This Monday Madness, vote for your favorite brother/sister duos! While many shows include 3, 4, or more siblings, this poll only focuses on a brother/sister pair – there may be other siblings, but only if they are less of a focus. (I may do a families poll in the future to cover families with multiple siblings like the Bluths.) As in the previous polls, I only included more recent shows, and included both half- and step-siblings, as well as adopted siblings (but not siblings-in-law).
I also did not include siblings when one of them is only in a handful of episodes. My general rule of thumb was going with siblings who had both been in at least 1/3 of the episodes. Be sure to keep that in mind with any nominations!
This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 5 of your favorite TV brother/sister duos. Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will win!
I had a hard time coming up with duos for this list, so I know there are brother/sister pairs I left out! As always, you can cast write-in ballots by leaving a comment, and if I receive several nominations, I may add them to the poll! Want more of a say in what makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll.
Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 12AM March 31st.
Which is your favorite TV brother/sister duo? (Choose up to 5!)
Roman and Sophia (Star-Crossed) (31%, 874 Votes)
Elena and Jeremy Gilbert (The Vampire Diaries) (17%, 468 Votes)
Oliver and Thea Queen (Arrow) (10%, 269 Votes)
Annie and Dixon Wilson (90210) (9%, 244 Votes)
Ross and Monica Gellar (Friends) (8%, 211 Votes)
Simon and River Tam (Firefly) (6%, 162 Votes)
Sookie and Jason Stackhouse (True Blood) (4%, 121 Votes)
Claire Dunphy and Mitchell Pritchett (Modern Family) (3%, 91 Votes)
Dan and Jenny Humphrey (Gossip Girl) (3%, 85 Votes)
Chuck and Ellie Bartowski (Chuck) (3%, 78 Votes)
Casey and Rusty Cartwright (Greek) (2%, 54 Votes)
Frankie and Jane Rizzoli (Rizzoli and Isles) (1%, 40 Votes)
Lindsay and Sam Weir (Freaks and Geeks) (1%, 26 Votes)
Amber and Drew Holt (Parenthood) (1%, 22 Votes)
Ryan and Lisa Shay (Suburgatory) (1%, 17 Votes)
Daphne and J.J. Powell (No Ordinary Family) (0%, 12 Votes)
Update: this poll is now closed. You can vote for this week’s poll here, or click the image under “Weekly Poll” in the upper left sidebar. You can also see the results post here.
It’s that time of year, when TV fans wait with bated breath to see if their favorite shows will be back next year or will suffer the horrors of cancellation!
But if you had the opportunity and could save one show, which one would it be? For the purposes of this poll, I used TV By the Numbers Renew/Cancel Index. Every live-action scripted broadcast show that they rate as on the bubble or lower, and has not yet been officially canceled or renewed, I included in the poll below.
The site will update their predictions on Tuesday, so I had to base this on last week’s results. Also, if a show is canceled or renewed while this poll is active, I will remove the option for that show. Since you can choose up to 5 shows to save in the poll, you can vote for one on every network or mix it up!
The winner of last week’s poll were the sisters of Charmed! Second place went to Buffy and Dawn (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), followed by a tie for third place between Mary, Edith, and Sybil (Downton Abbey) and Abby and Jenny (Sleepy Hollow). Fifth place was a tie between Beth and Maggie (The Walking Dead) and Mary, Lucy, and Ruthie (7th Heaven).
This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 5 of your favorite TV shows. Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will win!
Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 12AM March 24th.
Which 2013-2014 broadcast show would you save? (Choose up to 5!)
Beauty and the Beast (The CW) (30%, 1,597 Votes)
Almost Human (Fox) (12%, 612 Votes)
Community (NBC) (11%, 595 Votes)
Hannibal (NBC) (7%, 380 Votes)
Star-Crossed (The CW) (5%, 250 Votes)
The Tomorrow People (The CW) (4%, 235 Votes)
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland (ABC) (4%, 190 Votes)
Since our last poll featured TV brothers, now it’s time to vote for TV sisters!
