Despite getting rid of cable as of October 1st, I am still totally committed to reviewing all of the new scripted fall TV shows (as long as they’re on broadcast). However, there was a mix up or I got confused, and somehow I ended up missing the pilots of both GO ON and THE NEW NORMAL and therefore had to watch their second episodes. I”ll keep this short. While both shows feature diverse casts (yay!), both were only slightly funnier than their many obnoxious NBC promos, which is to say, not very funny at all (boo!). GO ON is overly cloying, overly pat, and overly sentimental, as if some exec said, “MODERN FAMILY, Matthew Perry, group therapy — go!” I was actually sad to see the wonderful John Cho (HAROLD & KUMAR) and Tyler James Williams (EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS) in this. And while THE NEW NORMAL has some very funny bon mots and situations, it’s overly sentimental, over-the-top, and overly stereotypical (the gays are uber-bitchy, the black woman is uber sassy, and blond single mom is uber sweet, the nerdy daughter is uber strange, and the interfering grandma is uber racist and homophobic), as if some exec said, “MODERN FAMILY, a bunch of caricatures, the creator of GLEE– go!” It all made for an entire hour of “Don’t bother.” But let me know what you thought of the two shows in the...

I know I said that I wasn’t going to cover new cable shows this Fall, and for the most part I haven’t — though, I’ve heard AMERICAN HORROR STORY is okay to good — but still missing DEADWOOD as I do, I had to give this new AMC show, HELL ON WHEELS at least one looky-loo. Here are my thoughts: Overview: An ex Confederate soldier bent on avenging the murder of his wife by a squad of Union soldiers joins one of the outfits building the transcontinental railroad. His new job is to oversee the black workers, one of which is played by Common. This is an ensemble show, so we also get perspectives from Thomas Durant (Colm Meaney), a corrupt railroad investor; Lily Bell, the British wife of a railroad surveyor; and eventually, according to the previews, Eddie Spears, a Native American torn between the new world and tradition. What I Liked: This show is way more diverse than DEADWOOD, it’s also well-acted, and well-paced, with really great story premises and characters.   What I Didn’t Like: The show has what I call the COLD MOUNTAIN problem. It’s a little too well-done, a little too poised for Emmy consideration. It makes the whole affair feel a bit bloodless, like there’s no heart beating inside of this perfectly crafted show. Also, I’m just not high-art enough to give an eff about a former slave owner/Confederate soldier’s need for revenge. Other than looking really good in a graying beard (you probably didn’t even recognize Anson Mount as the pretty guy love interest from CROSSROADS, the 2002 Shonda Rhimes-penned Britney Spears movie you saw that one night on cable, but don’t like to admit you liked), there’s nothing to really recommend him as a character. You,...

It occurs to me that I haven’t given a golden DVR ticket to any male-led shows all season. How bizarre. Well, this weekend I had the chance to correct that with the premieres of GRIMM and ALLEN GREGORY. Did they make it on to my DVR? Let’s find out! Overview GRIMM: An NYC detective discovers that he’s descended from a long line of “Grimms” or supernatural slayers. He also happens to catch a case that mightily resembles the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale. ALLEN GREGORY: A ridiculously spoiled and precocious seven-year-old  homeschooler is sent to (shudder) public school. What I Liked GRIMM: There’s an unexpected twist where the lead actually ends up getting help from an enemy werewolf. This provided some much need levity to an otherwise heavy-toned show. ALLEN GREGORY: Lots of laughs, and great situations, like a much-hated adopted sister, nerds who have a friendly working relationship with their bully, and an awesome principal, who is forced to put up with Allen Gregory’s copious amounts of BS. What I Didn’t Like GRIMM: For such an interesting premise, this show was rather boring. I could not get excited about the story. Also, it takes itself way seriously, somehow never quite capturing the humor of its extraordinary situation. It felt like X-Files meets Battlestar Galatica with all the humor and urgency sucked out. ALLEN GREGORY: This was another great premise that just didn’t deliver. I’m a big fan of ARCHER, and therefore the perfect audience for a show like this. But it felt like watching a kid be a complete douchebag to people. I didn’t care when he was bullied, and I really wanted to save his poor adopted sister from his abuse. On second thought, take that back. I’m not the perfect...

