Doux News: Fall Preview

Hey, all, how's it going? Did you have a good summer? Are you as overwhelmed by the number of available television choices as I am?

Before I talk about our fall coverage, I want to share that I've fallen into television love twice this past spring and summer.

Autumn Preview (British Edition)

Your comprehensive guide to all the new British dramas coming this autumn.

Fall 2018 Premiere Dates

You're probably
expecting
Josie Kafka's
lovely poetry.
But this is just
Billie Doux
with fall premieres in
chronological order.
Sorry about that.

There are just too many shows out there these days. Tracking them is an impossible task, even when you only list the ones you're covering, or that interest you, which is pretty much what I'm doing here. So feel free to post comments with additions and corrections, and I'll keep updating this article.

Fall 2017 Premiere Dates

We are doomed, it seems, to live in interesting times. And nothing is more interesting than the fall television premiere schedule, which you will find below.

Gilmore Girls: Fall

“I’m five by five.”

After Amy Sherman-Palladino’s unexpected departure from Gilmore Girls after the sixth season, she explained to the fandom that she had always known what the final four words of the series would be. And GG fans have been waiting ever since, until this moment, which comes right after the page break…

The Fall To-Doux List

Hello there, beloved readers! The Fall Television Season is nearly upon us, and that seems like a good time to let you know what to expect for the next couple of months:

Fall 2016 Premiere Dates

I'll let Edna St. Vincent Millay introduce this post:

When reeds are dead and a straw to thatch the marshes,
And feathered pampas-grass rides into the wind
Like aged warriors westward, tragic, thinned
Of half their tribe, and over the flattened rushes,
Stripped of its secret, open, stark and bleak,
Blackens afar the half-forgotten creek,—
Then leans on me the weight of the year, and crushes
My heart. I know that Beauty must ail and die,
And will be born again,—but ah, to see
Beauty stiffened, staring up at the sky!
Oh, Autumn! Autumn!—What is the Spring to me?*

Sunday discussion: Who won the week?

So many premieres. And it isn't even October yet.

Sunday Discussion: What shows are you most looking forward to this fall?

Four seasons. Not enough.

When I started posting these Sunday discussion topics a few weeks ago, the first question I wanted to ask was, "What shows are you guys looking forward to this fall?" And then every other TV site on the internet posted the same question that very week, and I thought, do I want to look like I'm imitating all the other TV web sites? So I went with another question.

And then this morning I thought, so what? I'm posting it anyway. What shows are you most looking forward to this fall?

Fall 2015 Premiere Dates

Shakespeare had it right: fall is the time in which we love yet know we must lose. This year's Fall Premiere schedule contains quite a few expected goodies--I'm lookin' at you, The Good Wife--and more than a few empty places, as old favorites like Person of Interest are held until the midseason.

Or, as Shakespeare puts it:

Doux News: May 17, 2015

This week: Spinoff and revival news -- This week in fall schedules -- This week in casts -- The best cat entertainment news pretty much ever

Doux News: September 21, 2014

Enjoy your Sunday!

THIS WEEK: Fall Season Kicks Off -- First Look at Mockingjay -- The Comics Come to Life -- Ben-Hur Rides Again -- Netflix -- Premium -- Justified Casting

New Shows: September 1-20, 2014

REVIEWED: Houdini -- The Chair -- Utopia -- A Good Job -- The Roosevelts -- Play It Again, Dick -- The Mysteries of Laura -- Red Band Society

Fall 2014 Premiere Schedule

This post needs no introduction, so I'll let fellow TV reviewer and blogger Bill Shakespeare showcase his poetic talents in this sonnet to the life-expectancy of Sean Bean, whose upcoming show Legends premieres August 20th:

Doux News: May 18, 2014

This Week: Next Fall -- How I Met... Who? --- Star Trek -- Community -- Stephen King -- Cannes -- This Week In Cats

Fall TV Preview

This week was the upfronts, that extra special time of year when the big networks (and NBC) parade in front of the press all the new shows that will be viciously battling for our attention come September.

The New Fall Season Thanksgiving Roundup

It's Thanksgiving week in the states, and time to talk about what has turned out to be a disappointing fall season. I will avoid the predictable comment about turkeys.

We covered several premieres this fall, and there was only one show that we decided to take on and review every week. That's kind of sad. I was really hoping I'd fall in love with something new, since this is Smallville's last season and I have a reviewing slot opening up soon. Oh, well.