Sisters seem to be a lot less common on TV than brothers. Like the previous poll, I only included more recent shows (2000-present, hence the absence of the Huxtable sisters), and included both half- and step-sisters (but not sisters-in-law). There are some slight spoilers for a few shows (two characters actually being sisters, a sister being still alive to be in multiple episodes, etc.).
I also did not include sisters when one of them is only in a handful of episodes. For example, Robin Scherbatsky’s sister Katie is only in 2 episodes (so far). My general rule of thumb was going with sisters who had both/all been in at least 1/3 of the episodes. Be sure to keep that in mind with any nominations!
The winner of last week’s poll was Dean and Sam Winchester of Supernatural! Second place went to the Holmes brothers (Sherlock), followed by Klaus and Elijah (The Originals), Damon and Stefan (The Vampire Diaries), and Pete, Derrick, and Randy (Enlisted)!
This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 5 of your favorite TV sister duos (or trios). Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will win!
Even though there are many options on this list, I know there are sisters I left out! As always, you can cast write-in ballots by leaving a comment, and if I receive several nominations, I may add them to the poll! Want more of a say in what makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll.
Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 12AM March 17th.
Who are your favorite TV sisters? (Choose up to 5!)
Prue, Piper, and Phoebe Halliwell, and Paige Matthews (Charmed) (14%, 21 Votes)
Buffy and Dawn Summers (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (13%, 19 Votes)
Mary, Edith, and Sybil Crawley (Downton Abbey) (12%, 17 Votes)
Abbie and Jenny Mills (Sleepy Hollow) (12%, 17 Votes)
Beth and Maggie Green (The Walking Dead) (10%, 15 Votes)
Mary, Lucy, and Ruthie Camden (7th Heaven) (10%, 15 Votes)
Annie Walker and Danielle Brooks (Covert Affairs) (6%, 9 Votes)
Laurel and Sara Lance (Arrow) (5%, 7 Votes)
Meredith and Lexie Grey (Grey's Anatomy) (4%, 6 Votes)
Sarah and Julia Braverman (Parenthood) (4%, 6 Votes)
Kristin, Mandy, and Eve Baxter (Last Man Standing) (3%, 5 Votes)
Siobhan Martin and Bridget Kelly (Ringer) (3%, 4 Votes)
Amber and Abby Weaver (The Neighbors) (1%, 2 Votes)
Emily Thorne and Charlotte Grayson (Revenge) (1%, 1 Votes)
Cassie Blake and Diana Meade (The Secret Circle) (1%, 1 Votes)
Amy and Ashley Juergens (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) (1%, 1 Votes)
Jane Kerkovich-Williams and Alex Kerkovich (Happy Endings) (1%, 1 Votes)
I’ve been browsing through pilot options for next fall lately, especially as some exciting cast announcements have been made. A bunch of TV ratings geeks often come up with possible schedules for the coming year, so I thought I’d try my hand at one of my own!
Since the CW has only 10 hours of primetime TV to schedule and 6 pilots in contention, I’m starting with them! I’m basing this off the TVLine pilot list and renewal predictions from TV By the Numbers.
Out of the CW’s 6 pilots, The Flash, Supernatural: Bloodlines, and iZombie seem like the strongest options. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of the other 3 is picked up for midseason, but two of them (Identity and Jane the Virgin) sound soapy and convoluted, and the third (The Messengers) sounds like a Heroes clone (including the Apocalypse adds a bit of a Sleepy Hollow vibe, but I doubt it could improve on the awesomeness that is Sleepy Hollow).
Supernatural, Arrow, Reign, The Vampire Diaries, and The Originals have all been renewed, and it is likely Hart of Dixie will be as well, as a 4th season is needed for syndication. There may be one more renewal for under-performing The Tomorrow People, low-rated Star-Crossed (I know it’s a long shot, but I adore this show!), or yet-to-premiere The 100.
Last fall, after a special premiere after The Vampire Diaries on Thursday, The Originals moved to its own time slot as an anchor for Tuesday night. New shows tend to do better following established shows for their first year or so, but The Originals has done well at 8PM. One of the reasons I believe this occurred is due to 4 of the main characters being already well-established on The Vampire Diaries. A lot of spin-offs in TV today are set in the same world as the original show and are introduced in an episode or two, but it’s rare for so many main and reoccurring cast members to move to a new show.
