With friends like Johnny Drama, Olive Snook, Gabrielle Solis and Gregory House, who needs a life? Though there’s a fair share of new kids on the block invading the networks, the majority of shows set to storm our living rooms again are those old favorites–the ones we’ve missed for what seems like an eternity.
Read our “Fall TV Preview Guide: Returning Shows” to find out what gifts our familiar friends have lined-up for this beautifully strike-less fall season.
For new shows premiering this fall, check out our Fall TV Preview: New Shows
For other returning show roundups, check out ABC and FOX, CW and other cable networks
CBS
Big Bang Theory
When: Returns on September 22; airs Monday nights at 8/7c on CBS.
Main Players: Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar
What’s it all about?: The oh-so beautiful Penny teaches Leonard and Sheldon, two socially inept physicists, the ways of the world outside of the latest science journal.
Where’d we leave off?: There were nine episodes of Big Bang Theory that rolled out post strike, and nerds worldwide celebrated into the night as Leonard finally scored with Penny. Well if a kiss and a date count as scoring these days. This juicy development will surely complicate the dynamic of the three main characters moving forward.
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CBS
When: Returns on September 22; airs Monday nights at 8:30/7:30c on CBS.
Main Players: Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Neil Patrick Harris, Cobie Smulders, Alyson Hannigan, Bob Saget (voice)
What’s it all about?: A comedy about how Ted met his love, as narrated through clue-giving flashbacks from the future.
Where’d we leave off?: A couple of auto disasters, Ted’s car accident and Barney’s being hit by a bus, led to the easing up of all inter-crew battling. Shockingly, the fallout from the mayhem also inspired Ted to propose to Stella.
CBS
When: Returns on September 22; airs Monday nights at 9/8c on CBS.
Main Players: Charlie Sheen, Jon Cryer, Angus T. Jones, Conchata Ferrell, Marin Hinkle, Holland Taylor
What’s it all about?: The show follows two brothers, one brother’s son, and the many women that surround them.
Where’d we leave off?: Never one to settle down, Charlie spent last season’s finale resisting the temptations brought on by the future daughter-in-law of the woman he’d been dating. He’s back to the same tricks in this season’s premiere when he runs into an ex who has a son that suspiciously looks just like him.
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CBS
When: Returns on September 22; airs Monday nights at 10/9c on CBS.
Main Players: David Caruso, Emily Procter, Adam Rodriguez, Jonathan Togo, Rex Linn, Eva LaRue, Megalyn Echikunwoke
What’s it all about?: A team of forensic investigators uses both cutting-edge scientific methods and old-fashioned police work to solve crimes.
Where’d we leave off?: David Caruso’s Horatio Caine is dead. Shot down. Kaput. Well wait, on second thought, maybe not. We learned after the fact, via text message, that it was all a ploy drawn up by Wolfe and Caine, and of Ryan’s involvement in it all. Whatever the specific outcome, it’s gonna hit the fan.
CBS
NCIS
When: Returns on September 23; airs Tuesday nights at 8/7c on CBS.
Main Players: Mark Harmon, Michael Weatherly, Sean Murray, Cote De Pablo, Pauley Perrette, David McCallum
What’s it all about?: From murder and espionage to terrorism and stolen submarines, these special agents travel the globe to investigate all crimes with Navy or Marine Corps. ties.
Where’d we leave off?: Though there are liberal doses of humor strewn throughout the tense action of NCIS, that doesn’t mean they’re shootin’ blanks. A series regular for years now, Lauren Holly’s Jenny Shepard, sadly did not make it out of a gunfight toward the end of last season. When season six kicks up this month, Gibbs has a new squad that gets introduced.
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CBS
Without a Trace
When: Returns on September 23; airs Tuesday nights at 10/9c on CBS.
Main Players: Anthony LaPaglia, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Poppy Montgomery, Enrique Murciano, Roselyn Sanchez, Eric Close
What’s it all about?: Each week follows the search of one missing individual. The cases and the traumatic experiences they ignite often shed light on the life stories of the Missing Person Unit’s team members.
Where’d we leave off?: Jack’s disturbing behavior on the job, such as roughing up suspects and nearly getting killed, led to mandatory therapy sessions, and, ultimately, his demotion.