NewsFlash: CBS’s Fall Schedule

It’s hard for me to get too excited about the CBS upfront. I don’t watch a single CBS show; here in LA it’s channel #2, so it usually slides off the channel guide before I even have a chance to look at it. And, now that the Ghost Whisperer has been canceled, Medium is their only genre show (although I have always wondered if perhaps the half-man of Two and a Half Men is a cyborg hybrid). Read on for some underwhelming news.

Hawaii Five-0 (Monday 10-11):

Official description: Hawaii Five-0 is a contemporary take on the classic series about a new elite federalized task force whose mission is to wipe out the crime that washes up on the Islands’ sun-drenched beaches. Detective Steve McGarrett (Alex O’Loughlin), a decorated Naval officer turned cop, returns to Oahu to investigate his father’s murder and stays after Hawaii’s governor persuades him to head up the new team: his rules, her backing, no red tape and full blanket immunity to hunt down the biggest “game” in town. Joining McGarrett is Detective Danny “Danno” Williams (Scott Caan), a newly relocated ex-New Jersey cop who prefers skyscrapers to the coastline but is committed to keeping the Islands safe for his 8-year-old daughter; and Chin Ho Kelly (Daniel Dae Kim), an ex-Honolulu Police Detective wrongly accused of corruption and relegated to a federal security patrol, who is also a former protege of McGarrett’s father. Chin’s cousin, Kono (Grace Park), is a beautiful and fearless native, fresh out of the academy and eager to establish herself among the department’s elite. McGarrett vows to bring closure to his father’s case while the state’s brash new FIVE-0 unit, who may spar and jest among themselves, is determined to eliminate the seedy elements from the 50th state. Peter Lenkov, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are executive producers for CBS Television Studios.

Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park—that’s exciting! Alex Kutzman and Roberto Orci both work on Fringe, so that’s mildly exciting, as well.


Criminal Minds Spinoff (Mid-season replacement):

Official Description: Criminal Minds Spinoff stars Academy Award-winner Forest Whitaker in a drama about an elite team of agents within the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit who use unconventional methods of investigation and aggressive tactics to capture the nation’s most nefarious criminals. Unit chief Special Agent Sam Cooper (Whitaker) is a mentally and physically fierce natural leader who is not afraid to put his career on the line in order to stand by his convictions. Cooper strives to avoid political bureaucracy and has handpicked an eclectic group of profilers to work outside the confines of Quantico: Former British Special Forces soldier Mick Rawson (Matt Ryan), confident and handsome, works as a highly-skilled marksman with an undiluted eye for rooting out evil; John "Prophet" Sims (Michael Kelly), a former convict with a street-smart edge and a calm, Zen-like presence, who is determined to make amends for past sins; and Gina LaSalle (Beau Garrett), an attractive, tough agent armed with a cunning sense of perception. This exceptional group of FBI operatives is strong in their beliefs and steadfast in their mission to bring the country’s most dangerous criminals to justice.

I am only including this one because Forest Whitaker is fabulous. Well, and because I’m dying to know if "Criminal Minds Spinoff" is actually the name of the show. That’s like registering a business under the name "Manufacturer of Off-Brand Gelatin."

So: no genre here, and while I might check out Hawaii Five-0 for the first episode, I don't think I’ll start remembering that CBS exists anytime soon. What about you?

NewsFlash: FOX’s Fall Schedule

Glee, Fringe and Human Target, our favorite FOX shows, have already been renewed. But will the top network have something new for genre fans? Maybe—read on for more details about FOX’s fall lineup.

Terra Nova (mid-season replacement):

Official description: Terra Nova, an epic family adventure 85 million years in the making, is the new event drama slated for midseason from executive producers Steven Spielberg (Jurassic Park, The Pacific), Peter Chernin, Brannon Braga (24, Star Trek: Enterprise) and David Fury (24, Lost). The action-adventure series follows an ordinary family on an extraordinary journey back in time to prehistoric Earth as a part of a massive expedition to save the human race.

This sounds like an 8pm on Friday kind of show to me: the phrase "family adventure" makes me a little hesitant. Then again, it's got David Fury and Brannon Braga. And maybe saber-tooth tigers, too!


Ride-Along (mid-season replacement):

Official description: The new drama scheduled for a midseason debut is Ride-Along. From creator Shawn Ryan (The Shield, The Unit), the fast-paced series, shot on location in Chicago and starring Jason Clarke (Public Enemies), Jennifer Beals (Lie to Me) and Delroy Lindo (Kidnapped), will take audiences on an unflinching and unpredictable ride through the streets of Chicago to navigate crime and corruption with the most respected – and notorious – cops in the city.

It could be a new Wire, with a bit of Shield-level violence and man-angst thrown in. Or it could be a new procedural.