As far as I can tell, The Flash and Supernatural: Bloodlines won’t have that advantage, so I believe they will do best airing after their respective original shows. The Originals has already shown it can anchor a night, so I would move it to the troublesome Mondays, to avoid having to launch a new show on that night. I think Reign would be well-suited to follow The Originals – the frequent historical flashbacks in the vampire show would make it the best match to the network’s only historical drama.
For the plum post-Vampire Diaries spot on Thursdays, I’d put iZombie. Both contemporary shows with supernatural creatures masquerading as humans, I hope Rob Thomas’s input will be able to keep up with Damon’s snark, and there’s the David Anders connection. I can also see iZombie as a special 13-episode season (like Sleepy Hollow), followed by a midseason new or sophomore show taking its place.
Just-needs-one-more-season Hart of Dixie can eek out its final run on Fridays, paired with the mercy-renewal/unscripted TV/midseason downgrade/so-so pilot of the network’s choosing.
To recap, how I think the CW should schedule 2014-2015:
Monday: The Originals/Reign
Tuesday: Supernatural/Supernatural: Bloodlines
Wednesday: Arrow/The Flash
Thursday: The Vampire Diaries/iZombie
Friday: Hart of Dixie/???
This schedule would also be gentle with the network’s 4 top-rated shows: 2 would stay in their original spots, one would move an hour earlier, and one would air at the same time a day earlier.
How would you schedule the CW? Which shows do you want to see renewed and which pilots would you want to be picked up?
I actually yelled “Yes!” amid a group of friends when I saw this news! So glad to hear that The Mindy Project has been renewed! New Girl was a given and Brooklyn Nine-Nine a strong contender for renewal, so I wasn’t surprised they were included. I was a bit disappointed at the renewal of The Following, as the show doesn’t interested me at all, and I’ve seen some less-than-stellar reviews of it. Almost Human is a far more deserving drama.
It remains to be seen whether bubble show Almost Human and awesome but struggling Enlisted will be granted renewals as well. Fox has three extra hours to fill next year with the cancellation of The X Factor, but has already ordered 3 dramas and 2 comedies to series from their list of prospective pilots.
BuzzFeed has this fun quiz to keep you occupied while we wait for The Mindy Project to return. Unlike most TV quizzes, this one asks you to pick pictures! Aside from a glaring omission in the “Pick a TV doctor” category, this was pretty fun, and I think they got my personality matched up well!
ABC’s new drama Mind Games premieres this week (Tuesday, February 25, at 10/9c on ABC), and since the show focuses on two brothers, our poll this week features TV brothers! First, here’s the logline for Mind Games:
Centers on the complicated relationship between the Edwards brothers: Clark, a bipolar genius in human psychology, and Ross, a slick ex-con, who solve their clients’ problems using the real science of human motivation and manipulation.
It features one of my favorite comedic actors, Steve Zahn, so I can’t wait to check it out!
I didn’t realize until I started putting together this poll that it would pit some of the most popular fandoms against each other! (Sherlock, Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries, etc.) I only included more recent shows (hence the absence of The Brady Bunch boys), and included both half- and step-brothers (but not brothers-in-law).
I also did not include brothers when one of them is only in a handful of episodes. For example, Seeley Booth’s brother Jared is only in 5 episodes. I’d planned to include Michael Westen and his brother Nate, until I realized Nate was only in 15 episodes out of 111. My general rule of thumb was going with brothers who had both/all been in at least 1/3 of the episodes. Be sure to keep that in mind with any nominations!
The winner of last week’s poll, by a landslide, was Battlestar Galactica!
This poll will be open for one week two weeks, and you can choose up to 5 of your favorite TV brother duos (or trios). Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will make it into the top 10!
Even though there are many options on this list, I know there are shows I left out! As always, you can cast write-in ballots by leaving a comment, and if I receive several nominations, I may add them to the poll! Want more of a say in what makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll.
Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 12AM March 3rd 10th.
