 HELLCATS
SEASON PREMIERE SEPTEMBER 8
The CW has enjoyed success with two niche audiences. The first is the 18-34 year old male set, thanks to geek-tastic genre programming like the long-running Smallville (which is entering its final season) and the delightfully dark Supernatural. The other demographic that remains loyal is the young girls who have made One Tree Hill and Gossip Girl solid hits. This fall, the tweens get another show specifically targeted to their maturing tastes as producer Tom Welling brings the highly competitive and catty world of high school cheerleading to the network with Hellcats. While the girls will identify (or at least try to) with the trials and tribulations of teenage life, the guys (if they are watching at all) will enjoy seeing Ashley Tisdale and Alyson Michalka strut their stuff. This is precisely the kind of programming that The CW excels at, so I’ve got no reason to believe that Hellcats won’t be a hit. The series premieres on Wednesday, September 8th at 9pm ET.
CHASE
SEASON PREMIERE SEPTEMBER 20
Jerry Bruckheimer is a true entertainment mogul. Aside from his lucrative, long-standing film deal with Disney, the uber-producer has found great fortunes on the small screen with CBS’ Cold Case, Without A Trace and the top-rated CSI franchise. The next installment in his television legacy is NBC’s Chase, a one-hour procedural drama that follows a highly trained fugitive-apprehension team of U.S. Marshals. Starring Kelli Giddish (Past Life), Cole Hauser (Good Will Hunting), Amaury Nolasco (Prison Break) and Jesse Metcalf (John Tucker Must Die), the program promises high octane-action via high production values, but will have to really thrill viewers to separate it from the plethora of procedurals that already have large and loyal audiences. The peacock already ordered Chase to series and thirteen episodes have already been shot, with David Nutter directing the pilot. The series will air on Mondays at 10:00 pm Eastern/9:00 pm Central beginning September 20, 2010.
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NO ORDINARY FAMILY
SEASON PREMIERE SEPTEMBER 28
Platinum products of pop-culture collide in ABC’s new comedy from genre-guru’s Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim (the pair collaborated on WB’s Green Lantern as well as the alphabet’s Eli Stone and Brothers and Sisters). The pilot follows the Powell family as they embark on a journey of self-discovery after surviving a terrifying plane crash. While Jim Powell (Michael Chiklis) learns that he’s become increasingly strong and seemingly invulnerable, his wife Stephanie (Julie Benz) finds herself to be faster than a speeding bullet. Their kids J.J. and Daphne have equally astonishing revelations of their own and it becomes clear that they’re not the same Powell’s they were before the crash. Borrowing generously from Fantastic Four and The Incredibles, No Ordinary Family could very well become a must-see for the new season, but superhero-related programming has had its share of occasional highs and habitual lows on the tube. Like Heroes before it, No Ordinary Family will be subject to regular rants from the fanboy community and if its executive producers are unable to come up with fresh storylines and angles, audiences may react with a “been there, done that” attitude. Episodes will air Tuesdays at 8 pm ET/PT on ABC beginning September 28, 2010.
MY GENERATION
SEASON PREMIERE SEPTEMBER 23
Attractive twenty-something’s are the draw, the focus and probably the intended audience for this ensemble dramedy that follows a group of high-school classmates in Austin, Texas in the year 2000 and then revisits their lives ten years after graduation. A recurring character called “the filmmaker” recorded their lives during their senior year and as we meet them in the present, we find that things haven’t exactly gone as planned. Watching the trailer for the show, I couldn’t help but think that it’s a cross between Friday Night Lights (without football) and Robert Redford’s Ordinary People (without death). The cast will make or break this one and it is comprised of mostly C-listers like Michael Stahl-David (Cloverfield), Jamie King (Sin City) and Mehcad Brooks (True Blood), so I’m not holding my breath. The series will premiere on September 23, 2010 on ABC.
THE BIG C
SEASON PREMIERE AUGUST 16
This dark comedy got its start on August 16th, technically making it a summer show, but it’s got such a marvelous creative team and enough promise to warrant us giving it a closer look. Laura Linney plays a suburban mother and wife who must come to terms with the next chapter of her life after she’s diagnosed with
Cancer. Oliver Platt, Brian Cox, Gabourey Sibide and Cynthia Nixon co-star, while Idris Elba and Liam Neeson will guest star in various episodes. Add director Bill Condon and uber-producer Neal H. Moritz to the mix and you’ve got enough talent to fuel multiple feature films, but instead you can catch this unique program on Showtime on Monday’s after Weeds (10pm)
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DETROIT 1-8-7
SEASON PREMIERE SEPTEMBER 21
Leave it to Disney to sabotage a good idea. When originally conceived, Detroit 1-8-7 was to be filmed in a mockumentary style. The show would’ve focused on fictional documentarians following detectives on the streets of the Motor City. Due to the real-life suspension of documentary ridealongs by the Detroit Police Department (because of an incident involving A&E’s The First 48), ABC has decided to abandon the format. Scenes are being reshot to standardize the pilot before the episodes begin to air on ABC on Tuesday, September 21st at 10 pm ET/PT. What could’ve been a fresh spin on the police procedural drama is turning into the new Homicide: Life On The Street. Even with the always-entertaining Michael Imperioli in the lead role and the talented Jeffrey Nachmanoff (Traitor) behind the camera, I fear that Detroit 1-8-7 will end up being “just another cop show”.
S#*! MY DAD SAYS
SEASON PREMIERE SEPTEMBER 8
Though I was initially skeptical about a guy’s Twitter feed being adapted into a sitcom (the property was first turned into a book), the casting of legendary actor William Shatner in the title role of an aging patriarch who swears as frequently as he breathes is spot-on. He’ll play Ed, a very opinionated 72-year-old who takes his struggling writer son Henry back into the family home when he becomes unable to afford his apartment. Anarchy ensues as the father and son reassess their relationship under these tricky new circumstances. We know that the level of profanity that made Justin Halpern’s twitter feed a web sensation will be significantly toned down for primetime audiences, which is a major minus. Still, I think that Shatner will have more than a few tricks up his sleeves to fully animate this digital character that many a follower has learned to love. We’ll find out whether or S#*! My Dad Says works when the pilot airs on Thursday, September 23rd at 8:30pm on CBS.
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