My second to last Fall TV Preview. Almost brings a tear to my eyes.
Hopefully because of my previews you were able to find one or two gems out of the multitude of garbage being shown on TV right now (Dads, Mom, How I Met Your Mother, New Girl, Back In The Game…these all qualify as garbage shows).
I’m not sure we have any shows in the final two previews that will qualify as gems, but you’ll have to make that decision for yourself.
For today, Wednesday, October 2nd, we have just one new show on the schedule. Here it is:
Super Fun Night
When & Where: 9:30pm on ABC
What: A comedy about three women who love having no social life? That seems to be the case as they chant “always together, always inside” before staying indoors every Friday night. But when the main character, Kimmie, gets a promotion at a law firm, she’s pressured by her co-workers to go out and party. So she drags her two antisocial friends out to a club. And I’m sure funny stuff happens.
Who: Rebel Wilson, who you should know as Kristen Wiig’s roommate’s sister in Bridesmaids. The show is executive produced by Conan O’Brien.
Ross’s Take: One thing I didn’t point out in the Monday preview for We Are Men was its potential to be a one-trick pony. And that’s exactly what it seems to be…a show that gets it laughs only from men talking condescendingly about women and treating them equally bad. I’m worried Super Fun Night will also be of the one-trick pony variety. I think it’ll get its laughs from a larger, awkward woman trying to split her time between her best friends and their antisocial agenda and her co-workers and their extroverted, partying lifestyle. I think I’ll enjoy pieces of the show, but not enough to watch every episode. I’m giving this a 2.5 out of 5.
Julie’s Take: I love Rebel Wilson and I want to be friends with her. I’m going to love this show. I give it a 4.5 out of 5.
One more preview coming up on Thursday and then your DVRs should be spoken for until January.
It seems ridiculous this morning to be previewing new TV shows after saying goodbye to one of the best shows of all time just about 12 hours ago (Breaking Bad obviously). It’s like if a widower set up a Match.com profile while standing in the receiving line at his late wife’s wake. Too soon.
But of course the shows must go on. After a brain-frying 12 hours of TV on Sunday, it’s a good thing we only need to review one show for tonight. It’s a brand new show that I’m guessing some people are going to love and some are going to hate. No in between.
Here it is.
We Are Men
When & Where: 8:30pm on CBS
What: A comedy about a guy who gets left at the altar and the fallout from that disastrous moment. For some reason he has to move into a short-term apartment rental complex where many other recently-single men live. And obviously they bond. Most likely they make a lot of raunchy man jokes. And almost definitely they try to act like college frat boys.
Who: Kal Penn (of Harold & Kumar fame), Jerry O’Connell (of stealing John Stamos’ wife fame) and Tony Shaloub (of Monk fame) are all featured actors on the show.
Ross’s Take: This whole thing makes me sad because the opening 30 seconds of the trailer looks exactly like the opening of the most recently great-TV-show-to-be-cancelled, Happy Endings. But aside from that, I get the sense this show will have some hilarious moments and some awfully cliche and uninspiring moments. I could totally imagine a scenario where watching this show makes you feel like you’re watching a group of old sleazy men desperately trying to hit on good looking women at a bar. My guess is that the unfunny stuff will dominate the funny stuff, which means I’m only giving this show a 2 out of 5.
Julie’s Take: The setup in the beginning looks largely unoriginal, but it looks OK and I like a lot of the actors. I give it a 3 out of 5.
After the past two weeks, we have a very light schedule of premiering shows this week, and then no blogworthy TV premieres until the new year when shows like Game of Thrones return. Hope you’re enjoying some of the new Fall shows.
It’s finally here. The night none of us have been waiting for. The night where Robin Williams and Michael J. Fox make their glorious returns to TV (separately, not together). And they’ll actually be direct competition to each other as both shows air at 9:00pm. Of course with Fox we’re curious and uneasy about his Parkinson’s disease and how he’ll do as a lead actor expected to carry a TV show. And with Williams, it’s more of a horrific freeway accident that you can’t take your eyes off. How over the top will he be? How quickly can we change the channel?
