Fall TV 2011: Make Me Watch

It's been a week or so since the networks started their annual spring ritual of introducing the new shows that they hope people will be watching and talking about come fall. I've had time to watch clips from all some of them, so I can now offer you my admittedly biased, but still fairly TV-knowledgeable, thoughts.

I'm no longer surprised by cancellations; most shows fail, it's just the nature of the business. But I was disappointed that Fox decided not to renew The Chicago Code, because I felt it had finally found its footing and was poised to stretch out and fulfill the expectations that surrounded its arrival. (Update: Show creator Shawn Ryan is talking to other networks and cable channels, so there's an ultra-slim chance the show might find a second life elsewhere.)

Most of last season's freshman class didn't survive, and nothing that did could be considered a breakout hit, so the networks have gone back and reloaded with a new, if not exactly fresh, batch that they really, really hope will catch on.

One thing is clear: the singing, dancing, and weight-losing isn't going anywhere, at least for the foreseeable. The positive side of this is that if, like me, you have no interest in any of it, then that's eight or nine hours of network programming each week that you don't have to be concerned with.

Similarly, there are several new shows that involve or invoke fairy tales, fantasy stuff, or supernatural elements, also highly skippable. One huge gamble appears to be Fox's Terra Nova, about a group of people who manage to travel back in time to a prehistoric era. It's going to be loaded with special effects like computer-generated dinosaurs, and therefore is going to be a very complicated, very expensive show to produce. Fox has a lot riding on this, but my gut is telling me it's going to be a huge flop. We'll see.

Lots of new comedies: eleven are starting in the fall, and several more are planned for next winter and spring. NBC has a solid lineup on Thursdays (even if it doesn't draw the kind of ratings numbers NBC used to), and ABC has established a similarly successful block on Wednesdays, so now both of those networks are looking, logically, to expand their comedy footprints to other weeknights, with two from ABC on Tuesdays and two from NBC on Wednesdays. Some of these look okay, given that any new sitcom is rehashing one of a few by-now familiar scenarios; typically a sitcom will succeed or fail based on the quality of the writing and the appeal of the cast.

In network nods to Mad Men, both NBC and ABC are serving up 1960s-set shows, but that's about as far as the similarities go. NBC's entry is set in the Chicago Playboy Club and has organized-crime elements, while ABC is going with Pan Am stewardesses and pilots, which looks to be the soapier of the two. If you enjoy watching shows like this mainly for the sets and costumes, you'll probably be satisfied, but if you're looking for drama with the weight of Mad Men, I suspect you'll be disappointed.

There are a couple of dramas that have my interest. NBC has finally realized that people miss having a serious show to tune into on Thursdays after the comedy block (see also: two decades plus of success with Hill Street Blues, LA Law, ER), and they are attempting to resolve the situation with an American take on Prime Suspect. It seems like a foolish, even terrible idea, but the production team includes the guy behind Friday Night Lights, as well as one of the writer/producers of the original British series, and they've cast Maria Bello in the lead role, who seems spot-on as the right choice.

For something in the vein of a crime procedural but a bit less traditional, CBS has yet another offering with J.J. Abrams's involvement (he's also producing a show on Fox that will be arriving at some point midseason) called Person of Interest. It's about a billionaire (played by Lost's Michael Emerson) who has (presumably illegal) access to information about people who are about to commit crimes, and he employs a former Special Forces operative (Jim Caviezel) to stop them. A bit over the top, perhaps, but also sort of a nostalgic nod to The Equalizer. On board as a producer is Jonathan Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplays for The Prestige and The Dark Knight.

The CW? Still nothing to see here, at least for grown-ups. I did watch the first few episodes of Nikita last fall, and while I think it's an entertaining "popcorn" show, the story demanded regular weekly viewing, and I just felt like I was already involved in too many other shows, but I'm glad it got renewed. Likewise, it's nice to see Sarah Michelle Gellar coming back to TV, but the plot of her new series Ringer seems too contrived and convoluted to draw me in as a regular viewer.