I tend to be a little leery of fraternal twins when it comes to Fall TV. For example it took me a whole year to give ER a chance because it premiered at the same time as CHICAGO HOPE. I actually ended up liking both shows — I even watched ER faithfully until its season finale, but still I was wary about this season’s fraternal twins, GRIMM and ONCE UPON TIME. Should I have been. Well, I’ll be reviewing GRIMM next Monday, but right now let’s talk about ABC’s entry into the fairytales reimagined race. Overview: The evil queen of Snow White fame curses all of the characters populating our most beloved fairytales to the worst fate imaginable: a small town in current day Maine where time stands still. But ahoy, a savior in the form of Snow White’s now twenty-eight-year-old daughter comes to (very reluctantly save the day) thanks to the son she gave up for adoption seven years ago. You see, he was actually adopted by the current day version of the evil queen … yeah, the premise is a bit complicated.   What I Liked: Well, I loved fairytales growing up and apparently they’re not done with me yet, because I found everything about this premise fascinating, especially the promise of LOST-like flashbacks to see the “real stories” behind our favorite fairytales. I also loved the main character, who is played by Jennifer Morrison, an actress who was criminally underused in HOUSE, and masterfully reincarnated in a half-season arc of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER. She’s perfect for the role of a beautiful-but-lonely-but-tough-but-sentimental bails bond person.   What I Didn’t Like: Maybe this will be covered in future episodes, but the evil stepmother queen is just bizarrely over-the-top. Why does she...

I really did not have high hopes for this ABC sitcom, which follows the rather problematic and popular-this-season theme, of men not being manly enough these days. I’ve already given you my thoughts on LAST MAN STANDING (a bit better than expected) and HOW TO BE A GENTLEMAN (even worse than expected), so let’s break open the third and hopefully final fall installment of what’s been dubbed the “male” sitcom. Overview: Three buddies, a married guy, a sensitive single guy, and a divorced guy commiserate the lost of their manhood over several remote video game sessions, in between which they live out their lives and manage to get into all sorts of hijinks. What I Liked: The fat and bearded divorced guy brought the comedy. He’s like a really cynical, not nearly as irritating version of Jack Black. I also loved that his ex-wife’s new boyfriend was a ripped black dude who loves meditation and yoga. Who knew Henry Simmons could do comedy? And the situations were killer.  What I Didn’t Like: Constant references to the manly men of generations prior and a wife who only appears onscreen while doing domestic tasks. At one point, I wanted to tap the main guy (who is a way less interesting version of Phil from MODERN FAMILY) on the shoulder and say, “Hey, why don’t you help her out with that laundry or with packing those school lunches as opposed to whining on and on about how you’re not manly enough, douchebag?” At one point he left her to run his son’s birthday party alone in order to buy a more manly gift, and my head nearly exploded — but she didn’t seem to mind, because like so many sitcom wive’s she’s weirdly okay with being long-suffering....

Being a big fan of the movie, EASY A, I was really looking forward to this new ABC sitcom, which many critics have been comparing to the acclaimed movie. Did it live up to its hype? Let’s discuss. Overview: After a single father (Jeremy Sisto) discovers a pack of condoms in his daughter, Tessa’s dresser drawer, he panics and moves them to the suburbs. Alan Tudyk (FIREFLY) also stars as an old college friend of the father’s, who acts as their guide. What I Liked: Jane Levy is wonderful in the role of Tessa. And I see can see why everyone is calling her the next Emma Stone. She has excellent timing and comedic chops. What I Didn’t Like: Well, despite really wanting to love this series going in, it managed to hit quite a few of my hot buttons: 1) The premise for their move to the suburb sucks, and really makes me dislike the father from the start — even if he is played by Jeremy Sisto (who loved in SIX FEET UNDER) — for not communicating with his daughter about sex, and for doing something so extreme. 2) As someone who hates the suburbs, this felt more like a horror movie, than a cute “fish out of water” sitcom — seriously, I just couldn’t believe the father would disrupt his daughter’s life this way. Manhattan is so much better — even when they try to convince us that it isn’t, it’s so much better. 3) Absolutely no high schoolers of color in the entire show, save one, solitary black diversity student who only says, “Hi” when introduced as such. I kept wondering how any place could make a list of five best cities to raise kids as they keep claiming throughout...