Lucky for you, if you’re not interested in checking out their new shows, there are still a couple solid returning shows tonight. So you’ve got options.
Let’s see what those options are for Thursday, September 26th:
Returning Shows
Parks & Recreation
When & Where: 8:00pm on NBC
What: A workplace comedy that revolves around the government employees of a small-town parks department. Their leader is a hopelessly optimistic public servant who idolizes Hilary Clinton just a tad too much.
Who: Amy Poehler stars as Leslie Knope but the cast around her is just as famous: Rob Lowe, Adam Scott, Aziz Ansari, Rashida Jones, Nick Offerman, Chris Pratt. It’s a gold mine of awesome comedic actors.
Ross’s Take: Yesterday I threw around the gold standard tag when talking about Modern Family, but now I feel like I’ve cheated on Parks & Rec. I can’t decide between the two of them, honestly. Maybe I’ll just call both of them the gold standard and hope they don’t find out about each other? When it’s all said & done years from now, this show might be more memorable than The Office (a show it’s often compared to).
Julie’s Take: 4 out of 5 because I can’t be giving out so many 5’s, and it’s not better than Modern Family…but then I did give Dads 4 out of 5…hmm….4.75 for Parks & Recreation.
The Big Bang Theory
When & Where: 8:00pm on CBS
What: A sitcom about a group of socially awkward, nerdy scientist friends who work and hang out together.
Who: Jim Parsons and Johnny Galecki play the main characters. Kaley Cuoco plays their normal, social, not nerdy neighbor.
Ross’s Take: After resisting this show for years without ever watching it, I finally gave it a chance last year and thoroughly enjoyed it. For me the humor typically comes from the main character, Sheldon. He plays the socially inept, OCD-ish, asperger-y personality perfectly and just to listen to him deal with certain situations and people is amazing. I’m giving it a 3.5 out of 5.
Julie’s Take: This is a 5 out of 5 for Sheldon, the main character. But 4.5 for the rest of the show in general.
New Shows
The Michael J. Fox Show
When & Where: 9:00pm on NBC
What: Based on the title and the fact that it’s loosely based on Michal J. Fox’s actual life, you can probably guess what it’s about. But basically “Mike Henry,” who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease five years ago, decides to get back to work, where he used to be a news anchor.
Who: Michael J. Fox, Betsy Brandt (Marie from Breaking Bad)
Ross’s Take: The natural reaction to finding out this show exists is to wonder if Michael J. Fox is in good enough condition to be the lead on a weekly TV show. Time will tell, I guess. More important to me is his track record. When has he ever done a bad show or movie? He’s been great in everything he’s ever been in, I’m pretty sure. So I’m giving this show the benefit of the doubt for now, but I’m treading lightly. It’s a 3 out of 5 for me.
Julie’s Take: I give it a 2.5 out of 5. I didn’t realize it was based on his real life so that makes me more interested.
The Crazy Ones
When & Where: 9:00pm on CBS
What: A comedy about a father-daughter ad agency team where the father is the charming, off-the-walls, old-school business type, and the daughter is the tightly wound, overly worried and serious type.
Who: Robin Williams is the father, Sarah Michelle Gellar is the daughter.
Ross’s Take: Part of me thinks this show won’t work because of Robin Williams, but part of me thinks it wouldn’t work without him. He actually made me laugh a few times while watching the trailer, like the part where they make up the jingle on the spot at the restaurant. But his personality is just so obnoxiously big I worry it’ll be a typical “roll your eyes at Robin Williams’ stupid voices and impressions” situation. I can’t ignore the legitimately funny moments in the preview, much funnier than some of the other shows we’ve talked about in this space. I give it a 2 out of 5.
Julie’s Take: I give it a 2 out of 5 because I like Robin Williams but never really liked “Michelle Gellar”, but I’ll watch it.
