Wednesday nights are looking pretty bleak. There's an attempt at the next Modern Family, a Glee with sick kids, a police procedural investigating mystery that cops can be moms, and and another police procedural, this one with a horror movie feel. One of these could be a breakout, but the trailers aren't too encouraging.
Black-ish
Premiere Date: September 24
Showtime: 9:30 pm
Network: ABC
Description: A sitcom about an African-American family - ABC's attempt at the next Modern Family.
To Watch or Not to Watch: Hitflix and TVline both like the adult cast and think that the show has a lot
of promise. The trailer doesn't make me want to watch the show - I'm not
into the pilot. But I agree that the parents in the show (Anthony Anderson
and Tracee Ellis Ross) are funny and have good chemistry. Plus, Laurence
Fishburne (!!) plays the grandfather. If you like family comedies, it is certainly worth checking out. But it might take a few episodes to find itself.
Stalker
Premiere Date: October 1
Showtime: 10pm
Network: CBS
Description: Another cop drama, this time focused on the victims of stalking, cyber harassment, etc. The trailer make it look like a horror movie crossed with a typical police procedural.
To Watch or Not to Watch: It's produced by Kevin Williamson, known for Scream and The Following (also Dawson's Creek and The Vampire Diaries). It also stars Maggie Q, who I have a soft spot for from Nikita.
TVline found it creepy but underwhelming and Hitflix thought it overly
manipulative. The trailer is pretty damn chilling and it looks like it will certainly have atmosphere than a typical police procedure. If you like cop shows, or if you like horror movies, then you'll probably like it. I think this is the most promising Tuesday night show, and it's on my "to-watch" list - but only when I'm not home alone.
Red Band Society
Premiere Date: September 17
Showtime: 9pm
Network: Fox
Description: A dark dramedy about teenagers living in a hospital's pediatric ward - like Glee meets The Fault in Our Stars. One of the show's producers has assured the public that the first season won't have a body count.
To Watch or Not to Watch:The AV Club thought it was too treacly and didn't translate well from its
Spanish origins (especially given the state of US healthcare). But
Hitflix thinks it has a strong cast and strikes a good balance between
emotion and restraint (although it finds the numerous voiceovers
grating). The premise makes me hesitant. The trailer makes me a little bit more optimistic, but it seems like it could be one of those shows that is based largely on manipulating the audience into crying, which I hate(damn you Ghost Whisperer!). Also, while I thought Glee started off well, it quickly became grating and inconsistent, and this show gives me a little bit of the same vibe. Plus, the Adult Male (Role Model) Figure, the Hot Doctor, looks startlingly like Mr. Schue, which weirdly enough makes me more worried that this show is too Glee-like. This is a "meh" for me - it could go either way.
Mysteries of Laura
Premiere Date: September 17
Showtime: 8pm
Network: NBC
Description: Debra Messing is a homicide detective with the NYPD who balances her day job with taking care of her sons. As NPR's Linda Holmes puts it: Copmom. Momcop.
To Watch or Not to Watch:Hitflix has dubbed it possibly the worst show of this season. They say that lazy cop cliches and the show's suggestion that it is crazy that a woman could be a cop and a mom, is compounded with the fact that the show seems to say that "Laura's
able to do both because she is a spectacularly awful mother, and human
being in general." The AV Club is also not a fan, finding it generic and
the show messy. This gets a giant "hell-no" from me. There's several police procedurals every season - why bother watching one that looks so irritating?
No comments:
Post a Comment