The TV upfronts, where the networks present their new schedules for the fall, were last week. I’ve looked through all the new shows and picked out the top ten I’m most looking forward to checking out. Times are Eastern, because that’s the way this country works.
10) Lonestar
Fox, Mondays at 9
This might turn out to be way more soapy than I like, but I’m going to give it a chance because I live in The Great State of Texas, it looks kind of like Dallas, and it has Jon Voight in it.
9) Detroit 1-8-7
ABC, Tuesdays at 10
Many people, including me, are getting a little tired of police procedurals, but this one has a great cast and is set in Detroit, which seems like a pretty intense place to be a cop. So I’m definitely interested.
8) S#*! My Dad Says
CBS, Thursdays at 8:30
I normally would worry about how they’re going to pull off an adaptation of a Twitter account, but with William Shatner starring, I’m in.
7) Outsourced
NBC, Thursdays at 9:30
Looks to be kind of an Office-ish sitcom. It’s about a company who outsources its call center to India, and the manager from the Midwest who has to teach his new employees about American culture. Will there be zany antics and cultural misunderstandings? We can all hope.
6) No Ordinary Family
ABC, Tuesdays at 8
This is a drama about a family of superheroes. Kind of looks like a live-action Incredibles with Michael Chiklis in the role of the father. Heroes has been officially cancelled, but maybe this can help ease the pain for fans.
5) Happy Endings
ABC
This is a midseason replacement show, so there’s no air date for it. The sitcom stars Elisha Cuthbert as a woman who jilts her fiancé at the altar, but tries to remain friendly with him in order to keep her relationships with their joint friends. Somehow, hilarity ensues.
4) Undercovers
NBC, Wednesdays at 8
A Mr. and Mrs. Smith-style drama about two married ex-CIA agents who have to get back into the spy game. Sounds okay, until you find out that JJ Abrams is the co-creator, co-writer, executive producer, and sometimes director. Potential for being awesome: extremely high.
3) Terra Nova
Fox, not yet slotted
This show is either going to be totally sweet or a fairly big flop, but I’m hoping for the former. I mean, it’s co-produced by Steven Spielberg, and as far as anyone knows it’s about time traveling people from the future who hang out with dinosaurs. Now that I see that typed out, I take back my previous statement — this show can’t be anything but totally sweet. In further support of this, Ken Tucker from EW.com called Terra Nova “like Battlestar Galactica + Jurassic Park / Land of the Lost.”
2) Blue Bloods
CBS, Fridays at 10
Follows a family of New York cops, which sounds kind of interesting, OMG BREAKING NEWS IT STARS TOM SELLECK. I’d rather they just do an updated Magnum PI where everyone is a little old, but until that happens, I’ll take this.
1) Running Wilde
Fox, Tuesdays at 9:30
Why is this comedy about a rich guy wooing a woman from his childhood my most anticipated show? It’s from the creators of Arrested Development, which, as you might recall, is the BEST SHOW EVER. It also stars Will Arnett and Keri Russell, so that doesn’t hurt.