Sunday Bonus
Homeland returns! But here’s the thing. I’ve only watched season one because season two just got released on Netflix within the last two weeks and I haven’t gotten the discs yet (god forbid they put it on Netflix Instant). I expect to DVR the new episodes because I finally have Showtime, but first I’ll binge watch season two as soon as possible. This show will probably take over Breaking Bad’s place in terms of drama TV show that I get way too into. If season two and beyond is as good as season one, I’m all in on it.
Last Wednesday I gave you Survivor for your homework. Hopefully you’re all excited to watch Colton turn into the most hated person in America (again) every Wednesday for the next four months.
This Wednesday brings another light assignment as I’m only requiring you to watch one show, and it happens to be the best comedy on TV. If you want extra credit, you can give the brand new show a whirl, but I don’t think it’s worth your time.
Let’s discuss the two shows worth your consideration for Wednesday, September 25th:
Returning Show
Modern Family
When & Where: 9:00pm on ABC
What: I can’t imagine there’s someone reading this who hasn’t heard of Modern Family. But fine, here it goes: It’s a family comedy based on three intertwined families that stem from a father and his two kids (and their families). There’s the traditional family (husband, wife, three kids), the gay parents and their adopted Vietnamese child, and the patriarch of the whole group with his Colombian trophy wife and her teenage son.
Who: Ed O’Neill, Julie Bowen, Sofia Vergara, Ty Burrell, everyone, really.
Ross’s Take: The gold standard of the current TV comedy is going strong heading into its fifth season. Modern Family will be on top for a while because it has incredible characters, the best writing, and constantly evolving and ripe-for-the-picking family situations based on the kids growing up, the parents getting new jobs, or childlike adult Phil Dunphy misreading a situation so bad that he finds himself watching a football game with his shirt off in the company of a gay man who thinks Phil wants to sleep with him. This is basically the one comedy that I have to watch the night it airs, and it’s getting a 4.5 out of 5 from me (The “5” designation is exclusively saved for shows like The Wire, Breaking Bad and the heyday of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia).
Julie’s Take: I mean, what’s to say…10 out of 5 (shaking her head at me like I’m an idiot for asking).
New Show
Back In The Game
When & Where: 8:30pm on ABC
What: Little Giants as a baseball-centric TV show. Seriously, the synopsis on Wikipedia reads like a TV adaptation for that 1994 Rick Moranis-Ed O’Neill football movie. A bunch of kids are rejected by the mean coach from playing on the team, so the dorky nobody of a parent organizes her own team with all the rejected kids…
Who: Maggie Lawson is mother who coaches the losers and James Caan is her overbearing, used-to-be-an-athlete father.
Ross’s Take: I don’t think I’m biting on this one. I’m pretty sure I nailed the premise with my Little Giants comparison, which means the laughs are going to be predictable (this ragtag bunch of dorky kids are trying to play a sport!!). Even the relationship between the mom and her dad seems cliche and not something that’s going to interest me. I’m giving it a 1.5 out of 5 and only DVR’ing it because of my roommate’s enthusiasm over it (see below).
Julie’s Take: It’s a nice mix of The Sandlot and My Girl…I give it a 4 out of 5. It looks heartfelt!
That’s all for today. Stay tuned for Thursday’s lineup where we’ll be welcoming back a couple actors who haven’t starred in a TV show in a loooong time (and for good reason).
One week ago we previewed four Tuesday night shows, two returning and two brand new. They were all comedies, and none of them are really the type where you’d need to start from the very first episode if you want to get into them. So in case you didn’t check out the premieres of those shows last week, here’s how I’d prioritize them if I were you:
The Mindy Project
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
New Girl
Dads – But only if there’s a major glitch with your cable or satellite provider that forces you to keep the TV on FOX.
And tonight, four more shows start up that you may want to check out. They’re all brand new, and they’re all on ABC. So now you’re potentially juggling eight shows on Tuesday. Except some of these will obviously fall out of favor quickly. I can tell you that in my home Dads is probably getting bumped from the DVR-recording schedule after tonight, and there’s at least one show in these four we’re about to preview that won’t make the cut.
