First off, it has been too long between posts. I know. I suck. But it is the Fall TV season, which means new shows. I love this time of year. I get genuinely excited at having something new to watch on TV. This is my SuperBowl. As always, I watch them all so you don’t have to. Let’s start with the new batch of sitcoms.
The Good:
“The New Girl“
F0x, Wednesdays, 9:30/8:30
I love this show, which means it’s probably doomed. But I bet they get at least two seasons out of it. Zooey Deschanel plays Jess Day, a single gal who just got out of a bad relationship (of six years) and has moved into a really cool apartment with three guys: Schmitt, a thumb-ring-wearing, gym rat with a cadre of d-bag friends; Nick, who is still trying to get over his bad break up; and Winston, an out-of-work pro basketball player (in Latvia). Jess is a nrrrd grrl who negotiates her way through life by making Lord of the Rings references and constantly singing her own theme song.
It is clever, funny and one of the best new shows out there. So, like I said, doomed.
“Suburgatory“
ABC, Wednesdays 8:30/7:30
George discovers that his teenage daughter Tessa has an unopened box of condoms in her room. He freaks and moves the two of them from Manhattan to the suburbs. There she is thrown into a microcosm of mean girls, desperate housewives and Heathers. The writing is good, the acting is spot on and the first two episodes made me laugh out loud. Tessa is the narrator of what seems to be an anthropology report about the weird people and customs she finds in suburbia. Extra points for the supporting cast which includes Cheryl Hines and Noah Werner.
“2 Broke Girls“
CBS, Mondays, 8:30/7:30
This is one of two shows created by very funny comic Whitney Cummings. This is the better of the two. It is a gal-pal comedy about Max, a fierce New York waitress struggling to get by and her new co-worker and roommate Caroline, an heiress to a fortune that recently vanished in scandal and ignominy. They work at a diner, saving up their tips so they can open a cupcake store. It sounds worse than it is. The dialogue is snappy and the stories (at least the first two episodes) are funny. I’m not sure how long they can maintain Caroline’s privileged naiveté or Max’s aggressive stand-offishness. A second season is doubtful and that’s too bad.
The Bad:
“How to Be a Gentleman“
CBS, Thursday, 8:30/7:30
I wanted to like this show. I really did. but it’s just not very funny. It’s about a magazine columnist (is that even a real thing anymore?) who writes about how to be a gentleman. The magazine is bought out and they want more columns about where to get good bottle service and less about where to buy shirts with French cuffs. So, he turns to his high school bully to help him. It is worse than it sounds. Pass.
The “Meh”
“Up All Night“
NBC, Wednesdays 8/7
Christina Applegate and Will Arnet play new parents struggling with sleep deprivation, growing older and balancing work and family. They are funny together, but I feel like I’ve seen this before. The best thing about this show is Maya Rudolph as talk show host “Vera.”
“Whitney“
NBC, Thursdays, 9:30/8:30
Whitney Cummings’ other (and lesser) series is based on her stand-up comedy. At its bones it is a relationship sitcom. It wants you to think that it is a new take, but it really isn’t. She and her live-in boyfriend struggle with the usual fare: he’s attracted to an attractive woman, she wants to spice up the relationship, guys don’t understand girls and vice versa. NBC must have high hopes as they’re using “The Office” as a lead in, but that didn’t help “Outsourced” very much, did it?
The Waiting In The Wings:
“Last Man Standing“
ABC, Tuesdays, 8/7
Is anyone really pining to see Tim Allen return to series television? I fully expect this show will help fill out the bad section after it premiers.
“Man Up“
ABC, Tuesday, 8:30/7:30
I don’t know anything about this show other than what’s on the web site. Three guys trying to find love in a modern worl…zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
The Canceled:
“Free Agents“
NBC, Wednesday, 8/7
Ouch. Hank Azaria’s sitcom about a pr/marketing/advertising agent getting over a messy divorce, sleeping with an office colleague and trying to . . . oh who cares. It’s canceled. You can’t even find it on the NBC home page anymore. I laughed at the pilot, loved Natasha Leggero as the saucy executive assistant and Al Madrigal as the dopey married guy.
Posted on October 7, 2011
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