Lonestar (Monday 9-10):

Official description: Lonestar, a sophisticated and provocative drama set against the sprawling backdrop of big Texas oil, will premiere this fall. From Chris Keyser and Amy Lippman (Party of Five), writer Kyle Killen and directed by Marc Webb ((500) Days of Summer), the compelling series stars newcomer James Wolk as a charismatic and brilliant schemer who has entangled himself in a deep, complex web from which he can’t break free. He’s caught between two very different lives and two very different women.

I’m not sure why this sounds good—maybe it’s the Sawyer-esque hero. Or maybe I just needed something to round out this paltry list.

It’s hard to get too excited about this, but FOX’s schedule doesn’t have much room for newbies this year – they've had a successful run.

NewsFlash: NBC's Fall Schedule

It's the beginning of "upfront" week, in which the major networks debut their fall schedules – and set their ad rates. NBC leaked their upfront info early: we'll get many new scripted hour-long shows to join our friend Chuck (renewed for 13 episodes and set to premiere in the fall). Click for the genre-friendly version of the official press release, and let us know in the comments which shows you're looking forward to, which shows you'll skip, or whether it's just too early to say.

The Event (Monday 9-10, after Chuck):

Official description: The Event is an emotional high-octane conspiracy thriller that follows Sean Walker (Parenthood‘s Jason Ritter), an Everyman who investigates the mysterious disappearance of his fiancée, Leila (Sarah Roemer), and unwittingly begins to expose the biggest cover-up in U.S. history. Sean’s quest will send ripples through the lives of an eclectic band of strangers, including: newly elected U.S. President Martinez (Blair Underwood); Sophia (Laura Innes), who is the leader of a mysterious group of detainees; and Sean’s shadowy father-in-law (Gilmore Girls‘ Scott Patterson). Their futures are on a collision course in a global conspiracy that could ultimately change the fate of mankind. Ian Anthony Dale (Daybreak) and Emmy winner Željko Ivanek (Damages) also star in the ensemble drama.

I like the sound of a global conspiracy, although I'm confused about how the fate of mankind can be changed--that implies we know what the fate of mankind is...Do we know that? (Could someone clue me in?)


Undercovers (Wednesday 8-9):

Official description: Outwardly, Steven Bloom (Kodjoe) and his wife, Samantha (Mbatha-Raw), are a typical married couple who own a small catering company in Los Angeles and are helped by Samantha’s easily frazzled younger sister, Lizzy (Jessica Parker Kennedy). Secretly, the duo were two of the CIA’s best spies until they fell in love on the job five years ago and retired. When fellow spy and friend Nash (Carter MacIntyre) goes missing while on the trail of a Russian arms dealer, the Blooms are reinstated by boss Carlton Shaw (Gerald McRaney) to locate and rescue Nash. The pair is thrust back into the world of espionage as they follow leads that span the globe — and Steven and Samantha realize that this supercharged, undercover lifestyle provides the excitement and romance that their marriage has been missing

This is the J.J. Abrams Alias/Chuck mash-up we've heard so much about. The early time slot means this will be lighter fare than, say, Lost and Fringe. But do we need another happy spy show?

Law & Order: Los Angeles (Wednesday 10-11):

There's no official description for this one – do we really need it? In fact, the only reason this show is listed here in Genre Heaven is that I really, really want to review the pilot. L&O, in all of its incarnations, is a New York show. Can it really handle all the LA sunshine?

The Cape (mid-season replacement):

Official description: The Cape is a one-hour drama series starring David Lyons (ER) as Vince Faraday, an honest cop on a corrupt police force, who finds himself framed for a series of murders and presumed dead. He is forced into hiding, leaving behind his wife, Dana (Jennifer Ferrin, Life on Mars) and son, Trip (Ryan Wynott, FlashForward). Fueled by a desire to reunite with his family and to battle the criminal forces that have overtaken Palm City, Faraday becomes The Cape, his son’s favorite comic book superhero — and takes the law into his own hands. Rounding out the cast are James Frain (The Tudors) as billionaire Peter Fleming, The Cape’s nemesis, who moonlights as the twisted killer Chess; Keith David (Death at a Funeral) as Max Malini, the ringleader of a circus gang of bank robbers who mentors Vince Faraday and trains him to be The Cape; Summer Glau (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) as Orwell, an investigative blogger who wages war on crime and corruption in Palm City; and Dorian Missick (Six Degrees) as Marty Voyt, a former police detective and friend to Faraday.

Summer Glau? A "circus ring of bank robbers"? An average joe who becomes a superhero? What's not to love?

So, superfans? What do you think?