Six is much more manageable than eight!
Here are the four new ABC shows that are worth a look tonight:
The Goldbergs
When & Where: 9:00pm on ABC
What: Remember when someone tried to capitalize on the That ‘70s Show popularity and created That ‘80s Show? I barely remember either, but it actually did happen. Well The Goldbergs is basically a family-centric version of that short-lived spinoff. It’s semi-autobiographical as the creator actually grew up in the 80s and videotaped his family doing weird stuff. And he’s bringing all the dynamics of his real family to this show. So think of it as a family sitcom set in the 80s with the exact type of characters you’d expect roaming around the 1980s.
Who: Jeff Garlin plays the father, Murray Goldberg. And Wendy McLendon-Covey plays the mother, Beverly Goldberg.
Ross’s Take: It’s got a lot of potential. I’m basing that mostly on the trailer, which is always risky to do because they might have used up all their good jokes in that four-minute preview. Just the fact that it’s a non-CBS sitcom makes it worth a try in my opinion. If you grew up in the 80s, you gotta check this out. There’s a good chance we’ll be able to do a lot of laughing at the parents in this show who remind us way too much of our own parents from that time period. And if you raised kids in the 80s, you probably wanted to laugh a lot at the insanity of childhood and adolescence, but you couldn’t laugh in your own kids’ faces back then. So now’s your chance to tune in and remember what was so funny about being a parent in that decade. What do you have to lose? 30 minutes of your precious lives? I’ll give it a 3.5 out of 5 and hopefully I’m being a little conservative.
Julie’s Take: Ooh, I like it! It’s like a revamped Wonder Years. I’m giving it a 5 out of 5.
Trophy Wife
When & Where: 9:30pm on ABC
What: A family comedy about a woman who marries a twice-divorced man and has to co-exist with his two ex-wives and the handful of kids he produced in those previous relationships.
Who: Bradley Whitford plays the husband, Malin Akerman plays the new wife.
Ross’s Take: It feels a bit too ridiculous and forced. And unrealistic. This woman marries a guy and immediately has to be in charge of all his kids and their relationships with their moms, who undoubtedly hate her for being the young, hot wife. I don’t think we’re even bothering to watch the first episode. I give it a 0.5 out of 5.
Julie’s Take: I want to give it a 0 out of 5, but I’ll start it off with a 1 out of 5.
(I can tell you that only other contribution she made when we finished watching the preview was shaking her head and making that face people make when they dislike the food they just tried. Probably not good for this show’s chances.)
Lucky 7
When & Where: 10:00pm on ABC
What: A drama about seven gas station employees in Queens, New York, who split a lottery ticket every week. And when they finally win the jackpot, some of their wildest dreams come true…but the money also creates plenty of problems.
Who: Nobody any of us have ever heard of. It’s an ensemble cast, and I can’t make out anyone in the cast who I know from previous work. Lots of unknowns.
Ross’s Take: As a successful TV and movie writer, there’s been several times in the past few years when a new show or film comes out that looks similar to an idea I have written down on a scrap of paper in a folder somewhere on my desk. This is one of those times. So of course I’m intrigued. My movie idea was about a group of friends who win the lottery together and then problems arise as the group dynamic changes and some personalities change. I bet this show is better than anything I could have created so I’m hoping for big things. I’ll go with a 3.5 out of 5, which seems to be my max rating on a show I haven’t seen yet.
Julie’s Take: I’m giving it a 3 out of 5 because I’m intrigued. But I am worried it’s gonna go dark and sad eventually.
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D
When & Where: 8:00pm on ABC
What: The name of the show pretty much tells you what you need to know. It’s a comic book/superhero show that looks like a grander scale version of the TV show Heroes. People with super powers find each other and team up to defeat the bad guys.
Who: Legendary sci-fi/superhero creator/writer/director Joss Whedon created this show and wrote the pilot. It’ll be interesting to see what the show looks like past the pilot when he’s not the one writing it anymore.
