:

• Glee’s Cory Monteith Tribute Episode: you know how hard I’ve been on Glee.  The show is awful.   The fact that it was renewed for another TWO seasons is preposterous but as long as 13-year-old girls are watching, I guess it will be on the air.  Having said that, I enjoyed this show in the early seasons and Cory Monteith was a huge part of that.  His passing was tragic and has really hit the cast hard…especially Lea Michele.  So I will tune into see how Ryan Murphy and crew handle the episode.  I’m not too optimistic because Glee handling serious episodes well is like saying Tim Tebow will someday be a great NFL quarterback.   But I hope I’m wrong and I hope it’s the best episode they’ve ever done.
• Bones to Friday Nights: Bones has bounced around the schedule a ton over the last few seasons.  As a fan of the show it’s been frustrating.   But moving to Friday is never a good sign.  I have been a die-hard fan of Bones since I saw the pilot.  I love this show and the cast.  But even I am starting to get tired of Bones.  The Pelant storyline is compelling but Bones is starting to turn into one of those shows where 7 episodes pile up on my DVR and after I watched everything else, I get to Bones.   That’s not good.  So I will be tuning in but I’m not sure after this year if I’ll stick with it.  I really hate to say that but it’s sadly true.  😦   But to see Bones move to Friday makes me wonder if TPTB at FOX are also growing slightly tired of Bones.  We’ll see how it fares.
• The Mindy Project Sophomore Season: This show had a lot of buzz last year but I have found either people love or hate this show.  I’m indifferent because I only watched the pilot and didn’t enjoy it so I never got to watch another episode because shows were piling up and it had to go.  Fans are die-hard but I’ve heard other people say that Mindy is a great writer but annoying as hell on this show.  There weren’t a whole lot of successful new shows last year so Mindy might have been the best of the dreck.  But I think there are some stronger shows coming this year and Mindy is in a tough spot on a tough night…NCIS: LA, The Voice, Supernatural (new night), and Trophy Wife (hotly buzzed about new show.)   Let’s see what happens.

EARLY THOUGHTS ON NEW SHOWS:

• Lots of new shows here on FOX.  And what a spectrum of shows…some could be the best of season and some are so dreadful I’m not sure how they were picked up.   But let’s start with the positives.  I will be absolutely watching Sleepy Hollow and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.   Talk about two completely different shows.   Before all the buzz surrounded both of these shows, I was already in big.   I love the story of Sleepy Hollow and the Headless Horseman.  Now from what I understand, they are changing it up from the original story.  We have Ichabod Crane, the Headless Horseman, Katrina, and so on.  However, it’s set in a world where the legend and story never existed and the Horseman has something to do with the Four Horseman of the Apocolypse…don’t ask me what.  And I don’t care.  I’m so in with this story and I’m going to call it now…Tom Mison is the breakout drama star of the season.   I saw a preview of Brooklyn Nine-Nine months ago and I’ve probably watched it 3 more times since…it still makes me laugh.   It stars Andy Samberg and Andre Braugher (whom I love) with a strong surrounding cast as a crack pot team of cops who acquire a more serious lieutenant who wants to shake things up and make this team of detectives the best in Brooklyn.   Good luck Andre!   FOX has the chance of having the best drama and comedy of the new season.   Hollow has more competition with Hostages, The Blacklist, Masters of Sex, and SHIELD, but there has been a lot of media love on how unique this show is and how great the cast is.   So we’ll see.
• So while FOX may have the two best shows of the season, they also have one of the worst…Dads.  Oh boy.  This isn’t Super Fun Night bad but it’s really, really close.  I feel bad for Seth Green because he deserves better than this show.  It’s awful.  I know people are screaming about the racist and over-the-top “humor” on the show but that didn’t bother me as much.  Don’t get wrong, I don’t think racist humor is funny, I just didn’t find it as offensive as other people.  What was more bothersome was that it just wasn’t funny and wasn’t well written at all.  You know when you’re watching something and you can tell the writers and possibly the actors think their material is the funniest bit ever and therefore have a tendency to overact and over sell it?   Yep, that’s what happens in every scene I’ve seen.  So I won’t even watch Dads because I don’t think it will be around   long enough to check it out.  As I side note, I also don’t care about Junior Master Chef.
• The rest include Enlisted and Almost Human.   I’m pretty bummed because Enlisted was supposed to premiere Nov 8th but FOX decided to move it to mid-season (Jan 10th premiere) because they wanted to use football season, which skews heavily male (shocking I know), to really promote the show.  I will be tuning in because anyone connected with Scrubs and Cougar Town knows how to write and cast funny ensemble shows.   So I have no doubt this will be another winner.   I didn’t know a lot about Almost Human and haven’t heard too much about it so I watched a trailer and I think the premise is interesting and different enough that I will certainly check it out.  Me staying with the show remains to be seen, but I love Michael Ealy and Lili Taylor so they have earned me watching my standard 3 episodes.