Who are your favorite TV brothers? (Choose up to 5!)
Dean and Sam Winchester (Supernatural) (19%, 25 Votes)
Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes (Sherlock) (15%, 20 Votes)
Klaus and Elijah Mikaelson (The Originals and The Vampire Diaries) (10%, 13 Votes)
Damon and Stefan Salvatore (The Vampire Diaries) (8%, 11 Votes)
Pete, Derrick, and Randy Hill (Enlisted) (5%, 7 Votes)
Don and Charlie Eppes (Numb3rs) (5%, 6 Votes)
Peter and Nathan Petrelli (Heroes) (5%, 6 Votes)
Frankie and Tommy Rizzoli (Rizzoli and Isles) (5%, 6 Votes)
Ben and Danny Wheeler (Baby Daddy) (5%, 6 Votes)
Michael Scofield and Lincoln Burrows (Prison Break) (5%, 6 Votes)
Francis and Sebastian (Reign) (4%, 5 Votes)
Lucas and Nathan Scott (One Tree Hill) (3%, 4 Votes)
Reggie Jackson and Dick Butkus (The Neighbors) (2%, 3 Votes)
Gob, Michael, and Buster Bluth (Arrested Development) (2%, 3 Votes)
Earl and Randy Hickey (My Name is Earl) (2%, 3 Votes)
Danny and Jamie Reagan (Blue Bloods) (2%, 3 Votes)
Adam and Crosby Braverman (Parenthood) (2%, 2 Votes)
Tim and Billy Riggins (Friday Night Lights) (2%, 2 Votes)
Jack and Declan Porter (Revenge) (1%, 1 Votes)
Tommy, Kevin and Justin Walker (Brothers & Sisters) (1%, 1 Votes)
Ethan and Dan Whitehorse (The Lying Game) (0%, 0 Votes)
Silas and Shane Botwin (Weeds) (0%, 0 Votes)
Chuck Bass and Eric van der Woodsen (Gossip Girl) (0%, 0 Votes)
I’ll admit it. I’m a sucker for sci-fi shows (and movies and books) about people who look human but really aren’t, and all the twists and turns that can bring to the story. So it was pretty much a given that I’d been at least checking out this show. But even with that anticipation, I was pleasantly surprised by how good the pilot episode of Star-Crossed was.
We open on the day the aliens invade. Only from their point of view, they’re Atrian refugees who crash-landed on Earth after their planet was destroyed. Adorably cute little alien boy Roman runs away from the fighting caused by this misunderstanding, and hides out in a nearby shed, where he discovered by adorably cute little human girl Emery (played by Ben & Kate’s Maggie Elizabeth Jones). She brings him a blanket and cold spaghetti, and he in turn tries to protect her when police dogs sniff out his location the following day, and is shot (and she believes killed) for his efforts.
Fast forward 10 years, and Emery is about to go back to school after 4 years battling an autoimmune disease, though not without stopping for a quick chat with her still-ill hospital buddy, Julia. I like how this background puts Emery out of sync with the “normal” teenagers she meets at high school. I wish we’d gotten a better look at her relationship with her friend Lukas, who at this point is little more than token platonic African-American school tour guide. He was helping with the hospital club table – is that how Emery knows him?
Emery’s first day back is also the first day for seven Atrian teenagers to start attending a human high school as the initial attempt at integration. Of course, Roman and Emery eventually reunite, and there are sparks, but the sci-fi elements are just as intriguing and perhaps even more so. The armed guards and curfews of the Sector (the government internment facility where the Atrians are forced to live) contrast strongly with the exotic bazaar-like vibe inside.
I expected Roman to be more open-minded toward humans than the rest of his species, but instead his father and sister have that role. In Roman’s experience, only one human has been kind to him – Emery – and his reactions to others are filled with hilarious sarcasm, which was easily one of my favorite parts of the episode.
There is still a lot of mystery surrounding the Atrians. I enjoyed the reveal that Roman’s two hearts was what saved him from dying as a child (are we sure they aren’t refugees from Gallifrey?). And the cost of what Roman did for Julia puts an interesting twist on sharing technology. I’m also curious to see what effect the ending scuffle in the Sector will have on the rest of the series.