Ross’s Take: A superhero show that seems to have a big enough budget to have great special effects & action scenes and created by a guy who’s already had a ton of success with The Avengers movie. Sign me up. This could be the perfect post-Breaking Bad hour-long TV show. It probably won’t require a significant emotional investment, but will be a very pleasing visual experience. Mindless viewing makes it sound bad, but it could be good watching when you’re checked out mentally after a long day of work.
I’ll pre-rank it a 3.5 out of 5, obviously.
Julie’s Take: I didn’t even give Julie an opportunity to review this show because I’m certain she’s not into comic book content. I don’t think this would keep her attention for longer than 10 seconds.
If I’m guessing ahead of time how I’ll ultimately rank these eight Tuesday night shows once I’ve seen them all, it goes like this:
The Mindy Project
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
The Goldbergs
Lucky 7
New Girl
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Dads
Trophy Wife
Do what you want with that info. We’ll be back tomorrow with just one brand new show and one returning show.
If I was excited about tonight’s new and returning TV shows, I might start this article by writing “Happy Mother’s Day, everyone!”
Tonight CBS is doubling down with mom-themed shows. There’s the old standby How I Met Your Mother beginning its final season, and the brand new Mom setting sail on its maiden voyage.
As was the case last week, we’ve reviewed the potential of both shows for you below. I hate spoilers as much as the next guy, but I’ll at least tell you that you probably won’t be sprinting to your nearest remote control to add these shows to your DVR list before they air tonight.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that later in the week there will be some legitimately interesting shows to review. Until then, enjoy the live-audience programming that tens of millions of people apparently love.
New Show
Mom
When & Where: 9:30pm on CBS
What: A family sitcom about a recovering alcoholic single mom who has a mom of her own who’s also an alcoholic/bad influence. It feels like the mother-daughter version of Two Broke Girls (a comparison you’d only understand if you currently watch that horrific CBS show, which starts back up tonight…but we won’t be reviewing it because once again, it’s terrible).
Who: Anna Faris plays the lead role, and Allison Janney plays her mom. And Badger from Breaking Bad plays the father of Anna Faris’ daughter.
Ross’s Take: Pass. I know there’s going to be an audience for this show because it comes from the Chuck Lorre/CBS factory (together they’ve created Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory and Mike & Molly, all current CBS hits). So if you’re a fan of those other shows, you’ll probably want to check out Mom. But other than The Big Bang Theory, I can’t stand the live-audience sitcoms. The humor is…unintelligent? nonexistent? stuff that I might have found funny 10 years ago? You know how it goes…there are people whose sense of humor gravitates towards things like Arrested Development and Parks & Recreation, and then there are people who get their comedy rocks off to the dull CBS shows of the world. It’s not wrong of you to like these shows. It just means you’re less educated than the rest of us.
I give this show a 1 out of 5, but like all of the shows in my previews, I’ll watch the first episode and recalibrate if I have to.
Julie’s Take: The trailer didn’t make me laugh and couldn’t even keep my attention. I give it a 2 out of 5, so I’m still giving it a chance. And I don’t want to sound like a mean person because I’m sure Anna Faris is a good person and funny, but I just don’t find her funny at all.
(I can attest to the fact that this is the first TV trailer out of all the previews we’ve done where she walked away in the middle. And not even to do something more interesting…she went to straighten her hair rather than finish watching.)
Returning Show
How I Met Your Mother
When & Where: 8:00pm on CBS
What: A sitcom that centers around five friends living in New York in their early 30s, with a specific focus on Ted Mosby’s never-ending search for his soulmate.
Who: Main characters are played by Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel. The other two main actors are apparently terrible and you wouldn’t have seen them in anything else.