Yesterday, I watched two very different kinds of shows, one that came with a ton of hype, TERRA NOVA, and one that I didn’t know was even going to be on the air, until I was compiling my Fall TV 2011 Challege watch list — that would be HART OF DIXIE. How did it all turn out? Well, I left a long comment on Sam Weitzner’s TERRA NOVA post, which can pretty much be summed up as great casting, great concept, boring (and sometimes baffling) execution. But let’s talk about HART OF DIXIE: Overview: An ambitious young surgeon (Rachel Bilson) with serious daddy issues moves to Alabama to practice medicine in a down-homey practice. Lots of hijinks and soap opera twists ensue. What I Liked: Another surprisingly good show. I love that the doctor speaks in the way a doctor her age would (lots of “likes”), and I love that she’s a bit Housish. And I really, really love how Alabama is portrayed. Also, there’s a huge twist with the black mayor that made me lean forward so hard, I knew I’d be adding this show to my DVR just to see how it all plays out. And in general, the cast just works really well together. Tons of chemistry in every direction. What I Didn’t Like: Lots and lots of narration. It made me feel like the writers (or more likely the TV execs that gave the writers notes) thought we were stupid. Diversity Report People of Color? 1 Just the one-professional-football-player-turned-mayor in the main cast, but he’s given more to do than many of the PoC characters on other new shows this fall. Also, many of the patients and townspeople are black. Report Card Show B Diversity B Worth Watching? I think...

Yesterday I got home and watched three shows, none of which will be added to my queue. So let’s discuss WHITNEY, A GIFTED MAN, and PAN AM … with a bunch of sighing: Overview WHITNEY: An anti-marriage photographer navigates her three-year relationship with a nice guy who owns an internet company. Their friends include a divorced alpha-female; a hornball police officer; and a cutesy-wutesy, but relatively new couple. A GIFTED MAN: An asshole surgeon discovers that he can see the ghost of his ex-wife — the one that got away. With her encouragement, he starts to become a better doctor and person. The cast includes his gay millionaire playboy best friend, his single-mother sister, and his sullen nephew. PAN AM: Following the adventures of four (or five) 60s-era PAN AM stewardesses and two PAN AM pilots. They serve, they love — they even spy! What I Liked WHITNEY: It’s nice to see a woman navigating a long-term relationship as opposed to trying to fall in love. And the relationship actually seems somewhat realistic. Also, half of the cutesy-wutesy couple is Maulik Pancholy, so now I can stop complaining about how they never gave him enough to do on WEEDS and 30 ROCK. A GIFTED MAN: Patrick Wilson is a CMU grad, so I’ll pretty much watch anything with him in it. It’s always a pleasure to see him act. And his character seems dickish in a way more realistic way than House. The woman who plays his dead ex-wife is also spot-on. PAN AM: What a glossy-glossy show. It was like watching a magazine. Also, I really loved feeling lucky that I’m living in current times, and dated during the age of social media and Google searches. What I Didn’t Like WHITNEY: Seriously over...

Can you say more drama for your mama? Due to a recording conflict at my BFF’s house (I spent the night there before heading to upstate New York for a wedding in a field), I wasn’t able to see  NBC’s much-hyped sitcom, WHITNEY. But all the new fall dramas that popped off yesterday, including CHARLIE’S ANGELS, PERSON OF INTEREST, and PRIME SUSPECT? Oh yeah, those totally got watched. Overview CHARLIE’S ANGELS: After the third Angel gets knocked off, the remaining two Angels, Kate and Abby, team up with her best friend Eve (Minka Kelly from FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS) to find her killer. Shocker: Eve totally ends up becoming the third angel. PERSON OF INTEREST: A former CIA operative (Jim Caviezel) teams up with a mysterious billionaire (Michael Emerson) to prevent crimes before they happen. A police officer (Taraji P. Henson) tries to figure out what the h-e-double-hockey-sticks is going on. PRIME SUSPECT: A reimagining of the British series, which made Helen Mirren famous. This time it’s an NYPD homicide detective played by Maria Bello, who’s punching out the glass ceiling of a New York homicide squad. What I Liked CHARLIE’S ANGELS: The fashion was great. And I’m a big fan of women kicking ass, while working as a team. Also, it was nice that they aged down Bosley, and replaced him with bit of eye candy. It felt like equal opportunity ageism, and took away the weird “daddy” vibe of the original series and movie revamps. For once, it felt like these were professionals doing their job — as opposed to a cult of Charlie. Plus, I have a weird celebrity crush on Minka Kelly. PERSON OF INTEREST: This one pretty much grabs you from go. It’s a procedural in the end, but with...

