Monday, August 6, 2012

The Best Time Of The Year (New TV Shows Time)

*UPDATE*
Thanks to Colorado Avalanche Alternate Captain Paul Stastny via Twitter, It's Always Sunny has been confirmed for an October 11th season premier.

NBC debuted two of their new, hopeful sitcoms a month before new shows typically come out.  This followed their strong Olympic numbers, so it was a good strategy to try to lure in viewers.  The problem...neither show was any good.

Matthew Perry's new endeavor, Go On, is much more Mr. Sunshine than Friends.  While I am a fan of Joanna Garcia Swisher, even she could not save Animal Practice, nor could I even get through the entire episode.  After just one episode of Go On and half of an episode of Animal Practice, both these show are off my DVR.  Let's hope the new dramas that will premiere next month will be better than these two sitcoms and fortunately, we will be getting It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Happy Endings, and South Park as well as the potential for Brickleberry.

The fall brings us back football, hockey, and relief from summer's brutal 100 degree temperatures.   It is also the time when TV networks debut their best and brightest and we get the return of some of the best shows on TV today.  There are some promising new shows this upcoming season as well as the long anticipated returns of some other great shows.  Here is what to watch...

Per usual, Sundays will be jam-packed.  The rest of the week is pretty spread out, but we shall see how things shake out with the inevitable cancellations and midseason replacements. 



Sundays will boast the return of the premium channels bests including the 7th season of Showtime's Dexter.  If you recall, season 6 left us with a killer of a cliffhanger!  Once again, it will be followed by Homeland, the military psychological thriller entering its 2nd season.  HBO will bring back the critically acclaimed Boardwalk Empire for its 3rd season, which will certainly look to feature some new cast members (if you saw the end of season 2, you'll know why!).  Family Guy and The Simpsons will be back on Fox.  Family Guy is still funny, I watch The Simpsons out of obligation and not much else these days.  Does anyone else still watch the new Simpsons?  In October, The Walking Dead will return for its fall set.  Hands-down, one of the best shows on basic cable and my personal favorite (show or movie) in the horror genre.  The newbies on Sunday will include 666 Park Avenue, which will revolve around an apartment building owned by the devil, played by Terry O'Quinn (Lost's John Locke and the man in black "Barry" as Locke).  This show may be on a short leash for me simply due to the logjam of shows on Sunday nights.  Do No Harm is a medical thriller which will debut midseason, starring Rescue Me's Stephen Pasquale and Law & Order's Alana de la Garza.

Mondays will feature the return of the reliable How I Met Your Mother and Hawaii Five-O on CBS.  JJ Abrams will take another crack at network TV with NBC's Revolution, a post-apocalyptic show where technology no longer exists.  Looks like it has potential, but Abrams has had more busts than hits post-Lost (Undercovers and Alcatraz vs. Person of Interest).


The best network sitcom on TV today, Happy Endings, will move to Tuesdays and will return in October.  Watch this show!  It is hilarious!  There are also a few newcomers on Tuesdays with potential.  Stand-up comedian and Tosh.O star Daniel Tosh will debut his animated show Brickleberry, which will also co-star Kaitlin Olsen, It's Always Sunny's Dee Reynolds.  After Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and Mr. Sunshine failed to make an impact, Matthew Perry will get his 3rd shot to find some post-Friends TV success with Go On.  Perry will play a sportscaster trying to get over his wife's death.  CBS will debut Vegas, a 1960s Western set in Las Vegas with Dennis Quaid as a sheriff and Michael Chiklis as a mobster.  Sounds a tad different from the James Caan/Josh Duhamel show Las Vegas and Chiklis as a mobster should be good.



On Wednesdays, Law & Order: SVU will return for its 14th season and rumors are that Det. Stabler may return as a guest star.  South Park will also be back for its fall run.  NBC will debut Animal Practice, featuring Joanna Garcia Swisher (from Better With You) and a monkey.  The CW will try to emulate its Smallville success with Arrow, a show about DC superhero, The Green Arrow.  They (back when they were still the WB) struck out in 2002 with the loosely-themed Batman show, Birds of Prey, which only lasted one season.

Thursdays will see the return of JJ Abrams hit CBS show, Person of Interest, a decent show, but certainly not Lost-caliber.  30 Rock will enter its final season and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia will return in October.  The funniest show on TV.  Last Resort looks promising.  It is about a renegade submarine and is from Shawn Ryan, the creator of The Shield.

Fringe will enter its final season on Fridays this season, hopefully getting the ending this underrated and underappreciated show deserves.  The Kiefer Sutherland show Touch moves to Fridays as well, possibly signifying a lifespan for this show similar to that of Danny Glover's character on the show.  They don't call it "the Friday night death slot" for no reason.



Sunday
Boardwalk Empire - 9/16 HBO
The Simpsons - 7:00, 9/30 Fox
Family Guy - 8:00, 9/30 Fox
Dexter - 9/30 Showtime
Homeland - 9/30 Showtime
666 Park Avenue - 9:00, 9/30 CBS
The Walking Dead - 10/14 AMC
Do No Harm - 9:00 Midseason NBC

Monday
Revolution - 9:00, 9/17 NBC
How I Met Your Mother - 7:00, 9/24 CBS
Hawaii Five-O - 9:00, 9/24 CBS

Tuesday
Go On - 8:00, 8/8 (9/11) NBC
Vegas - 9:00, 9/25 CBS
Brickleberry, 9/25 Comedy Central
Happy Endings - 8:00, 10/23 ABC

Wednesday
Animal Practice - 7:00, 8/12 (9/26) NBC
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit - 8:00 - 9/26 NBC
South Park - 9/26 Comedy Central
Arrow - 7:00, 10/10 CW

Thursday
Last Resort - 7:00, 9/27 ABC
Person of Interest - 8:00, 9/27 CBS
30 Rock - 7:00, 10/4 NBC
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, 10/11 FX

Friday
Fringe - 8:00, 9/28 Fox
Touch - 7:00, 10/26 Fox

New shows in bold