Ross’s Take: I already poured my heart out in August about the most troubling aspect of this show: that the stakes of whiney douchebag Ted finding his true love aren’t high enough to keep me invested as the show continually strings us along to that fateful meeting between him and the future mother. And for a show that used to be genuinely funny, it’s become genuinely unfunny. And let’s face it, if you’ve never watched this show before today, you’re not going to start now. Too many inside jokes and humor that’s derived from previous episodes. And if you have watched every episode to this point, my negative review probably isn’t going to sway you. But I won’t back down from my stance in that August article that after watching the first eight years of this show, I’m quitting with only 20 episodes left.
Julie’s Take: I hate that show but I am gonna watch it for sure. I would not miss it. I give it a 4.5 out of 5 in that I’m definitely going to watch it, but I give it only a 2.5 out of 5 for how much I actually like it.
We’ll be back tomorrow with a handful of shows that might actually have promise. Stay tuned.
Yesterday’s Fall TV premieres on FOX were really just a tease because the schedule is particularly light with new & returning shows for the rest of the week. Next week is when the real action begins.
As a matter of fact, you won’t be seeing a TV preview blog from me on Thursday because there’s nothing on that night.
Tonight there are no brand new shows but a couple returning shows that might be worth your time. Let’s jump into the season premieres for Wednesday, September 18th:
Survivor: Blood vs Water
When & Where: 8:00pm on CBS
What: A reality game show where contestants have to outwit, outplay and outlast each other while surviving isolation in the wilderness for up to 39 days. The person deemed “sole survivor” at the end wins a $1 Million reward.
Who: In its 27th installment, Survivor is bringing back a bunch of former contestants paired with their loved ones. Also, Jeff Probst, the show’s host, is simply the greatest host/moderator/instigator in TV history.
Ross’s Take: People tend to be surprised that this show is still going strong after 13 years of being on the air, but I promise you it’s the only reality game show worth watching. The basic rules are still the same—16-20 people compete in physical and mental challenges while roughing it for nearly six weeks in the wilderness, all while trying to make alliances and ensure they won’t be voted out by their tribe mates—but in recent seasons there have been twists to keep the show from getting stale (Survivor All-Stars, Survivor Heroes vs Villains, a twist where you can get back in the game after being voted out if you survive a competition with other exiled contestants on a separate island). It appears this season’s twist is that half the players are former contestants and the other half are their loved ones. Two brothers, a mother-daughter combo, an uncle-niece combo, etc… From what I can tell, the contestants think they are teaming up with their loved ones, but as soon as they get to the Philippines they’ll find out they’re competing against each other.
This show’s major appeal for me is the buffoonery that usually goes on throughout the season. Without fail, someone will get voted off while holding onto an immunity idol (a “get out of jail free”-like object that can save the person who possesses it as long as they play it before that episode’s votes are read by Probst). Or in extreme cases, someone will give up his immunity necklace (which he won with a hard-fought physical challenge) because some woman with attractive breasts convinces him it’s the right move for the tribe. And then that woman will immediately orchestrate that moron’s ouster from the game. More often than not, we’ll get to see a certifiably crazy person start scaring the other tribe members to the point where they’ll keep him around only because they’re scared he will decapitate each and every one of them if he gets voted off.
I give Survivor a solid 4 out of 5 rating, acknowledging that some seasons are better than others.
Julie’s Take: I wasn’t able to get Julie’s opinions before she shuffled off to work this morning, but I know she’s a loyal Survivor watcher, and I have to think she’s going to get extra emotionally invested this season when loved ones are scheming against each other and screwing one another over. She’d probably give Survivor a 3.5 or 4 out of 5.
Key & Peele
When & Where: 10:30pm on Comedy Central
What: A sketch comedy show in the same vein as Chappelle Show. It consists of pre-taped sketches that are introduced by the show’s stars in front of a live audience.
Who: Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele are the show’s creators, writers and stars. They were both former cast members on MADtv.
Ross’s Take: It’s a slightly tamer version of Chappelle Show. That’s the simplest explanation. I haven’t seen every episode of the first two seasons, but the ones I’ve seen have been extremely entertaining. There’s a lot of humor about race and stereotypes, but they’re just as likely to spend time breaking down the mechanics of a high five or doing a parody of a flash mob. It’s one of those shows that you have to watch at least once to see if their humor does it for you.
