Excitement for Fall TV

It happens every year – the fall TV season starts in earnest every September, filling the evenings with new shows as well as bringing back favorites from the year before. Next month is no different than the years preceding. TV viewers will see a plethora of new and returning programs appearing on their TV screens from the major networks and, for at least another month (or so), see the conclusions of most of the summer programming from the cable networks.

For an avid TV viewer like me, this is one of the best times of the year – you could say it’s almost like Christmas for me (only better). Granted not all the new shows that debut on ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and the CW will make it until the end of the year – that is just how it works in the world of television – but there will always be those new, much-buzzed about shows that everyone will watch. Hopefully some of them will stick with the viewers, making for great chatter around the office watercooler (or to be more specific all over the web).

As always, I have been preparing for September viewing since May when the networks made their upfront presentations to the advertisers in New York. I have spent a lot of time researching the shows the networks plan to debut, getting as much information on each one as I can. While I had the opportunity to see a small handful of the new pilots for some of the fall dramas, I am waiting in anticipation, like most other TV viewers, for the debuts of a number of new shows as well as the return of my favorites.

The new shows that I am anxious to see include:

Nikita (the CW) – The retelling of the franchise this time with Nikita (Maggie Q) going back to the Division – after being out and on the run for 3 years – to save all the other “throw-aways” who are trapped inside, being forced to become assassins, and getting revenge for the murder of her lover at the hands of the very people who made her who and what she is today.

Lone Star (FOX) – The story of one man (newcomer James Wolk) and the two very different lives he leads as a con man who desperately wants to change the cards that have been dealt him his entire life. Can he love two women and lead two separate lives without everything crumbling in on top of him?

Hawaii Five-0 (CBS) – The story is classic and well-known but will be modernized and a bit grittier. Alex O’Loughlin, Scott Caan, Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park star as the new unit in Hawaii that is going to bring down the criminals at any cost.

Undercovers (NBC) – A new spy drama from J.J. Abrams (the man behind Alias and Lost) about a happily married couple (Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw) who run a small catering company, who just happen to be retired spies called back into service.

My Generation (ABC) – A film crew followed the lives of 9 high school students (including Jaime King and Mehcad Brooks) in Texas 10 years ago, now those 9 adults are looking back on their lives and finding out just how far or how little they have really come.

No Ordinary Family (ABC) – The Powell family (including Julie Benz and Michael Chiklis) was just your ordinary family until a fateful vacation ended in a plane crash in the Amazon River. When they return home, they are no longer an ordinary family, as they have developed superhuman powers. Now it’s up to them to figure out how to live new and extraordinary lives.

Luther (BBC America) – The show follows a brillant detective – John Luther (Idris Elba) tormented by the darker side of humanity.

I am also curious, but a bit uncertain, about these new shows:

Outlaw (NBC) – A Supreme Court justice (Jimmy Smits) resigns from the bench and opens his own law firm to promote the ends of justice. I’m more impressed with the cast than the actual premise.

The Event (NBC) – What is The Event? Hopefully this series will actually tell us what it is. A young man (Jason Ritter) investigates the disappearance of his fiancée and unravels the biggest cover-up in U.S. history. Again, this show has an impressive cast, but could be too dense (story-wise) to capture a long-term audience.

Chase (NBC) – Annie Frost (Kelli Giddish) is a U.S. Marshal, who along with her high-priority fugitive-apprehension team, track down dangerous criminals in South Texas.

Blue Bloods (CBS) – Tom Selleck heads the Reagan clan, a multi-generational family of cops in New York. Another terrific cast, but will it hold up especially since it is slated for Friday nights at 10 PM?

As for the returning shows for which I am anxiously awaiting, they are Chuck (NBC), Castle and Brothers & Sisters (both on ABC), Glee and Human Target (both on FOX), NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles and Medium (all on CBS), Life Unexpected, The Vampire Diaries, Smallville and Supernatural (all on the CW), Sanctuary and Stargate Universe (on Syfy) and Friday Night Lights (on DirecTV). Yes, I really am excited for all of these shows; and yes, I really do watch THAT much television.

There are also shows that won’t be returning or debuting until later in the fall (or perhaps at mid-season, which is typically around January). Those shows include Off the Map (starring Zach Gilford and Martin Henderson) (ABC), Love Bites (starring Becki Newton and Greg Grunberg) and The Cape (starring Summer Glau and David Lyons) (both on NBC), Facing Kate (starring Sarah Shahi) (USA Network), Outcasts (starring Eric Mabius and Jamie Bamber) (BBC America), Tower Prep (Cartoon Network – this is a live action series not animated) as well as the return of V (ABC).

Lastly, there are the finales of all the summer programming that has kept me entertained over the last few months, including Burn Notice and Royal Pains (which finish up this Thursday) as well as Leverage, Psych, White Collar, Eureka, True Blood, The Closer, Rizzoli & Isles, Covert Affairs, Warehouse 13, Unnatural History and Haven. These shows will finish their runs throughout September and some in October.

Given all that there is to watch on TV this fall and leading up to the end of the year, what shows are you most happy to see returning and which new shows do you want to check out? Please share your thoughts.