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2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: FOX

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As the holiday season approaches, many of your favorite shows go on hiatus so you can spend time with your loved ones. Most will return to the airwaves in early January and with them comes some new programming–some of which are worth checking out. In this year’s midseason TV preview posts, I will recommend which new shows are worth watching as well as offer schedules provided by the networks themselves. Midseason is on the horizon; out your calendars and let’s do this thing!

This midseason FOX is adding six series to its schedule, two of which include a new drama and a new comedy. The buzziest new midseason drama is The Following, a psychological thriller from Kevin Williamson (The Vampire Diaries, Scream) starring Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy. When a serial killer (Purefoy) escapes from death row, he embarks on a new killing spree and forms a cult of believers and a former FBI agent (Bacon) is tasked with putting a stop to the madness. Bacon’s character has a unique connection to Purefoy’s–he is the one who was responsible for locking him up before in 2003. Critics who have seen the pilot describe it as a terrifying thrill ride. Some say it’s the scariest pilot ever aired on network TV. We’ll see how it compares to the likes of cable offerings such as American Horror Story and The Walking Dead when The Following premieres Monday, January 21 at 9PM. Watch an extended trailer after the break.

The new FOX comedy waiting to enter the fold is The Goodwin Games from the executive producers of How I Met Your Mother Carter Bays, Craig Thomas, and Chris Harris starring Scott Foley, Becki Newton, Felisha Terrell, and Melissa Tang. The wacky single camera sitcom follows three estranged siblings forced to reconnect after their father’s death while competing against each other to inherit his vast fortune. Now because FOX’s Tuesday night comedy lineup is packed with shows that all received back orders this fall (namely Raising Hope, Ben And Kate, New Girl, The Mindy Project), the network has not decided when it will add The Goodwin Games into the mix. Since Ben And Kate has the smallest episode count this season at 19, FOX will likely replace it with The Goodwin Games after its finale airs. Speaking of episode count, FOX cut Games‘ original 13 episode order to 7, also due to there being little wiggle room in the schedule. With the HIMYM auspices behind it, I wouldn’t count it out just yet. When a premiere date is announced, you’ll know it.

My recommendation: Do not miss The Following. If you’ve only got room for one new drama, this is it. And even if you don’t, make room. And whenever The Goodwin Games airs, I’d say give it a go. Though if it doesn’t perform well out of the gate, it probably won’t last long.

Shows that are returning to FOX’s schedule include Tim Kring’s Touch starring Kiefer Sutherland, David Mazouz, and Mario Bello (premiering Friday, February 8 at 8PM), American Idol is back with a new judges panel including Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, and Keith Urban (Wednesday, January 16 at 8PM), Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen, and Cops.

Jump after the break to view the full schedule.

Look in the gallery below for key art (aka TV promotional posters).

Continue reading 2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: FOX →

2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: ABC

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As the holiday season approaches, many of your favorite shows go on hiatus so you can spend time with your loved ones. Most will return to the airwaves in early January and with them comes some new programming–some of which are worth checking out. In this year’s midseason TV preview posts, I will recommend which new shows are worth watching as well as offer schedules provided by the networks themselves. Midseason is on the horizon; out your calendars and let’s do this thing!

This midseason ABC is adding eight series to its schedule, six of which include two new dramas, comedies, and reality shows. The network’s two freshmen drama series both look intriguing. First there’s Zero Hour, a conspiracy thriller executive produced and written by Paul T. Scheuring (Prison Break) starring Anthony Edwards, Scott Michael Foster, Michael Nyqvist, Jacinda Barrett, Addison Timlin, and Carmen Ejogo. The plot involves a treasure map, deciphering symbols, saving humanity. Though the Declaration of Indepenence isn’t at stake here, Zero Hour sure sounds like its borrowing a bit from National Treasure. Whether or not this is a good thing… The trailer, posted after the break, comes off as more corny than cool but for all you conspiracy theorists out there this is one worth checking out. Zero Hour premieres Thursday, February 14 at 8PM.

Next up is Red Widow. It’s from creator Melissa Rosenberg (Dexter, the Twilight saga) and stars Radha Mitchell, a stay-at-home mom who gets tangled up in a bloody and dangerous tale involving her husband’s death, organized crime, and the criminal underworld. Though it might sound complicated, the trailer (posted after the break) is quite good and it looks like Mitchell will find herself on a distinct yet similar path to Emily Van Camp’s over on ABC’s soap Revenge. Red Widow premieres Sunday, March 3 at 9PM.