I give it a 3.5 out of 5. It’s one of those shows I’ll tape, not watch for a while, and then plow through four or five episodes in one sitting.
Julie’s Take: She’s tried to watch it with me before and hasn’t enjoyed it nearly as much as I do. I’m guessing she’d give it a 2 out of 5.
To reiterate, no preview on Thursday. Go ahead and enjoy Kansas City at Philadelphia on the NFL Network. I’ll be back on Friday with another short preview of the weekend in TV.
Unless you’re one of the five people who enjoys watching Ryan Seacrest host the most arbitrary quiz show of all time, you’re probably ready for some decent TV back in your life.
As an industry insider living in Los Angeles, I hear all the talk about how the networks are now motivated to provide better programming during the summer months. But, no, summer TV still blows.
If you’re smart, you use the summer to get away from the television entirely. But not me. Being lazy is my life. So I’m stuck watching shows during the June-August months that would never stand a chance of making my exclusive DVR queue during prime TV-viewing season…The Newsroom, American Ninja Warrior, Under the Dome and MasterChef to name a few.
But here we are, September, when hope springs eternal for TV. Our favorite shows are returning along with plenty of new ones to try out.
The one problem with the start of TV season? How do you dig through the endless junk that the networks and cable channels throw at us to find those handful of shows that might turn into this decade’s The Office, 30 Rock or Breaking Bad? There’s almost too much to choose from.
That’s where I come in. I know what works in TV, and I know what you should be watching (picture me saying that in the most humble way possible).
Over the next couple weeks, I’ll be posting blogs almost every day to give my recommendations on which shows to add to your DVR and which shows to add to your “Never Record List” (if that sort of thing existed, How I Met Your Mother would be at the top of it).
But since my point of view is limited to “30-year-old, college-educated, genius male,” I’ve recruited an assistant to review these shows with me. Her point of view is “30-year-old, Masters degree, female, who is way too easily entertained.” Throughout these blogs, she’ll simply be known as Julie.
I’ll also be embedding trailers to each TV show we’re reviewing whenever possible so you can easily decide for yourself if you don’t want to blindly follow our opinions.
When I asked a friend the other day what new shows he was planning on watching, he said he hates wasting his time getting into shows that ultimately get cancelled. So his plan is to not watch any new shows, see which ones get picked up for a second season later this year or early next year, and then catch up on season one.
This is a guy who wants life to be so efficient he wouldn’t dare waste a minute of his time on something that might not pan out down the road. He’s essentially a robot due to his “all logic, no emotion” philosophy.
But to some extent, I agree with him. It sucks getting into a new show and then finding out four weeks later it’s going to be cancelled by the end of the season. But I’m more of a cyborg than a robot. Sign me up to avoid almost all one-hour dramas until I find out it’s worth investing my time, but I can’t do that with the 30-minute sitcoms. I love laughing too much.
So for this series of blogs, you can expect lots of comedy reviews and almost no drama reviews. Got it?
Without further ado, here’s what’s on the schedule for Tuesday, September 17th:
Returning Shows
The Mindy Project
When & Where: 9:30pm on FOX
What: Workplace comedy that revolves around an OB/GYN who desperately wants her life to be right out of a classic romantic comedy/chick flick movie.
Who: Mindy Kaling of The Office fame is the creator and star. But the supporting cast and guest stars have as much to do with the hilarity of the show as Kaling does.
Ross’s Take: Don’t be scared off by the mention of a romcom/chick flick above. Much of the humor comes from the fact that Mindy takes great pains to make her life equivalent to the perfect Meg Ryan type of life from those 90s movies, but reality never works out quite as perfectly. The show splits time between Mindy’s professional life (her power struggle with the other doctors, her ongoing battle with a group of midwives that occupy the floor above her office) and her personal life (trying to have a one-night stand, embarrassing herself at weddings, trying to be a competent babysitter). In my opinion the supporting characters at her office are the best part of this show. Especially male nurse Morgan, played to perfection by Ike Barinholtz. If you watch Parks & Recreation, picture Andy Dwyer with a slightly more sinister past and a little more in the brain department.