Update: this poll is now closed. You can vote for this week’s poll here.
He’s composed music for some of TV’s top shows, and today’s his birthday! So for this first poll back after this site’s long hiatus, we’re going to celebrate the work of Bear McCreary!
I first noticed Bear’s stunning scores on the short-lived NBC series The Cape, and soon began paying special attention to who was scoring upcoming shows. I was excited to find out he’d been selected for Agents of SHIELD. His work encompasses everything from the groundbreaking Battlestar Galactica to the culture phenomenon The Walking Dead to the brand new Black Sails.
This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 3 of your favorite Bear McCreary-composed shows. Be sure to spread the word!
Want more of a say in what makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll. Also, feel free to suggest your own poll ideas!
Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around midnight next Sunday night.
What is your favorite TV show for which Bear McCreary has composed music? (Choose up to 3!)
Battlestar Galactica (35%, 43 Votes)
The Walking Dead (11%, 14 Votes)
Black Sails (9%, 11 Votes)
Da Vinci's Demons (7%, 9 Votes)
Eureka (7%, 9 Votes)
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (7%, 9 Votes)
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (6%, 7 Votes)
Before I get started blogging about the latest news in TV, I figured I should probably wrap up my thoughts about fall TV, since there was so much I didn’t touch on in the earlier post.
To start, Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s 3rd episode was amazing, and it’s now one of my favorite new TV comedies (about even with The Crazy Ones, despite that show’s significant Mork/Buffy pull). My favorite, however, is the regulated-to-the-Friday-death-slot-before-it-even-had-a-chance Enlisted. Geoff Stults, Chris Lowell, and Parker Young have incredible chemistry as three very different brothers, and I especially love that Parker Young’s character Randy is similar to his character Ryan from Suburgatory, as I’ve missed him on that show!
For returning comedies, How I Met Your Mother’s final season has been a mixed bag of amazing episodes and boring fillers. The rhyming episode was just painful. Community is returning to its old self, but Troy will be very missed (Pierce, not so much). New seasons of The Big Bang Theory, New Girl, The Mindy Project, and The Neighbors have been consistently good, with only a handful of blah episodes for the entire bunch.
Sleepy Hollow’s entire first season was great, and I’m looking forward to the next. I’m enjoying Almost Human and Intelligence with their sci-fi crime bents, but prefer Almost Human (and while both shows aren’t doing well in the ratings, it has a better chance of survival). Once Upon a Time in Wonderland started slow but got better, and I’ll finish the show when the final episodes air, but I won’t mourn the loss. Michael Socha’s great performance may push me to finally watch the end of the UK’s Being Human.
CW’s The Originals has been a great twisty guilty pleasure show, and I’ve actually kept up with it more than The Vampire Diaries. I’m behind on The Tomorrow People (it has potential but feels unpolished), and I only saw a few episodes of Reign, though now that it has been renewed I’m more likely to watch another episode or two before I make a decision on whether to keep watching. Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD has finally found its groove.
Returning dramas have been good if unremarkable – save for the following bits: Once Upon a Time’s Neverland stint was sluggish, but the mid-season finale was blow-your-socks-off amazing. NCIS bid a proper farewell to Ziva, and new team member Ellie isn’t half bad. Person of Interest went for the tears and it still feels like there’s a hole in the team. Arrow remains one of my favorites.
Yes, Veronica Mars is back! As one of the Kickstarter backers, I couldn’t be more excited! I’ve watched the trailer, but I’ve tried to avoid some of the rumors swirling around this sure-to-be-epic movie, as I want to be surprised!
Also, I’m back! I’ve been without a computer for more than half a year, and the one post I managed to scrape together on my Kindle Fire was torturous. But yesterday while I was home sick in bed, my tax refund came in, and I promptly scoured the internet for the best President’s Day deals on laptops. Best Buy enticed me with a great deal on a new HP (I was looking at refurbished/used ones) that I could pick up in-store that day. I ordered it, took medicine, and fell back asleep, only to wake up to hear I’d been laid off from my office job.
