Once again I present to you my longest,
and one of my more popular, annual posts – my 3rd annual fall
television preview. I’ve got a lot of new shows on the DVR this year, so read
on and see what I’ll be watching, and maybe you’ll find some shows you’ll want
to watch yourself! Note on formatting – all times listed as XE/XC means X time
Eastern / X time Central, but you probably are smart enough to realize what I
mean.
Debuting shows for the DVR: (11)
Almost Human – Although not making its
debut on Fox until midseason, so some time in 2014, I am very much looking
forward to this sci-fi police show about a pair of cops – Karl Urban &
Michael Ealy, one of which is human, and one is an android. It has a lot of
potential. Plus Karl Urban is awesome, so I’m pretty much sold right there.
Betrayal – This is a show my wife is more
interested in watching than I am, but I owe her considering how much sci-fi
there is this year. It is a soapy tale of powerful families and double crosses,
or something. Debuts on ABC on Sunday 9/29 at 10E/9C.
Dracula – I really enjoyed Jonathan Rhys Meyers’
performance as the debauched King Henry VIII on The Tudors, so I am also very
much looking forward to his portrayal of Dracula this fall on NBC. Too bad I
have to wait until October 25th for the show to debut, it airs
Friday nights at 10E/9C.
Hostages – This limited run show (only 15 episodes, I think) about a
doctor who has her family kidnapped, right before she goes to operate on the
President, looks like it is going to be a pretty taut thriller. The great cast
(Toni Collette & Dylan McDermott) help as well. Premieres for CBS on Monday
9/23 at 10E/9C.
Ironside – NBC is trying its luck again at the
reboot well, bringing back a popular show from the late 60s/early 70s about a
paralyzed cop and his team that helps him solve crimes. Blair Underwood stars
as the title character, and the show debuts on October 2 at 10E/9C.
The Originals – This spinoff from the Vampire Diaries,
a show we already watch, is a no-brainer to add to the schedule. Even if the
show doesn’t do as well as its parent, you can bet that some of the events here
will impact the events in the other show, so you kind of have to watch both
anyways. It debuts October 15 at 8E/7C over on the CW.
Reign – A soapy show
set in the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots, this show looks like it’s going to be
The Tudors with less sex and nudity, for a younger crowd. My wife and I will give this one a shot, but
we’re already kind of meh on it, so if it isn’t good it will be cut from the
rotation pretty quick. Debuts on October 17 at 9E/8C on the CW.
Sleepy
Hollow – The
wife and I always enjoy a good supernatural show. I hope it’s good! Debuts
September 16th on Fox at 9E/8C.
The
Tomorrow People – Yet
another show on the CW, our most DVR’d network, this one is set in the future
and focuses on youth that have evolved to have new abilities and powers. It is
based on a popular British series, apparently. It comes out on October 9th
at 9E/8C.
Trophy
Wife
– Malin Akerman stars as a trophy wife in a very dysfunctional family. She’s
pretty funny, so I hope this ABC comedy works out for her. Premieres 9/24 at
9:30E/8:30C.
Continue after the jump for more new shows, and what's returning!
Shows
we added between last fall and now: (4)
The
Americans
– This great spy thriller on the FX network came out last winter, and it
was outstanding. Set in the Cold War in the early 80s, this is some great
television, starring Keri Russell as you’ve never seen her before. I highly
recommend it! It returns in January 2014.
Graceland
– This
summer cop noir over on USA about undercover FBI agents was a fun ride in its
first season this year. I’m looking forward to season 2 in the summer of 2014!
Scandal – My wife
turned to me a few weeks ago and said she decided she wanted to watch this, so
we’ve gotten caught up and are now ready for season 3 to start on ABC, on
October 3rd at 10E/9C.
The Walking Dead – Another show
that I had wanted to watch from the get-go that my wife finally relented and
decided to start watching with me. We powered through the first three seasons
of this great zombie show on AMC, and can’t wait for season four to start. The
dead rise again on October 13th at 9E/8C.