A new comedy starring Sarah Chalke has a very long title: How to Live with Your Parents (for the Rest of Your Life). It’s about a recently divorced single mom (Chalke) who moves back in with her parents (Elizabeth Perkins and Brad Garrett). It premieres Wednesday, April 3 at 9:30PM.

The other new comedy is Family Tools, a show based on the British sitcom White Van Man from Adrian Poynton. It stars the very funny Kyle Bornheimer, J.K. Simmons, and Leah Remini and it follows the mishaps of what happens when you mix family with business. It premieres Wednesday, May 1 at 8PM. Due to scheduling concerns, the show’s original 13 episode order was reduced to 10.

If you’re into reality shows, ABC has a cooking competition show The Taste and Celebrity Diving on tap. They premiere Tuesday, January 22 at 8PM and Tuesday, March 26 at 9PM, respectively.

My recommendation: Definitely check out Red Widow and give Zero Hour a try. In terms of new comedy, I’d take Family Tools over How To Live With Your Parents, but maybe that’s just because I’m a big supporter of Bornheimer (Perfect Couples) and J.K. Simmons.

Shows that are returning to ABC’s schedule include Body of Proof (premiering Tuesday, February 5 at 10PM) and Dancing with the Stars (Monday, March 18 at 8PM).

Jump after the break to view the full schedule. Continue reading 2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: ABC →

2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: NBC

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As the holiday season approaches, many of your favorite shows go on hiatus so you can spend time with your loved ones. Most will return to the airwaves in early January and with them comes some new programming–some of which are worth checking out. In this year’s midseason TV preview posts, I will recommend which new shows are worth watching as well as offer schedules provided by the networks themselves. Midseason is on the horizon; out your calendars and let’s do this thing!

This midseason NBC is adding thirteen series to its schedule, three of which include two new dramas, a comedy, and a reality series. Though the four of them combined do not carry the same amount of buzz that FOX’s The Following is getting, you still might want to tune into them as their premises are tantalizing enough. Do No Harm, from executive producer David Schulner (The Event) stars Steven Pasquale as a respected neurosurgeon with a deep, dark secret–every night at the same hour, something inside [Pasquale’s] changes, leaving him almost unrecognizable – seductive, devious, borderline sociopathic. Some are calling it a modern day tale of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. To me it sounds sort of like the premise of NBC’s promising but cancelled series Awake. Do No Harm premieres Thursday, January 31 at 10PM, the same night 30 Rock airs its series finale. Watch a trailer after the break.

The other new drama coming to the Peacock is Deception (formally called Infamous). It hails from Liz Heldens (Prime Suspect, Friday Night Lights) and stars Meagan Good, Victor Garber, Tate Donovan, Katherine LaNasa, and Laz Alonso. It’s a soap wrapped in a family murder mystery and it premieres Monday, January 7 at 8PM. Trailer after the break.

NBC’s latest sitcom 1600 Penn follows a typical American family who just happen to live in the White House. Actor Josh Gad stars, and he also co-created the show with Jon Lovett. Jason Weiner (Modern Family) directed the pilot. It also stars Bill Pullman and Jenna Elfman. It premieres Thursday, January 10 at 9:30PM. Trailer after the break.

The new reality series Ready for Love is a “relationship show about making real connections” from executive producer Eva Longoria. It premieres Sunday, March 31 at 8PM.

My recommendation: Skip Deception (unless you want another soap on your schedule–but Revenge already fills that void magnificently) and try out Do No Harm and 1600 Penn. Take note, however, that Do No Harm is in the Thursday at 10PM timeslot and that’s a very tough place on the sked to achieve success.

Shows that are returning to NBC’s schedule include The Biggest Loser (premiering Sunday, January 6 at 9PM), Betty White’s Off Their Rockers (Tuesday, January 8 at 8PM), Smash (Tuesday, February 5 at 9PM), Community (Thursday, February 7 at 8PM), The Celebrity Apprentice (Sunday, March 3 at 9PM), Fashion Star (Friday, March 8 at 8PM), Grimm (Friday, March 8 at 9PM), The Voice (Monday, March 25 at 8PM), and Revolution (Monday, March 25 at 10PM).