Though, I really like Madeleine Stowe (12 MONKEYS – hey, hey hey!) and Emily VanCamp (I even stopped watching BROTHERS & SISTERS after she left), I didn’t have high hopes for their new night time drama, REVENGE. Was I right? Was I wrong? Here’s my review: Overview: A woman whose father was falsely accused of a fraud that led to a terrorist attack, reinvents herself as Emily Thorne, and returns to The Hamptons to take revenge out on the people who destroyed her father. This is being billed as an adaptation of THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO. What I Liked: This was surprisingly really good. Intriguing storylines, great chemistry between all the leads, well-developed characters — basically everything you’d want a night time soap to be. I’m a HUGE fan of THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO, so really this series was kind of made for me. What I Didn’t Like: Must we set everything in the Hamptons? I’m beginning to suspect that every executive producer spends her or his summers there and between ROYAL PAINS, THE RINGER, and this, I’m getting a little sick of this particular setting. Diversity Report People of Color? 2 Emily’s best friend (for this identity at least) is English and biracial. Also, the daughter of the antagonist has a black girl who runs in her crew. No men of color, though. Report Card Show B Diversity C Worth Watching? Sure, especially if you’re missing BROTHERS & SISTERS. This isn’t quite the same, but it has a crack-a-lackin’ story, really great leads in Emily VanCamp and Madeline Stowe, and it will do in a...

FINALLY, a couple of  shows I was looking somewhat forward to watching: NEW GIRL, starring elfin movie-star, Zooey Deschanel, Damon Wayans Jr. (from HAPPY ENDINGS), the other deputy from THE WALKING DEAD, and some random dude I’ve never heard of; and UNFORGETTABLE, a procedural about a cop with a photographic memory — which I’m down for merely because she isn’t a cop pretending to be psychic. Were expectations met? Here are my thoughts. Overview NEW GIRL: After catching her live-in BF with another woman, an emotionally-wrecked Zooey D, moves into a gorgeous apartment with three dudes: 1) A nice-enough guy with douchebag tendencies, 2) A nice guy, also emotionally-wrecked by his break-up, and 3) A nice guy personal trainer who has trouble talking to women — mainly because he’s a walking Lou Gossett Jr. ala Officer and a Gentleman impression. UNFORGETTABLE: Carrie Wells, an ex-cop (Poppy Montgomery) with hyperthymesia (a photographic memory) gets pulled back in to the NYPD when a case pops off in her building and her ex-paramour/partner shows up. Dylan Walsh (Sean from NIP/TUCK) stars as the big ex. What I Liked NEW GIRL: Okay, I don’t want to gush too hard, but Zooey D isn’t faux nerd in this. She’s really effin awkward and has a ton of turrets-like quirks, including making up songs on the spot, a DIRTY DANCING addiction, and quoting LORD OF THE RINGS in every day conversation. She also wears glasses. Yes! I love on her character so hard, I don’t even know what to do. The jokes were also on point, and I love the guy friendships. UNFORGETTABLE: Poppy Montgomery’s hair is really nice. Very pretty. Even better than the poster. What I Didn’t Like NEW GIRL: I hesitate to say this, because it’s some...

Yesterday I watched two women-centered shows, neither of which I had very high hopes for, because of their situations: THE PLAYBOY CLUB, which is set in the 60s, at the Playboy Club in Chicago, and 2 BROKE GIRLS, which is set in a diner in contemporary New York. Well, I was totally right about THE PLAYBOY CLUB, for reasons I’ll let Debra Goykhman explain in her review, but I was pleasantly surprised by 2 BROKE GIRLS. Overview: Two waitresses from two different worlds (one working class, who needs two jobs to get by and the other, the newly poor daughter of a Kenneth Lay-like fraudster). The show was created by Michael Patrick King (SEX AND THE CITY) and Whitney Cummings — the star of WHITNEY (which I’ll be reviewing in this spot later in the week). What I Liked: Well, I thought the show would be all rich (bad) vs. poor (good), but it has a startling and quite refreshing element of woman empowerment. Though the two main characters are class-opposed and snarky with each other, they’re both three-dimensional, (gasp!) actually seem to like each other, and (double gasp!) actually listen to each other. Sadly, I’m straining hard to remember the last time I saw female friendship depicted this way on a sitcom. Also, don’t drop dead of shock, but as it turns out, this is a show about two women who develop concrete career and financial goals and then attend to them over the course of the series. It was so nice to see a situation, where wealth accumulation wasn’t all a matter of luck, but ingenuity and hard work that we can actually see in action. What I Didn’t Like: There were quite a few stale jokes, but I remember THE BIG...