CBS
New Adventures of Old Christine
When: Returns on September 24; airs Wednesday nights at 8/7c on CBS.
Main Players: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Clark Gregg, Hamish Linklater, Trevor Gagnon, Emily Rutherfurd, Tricia O’Kelley, Wanda Sykes
What’s it all about?: After a divorce that still impacts her life on a daily basis, Christine tries to find peace with all the complex characters in her life.
Where’d we leave off?: Fellow Seinfeld alum Jason Alexander stopped by in last season’s finale, playing Christine’s gynecologist of all things. For this year’s first episode, eat your heart out Ellen and Portia, because Christine and Barb are planning to take advantage of California’s new gay marriage law to stop Barb’s deportation to the Bahamas.
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CBS
When: Returns on September 24; airs Wednesday nights at 9/8c on CBS.
Main Players: Thomas Gibson, Joe Mantegna, Shemar Moore, Matthew Gray Gubler, A.J. Cook, Paget Brewster, Kirsten Vangsness
What’s it all about?: Investigating the future, the FBI profilers of Criminal Minds spend their days analyzing the country’s most twisted minds, anticipating their next moves before they strike again.
Where’d we leave off?: So who’s dead and who isn’t? In the last moments of season three, we saw the team split up into a few SUVS, one of which suddenly explodes. Did we get answers? Nope, only a fade to black and credits. Tune in to the premiere, aptly titled “Mayhem,” to be enlightened.
CBS
CSI: NY
When: Returns on September 24; airs Wednesday nights at 10/9c on CBS.
Main Players: Gary Sinise, Melina Kanakaredes, Carmine Giovinazzo, Hill Harper, Anna Belknap, Eddie Cahill, Emmanuelle Vaugier
What’s it all about?: Forensic investigators solve crimes in the Big Apple.
Where’d we leave off?: Mac realizes that a bank robbery and hostage situation was part of a plot to kidnap him. This storyline will be continued as the curtain to season five swings open.
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CBS
Survivor: Gabon
When: Returns on September 18; airs Thursday nights at 8/7c on CBS.
Main Players: Jeff Probst
What’s it all about?: 18 contestants battle for survival in a grueling locale to be the last man or woman standing.
Where’d we leave off?: In last year’s fan vs. favorites season in Micronesia it was charity organizer Parvati Shallow who walked away with the grand prize. This year’s cast will be the first to be shot in HD, giving us the clearest possible view of the unsightly stubble that grows by the day.
CBS
When: Returns on October 9; airs Thursday nights at 9/8c on CBS.
Main Players: William Petersen, Marg Helgenberger, George Eads, Paul Guilfoyle, Lauren Lee Smith, Laurence Fishburne
What’s it all about?: The CSI team scours the scene, collects the evidence, and finds the missing piece that solves the mystery.
Where’d we leave off?: Last season ended with a bang—the one fired in fan-favorite Warrick’s chest. This season opens with news of his fate, but Gary Dourdan’s well-publicized exit from the show seems to clue us into what’s going on there. In more major news, William Petersen’s exit in the first quarter of the upcoming season will pave the way for the addition of Laurence Fishburne to the cast. Thanks to that star power, look for the ratings to not skip a beat.
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CBS
Ghost Whisperer
When: Returns on October 3; airs Friday nights at 8/7c on CBS.
Main Players: Jennifer Love Hewitt, David Conrad, Camryn Manheim, Jamie Kennedy
What’s it all about?: The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon, a woman who can communicate with the dead. The ghosts she’s visited by seek her help in relaying a message to those they’ve left behind.
Where’d we leave off?: There was an awful lot for Melinda to learn about her father in last season’s finale, but it’s back to business for her in the upcoming premiere, which brings her to a hospital to visit both her shrink and the ghost he thinks is alive.
CBS
NUMB3RS
When: Returns on October 3; airs Friday nights at 10/9c on CBS.
Main Players: David Krumholtz, Rob Morrow, Judd Hirsch, Peter MacNicol, Keith Carradine, Navi Rawat, Sophina Brown
What’s it all about?: A depiction of how the combination of police work and mathematics provides answers to the most perplexing of criminal conundrums.
