New On Fox: A Look at Fall 2011

Last week Fox released its schedule for Fall 2011 and Spring of 2012. Returning are some old favorites including House, Glee, and Bones, set to continue airing at their usual times. Surprisingly, Fringe continues to hold on to one of the Friday night death slots, previously used to kill of shows such as Dollhouse and Firefly.

New this Fall:

• New on Monday night is Terra Nova, a science fiction adventure. The year is 2149 and Earth is overcrowded and overdeveloped. Luckily, a particle accelerator unexpectedly finds a fracture in time that allows travel back to prehistoric Earth. The decision is made to start resettling people in the past with the hope of creating a better future. The story follows the Shannon family as they look for a new beginning, however they quickly discover that things are not as awesome in dinosaur times as they seem. Terra Nova looks interesting and potentially enjoyable. To me it seems like a crossover between the Swiss Family Robinson and Jurassic Park but with time travel. The cast is filled with actors with some experience, from shows that I have never heard of, but with Steven Spielberg listed as an executive producer, it might stand half a chance of success.

• New for Tuesday is New Girl (working title), a half hour sitcom staring Zoe Deschanel as Jess Day, a “offbeat and adorable girl in her lat twenties who, after a bad breakup, moves in with three single guys” (fox.com). Awkward moments and hilarity ensue as they, along with Jess's best friend Cece, become a dysfunctional sort of family. Overall, the trailer for the show contains a few funny moments and seems to be well suited for a short slot between Glee and Raising Hope. I'll probably catch the first few episodes online and decide if it's worth following.

• The next new non-reality show for the new Fox fall line up is a comedy called I Hate My Teenage Daughter (working title), which will be airing at 9:30pm on Wednesday nights. Annie (Jamie Pressly) and Nikki (Katie Finneran) star as best friends and single mothers trying to raise their teenage daughters. Annie and Nikki's original intent was to give their daughters the lives they themselves never had, but inadvertently the mothers end up creating new versions of the girls who bullied them through their teenage years. Realizing their mistakes, they now must try to fix what has been broken. I Hate My Teenage Daughter looks like it might have some funny moments as it takes a comedic look at the sometimes complicated mother-daughter relationship dynamic.

• I would be remiss in a review of Fox's fall TV lineup if I did not mention the two and a half hours it will be dedicating to The X-Factor on Wednesday (8-9:30) and Thursday (8-9) nights. This is the same block of time reserved for American Idol in the spring and is another variety of singing competition. The X Factor is really going to have to be something special if they hope to make it distinctive from every other singing competition on television, especially with Simon Cowell and Paula Abdul as judges on the show. Joining them are Antonio “L.A.” Reid and Cheryl Cole. I'm really not sure how I feel about Fox dedicating so much time to yet another singing completion. We all know that there are people in America who can sing. Pick a new topic, please.

• I also feel the need to mention Allen Gregory, the new addition to Fox's Sunday night comedy lineup. The show is about an ultra-smart and pretentious seven year old who leaves the homeschooling of his father to join elementary school with children his own age. The show looks to be about in line with the rest of the Fox Sunday night shows,which have never really been an interest to me, but some people find hilarious. If you like shows like Family Guy and The Simpsons, it might be worth it to check out Allen Gregory, airing at 8:30 on Sunday night.

For a more detailed description of the above mentioned shows, check out http://www.fox.com/programming/. Stop back sometime in the winter months for a look at the new mid-season pickups including Alcatraz, The Finder, and Napoleon Dynamite. Feel free to sound off below on your thoughts for new TV this Fall on Fox.

First thoughts on ABC’s Fall Line-Up

ABC’s line-up for the fall has been released and has left me feeling a little less excited than I was following NBC’s announcement. The full listing can be found at comingsoon.net and includes the return of fan favorites such as Grey’s Anatomy, Castle, Modern Family, and Body of Proof, among others. My initial reaction was of stunning indifference; few of the new shows leapt off the page. However, if you look at ABC’s best shows, none of them have a great premise. Castle and Body of Proof sound like cheesy riffs on the familiar police procedural and the rest of the ABC current line-up is variations on sit-coms and workplace dramas. ABC has always led the way with solid writing and acting talent. So without further speculation, here are my top picks among the new ABC drama.

• Charlie’s Angels: If you are unfamiliar with the concept behind Charlie’s Angels you may need to retake History of Television 101. This reboot of the 70’s classic will follow three sexy female detectives as they solve crimes and fight bad guys. There is also a strong possibility that at some point one or more of the main characters will appear in a bikini, but that’s just my speculation. Creators have promised that this reboot will be more serious and less campy then the 2000 movie. The reboot of Hawaii Five-0, has done well and I think Angels could be a fun ride so long as the writers find a way to keep the simple premise interesting from week to week.

• Once Upon A Time: It seems like this year every network is taking a chance on one weird fantasy genre show in an attempt to find the next Lost, and Once Upon A Time is ABC’s. Once Upon A Time follows Emma Swan, as she is reunited with the young son she gave up. Things take a turn for the strange when Emma’s son insists that she is the daughter of Snow White and must travel to the town of Storybrooke, home of the most famous characters of fairy tale lore, who have now been transformed into humans and forgotten their mythical origins by means of The Evil Queen’s curse. The show sounds a little strange on paper, but this mix of fairy tale stories with the “real world” could lead to some interesting story-telling. Emma Swan is played by Jennifer Morrison, well known from House, and I think is a good choice. She has proven her acting chops with supporting roles and should be ready to carry a show as a lead.

