What to Watch This Fall

Week of September 19 - September 25

How I Met Your Mother (CBS - Mondays 8PM)
Season Premiere - September 19th at 8PM
HIMYM is back for an eighth (and final?) season. And would you believe it -- Barney's getting married, Lily and Marshall are having a baby, and Ted's, well, still being Ted....but maybe he'll finally meet the elusive titular baby-mama this season....

 

2 Broke Girls (CBS - Mondays 8:30PM)
Series Premiere - September 19th at 8:30PM
"2 Broke Girls is a comedy about two young women waitressing at a greasy spoon diner who strike up an unlikely friendship...Sassy, streetwise Max Black works two jobs just to get by, one of which is waiting tables during the night shift at the retro-hip Williamsburg Diner. Sophisticated Caroline Channing is an uptown trust fund princess who's having a run of bad luck that forces her to reluctantly give waitressing a shot." Yada, yada, yada, the girls dream of opening the nine thousandth boutique cupcake shop in Brooklyn, yada, yada. What this show does have going for it though: it's written and produced by the (usually) entertaining Whitney Cummings, and the scrumptious Kat Dennings stars as the above-mentioned "sassy" Max. I'd take her over a cupcake any day.
 
 

Two And A Half Men (CBS - Mondays 9PM)
Season Premiere - September 19th at 9PM
I'm just going to come out and say it: I can't stand Two and A Half Men. Like, I'd rather watch a chimpanzee perform seppuku on itself with a popsicle stick that watch that show. But, I am intrigued by Chuck Lorre's rather ballsy solution to the "Charlie Sheen problem" by deciding to kill off his character and replace him with an equally smug and smarmy actor, aka, Mr. Demi Moore. Amongst the questions I am anxious to have answered this season are: is Ashton Kutcher capable of not acting like a complete douchebag? Is Jon Cryer a fool or is he a troll? Has a certain warlock cursed the show? And, will Season 9 be the final season? I suppose we'll just have to tune in to find out.

 

The Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen (Comedy Central - Monday 9/19, 10PM)
Six months after perhaps the most epic, and hilarious, drug-induced nervous breakdown in the history of ever, it's time to make fun of the man just starting to piece his life back together, and what better way than with a Comedy Central Roast? Seth MacFarlane will act as Roast Master, and will be assisted by Steve-O, Jeff Ross, Jon Lovitz, Slash, and William Shatner. Even Charlie's Pops got in on the action, appearing in one of the promos. And, obviously, it's no coincidence that Charlie Sheen is being roasted on the night that the show he made the number one comedy on television is returning for its first-ever night without him...I could almost, almost start feeling bad for the guy, but then, I remember that the man has both tiger blood and Adonis DNA, not one, but two, porn-star girlfriends, and was making about $1.25 million per episode of Two and A Half Men. Oh, and is a total bitchin' rock star from Mars... Winning!

 

The Playboy Club (NBC - Mondays 10PM)
Series Premiere - September 19th at 10PM
Though I am cringing as I write this, this series has already generated sufficient controversy and buzz that I would be remiss not to include it on this list. Plus, it is produced by Brian Glazer (Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind), so it might not be as bad as the title would suggest...Anyway, NBC's  "provocative new drama" is, believe it or not, about the Playboy Club, "a living, breathing fantasy world filled with $1.50 cocktails, music, glitter and of course, beautiful Bunnies." Set in 1960s Chicago, the series is to chronicle the adventures of Nick Dalton (Eddie Cibrian), "the ultimate playboy...with mysterious and complicated ties to the mob." The show will also star Amber Heard (Pineapple Express, Zombieland) as "the stunning and innocent new Bunny at the club." 
 


GLEE (FOX - Tuesdays 8PM)
Season Premiere - September 20th at 8PM
With several of the characters getting ready to graduate from McKinley High, this may well be an emotional season for some of the hardcore Gleeks out there. There have also been rumors that a character will be killed off this season, and that there will be a two-hour midseason tribute episode to either Maroon 5, ABBA, or The Beatles. (Interesting choices, huh?) Though the show's producers have not denied or confirmed any of the rumors they have said that GLEE will develop into "more surreal and hilarious" plot-lines this season, following the unexpected popularity of last season's bizarre "Funeral" and "A Night of Neglect." Personally, as long as Sue Sylvester returns to her hilariously psychotic self I don't really care what else happens...
 