Returning on my DVR: (11)
Arrow – After a
great first season on the CW, I’m really looking forward to where they go with
the characters from here. Season two begins on 10/9 at 8E/7C.
The
Big Bang Theory –
Raj can finally talk to girls after the finale of last season, and Leonard is
off on an adventure in the ocean. Looking forward to the gang getting back
together. It returns on CBS on 9/26 at 8E/7C.
Castle
–
My favorite cop show returns and gives us the answer to Rick’s popping of the
question, to start its 6th season on 9/23 at 10E/9C for ABC.
Dallas – We should
find out if this TNT soap can sustain itself in its first full season after the
death of star Larry Hagman. If not, it won’t remain on my DVR for long. It
returns sometime in early 2014.
Elementary
– Season
two of the entertaining Sherlock Holmes show returns to CBS on 9/26 at 10E/9C.
Glee –
It
should be really interesting to see how this show handles the death of star Cory
Monteith this summer. That episode should bring out the tears in the Gleeks. It
returns 9/26 on Fox at 9E/8C.
Hawaii
Five-0 –
The tropical cop show moved to Fridays, not always a good sign for shows. This
might be its last season, but we shall see. I’ll keep watching it for the
scenery porn of Hawaii. On CBS 9/27 9E/8C.
Nashville
– Only
the third network show to return to my DVR for its second season this fall,
this great ABC show better find some ratings or it won’t be around for long.
Starts 9/25 at 10E/9C.
Nikita – It was
nice of the CW to renew this show for a final six episode season so they could
wrap up the story for the fans. It will come sometime midseason, no word on
exact date yet.
South
Park – The
best animated show on TV returns for
its 17th season of mayhem on Comedy Central on 9/25 at 10E/9C.
Looking forward to it!
The
Vampire Diaries –
My wife’s favorite show (and a close competitor for mine as well), the twisty
and surprising TVD returns to the CW on 10/10 8E/7C.
New shows that didn't quite make
the cut:
(3)
Brooklyn Nine-Nine – As much as I love Andy Samberg, and this show looks quite funny,
unfortunately it also a victim of a schedule conflict with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
and The Originals on Tuesday nights, and my DVR can only record 2 channels at
once. Well, there’s always Hulu. I might check out the first few episodes
though as it starts airing on Fox on Tuesday 9/17 at 8:30E/7:30C, before the
Originals starts in October.
The Blacklist – As interesting as this new show on NBC looks, and it does look promising,
it also conflicts with Castle and Hostages, so sorry James Spader, but I’ll
catch you on DVD next summer if the show winds up being good. The Blacklist
makes its debut for NBC on Monday 9/23 at 10E/9C.
The Crazy Ones – Sarah Michelle Gellar’s 2nd post-Buffy attempt (after the
failure of Ringer) might be funny, or might be terrible, but I won’t be finding
out firsthand as it conflicts with Glee and Reign on the DVR. I hope she has
better success with it than Ringer though. The show premieres on Thursday 9/26 at
9E/8C on CBS.
Shows we don't DVR but have to
wait until DVD (don’t have HBO/Showtime):
Dexter – This fun show
is just wrapping up its 8th and final season on Showtime as I type
this, with the finale airing 9/22. Can’t wait to see how it ends when it comes
out on DVD, unlike prior seasons I’ve been avoiding spoilers and recaps and will
wait until the DVD to know what happens
Game
of Thrones
– In my opinion, GoT is easily the best show on TV right now. I’m all caught up
through the first three seasons and can’t wait for Season 4 next spring on HBO.
Girls – Sometimes
when my wife and I are watching this show, we feel that we are just a little
bit too old for this good but quirky show. Season 3 should debut on HBO
sometime in 2014.
Homeland – A close
runner up to GoT for best show I’m currently watching, the outstanding spy
thriller is a worthy heir to 24, but even better than that show. Season 3 premieres
on Showtime this month, on September 29th.
