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New Shows (2013): September 16-22

Fox kicked off its season this week with mixed success. Otherwise, it was relatively quiet as we all hold our breath for next week’s onslaught of the new network shows. The color code: red means don’t bother; blue means maybe; green means good; magenta means great.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
Sleepy Hollow (Fox at 9:00pm)
Mark posted an hilarious review of the pilot. Surprisingly, this show currently has a series record on my DVR. We’ll see how long I stick with it.

The Queen Latifah Show (Syndicated)
E! True Hollywood Story: CeeLo Green (E! at 10:00pm)

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17
Dads (Fox at 8:00pm)
Universally panned by every critic out there, this show is as bad as its press would imply. Trying to be cutting edge, Seth MacFarlane pushes the envelope in terms of racial and gender jokes; they are as offensive as you would imagine. I would be willing to overlook the horror of the jokes if they were, at least on some level, funny. These are not; they are just old and tired. Four great actors are going to waste in this travesty. Each of them deserves better.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox at 8:30pm)
Unlike the horror show above, this sitcom has been universally praised as the best of the new comedies. Perhaps it is, but it didn’t really speak to me. Not that it was bad, I just didn’t think it was all that funny. There were some glimmers of real humor, but most of the jokes were adolescent and silly. This is one I will pass on, waiting to see if it comes into its own later on down the road. That’s what marathons are for.

Latino Americans (PBS at 8:00pm)
99%: The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film (Pivot at 9:00pm)
I Dream of NeNe: The Wedding (Bravo at 9:00pm)
The New Atlanta (Bravo at 10:00pm)

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19
Valerie’s Story (NBC at 10:00pm)
Meredith Viera spent a few months following Valerie Harper after her diagnosis with cancer. This documentary is about that fight. Having lost my dad to cancer, I found it extraordinarily difficult to watch, especially when Valerie’s daughter was on camera. Objectively, it was an uplifting account of a woman who is battling cancer and currently winning. What makes it so sad is that, eventually, she will lose that battle.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 20
LT: The Life & Times (Showtime at 8:00)
A two hour documentary about the trials (literally) and tribulations that have befallen Lawrence Taylor. It felt more biographical than anything else, and I didn’t feel that I learned anything about the man I couldn’t have discovered online. Too bad, because the filmmakers had extraordinary access to the man and his family. An opportunity, I’m afraid, they wasted.

The Hollow Crown: Shakespeare’s History Plays (PBS at 9:00pm)
Mark teased us about this back in June of 2012. We are finally able to see it on this side of the pond. It is so good, I am going to review it when it is over. Stream Richard II on line and watch Shakespeare as it should always be done.

The Watsons Go To Birmingham (Hallmark at 8:00pm)

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 21
Taken: The Search for Sophie Parker (Lifetime at 8:00pm)
The Marriage Test (A&E at 10:00pm)

RETURNING SHOWS THAT PREMIERE THIS WEEK:
The shows with links are those that we will be reviewing this year.

Monday, September 23
How I Met Your Mother (CBS at 8:00pm)
The Voice (NBC at 8:00pm)
2 Broke Girls (CBS at 9:00pm)
Castle (ABC at 10:00pm)

Tuesday, September 24
NCIS (CBS at 8:00pm)
NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS at 9:00pm)
Chicago Fire (NBC at 10:00pm)
Person of Interest (CBS at 10:00pm)

Wednesday, September 25
The Middle (ABC at 8:00pm)
Revolution (NBC at 8:00pm)
Criminal Minds (CBS at 9:00pm)
Law & Order: SVU (NBC at 9:00pm)
Modern Family (ABC at 9:00pm)
CSI (CBS at 10:00pm)
Nashville (ABC at 10:00pm)
South Park (Comedy Central at 10:00pm)

Thursday, September 26
The Big Bang Theory (CBS at 8:00pm)
Parks and Recreation (NBC at 8:00pm)
Glee (Fox at 9:00pm)
Grey’s Anatomy (ABC at 9:00pm)
Two and a Half Men (CBS at 9:30pm)
Elementary (CBS at 10:00pm)
Parenthood (NBC at 10:00pm)

Friday, September 27
Undercover Boss (CBS at 8:00pm)
Hawaii Five-0 (CBS at 9:00pm)
Blue Bloods (CBS at 10:00pm)

Saturday, September 28
Saturday Night Live (NBC at 11:30pm)

Sunday, September 29
60 Minutes (CBS at 7:00pm)
The Amazing Race (CBS at 8:00pm)
Once Upon a Time (ABC at 8:00pm)
The Simpsons (Fox at 8:00pm)
Bob’s Burgers (Fox at 8:30pm)
Family Guy (Fox at 9:00pm)
The Good Wife (CBS at 9:00pm)
Homeland (Showtime at 9:00pm)
Revenge (ABC at 9:00pm)
American Dad (Fox at 9:30pm)
Eastbound & Down (HBO at 10:00)
The Mentalist (CBS at 10:00pm)

25 comments:

  1. Are those baby foxes in a post that began with the word "Fox"? I love it!

    Despite having set my DVR last night, it wasn't until reading your post, Chris, that I realized Person of Interest has moved from 9pm to 10pm. I hope that means it'll be even darker!

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  2. All kidding aside, one of the most difficult things about posting this column every week is finding the right photo to add. I did a search for Fox hoping to find something pertaining to the network. I found these cuties instead and went another way.

    I am a season behind in PoI, but am hoping to catch up sooner rather than later. It is on my DVR as well.

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  3. Foxes are adorable. I'm watching Brooklyn Nine Nine, at least for now. I'll let you know if it gets great.