New Girl (FOX - Tuesdays 9PM)
Series Premiere - September 20th at 9PM
Yes, Zooey Deschanel is the epitome of all things twee and the spokegirl of obnoxious hipsterdom, but somehow I still can't help but find her to be adoreable, funny, and, well, just pretty darn likeable overall. Like, I kind of wish I had a pocket-version of her to carry around so she could sing to me and braid my hair and help me make those major life-decisions like: are antlers or owls cooler? Can I pull off neon pink? And is Girl Talk really the coolest band ever? Anyway, Zooey (yes, we're on a first-name basis) stars as Jess Day, "an offbeat and adorable girl in her late 20s who, after a bad breakup, moves in with three single guys." She also sings frequently and does a number of awkward yet adorable things back to back.
 


Modern Family (ABC - Wednesdays 9PM)
Double-Episode Season Premiere - September 21st at 9PM
I have often asked myself what could make Modern Family even better, and even funnier than it already was in the first two seasons....Apparently, so have the sitcom's creators, as they have decided to add David Cross (Tobias from Arrested Development) to the Season Three cast roster. Score! This season will also have the Dunphy-Pritchett-Tucker clan spending time at a dude ranch, Mitchell and Cameron considering adopting a second child, and Claire running for public office.
 


Charlie's Angels (ABC - Thursdays 8PM)
Series Premiere - September 22nd at 8PM
No, as much as I wish it was, this is not a joke. They are really attempting to bring back Charlie's Angels. Again. You would think that producer Drew Barrymore would have gotten her Angels fix making not one, but two Charlie's Angels movies, but apparently she has not. This "fresh take on the 1970s smash hit series" is set and filmed in Miami and will star Minka Kelly, Rachael Taylor, and Annie Ilonzeh -- the first African-American Angel in the franchise's history. "Everyone deserves a second chance -- even a thief, a street racer and a cop who got in a little too deep. After all, the three women who solve cases for their elusive boss, Charlie Townsend, are no saints. They're angels... Charlie's Angels." That's an awesome tag line, but let's hope we get more than Jiggle TV this go-round... 
 


Community (NBC - Thursdays 8PM)
Season Premiere - September 22nd at 8PM
John Goodman. Need I say more? Well, yes, I probably do, as many people may still have not heard the amazing news that John Goodman is joining the cast of Community this season as the new vice dean of Greendale Community College's school of air conditioning repair. It's difficult to even imagine the awesomeness of John Goodman in a scene with Jim Rash or Ken Jeong. Or Joel McHale for that matter. And don't forget, Michael K. Williams, aka Omar from the best show in television history (The Wire), is joining Community for Season Three also. I can hardly stand the raw, unbridled amazingness that Season Three is going to be... Best. Season. Ever!!! 

 

Parks and Recreation (NBC - Thursdays 8:30PM)
Season Premiere - September 22nd at 8:30PM
Judging from the exponential arc of hilarity fans have witnessed since Parks and Rec's inception, I'd say we're in for a mind-blowingly fantastic season. April and Andy are married, Leslie and Ben are finally together, Tom's struck out on his own with Entertainment 7Twenty, and we get to meet Ron Swanson's Tammy I (Patricia Clarkson), and his mother, Tammy Zero (Paula Pell). I had kind of assumed that, like Chuck Norris, Ron Swanson was both his own mother and father, but I cannot wait to meet the woman capable of spawning such an exemplar of manliness. Or to see how his hair has grown back following the torch-lighting incident of last season's finale.
 
 

Person of Interest (CBS - Thursdays 9PM)
Series Premiere - September 22nd at 9PM
Person of Interest is a crime thriller about a "presumed dead former-CIA agent," named Reese, whose "special training in covert operations" appeals to Finch, a "mysterious billionaire" and "software genius who invented a program that uses pattern recognition to identify people about to be involved in violent crimes." Wait a minute -- this sounds vaguely familiar....Is this the television adaptation of Minority Report with a computer standing in for a precog? Or are we just running out of interesting new ideas? Hmm. The series does star the fantastic Jim Caviezel however, a man generally fairly choosy about his roles, so it could be better, and have more originality than one might expect.