True
Blood
– They recently announced when this supernatural show returns in 2014 it will
be for its 7th and final season. I’m curious to see how they wrap
things up!
Cancelled Shows: (9)
Wow a lot of stuff got axed from our DVR
this year, I think 9 is a new record for us.
Beauty and the Beast - We cut this one off of our DVR because we were just
not feeling it (see post from last fall when we cut
it), but the CW did renew it for a
2nd season. We're not adding it back to the DVR though, it just
didn't draw us in.
Fringe - Fox announced before the
season that this one would be the last, just like the CW did for Gossip Girl
below. The trippy, mind bending, time altering show has been my favorite
sci-fi show to air recently, and it will be missed. I had a lot of fun in the
show's multiple universes, and I am sad that there won't be any more adventures
for the Fringe team going forward. At least they got to wrap the show up
nicely (albeit with kind of a time travel paradox) and not end it on a
cliffhanger or anything like that, had the show been cancelled after the season
ended. If you never watched Fringe but like sci-fi, or are a fan of Lost, I
highly encourage you to go check this show out on DVD now that it is complete.
Go On -
This Matthew Perry show lost our interest not far into its run and we axed
it from the DVR long before NBC also gave it the boot from their schedule. The
show steadily declined in viewership as the season wore on, when at the
beginning of the fall it almost seemed like a sure thing for a renewal for a
2nd season because it was pulling in big ratings. It was just too repetitive
and dull for me, but I hope Mr. Perry goes on to have better luck on his fourth
post-Friends show, as his first 3 have all tanked.
Gossip Girl - The CW
had announced at the start of the season that this would be the last. This
allowed the show to go out on its own terms, and they revealed at the end who
Gossip Girl had been all along. The only problem with the reveal is it creates
several massive, major, glaring plot holes that you just can't overcome or
reconcile with the events of the earlier seasons of the show. The person they
made Gossip Girl had on several instances of the show had something
"post" to Gossip Girl about them as it was happening to them, with a
smartphone or laptop nowhere within range of them to make the post. How
could that be possible?
Guys with Kids - I was
actually enjoying this show about young parents, as a young parent myself.
Unfortunately, it didn't seem anyone else was watching it, as its ratings were
terrible, so NBC gave it the axe (along with almost everything else on their
schedule).
The Mob Doctor - We whacked this show from our DVR after watching the
first two or three episodes before Fox pulled it off the air, and it won't
be missed. This was my post here
on the blog when I cut it off the DVR.
Up All Night - I really
liked the first season of this show, but this show's downfall is a great
example of what happens when you have too much executive meddling at a
network. NBC wanted Maya Rudolph to be more of a focus thanks to her star turn
in Bridesmaids, and the show stopped being about the struggles of new parents
Will Arnett & Christina Applegate. The audience left the show, and so too
did the show's creator Emily Spivey and star Applegate. NBC talked about
rebooting it with Lisa Kudrow stepping in to Applegate's role, but realized
that would be a horribly stupid idea and instead just euthanized the show.
666 Park Avenue -
I stopped watching this as soon as ABC announced they were ending it at 13
episodes, (after I'd watched about 4 or 5) so I never learned how the show
ended because I didn't want to invest time into a show that was known to be
doomed. It had an interesting premise but I just wasn't that sucked in, so the
cancellation came as a relief to me because it freed up an hour each week that
I would've watched to this show.
90210 - The CW decided to end
this show after a 5 year run of mostly struggling in the ratings. I'm
actually glad this one got the axe because it had majorly jumped the shark with
some of the silly plotlines it had recently. There were times during the
final season that I just couldn't stop laughing at just how contrived and
ridiculous several of the plot points were. I'm glad it’s gone, it just frees
up another slot for the fall.
Alright
– that was my 3rd annual fall TV preview. Thanks for reading through all the way to the
end and thanks for stopping by!
No comments:
Post a Comment