But my loss is your gain! This site was born from unemployment and TV binge-watching, so when better to return? I’m sure I can find an acceptable job application/TV episode/blog post ratio!
So what shows are tickling your ears and dancing before your eyes lately? Leave a comment and let me know! I’ve finally started making some headway on Supernatural (now that I’m sadly not blogging about every episode) and am partway through season 3!
Fall TV season has begun, and I have returned to blogging about it! Right now we’re halfway through premiere week (with Fox getting a jump on other broadcast channels by premiering most of its shows a week early), so I thought it would be a great time to see how the fall season is shaping up so far. Besides, Wednesdays are my “light” TV night, so I have a bit of time to catch up and share!
Solid Start
One of the most-talked about new shows is Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD, and the pilot did not disappoint! To be honest, I love all of Whedon’s TV shows, so the only thing I was a bit nervous about going in was the cast, since most of them are newbies. Still not sold on Chloe Bennet, who plays Skye, and Brett Dalton has a difficult job getting people to relate to his stoic character, Ward (though the Granny bit helped – wish they’d had time to show more of that scene). I think the show unveiling of characters will make the show better, I just hope people won’t get impatient and tune out. For me, as soon as the truth serum shot happened, I knew this was my show.
Disappointing Beginning
Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s promo bumped it to my “will watch” list and made it one of my top 3 anticipated comedies of the season, which made the fact that the first two episodes weren’t funny at all that much more disappointing. I could forgive the pilot, since the promo gave away all of the episode, but the second episode was even less funny. I may give the show one more episode to win me over, since it has so much potential, but otherwise, farewell.
Creepy Commencement
Sleepy Hollow was on my to-try list, but recommendations from friends and a high premiere rating made me make checking out the pilot a high priority. So glad I did! After catching up on Grimm, I was in the mood for another spooky/cop show, and I love stories about the American Revolution. Tom Mison is pitch-perfect as the fish-out-of-water Crane, and I’m quickly warming up to the rest of the cast.
As well as marathoning through Grimm, I recently caught up Bones, Castle, The Neighbors, and Suburgatory to prepare for their next seasons. Unfortunately, that meant that I was spoiled about many events in season finales, but at least I don’t have to wait as long for resolution to the cliffhangers.
For shows that have already returned, here’s a few quick thoughts: How I Met Your Mother is poised to deliver an amazing final season, with a likeable and perfect-for-Ted mother. Can’t imagine what NCIS will be like without Ziva, and hated that half of her farewell didn’t even include her. Liking what Bones is doing with the new season, not sure about Castle. New Girl and The Mindy Project feel a touch off, waiting to see what the continued fall out is from major events. NCIS: Los Angeles seems to be back to normal, excluding Deeks, and Person of Interest looks like it will be a ton of fun this year.
What are your thoughts on this season of TV so far?
The schedules are out, the promos are released – now it’s time for me to figure out what I want to watch, what I have time to watch, what I won’t miss, and which new shows I’ll give a chance to wow me. As always, shows that aren’t live-action and scripted are ignored by this site.
New shows are in bold.
SUNDAY
Watching: Once Upon a Time
Not watching: Revenge, Betrayal, The Good Wife, The Mentalist
Only one new show is debuting on Sundays, Betrayal, and while the promo was good, the subject matter is meh in my mind.
MONDAY
Watching: Castle, How I Met Your Mother, Bones, Almost Human, Beauty and the Beast
Checking out: We Are Men, Intelligence , Sleepy Hollow
Not watching: 2 Broke Girls, Mom, Hostages, Blacklist, Hart of Dixie
Almost Human’s promo was so excellent, it got bumped right to the watching list. Of course, if it stinks, it’ll get bumped right back down. While Hostages and Blacklist had good promos, they’re just not something I’m interested in watching. Mom looks awful. Sleepy Hollow looks far better than I expected, so I’ll probably watch the pilot out of curiosity’s sake, but I doubt I’ll keep watching due to time constraints. Other than HIMYM, the returning shows that are on Mondays are the ones I fell most behind on (thinking about it now, why Castle and Bones got the short end of the stick was because we usually had a friend over on Tuesdays to watch previous seasons of HIMYM, so I didn’t have time to catch up).