Where’d we leave off?: Brothers Charlie and Don clashed hard in the climax of season three. So, where does that leave Charlie, whose decision on what he’ll do next will heavily impact the show we’ve come to know and enjoy? Veteran Lou Diamond Phillips, who fans know as Ian Edgerton, will return for the premiere, and another new face, Sophina Brown, joins the cast as a regular.
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CBS
When: Returns on September 28; airs Sunday nights at 8/7c on CBS.
Main Players: Phil Keoghan
What’s it all about?: Teams travel the world by foot, boat, plane, or otherwise, in a race for $1 million.
Where’d we leave off?: Youngsters TK and Rachel took home the prize money last season. The rules for the 14th installation remain the same.
CBS
When: Returns on September 28; airs Sunday nights at 9/8c on CBS.
Main Players: Kathryn Morris, Danny Pino, John Finn, Thom Barry, Jeremy Ratchford, Tracie Thoms
What’s it all about?: Detective Lilly Rush found her niche within the Philadelphia homicide squad by mastering “cold cases”—crimes that have never been solved.
Where’d we leave off?: Lilly, like many CBS characters it seems, ended last season by being shot. Good news for Lilly fans, though, she’s ok, and she’s not taking a break. Season five opens with the team investigating a triple murder case from 1994.
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CBS
When: Returns on September 28; airs Sunday nights at 10/9c on CBS.
Main Players: Dennis Haysbert, Scott Foley, Regina Taylor, Robert Patrick, Audrey Marie Anderson, Max Martini, Abby Bramell
What’s it all about?: The action-drama follows a team of Special Forces operatives as they risk their lives on undercover missions around the globe, while their families maintain the home front, protecting their husbands’ secrets.
Where’d we leave off?: When we last checked into The Unit, Jonas was in London investigating a Russian Uranium dealer, and a suicidal caller interrupted Kim’s talk show.
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NBC
When: Returns on September 29; airs Monday nights at 8/7c on NBC.
Main Players: Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strahovski, Adam Baldwin, Joshua Gomez, Sarah Lancaster
What’s it all about?: Chuck, a computer geek and all around slacker, is catapulted into his new vocation as the government’s most vital secret agent.
Where’d we leave off?: With his identity nearly figured out in last season’s finale, Chuck had his life and his personal relationships in jeopardy. Season two starts off strong with a rumored assassination attempt on one of the series’ main characters.
NBC
When: Returns on September 22; airs Monday nights at 9/8c on NBC.
Main Players: Hayden Panettiere, Kristen Bell, Masi Oka, Greg Grunberg, Milo Ventimiglia, Ali Larter, Zachary Quinto, Sendhil Ramamurthy, Jack Coleman, Adrian Pasdar, Santiago Cabrera, Dana Davis, Robert Forste
What’s it all about?: The story of ordinary citizens who discover that they have superhuman abilities.
Where’d we leave off?: Where do I begin? Let’s just skip to the future and say that the third season, Heroes: Villains, gives Sylar some company in the antagonist category. Also, the positive intentions of some of our favorite heroes will be put to the test this season. Originally slated to be the second half of last season, the Heroes: Villains arc will instead take us through the first half of this year.
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NBC
When: Returns on September 16; airs Thursday nights at 8/7c on NBC.
Main Players: Alison Sweeney
What’s it all about?: Hopefully everybody’s a loser in this competition. There have been individual contestants, last year there were couples, but this time it’s families who have to shed the pounds to fatten their wallets.
Where’d we leave off?: Last season, Ali Vincent became the first-ever female Biggest Loser for the U.S. Now, entire families get their chance to be trained by fitness gurus Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels.
NBC
When: Returns on September 23; airs Tuesday nights at 10/9c on NBC.
Main Players: Christopher Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Richard Belzer, Ice T, Michaela McManus
What’s it all about?: The spin-off chronicles the Special Victims Unit of the NYPD, a group of elite detectives who investigate sexually based crimes.
Where’d we leave off?: After another grueling case, Finn requested a transfer at the close of season nine. When we pick back up, will he stay or will he go? Also, guest stars aplenty in the premiere, with Luke Perry, Julie Bowen, and Sara Gilbert slated to make appearances.