 

The Office (NBC - Thursdays 9PM)
Season Premiere - September 22nd at 9PM
Sorry Caviezel, as much as I love you I will not be tuning in to the pilot of your new show when The Office is back for its first full season sans Steve Carell. Especially when James Spader is joining the cast. That's right, in case you haven't heard, it is official: the magnificent James Spader will be joining the cast of The Office, as the frighteningly intense new boss, Robert California. Who knows -- it could work really well, or it could indeed be the end of our beloved sitcom, but of all of the potential candidates to replace Michael Scott, I was definitely most excited about the prospect of Robert California. Spader, and his character, is so very different from his predecessor that it will create a very new dynamic on the show. Whether or not that dynamic will work however, is something we'll have to tune in to find out. I am hopeful though. Check back here on The Game Effect for weekly reviews...until (if) it becomes unbearable anyway.

 

Whitney (NBC - Thursdays 9:30PM)
Series Premiere - September 22nd at 9:30PM
This is the one of two new sitcoms that Whitney Cummings has debuting this season (the other is the aforementioned 2 Broke Girls airing on CBS). This one "centers around Whitney and her (fictional) boyfriend Alex...Together for three years, the duo is in no rush to get hitched....and try to have a relationship on their own terms - in a world that expects a more traditional approach." Not a terribly compelling premise, but I'm willing to give it a shot as I generally find Cummings to be pretty entertaining. Plus, it's going to be on after Parks and Rec and The Office, so by this point on Thursday nights inertia has generally sucked me deep into the couch cushions. Those are going to be hard acts to follow though, especially with 99% of viewers wishing that they didn't have to wait until January for new episodes of 30 Rock...



Prime Suspect (NBC - Thursdays 10PM)
Series Premiere - September 22nd at 10PM
With a tag line like "All Dicks and one Jane" what's not to be excited about? Except that this isn't a porno, it's yet another cop drama. Maria Bello stars as "tough-as-nails NYPD homicide Detective Jane Timoney," who must prove her mettle to her dubious male coworkers. The series also stars Aidan Quinn and Kirk Acevedo, and it's for the cast alone that I'm thinking this one could possibly be a sleeper. I won't hold my breath though.



Nikita (The CW - Fridays 8PM)
Season Premiere - September 23rd at 8PM
After being on the bubble for an unnervingly long time, fans were relieved to hear that Nikita would indeed be renewed for a second season, though in a less favorable timeslot....Nevertheless, the girls are back and this time working on separate courses and for their own personal causes.

  

Fringe (FOX - Fridays 9PM)
Season Premiere - September 23rd at 9PM
After last season's insane finale, Fringe has a bit of explanatory backtracking to do before it can move forward. We know that Peter will be showing up in Season Four, but when and in what capacity is uncertain, to say the least. As Fringe has consistently grown more complex, and thus more engaging, since its inception, the battle between universes, the past and the present, and father and son, have become more clearly defined and consistently explored.  With a stellar cast and a sound balance of sci-fi action and fringe science, this is one FOX series definitely worth your time.



PanAm (ABC - Sundays 10PM)
Series Premiere - September 25th at 10PM
In what has been described as a "prime-time soap" ABC is joining forces with Banana Republic in the conspiracy to reprise the culture of the early 1960s...or maybe is just hoping that some of the success of Mad Men will somehow vicariously rub off on them by virtue of having a series set in the same era... At any rate, the series will feature Christina Ricci as a flight attendant who must learn, not only to pour drinks and pass out bags of peanuts mid-flight, but also to navigate her way through international espionage, radically shifting political climate, and the complications of mile-high love affairs. The premise seems way too gimmicky to have any lasting success, even if it is well written, but hey, in a culture that has made a franchise out of The Real Housewives, you never know.
 


