CBS got its shot at showing off its new lineup today, marking the final presentation from the Big Four networks at this year’s Upfronts. The Eye announced a total of seven new series; two comedies, four dramas, and one reality show. The fall will usher in four new shows, and the remaining three will join in come midseason. Jump after the break to get more information about all of the new shows including synopses, cast and creator/executive producer listings, and clips.
Also posted after the break is CBS’ 2012-13 programming schedule. The network slightly shuffled things around precisely so that each of the four new shows premiering this fall will have a solid lead-in to boost initial ratings. Breakout comedy from Michael Patrick King and Whitney Cummings 2 Broke Girls has been shifted to 9PM on Mondays to make way for new comedy Partners; veteran sitcom How I Met Your Mother is the lead-in at 8PM. Period drama Vegas nabbed the Tuesday 10PM spot where it will follow the NCIS duo. To help support the growing Person of Interest, comedies The Big Bang Theory and Two and a Half Men will kick off Thursday nights at 8PM and 8:30PM, respectively; the contemporary Sherlock Holmes crime drama Elementary follows POI at 10PM. CSI: NY relocates to Fridays at 8PM and serves as a lead-in to new legal drama Made in Jersey. One last alteration: The Mentalist, entering its fifth season, will make itself comfortable on Sunday nights at 10PM.
COMEDY
Partners
Starring Michael Urie (Ugly Betty), David Krumholtz (Numbers), Sophia Bush (One Tree Hill), Brandon Routh (Superman Returns)
From David Kohan and Max Mutchnick (Will & Grace)
Airs Mondays 8:30PM
PARTNERS is a comedy based on the lives of creators David Kohan and Max Mutchnick, about two life-long best friends and business partners whose “bromance” is tested when one of them is engaged to be married. Joe (David Krumholtz) is an accomplished architect who leads with his head and not his heart, especially in his love life. That’s in stark contrast to his gay co-worker, Louis (Michael Urie), who is spontaneous, emotional and prone to exaggeration. Both have found joy in their love lives: Joe is newly engaged to Ali (Sophia Bush), a beautiful and sophisticated jewelry designer, while Louis is dating Wyatt (Brandon Routh), a vegan nurse who Louis insists is just a promotion away from becoming a doctor. As news of Joe’s engagement settles, time will tell if their business and personal bond can adapt to the addition of two other important relationships. Emmy Award winners David Kohan and Max Mutchnick are executive producers for Warner Bros. Television. Emmy Award winner James Burrows directed the pilot.
Friend Me
Starring Nicholas Braun, Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Super Bad), Parveesh Cheena, Tim Robinson, Dan Ahdoot
From Alan Kirschenbaum, Ajay Sahgal, Eric and Kim Tannenbaum
Airs midseason
FRIEND ME is a comedy about two 20-something best friends who just moved from Indiana to Los Angeles to start cool new jobs, but can’t agree on how to socially engage in their new city. Rob (Nicholas Braun) is eager to embrace the L.A. scene and meet new people who aren’t looking down at their smart phones or laptops. Evan (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), however, prefers to socialize online at home in his underwear, web-chatting and playing poker with his Hoosier buddies Mike (Parveesh Cheena), Sully (Tim Robinson) and Farhad (Dan Ahdoot) just a keystroke away. Meanwhile, Rob’s had enough of iChatting, and naively posts a flyer seeking new friends on the coffee house bulletin board, despite Evan’s warning that no good can come from meeting strangers in person. Soon the calls start rolling in, some with potential, some just disturbing, and Rob and a reluctant Evan embark on what will be a series of the most epic adventures – and disasters – of their lives. Alan Kirschenbaum and Ajay Sahgal, Eric and Kim Tannenbaum, are executive producers for CBS Television Studios, in association with The Tannenbaum Company. The pilot was directed by Pamela Fryman.