TUESDAY
Watching: Marvel’s Agents of Shield, NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, Person of Interest, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, New Girl, The Mindy Project
Checking out: The Originals
Not watching: The Goldbergs, The Trophy Wife, Lucky 7, Dads, Chicago Fire, Supernatural
The only reason Supernatural is on the not watching list is because I haven’t caught up yet, and since I’m still on season one, I doubt I’ll catch up this summer. I was going to watch Dads because of Seth Green, but the promo was so awful I don’t even plan to watch the pilot (besides, it’s in a horrible time slot so I doubt it will last). I’m behind on The Vampire Diaries, so my “checking out” of The Originals may only consist of watching the planted pilot (not a huge fan of the original siblings or Haley). Agents of Shield went on my to-watch list as soon as it was announced, but I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the promo for Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Unless the first few episodes strike a very different tone, it’ll probably stay on my watch list.
WEDNESDAY
Watching: Arrow
Checking out: The Tomorrow People
Not watching: The Middle, Back in the Game, Modern Family, Super Fun Night, Nashville, Criminal Minds, CSI, Revolution, Law & Order: SVU, Ironside
Wednesdays are once again my least-watched weekday. Aside from the Amell cousins’ projects, I’m passing on the entire night. Back in the Game and Super Fun Night look awful. Ironside looks excellent, but I watch so many other excellent crime dramas that new ones need a fun sci-fi twist (like Almost Human) or to cast one of my favorite actors.
THURSDAY
Watching: Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, The Big Bang Theory, The Crazy Ones, Elementary, The Vampire Diaries
Checking out: Reign
Not watching: Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, The Millers, Two and a Half Men, Glee, Parks and Recreation, Welcome to the Family, Sean Saves the World, The Michael J. Fox Show, Parenthood
It used to be that I mainly watched NBC comedies; now I’m just waiting for Community to come back. CBS’s The Crazy Ones pairs Mork and Buffy, which pushed it onto my short list, and the behind-the-scenes promo was as hilarious as most regular trailers. Wonderland’s preview is amazing, and Reign has an interesting premise and enough actors I know for me to give it a try.
FRIDAY
Watching: The Neighbors, Bones (once it moves), Enlisted, Grimm
Checking out: Dracula
Not watching: Last Man Standing, Hawaii Five-O, Blue Bloods, Raising Hope, The Carrie Diaries
Enlisted was one of my most anticipated series contenders thanks to a great cast, and the promo shows that it’ll be funny as well. I probably won’t watch Dracula, but I do want to see where they’re going with the story, so I should preview the pilot.
That gives me 22 shows that I plan to watch (8 comedies and 14 dramas for 18 hours total) and 7 that I want to check out (1 comedy and 6 dramas for 6.5 hours total).
What shows are you watching next fall? Vote below and spread the word!
What broadcast shows do you plan to watch during fall 2013?
Networks have cleaned house, and their cancellations means more time for me to watch other shows. But as I don’t have time to watch my current shows, and there are a bunch of new shows debuting next season, which ones will have priority?
I’m holding off on most decisions for new shows until we get a bumper crop of promos during this week’s upfronts. And since I did a decent job at choosing shows this past year, I’m not going to gain many extra hours. I didn’t lose any shows from CBS and the CW, and only one from Fox (Ben & Kate). NBC freed up some sitcom time by canceling 4 new comedies I enjoyed and ending The Office; they also got rid of Smash, but since I’ve only made time for an episode or two this season, it doesn’t really help. ABC got rid of two comedies I liked and a drama I abandoned early on. So in reality, with shows canceled early and ones I fell behind on, I’m only gaining about 2 hours of TV time to put toward new shows, and one of those is already devoted to Agents of SHIELD.
Fall 2013 is going to be very, very busy.