Boardwalk Empire (HBO - Sundays 9PM)
Season Premiere - September 25th at 9PM
You really couldn't ask for a better reception than this series (deservedly) got for its first season, and I've a good feeling that this darling of fans and critics alike is going to follow up with even more intensity in Season Two. With Nucky in a corner it's anyone's guess who he will ally himself with. The Ku Klux Klan will also feature prominently this season -- though most likely not in the way you would expect: rather than acting as a new supplier of bootleg booze, they will appear as troble-making teetotalers. Real-life gangster Bugsy Siegel will also make an appearance this season. 

Week of September 26 - October 2

Terra Nova (FOX - Mondays 8PM)
Series Premiere - September 26th at 8PM
It's the year 2149 and the world is dying. "The planet is overdeveloped and overcrowded, with the majority of plant and animal life extinct. The future of mankind is in jeopardy, and its only hope of survival is in the distant past." Like, um, prehistoric past. The drama centers around the Shannon family, who must make their way through this beautiful new land filled with adventure, mystery, flesh-eating dinosaurs, and attacks from a splinter-colony of renegades, but even "more threatening than what lies outisde the protective walls of the colony is the chilling possibility that something sinister is happening inside Terra Nova...there may be forces intent on destroying this new world before it even begins." So...apparently Avatar and Jurassic Park had a lovechild, and that baby wound up on FOX....Whatever, the visual effects look awesome, and the series is produced by Steven Spielberg, Peter Chernin, and Rene Echevarria. I would be very surprised if the pilot airs with less than 15 million viewers, and unless the show is awful (which I really don't think it will be) those numbers will most likely climb -- I'm predicting this is going to be a record-making series, as there's never before been anything with quite this scope on television. We'll see though -- with television you never know.
 


Hart of Dixie (The CW - Mondays 9PM)
Series Premiere - September 26th at 9PM
The only, I repeat, only reason this one is getting mentioned is because Josh Shwartz (Chuck) had a hand in producing it. Sure Rachel Bilson and Jamie King are both smokin' hot, but a CW dramedy about a sassy new doctor who finds herself in a small Alabama town and accidentally discovers "small-town life and a side of herself she hadn't known was there" doesn't exactly scream "compelling content."

   

Mike & Molly (CBS - Mondays 9:30PM)
Series Premiere - September 26th at 9:30PM
Mike & Molly is a comedy about a working class Chicago couple who find love at an Overeaters Anonymous meeting. Okay, okay, but before you judge it actually looks like it could be pretty funny and quite cute.
 
  

Suburgatory (ABC - Wednesdays 8:30PM)
Series Premiere - September 30th at 8:30PM
Single father George (Jeremy Sisto) only wants the best for his 16-year-old daughter, Tessa (Jane Levy). So when he finds a box of condoms on her nightstand, he moves them out of their apartment in New York City to a house in the suburbs. But all Tessa sees is the horror of over-manicured lawns and plastic Franken-moms." Tell me about it, girlfriend...The show seems to have a quirky charm, aided by the talented cast (Cheryl Hines also plays one of the suburban moms), and may be at least worth giving a shot.



Happy Endings (ABC - Wednesdays 9:30PM)
Season Premiere - September 30th at 9:30PM
I actually thought that this "bubble" sitcom, which almost didn't get renewed, was quite funny. Casey Wilson (who plays Penny) generally made me laugh out loud at least several times per episode, and the hilarious Megan Mullally is set to appear as Penny's mom in Season Two. If you haven't seen this show yet, give it a shot. Here's one of my favorite Penny scenes from last season.



How To Be A Gentleman (CBS - Thursdays 8:30PM)
Series Premiere - October 1st at 8:30PM
I'm hoping that if you take David Hornsby (Rickety Cricket from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) and Kevin Dillon (Johnny Drama from Entourage) and put them on a show together that you will get a hilarious half-hour of awesomeness. The premise however admittedly leaves much to be desired. Hornsby stars as an etiquette columnist named Andrew Carlson whose boss (played by Dave Foley -- more bonus points) tells him that he must put a "modern, sexy twist" on the column or be fired. Andrew then hires Bert Lansing (Dillon), a personal trainer and "reformed bad boy" to be his life coach. Oh, imagine the adventures they will have as this odd couple butt heads, teaching each other patience and life lessons along the way...  Let's hope the talent of the cast can save the show from the trite flimsiness of its plot.