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  4. Speaking of foxes - I do hope you've seen the latest internet-craze? From my/our beloved Norwegian neighbors?
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jofNR_WkoCE

    Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow!

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  5. 51 million people have watched that video? That's insane.

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  6. I've only watched it three dozen times or so.

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  7. That video is hilarious! Thanks for the link, Henrik.

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  8. It was my utter and complete pleasure ChrisB. Don't mention it.

    By the way - somebody recently asked about good shows to watch (and somebody else recommended The booth at the end which I've since watched and am quite fascinated by, thankyou person-who-I-don't-remember-who-it-was).
    I can recommend these: Black mirror, Broadchurch (with an David Tennant), Top of the lake (with Elisabeth Moss of Mad men) and The Fall (with Gillian Andersson).
    These may, or may not, get you through Breaking Bad-withdrawal a week from now.

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  9. streams on Hulu here in the States. I have seen the promos for it and thought it looked interesting. I have added it to my list. Black Mirror is not yet available in the US for some odd reason although I have heard about it from my UK friends.

    Broadchurch is just winding down here (we find out whodunnit this week) and I have loved it. I am so pleased a second series is in the works. Top of the Lake was astonishing; another show I just loved.

    As for The Fall, we all fell for it (sorry). I raved about it and Billie reviewed it (http://www.douxreviews.com/2013/06/the-fall.html). This is the one series that I recommend when people ask me about the best of the best of this year.

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  10. The internet gremlin cut off the first part of my comment. I was talking about The Booth at the End as the one streaming on Hulu.

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  11. Henrik and ChrisB, a friend recommended The Booth at the End and I've been meaning to make it a part of a Random Recommendation on Doux News for a while now. Really excellent.

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  12. Thanks ChrisB - I have/had no idea how things are televised/shown/streamed in the states and had totally missed the review of The fall (which was written during my vacation when I really don't watch that much TV).
    I did realize that I've totally forgotten the best thing to come out of Sweden recently - the ten-part miniseries "The Bridge (Bron)"
    If you can watch in subtitled somewhere - do. It's NOT about a serial killer as such, I'll say that much.
    It's been getting remakes as well. I think the US-Mexican-version is "The Border". Not sure if UK/French-version "The tunnel" is on yet.
    Well worth the watch, the character of "Saga Norén" takes some getting used to but is really excellently portrayed by Sofia Helin. You have to watch it to know what I'm talking about.

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  13. The US remake is called The Bridge and it is currently showing here as well. I loved the pilot, but cooled on it a bit as it went on. The last few episodes are sitting on my DVR unwatched. I will most likely watch them at some point, but it quickly fell from grace.

    The other show that happened with was Roy Donovan. I really liked the first couple of episodes, but it got old quickly and I have a large number of episodes sitting on my DVR as well. They will, most likely, sit there for some time as I am in no hurry to watch the end.

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  14. The Bridge is an odd little show. I've stuck with it, because I didn't have a lot on my viewing slate through the end of the summer. It's got several elements that are intriguing, and some good characters and relationships, but it also has a weird number of threads that have little connection to the whole and don't seem to be going anywhere in particular. And I can't say I much liked where they took the central mystery, even though some aspects of it worked for me.

    BUT, I really, really like Demian Bichir's character and Diane Kruger's Sonya has quite grown on me. I wasn't sure what to make of her at first, but I've come to like the character and the performance quite a bit. Marco and Sonya's dynamic is a good one, and I am sort of intrigued to see where the show goes over these last few episodes. It has unexplored potential, and I'm curious to see what they do with it.

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  15. Brooklyn Nine Nine was better than expected..yay for Andre Braugher who saved it for me. Now if Kyle Secor could guest star I'd be a happy bunny.
    King and Maxwell is cancelled..boo. I really liked it and Christian Kane guest starred. Dichen Lahman had a great supporting role and Ryan Hurst rocked his scenes. Le sigh.
    Anna

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  16. Yeah, Anna, I was bummed about King & Maxwell too. From a rocky start, it really grew on me and I loved the interplay among the three leads.

    Have you tried Cracked yet? Another one that took a while to get started, but is now going great guns.

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  17. No, but will give it a shot..sounds kinda nice. Agreed about how King and Maxwell took some time but really had good chemistry between the three as you said. Liked how Lahman seemed to fit right in too. Oh well..
    Anna

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  18. News well-timed to this morning's discussion: FX has renewed The Bridge for a second season (to air next summer). I'm glad that they are going to get some more time to explore the potential for these characters and this setting.

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  19. Huh! The second season just begun, on sunday, here in Sweden. It's really, really, good!

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  20. That video for The Fox song is really hilarious. My whole family laughed ourselves silly watching it. Over and over. I think the captioning adds an extra layer of funny to the whole thing.

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  21. OMG, Henrik, I loved that video. Laughed like a loon. Or maybe that's the secret sound of the fox.

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  22. Ha! I would LOVE it if there were foxes running around in the forest going "Wa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pow!"

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  23. Wow. Weird spam! Google says "Wohnungsräumung" means "Apartment eviction".
    Maybe someone should evict the comment?

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  24. Thanks, Henrik -- yes, I got it. We've been getting a lot of spam lately.

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  25. Huh! Waddaya know - the brothers were on Ellen the other day!
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ybfAoohZw8

    You should also check out two other videos by them. Stonehenge is fantastically hilarious as well:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbyzgeee2mg

    So is The Cabin - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua1FAlHt_Ys - but maybe mostly for norwegians or swedes...

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