Below is a rough categorization of which shows I will be keeping up with more stringently and which I will be letting slide. A lot of factors are going into this, so it’s not just which shows I like best. CBS and NBC are the only two networks I get on my main TV, so those are more likely to be watched live. Live TV brings promos for other shows on the network, so to avoid spoilers, I want to stay caught up with all shows on a network. I’m more likely to watch CBS shows live since they’re not on Hulu and I hate CBS’s player. Also, crime shows and comedies are less likely to include spoilers in promos and/or online post-airing. I also took into account what it was like to fall behind on many of these shows this season, and how that effected my viewing. A few of these shows I watch live with my sister when we can, and others are talked about in the office where I work, so I like to stay current with those.
Shows to watch immediately:
The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Arrow
Shows to watch within the week:
Once Upon a Time, Elementary, NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, Person of Interest, Community, The Vampire Diaries
Shows to watch when I can:
Castle, Suburgatory, The Mindy Project, New Girl
Shows to watch eventually:
Bones, Grimm, Nikita
Shows I may abandon:
The Neighbors, Beauty and the Beast
That equals (adding in previous tiers as I go): 2 hours of immediate viewing, 8 1/2 hours within a week, 11 hours when I can, 14 hours eventually, and 15 1/2 hours of renewed television available for me to watch on broadcast networks every week.
So far, I have 66 1/2 hours’ worth of these shows to catch up with from this season, not to mention 27 hours of canceled ones. Let’s say each has aired 10 original episodes since I started my job in January. Adding back in the 2 hours of canceled shows, and we have 175 hours of original broadcast TV airing. I’ve fallen behind by close to half. And cable is even worse – I only watch Doctor Who consistently. Yes, I will probably have time to catch up this summer amid cable shows, but next fall?
Aside from Hannibal, ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, and the CW have made their decisions about which shows are returning next season. How did I do this year on picking which new shows to watch?
ABC
Canceled: 666 Park Avenue, The Family Tools, How to Live with Your Parents, Last Resort, Malibu Country, Red Widow, Zero Hour
Renewed: The Neighbors
I watched more of ABC’s pilots than I typically would for a network since their media site allowed me to preview several shows weeks or even months before they aired. I didn’t like 666 Park Avenue. I thought The Family Tools and How to Live with Your Parents were decent, but by the time they finally started airing I didn’t have time to watch. I loved the pilot of Last Resort, but subsequent episodes lacked the same polish, so I bailed after episode 3, always saying I’d get back to the show, but never actually doing so. The Neighbors was far better than I was expecting, and I watched through the mid-season break, and plan to catch up this summer.
Grade: A+
CBS
Canceled: Golden Boy, Made in Jersey, Partners, Vegas
Renewed: Elementary
I watched not a single full episode of any of the canceled shows, and I loved Elementary right from the start, and it remains one of my favorite new shows.
Grade: A+
Fox
Canceled: Ben & Kate, The Mob Doctor
Renewed: The Following, The Mindy Project
I watched the two new comedies on Fox with a nervous eye toward the ratings. While Ben & Kate was cute, The Mindy Project was far more funny. The drama premises interested me not at all.
Grade: C+
NBC
Canceled: 1600 Penn, Animal Practice, Deception, Do No Harm, Go On, Guys With Kids, The New Normal
Renewed: Chicago Fire, Revolution
I passed on all of NBC’s new dramas, though I did give Revolution two episodes to convince me it was must-see-TV (it failed to), but I was far more willing to try out comedies. The New Normal proved its awfulness in one episode, and I moderately enjoyed Animal Practice while it lasted. I enjoyed 1600 Penn, Go On, and Guys With Kids, but fell multiple episodes behind with each of them quite frequently.
Grade: D
The CW
Canceled: Cult, Emily Owens, MD
Renewed: Arrow, Beauty and the Beast, The Carrie Diaries
I was going to give Cult a chance because of Matt Davis, but the previews turned me off, and I never planned to watch Emily Owens. Arrow is tied with Elementary for my favorite new drama of the year, and I enjoyed Beauty and the Beast but fell behind because of my new job. Initially I didn’t like the idea of The Carrie Diaries at all, but cute promos and a Doctor Who alum has pushed the show into “maybe I’ll check it out someday” territory.
Grade: A
In all, I give myself a B+ for show selection this year – beating my score for last year.
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