 

Bedlam (BBCA - Saturdays 10PM)
Series Premiere - October 3rd at 10PM
I know that not everyone -- okay, that most people -- are not as fond of British television as I am, but I still thought this new series on the BBCA may be worth mentioning. Bedlam is a horror series about Bedlam Heights -- a former insane asylum that has been recently converted into a hip, swanky apartment building. The new tenants are unaware of their fabulous new home's harrowing past, and are oblivious to the fact that the building's recent rehabitation has stirred up some very angry spirits, bent on revenge. Only when a man with his own history of mental illness comes to stay at Bedlam Heights, are the building's terrifying secrets revealed. Think it sounds lame with a capital L? Check out the trailer here. Creepy.
 
 

Dexter (SHOWTIME - Sundays 9PM)
Season Premiere - October 4th at 9PM
Dexter's back!!! Finally! Showtime promises that the sixth season will be full of "startling suspense and unexpected twists," but what season of Dexter hasn't been? This season Dexter will cross paths with "an enemy unlike any he's faced before: a delusional religious zealot...This new adversary soon draws Dexter into a dangerous game that could well end in disaster." The featured actors this season will be Edward James Olmos and Colin Hanks, who seem to have some weird cult leader / Paduan relationship going on and this is supposedly going to be the darkest season yet. Which, for a series that creates viewer sympathy for a serial killer with such aplomb is really saying a lot.

 

Homeland (SHOWTIME - Sundays 10PM)
Series Premiere - October 4th at 10PM
As much as I do like Claire Danes, she was not the actor who piqued my interest in this new Showtime series. Nope, rather it was Damian Lewis, who though he's not been in much of note recently, played Dick Winters in what was quite possibly the best miniseries of all time, Band of Brothers. Lewis returns to television in this political intrigue thriller as MIA Marine Sgt. Nicholas Brody who returns home after eight years in enemy confinement. Dane's plays the "brilliant but volatile CIA agent Carrie Mathison" who believes that Brody has been turned and is now working as an informant, or worse, for Al Qaeda. "What follows is a dangerous game of cat and mouse with nothing less than National Security at stake." From the previews I'm going to guess that Mathison's hunch is probably right....and that Brody is absolutely batshit crazy. Either way, I'd be surprised if this isn't one hell of a series.

Week of October 3 - October 9

American Horror Story (FX - Wednesdays 10PM)
Series Premiere - October 5th at 10PM
This is without a doubt one of the new shows I have been most excited about. Have you seen the promos? They give you absolutely zero information about the show's premise and yet still are able to make you feel totally creeped out...The show is created by Ryan Murphy (the mind behind Nip/Tuck and, wait for it, GLEE) and is about a family who moves into a house where some very bizarre and creepy things are going on. The series will star Dylan McDermott, Jessica Lange, and Connie Britton, with Zachary Quinto appearing for a significant story arc. I can't wait to find out the story behind that black latex bodysuit....

Week of October 10 - October 16

Bored To Death (HBO - Mondays 9PM)
Season Premiere - October 10th at 10PM
Bored To Death has to be one of the most underappreciated series on TV right now. It stars Jason Schwartman as Jonathan Ames, a socially inept Brooklyn-based writer who moonlights as a private detective. Ted Danson also stars as Ames' womanizing boss, and Zach Galifianakis plays a slightly disturbed comic book artist, who also happens to be Ames' best friend. This show is absolutely hilarious, features an awesome array of guest stars (such as Olivia Thirlby, Oliver Platt, Kristen Wiig, Bebe Neuwirth, and Mary Kay Place), and although it is beginning its third season, does not have such in-depth story arcs that you couldn't start watching now without confusion. I definitely recommend checking it out if you enjoy quirky, intelligent comedies. 



