Fall 2011 TV Preview: Do As We Watch, Not As We Say

This week the majority of primetime TV’s fall lineup will begin.  Since I watch entirely too much television I thought I’d share the new and returning shows I am looking forward to watching.  I will lay out my day-by-day breakdown, including reasons why you should be viewing.  Keep in mind I am only listing shows that I watch.  There will be some pretty popular shows missing, but since they’re so popular you don’t need me to convince you to watch them right? Let’s begin…

Sunday

First let’s take a moment of silence for Entourage.  I am going to miss following the adventures of Vince, Eric, Drama, Turtle and Ari.  Though all eight seasons were not created equal, it will still hold a special place in my DVR-heart.

NFL – FOX, CBS, NBC.  1pm ET-TBD
Well this pretty much covers all of my Sunday afternoon/early evening.  Men and women of all ages look forward to fall for football to start up.  So support your team with licensed apparel and lots of beer and snacks.  And make sure the action’s all being seen on a magical HD TV set.

Monday

2 Broke Girls – FOX.  8:30pm ET

A new FOX comedy where two broke waitresses (one an heiress relieved of her dough ) work in a diner together.  So the jist is Kat Denning (40-Year-Old Virgin, Thor) has to show heiress Beth Behrs the ropes of surviving while being broke.  Hence the title of the show.

WWE Monday Night RAW – USA.  9pm ET

The longest running weekly episodic program continues.  Watch John Cena continue to be Superman in the squared circle. And if you get tired of Cena there always is the “Best in the World” CM Punk doing his best to revitalize a stagnant WWE product with risque promos and stellar in-ring work.

Two and a Half Men – CBS.  9pm ET

I won’t be watching “Half Men” but with all the chaos surrounding Charlie Sheen being fired and replaced by Ashton Kutcher, I only thought it right to mention them.  If you enjoy watching a car wreck, I suggest tuning in for at least the first show.

Castle – ABC.  10pm ET

I’ve never watched Castle but I hear great things about the show.  I won’t be watching season 4 either (waiting to start from beginning once I finally signup for Netflix) but I heard a rumor that a Marvel comic book character will be guest starring in an episode this season.  Since Marvel and Disney are buddy-buddy now (along with Disney-ABC) this guest-appearance possibly makes more sense.  Especially with word that many Marvel franchises are in talks to be produced for TV.

The Playboy Club – NBC 10pm ET

A period show that takes place during the heyday of the infamous “Playboy Club”.  Show will involve lots of drama, intrigue, and scantily dressed women in bunny ears.  This is obviously NBC’s attempt to follow in the footsteps of Mad Men.  Will it be a success is another question.  My guess is no, but I’ll see what it’s first few episodes look like all the same.

Tuesday

New Girl – FOX.  9pm ET

Another FOX comedy, this time starring the cute and funny Zooey Deschanel (500 Days of Summer, The Happening, Yes Man).  Zooey goes through a breakup, and her only solution is to move in with three guys. I say more women adopt this philosophy to get over a bad breakup.  My first thought is Three’s Company except add one extra man to the equation. Again, I will give New Girl a 2-3 episode trial period.

Wednesday

Modern Family – ABC.  9pm ET

One of my favorite comedies returns for season 3.  After the success of The Office a few shows started utilizing their single-camera setup.  Modern Family is one example (we’ll get to another of my favorites on Thursday) but that is not the only reason the show is so successful.  The idea of following three totally different families (one tradition, one gay, one older/younger) that are in fact one big family themselves is creative genius.  Add in a cohesive cast and you have an award winning comedy.

Happy Endings – ABC.  9:30 ET

The surprise comedy of the spring.  I was legit shocked at how funny this show is.  Entire cast is topnotch. It was nice of ABC to give the show a prized timeslot after Modern Family.  It shows how much faith the network has in it’s future.  Quick recap for those who don’t know:  a couple is engaged and then breaks off engagement.  Their friends are left to then work the tightrope of staying friends with both parties.  Hilarity ensues.

Thursday

Charlie’s Angels – ABC.  8pm ET

Another remake for an old established franchise.  Doesn’t take much to get a show like this greenlit…insert a hot leading lady like Minka Kelly with action shots, and voila you have a primetime show.  The word is this version of Angels will be more serious than the movies.  Remains to be seen if this secures an audience or not.

Community – NBC.  8pm ET

My favorite comedy out right now (even though season 2 got off to a slow start, it finished strong).  Pierce’s nasty attitude really dragged down the early episodes in my opinion.  If his actions produced laughs then it can be overlooked.  But largely I found nothing funny he did.  But this season will pick up with the study group dealing with the repercussions of Pierce leaving the group.  Will Senor Chang replace Pierce?  Or will he have competition for this vacant spot?

Parks and Recreation – NBC.  8:30 ET

Finally Parks and Recreation gets to begin a fall season and not be a spring replacement.  This is also my other favorite show to use the single-camera setup.  The cast has stars in Amy Poehler and Aziz Ansari, but even the lesser known supporting characters carry their weight.  This season we get to see Leslie Nope run for local office and Tom pursue his Entertainment 720 project.

The Office – NBC.  9pm ET

So long Michael Scott.  You will be missed.  This will be the first season without Steve Carell leading the helm for Scranton’s Dunder Mifflin.  There still hasn’t been a replacement named for Michael Scott.  This will surely be the running subplot throughout the season.  My vote is for Darryl personally.  Craig Robinson is funny and talented enough to take on this starring role.  James Spader returns as Dunder Mifflin Sabre’s CEO.

Archer – FX.  10:30pm ET

Word is Archer is only back for a special three episode storyline.  I strongly recommend people check out the predicaments Archer gets himself into as he does his best James Bond impersonation.  Except more vulgar.

Friday

Young Justice – Cartoon Network.  6:30pm ET

DC Comics knows how to churn out an animated series.  This is season two of the Young Justice comic book adaptation. Similar yet very different from the Teen Titans series to previously air on Cartoon Network, Young Justice includes over 30+ characters from the DC universe and has a more mature tone.  If you were a fan of Justice League:  Unlimited then this is a must-watch show.  Strongly recommend.

Star Wars:  The Clone Wars.  8pm ET

It’s somewhat sad that Clone Wars has done a better job of depicting the Star Wars mythos than the prequel movies ever could.  CGI animation has improved from season to season and characters are fully fleshed out compared to their live-action counterparts.  Will we ever find out what happens to Anakin Skywalker’s padawan Ahsoka Tano between the cartoon and Episode III?  Whatever her outcome, I have faith in the series to have it not be a letdown.

Chuck – NBC.  8pm ET

I stopped watching Chuck after it’s second season.  Seeing as this is the final season, I thought it would be nice to mention the show out of respect.  Always sitting near cusp of getting canceled from year to year, it’s strong fanbase let it’s voice be heard and NBC listened.  Let’s all give Chuck a proper sendoff.

WWE Smackdown – SyFy.  8pm

WWE’s Friday night heaping of wrestling action.  Not much else to say about Smackdown except WWE doesn’t care about it nearly as much as RAW.

Saturday

College Football – Too many networks to name.  12pm ET – TBD

Nothing else of significance comes on Saturdays.  ‘Nuff said.

So that’s it for my listing of fall programming.  Again these are the shows I will be checking out.  Feel free to speak your mind in the Comments section below and let me know what shows you are looking forward to, what shows you disagree with me on, etc.  The floor is now yours.