Jump after the break to view the full schedule. (NBC isn’t providing a tidy midseason schedule so we’ll have to do with what we got.)

Look in the gallery below for key art (aka TV promotional posters).

Continue reading 2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: NBC →

2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: CBS

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As the holiday season approaches, many of your favorite shows go on hiatus so you can spend time with your loved ones. Most will return to the airwaves in early January and with them comes some new programming–some of which are worth checking out. In this year’s midseason TV preview posts, I will recommend which new shows are worth watching as well as offer schedules provided by the networks themselves. Midseason is on the horizon; out your calendars and let’s do this thing!

This midseason CBS is adding four series to its schedule. The Eye typically doesn’t do much tweaking this time of year. Its two biggest moves are filling in the voids left by cancelled comedy Partners and drama Made in Jersey. Rules of Engagement returns for its seventh season on Monday, February 4 at 8:30PM. New drama Golden Boy, from exec producers Greg Berlanti and Nicholas Wootton, follows the rise of an ambitious cop (played by Theo James) who is destined to become the youngest police commissioner in New York City history; Chi McBride plays his detective mentor. CBS is airing two “special previews” of the show on Tuesday, February 26 and March 5 at 10PM before it lands in its regular Friday night at 9PM slot. Update (12/20): Also coming midseason to CBS is a new Mark Burnett business-themed reality competition series The Job; it premieres Friday, February 8 at 8PM.

My recommendation: Unless you’re super into CBS’ typical slate of cop procedurals (read: Blue Bloods), I wouldn’t consider Golden Boy a must-see new program next year.

Shows that are returning to CBS’ schedule include the 26th edition of Survivor and the 22nd edition of The Amazing Race which premiere Wednesday, February 13 at 8PM and Sunday, February 17 at 8PM, respectively. CBS is still waiting to schedule midseason comedy Friend Me whose co-creator Alan Kirschenbaum passed away this year.

Jump after the break to view the full schedule. Continue reading 2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: CBS →

2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: The CW

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As the holiday season approaches, many of your favorite shows go on hiatus so you can spend time with your loved ones. Most will return to the airwaves in early January and with them comes some new programming–some of which are worth checking out. In this year’s midseason TV preview posts, I will recommend which new shows are worth watching as well as offer schedules provided by the networks themselves. Midseason is on the horizon; out your calendars and let’s do this thing!

This midseason The CW is adding two new series to its schedule: mystery Cult and Sex and the City prequel The Carrie Diaries. Cult follows an investigative journalist (played by Matt Davis) who teams with a research assistant (Jessica Lucas) to find his brother and unravel the mystery behind the TV series called “Cult” whose hardcore fans would literally kill to see what happens next. It also stars Alona Tal and Robert Knepper. It premieres Tuesday, February 19 at 9PM.

The Carrie Diaries is all about Carrie Bradshaw before she met Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda. Nineteen-year-old AnnaSophia Robb plays young Carrie and the show takes place in the ’80s so you can expect the glitz and glam from that exciting era. It premieres Monday, January 14 at 8PM.

My recommendation: It’s always hard for me to recommend anyone to invest their time in a show that airs on The CW. (The last time I did was for Ringer and how did that turn out? Not good.) Not that the network’s programming is particularly bad all the time; it just caters to a very young audience mostly. As much as I want Cult to be a fun, exciting, and suspenseful mystery, after watching a preview it just doesn’t reach me. It grabs and pulls at the things I really like to see in a drama, but it contains the glaze that most CW dramas have (it comes off as bizarre and corny, honestly) and it’s hard for me to tell you to invest your time in such an intriguing mess. I tried Ringer, I really did, but the pilot was too horrendous for me to ever get hooked. Cult, unfortunately, might follow the same fate. The Carrie Diaries, however, is easier to recommend because it sits in the shadow of one of the most successful shows of all time (HBO’s Sex and the City). Obviously the prequel can’t be as edgy and risque, but if the preview has anything to offer its that young Carrie isn’t so different from her future self. This show opens up the world of Carrie Bradshaw to a whole new generation of girls and likely they’ll bite. And if you’re older with kids and remember the wild adventures of Carrie and company, perhaps The Carrie Diaries is a new guilty pleasure for you.

Jump after the break to watch previews for both shows.

Look in the gallery below for key art (aka TV promotional posters).

Continue reading 2013 Midseason TV preview & schedule: The CW →