 

2013 Fall TV Preview: ABC

RETURNING SHOWS:

• 20/20 (9/6)
• Dancing with the Stars (9/16)
• Last Man Standing (9/20)
• The Neighbors (9/20)
• Shark Tank (9/20)
• Castle (9/23)
• The Middle (9/25)
• Modern Family (9/25)
• Nashville (9/25)
• Grey’s Anatomy (9/26)
• Scandal (10/3)
• Once Upon A Time (9/29)
• Revenge (9/29)
• America’s Funniest Home Videos (10/6)

NEW SHOWS:

• Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD (9/24)
• The Goldbergs (9/24)
• Trophy WIfe (9/24)
• Lucky 7 (9/24)
• Back in the Game (9/25)
• Betrayal (9/29)
• Super Fun Night (10/2)
• Once Upon A Time in Wonderland (10/10)

SHOWS I AM MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO:

• Castle: Castle proposed to Beckett.  What!!!!
• Revenge: Revenge had a fantastic first season but a sub par second season.  Will it rebound this year?
• Scandal: What does the last line of last season mean….Dad?
• Grey’s: There’s no way Richard’s dead right?   RIGHT?
• Nashville: I’m pretty sure Rayna and Deacon are alive but what will be the result of that crash…both physically and emotionally?
• All the new shows this season for ABC.

SHOWS I AM LOSING INTEREST IN BUT WILL GIVE ONE MORE SEASON TO:

• None

SHOWS I COULDN’T CARE LESS ABOUT:

• Dancing with the Stars
• The Middle
• Modern Family
• Last Man Standing
• Shark Tank

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:

• Revenge’s New Show Runner.   No one will disagree that Revenge seemed to lose its way last season (can you say The Initiative.)  And according to new show runner, Sunil Nayar and ABC Entertainment President, Paul Lee, Revenge stumbled and was too confusing last year.   The fans would certainly agree. So Nayar’s main task to is build on the storylines from Season 2 but using the template from Season 1 that worked so well.  That includes bringing back the “revenge of the week” episodes that were so much fun the first season.  According to reports (and an interesting promo) the premiere really resets somethings and sets up the series for an amazing season full of twists and turns (but in a good way.)   I can’t wait.   Because as bad at times as last season was, Emily told Jack who she really was, Victoria’s son is back in the picture, and how will everyone deal with the loss of Declan.
• Sandra Oh’s Last Season on Grey’s.  Grey’s was going to be in my “I Will Only Give This One More Season” section until the news of Oh leaving the show came out last month.  I’m kind of done with Grey’s but even though over the course of the series, Cristina was not one of my favorite characters, Sandra Oh is a fabulous actress.   So I’m curious to see how they write out one of the originals that is such a HUGE part of the show.  She’s Meredith’s person after all.  I can’t imagine Meredith without Cristina and vice versa.  So will Cristina go out alive or dead?   I’ll be tuning in to find out.
• New Show Tuesday Night.  I can’t remember the last time I saw an entire night full of new shows.  Tuesday is all in on the new shows with Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD, The Goldbergs, Trophy Wife, and Lucky 7.  I’ll talk more about each of these in the new show section but I’m curious to see how these will do in the ratings.   Usually there is at least one strong existing show to anchor the ratings for the night but ABC is really relying to the new shows to beat out NCIS, NCIS LA, Person of Interest, The Biggest Loser, and The Voice.   Ouch.   Good luck with that.  There is a ton of buzz around SHIELD but will it be enough to jump-start the evening?

EARLY THOUGHTS ON NEW SHOWS:

• I haven’t seen any of the new ABC shows.  I’ve seen many different clips and read many reports on the media site regarding the premises and directions of the new shows.  So with that limited information, I would say I am most excited about Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD, Betrayal, Trophy Wife, and The Goldbergs.  I want to really like Back in the Game and I’ve heard good things but I’ll have to see.  The jury is out for me on Once Upon A Time In Wonderland…I don’t know if I need to fairy tale shows.  And I have 100% ZERO interest in Super Fun Night and Lucky 7.  I’ve watched all the promos and you know it’s bad when you’re getting annoyed at having to sit through 3 minutes of a promo video of a show and can’t wait for it to be over.   That’s how I felt about Super Fun Night.  When I watch shows like that, like Free Agents and Whitney a few years ago, I wonder how these shows ever made it to pilot.   HORRIBLE!!  Both SHIELD and Betrayal look fantastic and I think Revenge is the perfect lead in show for Betrayal…it will be a good soapy night on ABC!!  I’m usually pretty hard on the comedies but I really enjoyed the promos for The Goldbergs and Trophy Wife.  There were many times I laughed out loud and I see good potential for both.  And the cast for Trophy Wife is insanely good….Bradley Whitford, Malin Akerman, Marcia Gay Harden, and Michaela Watkins.  ABC for the most part has, on paper, a solid line up of new shows.  But also liked lots of their new shows last year and most of them were canceled so what do I know!