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NBC
When: Returns on August 25; airs Monday nights at 8/7c on NBC.
Main Players: Howie Mandel
What’s it all about?: Contestants bet that their case is the one that holds $1 million, as opposed to the other 25.
Where’d we leave off?: Not really sure, to be honest. I remember there were holiday specials, guest stars, and Mandel showing up to people’s houses. It went haywire for a while there. From all indications, though, we’re back to business, and as per the promos, the ultimate prize will finally be pocketed in the first few episodes. After that? Can’t say for sure what’s left for the show to accomplish.
NBC
Lipstick Jungle
When: Returns on September 24; airs Wednesday nights at 10/9c on NBC.
Main Players: Brooke Shields, Kim Raver, Lindsay Price, Andrew McCarthy, Paul Blackthorne, David Alan Basche, Julian Sands, David Norona
What’s it all about?: Three high-profile friends weather the ups and downs of lives lived at the top of their game.
Where’d we leave off?: Nico ended up feeling good about her marriage for once, but only after her husband suffered a heart attack, Wendy was in the middle of dealing with a very difficult scriptwriter, and Victory got used to the idea of Joe as her boss instead of boyfriend. More fabulous and chaotic storylines will certainly follow in round two.
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NBC
My Name Is Earl
When: Returns on September 25; airs Thursday nights at 8/7c on NBC.
Main Players: Jason Lee, Ethan Suplee, Jaime Pressly, Nadine Velazquez, Eddie Steeples
What’s it all about?: After a medical scare, Earl decides to believe in karma, and he sets out to correct all of his past mistakes.
Where’d we leave off?: Billie returned in the finale to grant Earl a divorce, but she will be back this season for a few episodes so who knows where that will go? Creator Greg Garcia has commented that the new season of Earl will recapture the original mission of the series, with Earl checking past wrongs off of his list.
NBC
When: Returns on September 25; airs Thursday nights at 9/8c on NBC.
Main Players: Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, Ed Helms, Angela Kinsey, Amy Ryan
What’s it all about?: While hardly workin’, the staff of Dunder Mifflin can’t help but get caught up in boss Michael Scott’s harebrained schemes.
Where’d we leave off?: Toby, the bane of Michael’s existence, is gone, and Holly, a gal he fancies, is in. Aside from that subplot, Jim and Pam are still going strong, and Angela, despite accepting Andy’s marriage proposal, was caught cozying up with Dwight in the final seconds of the finale. Lots of loose ends to tie up, or, better yet, to let play out hilariously over the course of the season.
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NBC
30 Rock
When: Returns on October 30; airs Thursday nights at 8:30/7:30c on NBC.
Main Players: Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski, Jack McBrayer
What’s it all about?: Liz Lemon, head honcho at the late night show TGS with Tracy Jordan, continually has her hands full juggling corporate interference and off-the-wall talent.
Where’d we leave off?: Jack was in D.C. plotting to get fired from his newest job in politics, Liz discovered that she may be pregnant, and Kenny shot for the stars to become a page at the Beijing Olympics. This year will bring with it a whole new set of obstacles for the cast and crew of TGS.
NBC
When: Returns on September 25; airs Thursday nights at 10/9c on NBC.
Main Players: Goran Visnjic, Maura Tierney, Mekhi Phifer, John Stamos, Linda Cardellini, Scott Grimes
What’s it all about?: For 15 seasons, E.R. has focused on the medical staff in the emergency room of a Chicago hospital.
Where’d we leave off?: After over a decade on the air, and launching some big stars into the Hollywood stratosphere, E.R. gets set to take a bow after a new set of 19 episodes.
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NBC
When: Returns on September 29; airs Monday nights at 10/9c on NBC.
Main Players: Damian Lewis, Sarah Shahi, Adam Arkin, Donal Logue
What’s it all about?: Charlie Crews returns to work as a detective after serving time in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.
Where’d we leave off?: Crews successfully located the killer in his case and found out what happened the night his friends perished. The show itself appears to be on very thin ice, but the addition of Donal Logue provides a much-needed charisma injection.