DRAMA
Vegas
Starring Dennis Quaid, Michael Chiklis (The Sheild, No Ordinary Family), Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix), Jason O’Mara (Terra Nova), Taylor Handley
From Greg Walker, Nicholas Pileggi, Arthur Sarkissian, Cathy Konrad, James Mangold
Airs Tuesdays 10PM
Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis star in VEGAS, a drama inspired by the true story of former Las Vegas Sheriff Ralph Lamb, a fourth-generation rancher tasked with bringing order to Las Vegas in the 1960s, a gambling and entertainment mecca emerging from the tumbleweeds. Ralph Lamb (Quaid) wants to be left in peace to run his ranch, but Las Vegas is now swelling with outsiders and corruption which are intruding on his simple life. Recalling Lamb’s command as a military police officer during World War II, the Mayor appeals to his sense of duty to look into a murder of a casino worker – and so begins Lamb’s clash with Vincent Savino (Chiklis), a ruthless Chicago gangster who plans to make Vegas his own. Assisting Lamb in keeping law and order are his two deputies: his diplomatic, even-keeled brother Jack (Jason O’Mara) and his charming but impulsive son, Dixon (Taylor Handley). Ambitious Assistant District Attorney Katherine O’Connell (Carrie-Anne Moss), who grew up on the ranch next to the Lambs, also lends a hand in preserving justice. In Vegas, two powerful men – Lamb and Savino – are engaged in a fierce battle for control of the budding oasis, and for both of them, folding is not an option. Nicholas Pileggi, Greg Walker, Cathy Konrad, Arthur Sarkissian and James Mangold, who also directed the pilot, are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios.
Elementary
Starring Jonny Lee Miller (Eli Stone), Lucy Liu (Charlie’s Angels), Aidan Quinn
From Rob Doherty, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly, Michael Cuesta
Airs Thursdays 10PM
ELEMENTARY stars Jonny Lee Miller as detective Sherlock Holmes and Lucy Liu as Dr. Joan Watson in a modern-day drama about a crime-solving duo that cracks the NYPD’s most impossible cases. Following his fall from grace in London and a stint in rehab, eccentric Sherlock escapes to Manhattan where his wealthy father forces him to live with his worst nightmare – a sober companion, Dr. Watson. A successful surgeon until she lost a patient and her license three years ago, Watson views her current job as another opportunity to help people, as well as paying a penance. However, the restless Sherlock is nothing like her previous clients. He informs her that none of her expertise as an addiction specialist applies to him and he’s devised his own post-rehab regimen – resuming his work as a police consultant in New York City. Watson has no choice but to accompany her irascible new charge on his jobs. But Sherlock finds her medical background helpful, and Watson realizes she has a knack for playing investigator. Sherlock’s police contact, Capt. Tobias “Toby” Gregson (Aidan Quinn), knows from previous experience working with Scotland Yard that Sherlock is brilliant at closing cases, and welcomes him as part of the team. With the mischievous Sherlock Holmes now running free in New York solving crimes, it’s simple deduction that he’s going to need someone to keep him grounded, and it’s elementary that it’s a job for Watson. Rob Doherty, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly and Michael Cuesta, who directed the pilot, are executive producers for CBS Television Studios.
Made in Jersey
Starring Janet Montgomery (Entourage), Kyle MacLachlan (Desperate Housewives), Stephanie March, Toni Trucks, Donna Murphy, Erin Cummings (Bonnie Garretti)
From Kevin Falls, Jamie Tarses, Julia Franz, Mark Waters
Airs Fridays 9PM
MADE IN JERSEY is a drama about a young working-class woman who uses her street smarts to compete among her pedigreed Manhattan colleagues at a prestigious New York law firm. Martina Garretti (Janet Montgomery) finds her firm’s cutthroat landscape challenging, but what she lacks in an Ivy League education she more than makes up for with tenacity and blue-collar insight. After just a few weeks, firm founder Donovan Stark (Kyle MacLachlan), takes note of Martina’s ingenuity and resourcefulness, as does her sassy secretary Cyndi Vega (Toni Trucks). With the support of her big Italian family, including her sexy older sister Bonnie (Erin Cummings), Martina is able to stay true to her roots as a bold, passionate lawyer on the rise in a new intimidating environment. Jamie Tarses, Kevin Falls, Julia Franz and Mark Waters, who also directed the pilot, are the executive producers for Sony Pictures Television in association with CBS Television Studios. Pilot was written by creator and co-executive producer Dana Calvo.
