Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Fall TV Preview 2016: My Shows that are a CAUTION!


I've been writing posts about new Fall TV since the start of this blog. And every year, I try to present my inconsequential thoughts with a different spin. So, for 2016, instead of focusing my posts on networks, or nights of the week, or some other organizational principle, I'm grouping shows into three main categories: GO! CAUTION! or STOP!

Today I'm going to talk about the shows that I think are CAUTION's! Tread lightly when you start investigating these shows.

Timeless (NBC; Mondays, October 3 @ 10 pm new)
This is cautionary because NBC has a history of providing genre shows that don't really work out in the end. (Revolution, for example.) And, I spent more time than I should have last year getting disappointed by The CW's Legends of Tomorrow--another show where time travelers have some scientific way to investigate the past to right wrongs and have excuses to dress up in period costumes. The green screen budget for this show will probably be high. But how much of that money should have gone to the writing staff?

The Good Place (NBC; Mondays, September 19 @ 10 pm new) 
Shows with a high-concept hook like The Afterlife seem dangerous. (Sorry if that is a spoiler.) And the NBC promo page for this show is making me remember Go On with Matthew Perry, but I can't explain to you why that is. And I don't like the idea of Ted Danson always wearing a bow tie. Is he some sort of wacky angel? But having said all that . . . this show might be good? Proceed at your own risk is what I'm saying.

The Wall (NBC, coming soon)
It's a game show. And it's hosted by Chris Hardwick. I only place it here in the CAUTION! area because I have good will towards Chris Hardwick.

Taken (NBC, coming soon)
Sure, "Every hero has a beginning." But there are reasons why there are no epic poems written about how nobel Achilles was potty trained. That is why "80s movies montages" yada yada'd the acquisition of skills and equipment before the start of the big final battle sequence. We don't need to learn how the Liam Neeson stand-in acquired his fabled "very particular set of skills". That's boring. But something on NBC has to last for a while, right? And people really do seem to like these movies. (And you can bet that Fox is hoping people like TV shows based on movies.)

Pitch (Fox, Thursdays @ 9, new)
What if a female athlete was able to pitch in the major leagues? That is the premise of this show. And I just don't know if it will be good. So, I will put it here in the CAUTION! category. But it does make me wonder what would have to happen before this does occur in the United States. How long do you think something like this might take--or do you think it simply will NEVER occur?

RETURNING SHOWS

Gotham (Fox, Mondays @ 8)
I'll watch this show for one more season to see what it does. I HATE that they brought back Jada Pinckett Smith as Fish Mooney. But maybe the writers will think of something that might be interesting? And I need to give Dean some reason to feel superior to me.

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (ABC, Tuesdays @ 10)
This feels like it might be the last run for this show--which doesn't really feel essential at all and doesn't really need to exist to provide synergy for the MCU anymore. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a well-oiled machine churning out fun movies that make hundreds of millions of dollars when people say it wasn't that good. So, no . . . Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is unnecessary. Why not replace it with reruns of Alias? I'd definitely watch THAT over again!

Superstore (NBC, Thursdays @ 8)
Honestly, I've never watched this show. But I have a mysterious emotional soft spot towards it. Maybe that is because the dude from Mad Men and A to Z is a main character? (I still wish NBC had given A to Z more time to settle down. It could have been a millennial Mad About You.)
Or maybe Superstore just reminds me of the Buy More scenes from Chuck? But this show might be worth some of my least essential time, so maybe I'll drop in on a few episodes to see what it is like.

Damning with faint praise is what the CAUTION! category is all about.

Tune back in tomorrow when we get to the Red light. Problems will abound.

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