Enlightened (HBO - Mondays 10:30PM)
Series Premiere - October 10th at 10:30PM
In HBO's newest dramedy, Laura Dern plays Amy Jellicoe, "a self-destructive corporate exec who lands herself in a Hawaiian mental-health treatment center after suffering a nervous breakdown" and thus begins the process of trying to get her life back together. Enlightened seems to be poised to imitate the so-far successful premise of miserable-middle-aged-women-breaking-all-the-rules-in-a-bold-struggle-for-self-awareness (think Weeds, Nurse Jackie, The Big C), which is getting more than a bit cliche, but could still be entertaining if well-written. The series will also star Diane Ladd and Luke Wilson.   



The Walking Dead (AMC - Sundays 9PM)
Season Premiere - October 16th at 9PM
I admit I wasn't sold after the pilot of The Walking Dead, but by the third episode I was hooked, and it was hard not to feel gypped by the short six-episode run of the first season. Luckily, we didn't have to wait too long for Season Two -- a full 13-episode season this time. The second season is "all about slim chances," and if it's anything like the first season I fully expect to have completely chewed my fingernails off by the end of October...

Week of October 17 - October 23

Man Up (ABC - Tuesdays 8:30PM)
Series Premiere - October 18th at 8:30PM
"Will's grandfather fought in WWII. Will's father fought in Vietnam. Will plays Call of Duty on his PS3 and drinks non-dairy hazelnut creamer. So what happened to all the real men? They're still here -- they just smell like pomegranate body wash now." And there you have it: that description, and the promise of some very tongue-in-cheek commentary about a culture that promotes things like man-scaping, is enough to get me to give the show a shot. The series will star Dan Fogler, Christopher Moynihan, and Teri Polo.

 

Chuck (NBC - Fridays 8PM)
Season Premiere - October 21st at 8PM
After an incredible ride, and four straight seasons of laughter, emotion, killer soundtracks, and some of the most satisfying fight scenes this side of Thailand, Chuck and his cadre of well adorned colleagues return for one last trip down Intersect Lane. Look for loose ends to be tied up, for Chuck and Morgan to experience some growing pains as they adapt to their new dynamic, and for a smattering of guest stars such as Mark Hammill, Justin Hartley, Jeff Fahey, and Carrie-Anne Moss, who will play a business rival of Chuck's.  With the cliffhanger that concluded Season 4, viewers were left to wonder who has been manipulating Chuck all of these years and what will become of the new Intersect host; come October 21st we will begin to see those questions answered.  Cheers Chuck, we're so glad you're coming back, and can't wait to see how your final season concludes!

Week of October 24 - October 30

Beavis and Butthead (MTV - Thursdays 10PM)
I never thought this day would come. Some of my earliest and most lasting life lessons came from watching Beavis and Butthead, and I credit the duo with making me the person I am today. At last they are back where they belong: on television, molding the minds of young, impressionable Americans, and I for one, couldn't be happier about this. Obviously, a lot has changed since the 90s, so expect the boys to be including Youtube videos, reality TV, and social networking sites in their astute cultural commentary. And let's hope that Beavis doesn't discover Redbull.



Allen Gregory (FOX - Sundays 8:30PM)
After watching the trailers for this series back in early spring I have been super-stoked for this addition to FOX's Sunday night animated comedy line-up. Allen Gregory "tells the story of one of the most pretentious 7-year-olds of our time...Although Allen Gregory has allegedly already composed operas, written novels and dated Chloe Sevigny, he's about to embark on his greatest challenge yet: leaving the safety of his father's homeschooling and attending elementary school with children his own age." Finally, Jonah Hill will be doing something other than being Jonah Hill.

Week of October 31 - November 6

Hell On Wheels (AMC - Sundays 10PM)
Hell On Wheels is the newest dramatic series from AMC, which is all I need to hear -- after witnessing the genius of AMC's other dramatic series, namely Breaking Bad, Mad Men, and The Walking Dead, I'm fairly convinced that anything the network puts its stamp on will be worth watching. This series is a "contemporary Western" (or, as the producers have joked, "Eastern" as the show is set in the American East) and follows AMC's first original mini-series event, Broken Trail. The "epic and enduring American story...centers on former Confederate soldier Cullen Bohannon (Anson Mount), whose quest for vengeance has led him to Union Pacific Railroad's westward construction of the first transcontinental railroad." The series will also star rapper Common. Yee-haw.