 

2013 Fall Preview: CBS

RETURNING SHOWS:

• Survivor: Blood vs. Water (9/18)
• How I Met Your Mother (9/23)
• 2 Broke Girls (9/23)
• Mike & Molly (MIDSEASON)
• Hawaii 5-0 (9/27)
• NCIS (9/24)
• NCIS: LA (9/24)
• Criminal Minds (9/25)
• CSI (9/25)
• The Big Bang Theory (9/26)
• Two and a Half Men (9/26)
• Person of Interest (9/24)
• Elementary (9/26)
• Blue Bloods (9/27)
• 48 Hours Mystery (9/28)
• 60 Minutes (9/29)
• The Amazing Race (9/29)
• The Good Wife (9/29)
• The Mentalist (9/29)

NEW SHOWS:

• Mom (9/23)
• Hostages (9/23)
• The Crazy Ones (9/26)
• We Are Men (9/30)
• The Millers (10/3)

SHOWS I AM MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO:

• Person of Interest: Where is the damn machine?
• How I Met Your Mother: The Last Season 😦
• Elementary: Irene was a baddie the whole time.  How does that impact Sherlock?
• The Good Wife: Four Words: Florrick, Agos, & Associates!
• Hostages: One of the new shows I’m most looking forward to.  Premise is great and the cast is outrageously good.
• The Crazy Ones: SMG trying another return to TV and Robin Williams as her dad.  How can I not watch?
• Mom: If Allison Janney is on a show, I will always give it a try

SHOWS I AM LOSING INTEREST IN BUT WILL GIVE ONE MORE SEASON TO:

• The Mentalist

SHOWS I COULDN’T CARE LESS ABOUT:

• We Are Men
• CSI
• Hawaii 5-0
• The Big Bang Theory
• Two and a Half Men

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:

• The Final Season of How I Met Your Mother!   We have seen the mother but the big question is will we actually get to meet her?   What I mean by that is, will we get to know her?   There are a few theories out there.   First is that we will get to know her because fans will be outraged if we don’t.  Second is that the end of the series will be Ted meets her for the first time and that’s it…fade to black.  Because after all, the name of the show is How I MET Your Mother…not How I Courted, Dated, Slept with, Proposed, and Married Your Mother.  Third, and more morose, the mother has died at some point (which is why Ted is telling the story to his children) and he is now married to Aunt Robin, which is why there has been so much still on the Ted/Robin front these last few seasons.   I don’t know about that last one but anything is possible!
• Person of Interest Moving to Tuesdays. This show has been successful the last two seasons on Thursday nights.  Although it’s going against Chicago Fire and new show Lucky 7.  I think POI will be just fine.  I’m also curious to see how the addition of new regular cast members Amy Acker and Sarah Shahi will work.   They were great in their small doses but will too much be a bad thing?
• Hawaii 5-0 to the Dreaded Friday Night.  I don’t watch this show so it makes no difference to me, but it can never be a good sign to move from Monday to Friday.
• The Mentalist: Red John will be revealed and solved this season.  Unfortunately, I didn’t keep up with The Mentalist last season because the NFL games always ran long and I was never extended my DVR to tape past 11pm.  So I lost most of last season.  I’ll catch up at some point because after all this time, I want to know who Red John is, which the show runners have confirmed will be solved this season.    But then what?   Where does the show go from there since Jane always said he would leave after Red John was caught?

EARLY THOUGHTS ON NEW SHOWS:

• CBS doesn’t have a ton of new shows because their schedule is already so strong.  Only five shows!  Absolutely I will be watching Hostages.   The shows centers around Toni Colette as one of the best surgeons in DC whose family is taken hostage by a rogue FBI agent (Dylan McDermott) who is asking her to kill the President when he goes in for surgery.  Lines get blurred and the question of who’s good and who’s bad isn’t so easily answered.  Just when you want to hate or love someone, something happens and your viewpoint completely changes because you’re seeing this person from a whole new perspective. And I can’t wait.   Plus, McDermott, Colette, James Naughton, Sandrine Holt, Billy Brown, and Tate Donovan?   Seriously with that cast?   WOW.  I’m already in with both feet.
• Next comes Mom and The Crazy Ones.  I’ve heard good things about both of these shows so I’m checking them both out.   Mom starts Anna Faris and Allison Janney as mother and daughter who are both recovering alcoholics.  The chemistry between them works and while the show is funny, there are some heartwarming moments that draw me in.   I love when comedies can also have that heart that really attracts you to their characters.   Plus, Janney’s due for one to stick.   The Crazy Ones looks solid as well.   My only fear with this show is Robin Williams.   If he can keep his Robin Williamsness in check, it could be fabulous.   If he’s too over the top and takes over the show in a bad way, it could lose me sooner than later.   But I’m going in with high hopes.
• Finally, We Are Men and The Millers.   The Millers I will check out.  The cast is terrific (Will Arnett, Margo Martindale, Beau Bridges) and the premise is funny enough (recently divorced man finds out his parents of 43 years are divorcing and his mother is moving in with him.)   Now reading that doesn’t sound like a knee slapper but after seeing the clips on line, I laughed out loud a few times.  Plus, I couldn’t get over seeing Martindale in a comedic role after all the dramatic, dark roles she’s been in lately.   But I’ll give this show a few chances to see how it will do.   We Are Men?  Yeah, no.  Not happening.