Golden Boy
Starring Theo James, Chi McBride (Pushing Daisies), Kevin Alejandro, Bonnie Somerville, Holt McCallany, Stella Maeve
From Greg Berlanti (No Ordinary Family), Nicholas Wootton, Richard Shepard
Airs midseason
GOLDEN BOY is a drama about the meteoric rise of an ambitious cop who becomes the youngest police commissioner in the history of New York City, and the high personal and professional cost he pays to achieve it. As he’s interviewed for a story about his career, Walter William Clark, Jr. (Theo James) flashes back on his hard-fought journey from street kid to the most powerful man in law enforcement. After only three years as a beat cop, Clark’s heroics on the job make him bold enough to ask for and receive the unheard – of promotion to Homicide Detective, angering the members of his new department who are eager to see him fail. Clark’s disappointed to be partnered with veteran Detective Don Owen (Chi McBride), a gruff lifer just two years shy of retirement. He would rather team with First Grade Detective Christian Arroyo (Kevin Alejandro), the alpha dog in the squad who’s just as ambitious as Clark, but without a moral center. Arroyo’s partner is Detective Deborah McKenzie (Bonnie Somerville), a tough third-generation cop and the only female detective in the unit. Also on the team is Detective Joe Diaco (Holt McCallany), well-connected with tremendous resources which Clark might find useful. Though laser-focused on moving up the ladder, Clark’s soft spot is serving as the sole caregiver and supporter of his sister, Agnes (Stella Maeve), a teenager demonstrating increasingly dangerous behavior. Keenly observant and politically savvy, the Golden Boy bases his career decisions solely on his need to succeed as quickly as possible, and he’ll find that his epic journey will be filled with consequences. Greg Berlanti, Emmy Award winner Nicholas Wootton and Richard Shepard, who directed the pilot, are executive producers for Warner Bros. Television.
The Job
Reality series, airs midseason
From reality show masters Michael Davies (“Who Wants To Be A Millionaire,” “Watch What Happens Live”) and Mark Burnett (“Survivor,” “The Voice”) comes a new reality series, THE JOB, where every week talented candidates are chosen from across the country for a chance to win their dream job at one of America’s most prestigious companies. Host Lisa Ling guides participants through several rounds of the most intense interviews of their lives, including challenges ranging from an on-the-spot quiz to assess their knowledge of the company to deadline-driven tasks while spending a day on the job. But the candidates aren’t the only ones in the hot seat. Adding to the pressure, a rival company is also present and waiting for an opportunity to swoop in and steal any of the contenders by making a competing offer. The participant must then decide immediately whether they will take the rival’s offer or stay in the competition in the hope that they are the last one standing for this once-in-a-lifetime job opportunity. Produced by Sony Pictures Television and Embassy Row.
CBS’ 2012-13 programming schedule (CAPS indicate new show)
MONDAY
8PM How I Met Your Mother
8:30PM PARTNERS
9PM 2 Broke Girls
9:30PM Mike & Molly
10PM Hawaii Five-0
TUESDAY
8PM NCIS
9PM NCIS: LA
10PM VEGAS
WEDNESDAY
8PM Survivor
9PM Criminal Minds
10PM CSI
THURSDAY
8PM The Big Bang Theory
8:30PM Two and a Half Men
9PM Person of Interest
10PM ELEMENTARY
FRIDAY
8PM CSI: NY
9PM MADE IN JERSEY
10PM Blue Bloods
SATURDAY
8PM Crimetime Saturday
9PM Crimetime Saturday
10PM 48 Hours Mystery
SUNDAY
7PM 60 Minutes
8PM The Amazing Race
9PM The Good Wife
10PM The Mentalist