• Pan Am: Just as every network is trying to find the next Lost; it seems every network is also trying to create their own version of Mad Men. Pan Am, set in the 60’s, follows the men and women of Pan Am, the largest name in air travel. During this zany time period, pilots are kings, stewardesses are queens and the sky’s the limit. At this point you can see where this is going, and I see little reason to get excited for another period show. Perhaps Pan Am will bring something new to the table that Mad Men, Boardwalk Empire, or NBC’s new The Playboy Club do not, but I rather doubt it. If you really like the period show concept, this might be for you, but I’m putting this one down in the “wait and see” category.

• The River: The River follows the family of Emmet Cole, a TV personality and host of a Survivorman style nature show. However, when Emmet goes missing in the middle of the Amazon, his wife and son must team up with a production company willing to fund the rescue attempt in exchange for the right to film the entire thing. One aspect that might make this show interesting is the fact that the main characters have a camera crew following them around. If this is done in the style of the office it will be irrelevant, but actually showing the crew and the challenge of shooting in the rain forest might be interesting.

ABC has several new comedies premiering in the fall but two stuck out and they both ask the question of what it means to be a man and father.

• Last Man Standing: Tim Allen returns to television as Max Baxter, marketing director for a sporting goods store and ultimate manly man. However, when Max’s wife returns to work he is forced to take a more active role in the lives of the couple’s three daughters. It’s hard to tell a good comedy from the elevator pitch but I think the combination of Tim Allen in this odd man out set-up could lead to some good moments of comedy.

• Suburgatory: Aside from the horrible title, this show sounds pretty interesting; following a single father that moves himself and his teenage daughter out of their New York apartment after finding condoms on her nightstand. Hoping to protect her from the evils of the big city, the two relocate to the suburbs which, as everyone in the real world knows, is just like it is on Desperate Housewives. This show has one thing really going for it and that is the single parent thing. A large number of recent dramas have gotten mileage showing the special connection that is shared between a daughter and single dad and if they take a few notes from shows like Castle and Californication, ABC could have a hit on their hands. Also, Alan Tudyk is slotted for a supporting role, and that can’t hurt.

Well those are my picks for most interesting looking new ABC shows, but that is far from the complete list. Make sure to follow the link to comingsoon.net and check out the full listing of new shows and tell us in the comments which you want to see. Also follow the link here to take a look at our coverage of NBC’s fall line-up

NBC Fall Line-Up

NBC released its fall schedule on Sunday, finally letting us know which of our favorite shows will be returning and what new freshmen shows we have to look forward to. You can check out the full list here and see exactly what NBC has planned come September, but before you do I will take you through the highlights and give you my speculation on what new shows look worth your time and which will be 13 episode flops.

The returning line-up offers little surprise as Parenthood, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Harry's Law, Chuck, Community, Parks and Recreation, The Office, and 30 Rock are all set to return. The one bit of news here involves cult favorite Chuck, which against all odds has survived cancellation yet again. NBC has stated that this will be the show’s fifth and final season and that they will be moving Chuck from its regular Monday time slot to the Friday death slot. I think the show has had a great run and since the writers know this will be the last year going in, I think we can expect a great final season. As for the move to Fridays, I don’t think this will have much effect on the show that has shown just how loyal its fans can be. After fans flocked to out to buy Subway sandwiches to show support for the show, I think making the move to Friday nights will not be a problem.

NBC has six new dramas airing for the fall season and while I encourage you to follow the above link and read more about all of them I am going to single out three that have me particularly excited.

· Grimm takes the classic “what if all story-book monsters were real?” motif that has been the basis for both Supernatural and Buffy The Vampire Slayer. A homicide detective discovers he is one of the last remaining Grimms, people with the ability to see and fight the monsters that plague humanity. If you are a fan of either Buffy or Supernatural, I do not think that this show will be anything new. However, the show has David Greenwalt listed as a creator/executive producer and Greenwalt helped Joss Whedon create both Buffy and Angel and if he brings us more of the same, I for one will be happy.

· The Playboy Club is a new drama that seems to be following in the footsteps of Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire. Set in the 60s, this drama will center around the infamous club located in the heart of organized crime, Chicago. Brian Grazer is set to executive produce; his resume includes 24, American Gangster and Apollo 13. I have not followed either Mad Men or Boardwalk Empire, but with the successes of these other period shows I think this could do rather well. Plus, it never hurts to throw a buzzword like “Playboy” in your title.

· This brings us to Awake, a drama following Detective Michael Brittan in the aftermath of a terrible car crash. Following the accident, Brittan finds himself drifting back and forth between two parallel realities. In one, his wife dies in the accident, but their young son survives. In the other, the wife lives but the couple loses their son. Brittan is left jumping between the two worlds and living through two different tragedies simultaneously. I am very excited for this show and I think if it’s good, Awake could become something akin to what Lost was in its early days. This show has the possibility to be a great genre show while still appealing to a much wider audience. If this show doesn’t get gunned down in its first season I think NBC might have a winner.

I skipped over the nine new comedy pilots that NBC has picked up because none of them really appealed to me and I have never been impressed with the comedies on NBC (with Community the exception that proves the rule). However, I encourage you to check them out by following the link above because with nine different offerings there seems like there is something in there for everyone.

What do you think of NBC’s fall schedule? Which shows are you excited for and which ones do you think will be duds? Let us know which shows you are looking forward to in the comments and we will let you know what we think when these new offerings hit in the fall.