I give The Mindy Project a 3.5 out of 5 on my arbitrary ratings scale, with a chance to move up to 4 during Season 2.
Julie’s Take: Mindy is the funniest person ever, and she has short hair this season! I give it a 6 out of 5 on Ross’s arbitrary ratings scale.
New Girl
When & Where: 9:00pm on FOX
What: A sitcom about four friends—three men, one woman—living together in LA, whose lives and romances sometimes overlap.
Who: Zooey Deschanel is the “girl” in the title. In the pilot episode two seasons ago, she broke up with her boyfriend and moved into an apartment with three guys.
Ross’s Take: It’s occasionally funny and has a pretty low priority on my TV-viewing schedule. Out of the four main characters, there’s one who’s constantly funny (Schmidt, the overconfident metrosexual who offends everyone with his cockiness), two who are sometimes funny (Jess, the dorky school teacher, and Nick the serial slacker), and one who is completely invisible on the show (Winston, a former basketball player and current radio show host who NEVER gets to say or do anything funny or relevant…seriously, no one knows why he’s even on the show at this point).
Through the first two seasons there was a “Jim & Pam from The Office” type of will they or won’t they relationship between Jess and Nick. But at the end of last season they started hooking up and that’s the big dramatic issue they’ll try to work out this season.
I give New Girl a 2 out of 5, and if enough new shows entertain me this Fall, this one will be the first to drop out of my DVR recording list.
Julie’s Take: I’m so sick of all the characters except for Schmidt. I’m excited about watching it, but it’s starting to go down the How I Met Your Mother path for me (meaning no longer funny but I have to watch it). I give it a 2.5 out of 5…3 if you push me.
New Shows
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
When & Where: 8:30pm on FOX
What: A workplace sitcom about an NYPD detective who plays the roll of class clown until he gets a new boss who wants everyone to operate “by the book.”
Who: Andy Samberg of Saturday Night Live/Dick In A Box fame plays the main character Jake Peralta.
Ross’s Take: It has potential as long as it doesn’t go too far down the slapsticky/watch Andy Samberg do little kid things road. If they have him doing things that I’d associate with a bad Adam Sandler movie, I’m out. The trailer makes me think we’re getting a lot of small roles and cameos from some pretty entertaining actors (Joe Lo Truglio and Fred Armisen are in the trailer) so I’m pinning my hopes to that.
I’ll give this a 3 out of 5 based on almost no information but the trailer.
Julie’s Take: It could be too slapsticky with Andy Samberg doing ridiculous stuff that annoys me, but I’m giving it a 5 out of 5 for now.
Dads
When & Where: 8:00pm on FOX
What: A buddy sitcom about two video game developers whose lives are turned upside down when their offensive/humiliating dads unexpectedly move in with them.
Who: Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi are the sons, Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy) and Seth Green helped create it.
Ross’s Take: As an ordinary person, I’m passing on this show. But as a decorated TV critic and future TV writer, I’m going to watch a couple episodes just to see how bad it is. It looks bad. And I couldn’t help but seem some reviews from people who have gotten to watch a couple episodes ahead of time. They didn’t have anything good to say. It’s one of those shows with a laugh track where they go for the big laugh by having one of the dads walk around in a towel with his man boobs exposed. Or by the guys making the office assistant dress up like a Chinese school girl in a short skirt to impress some clients even though she’s adamantly against it. If that sounds funny to you, go for it.
I’m giving it a 0.5 out 5 with the strong possibility that I’m overrating it.
Julie’s Take: It looks hilarious. I’m giving it a high 4 out of 5.
Go ahead and get your DVRs ready because the shows (and my reviews) are going to be blasting you in the face nonstop for the next few weeks.
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