Last night, I channeled my inner-teenager to watch the latest series in CW’s popular YA-book-to-TV-show formula. How did it go? Well, teen me didn’t exactly squee. Here’s my report on the THE SECRET CIRCLE: Overview A newly orphaned Cassie, returns to her mother’s small hometown to move in with her grandmother. She quickly attracts new friends — of the witchy variety and discovers that her mother basically ran away from a full-on gothic witch soap opera, the survivors of which, are now her new friends’ parents. What I Liked I didn’t realize how many series revolve around a powerless girl caught up with a powerful male until this series came along. It was refreshing to watch a show where the girls not only had magical powers but worked with their magical male counterparts. It’s not witches, it’s not warlocks. It’s witches and warlocks. I also loved that the parents get a ton of screen time and are actually involved in their children’s lives. Also, each of the five teen witches and warlocks only have one parent, so it’s interesting to see so many single parents (moms and dads) representing, with no one giving extra credit to the single dads. What I Didn’t Like It’s a fine line between brooding and boring and THE SECRET CIRCLE definitely stepped over it a few times. I couldn’t bring myself to care about any of the characters, mostly because the main character is a list of traits (descended from witches, orphaned, confused, angry, unknowingly powerful) as opposed to a human being with an actual personality. Same goes for the main (so far) witch antagonist, who kind of stomps around creating conflict, seemingly because the writers just want her to be difficult. Also, the chemistry between Cassie and the...

I hear COMMUNITY has gotten better, as has PARKS & RECREATIONS. Also, I love Christina Applegate, Will Arnett, and Hank Azaria, so I had high hopes for NBC’s new comedy block starring all of them — though I also had major resentment that it didn’t pop off until 10pm. You’d think that the powers that be would know that most of the people in UP ALL NIGHT’s target demographic have to get up early with their children the next morning. But, no worries, apparently the block is moving into the 8pm/7c time slot as of next week.So without further adieu, here are my spoiler-free reviews of UP ALL NIGHT and FREE AGENTS. Overview UP ALL NIGHT: Power couple Regan (Christina Applegate) and Chris (Will Arnett) have a baby. Their whole life gets turned upside down even as they try to hold on to the old versions of themselves. In a refreshing twist, Chris leaves his law career behind to become a stay-at-home dad, and Regan goes back to work as a producer on a talk show hosted by the zany and wonderfully self-absorbed, Ava (Maya Rudolph). FREE AGENTS: Alex, a recently divorced dad (Hank Azaria) hooks up with fellow PR executive, Helen (Kathryn Hahn), whose fiancee died a year ago. While trying to keep things simple, things get messy. The series also stars Anthony Head (Giles from BUFFY!) as their boss. What I Liked UP ALL NIGHT: Um, a sitcom that talks frankly and openly about new parenthood? Really, I might as well have hit the series record button based on concept alone. Maya Rudolph is also a scene-stealing joy to watch. And, smarm-master Will Arnett is somehow just right playing a nurturing father — this might just be his comeback role. FREE AGENTS:...

I was so disappointed with Fall TV 2010 that I complained about it clear into 2011. But maybe that was unfair, considering that I hadn’t given most of the new Fall TV season a chance. For all I knew a few of the cancelled shows that I never watched might have been the bee’s knees. For example, so many people love then-freshman, now-sophomore, RAISING HOPE — might it had alleviated some of my “no good TV out there” bitterness? Well, this year, I decided to approach the Fall 2011 crop of freshmen scripted TV shows a little differently — by watching every single one of them and reporting back to you. There are a few rules: 1) While I’ll review everything on broadcast, it’s just too hard to keep track of everything coming out on cable. Believe me, I’ll do my best, but some of the cable shows might slip through the cracks. 2) No reality. There’s too much of it, and I’m just not that big on it — the last new reality show I adopted was RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE — and that was back in 2009. 3) I’ll also be giving each show a diversity grade, because you know how I do. I’m just really excited about the prospect of being able to complain about new TV based on experience as opposed to perception. So let’s open this new series up with a report on THE RINGER (CW): Overview Former stripper-addict, Bridget, who witnessed a murder, sends a letter of atonement to her identical twin society-blond sister, Siobhan. (BTW, are addicts really still writing letters? Or is step 9 all about the apologetic email these days?) Anywho, Siobhan, sends her a letter back, saying all is forgiven and inviting her to the...