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What to Expect on TV in December

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Can you believe that it is almost December? There are even more holiday-themed movies coming up throughout the month along with a bunch of fall finales, special Christmas episodes of some cable dramas, several mini-series, the debut of a couple of cable series and more.

First, let’s take a quick look at all of the holiday films that will air in December:

Mr. Miracle

December 6 – Mr. Miracle on Hallmark Channel

Airs at 8 PM, starring Rob Morrow (Northern Exposure and Numb3rs), Britt Irvin (Smallville and Supernatural) and Michelle Harrison (Continuum and Emily Owens, M.D.).

December 6 – Wally Lamb’s Wishin’ and Hopin’ on Lifetime

Airs at 8 PM, starring Danny Nucci (The Fosters), Krysta Rodriguez (Smash), Molly Ringwald (The Secret Life of the American Teenager), Annabella Sciorra (CSI), Cheri Oteri (Saturday Night Live), Conchata Ferrell (Two and a Half Men) and narrated by Chevy Chase.

Wally Lamb

December 7 – Christmas At Cartwright’s on Hallmark Channel

Airs at 8 PM, starring Alicia Witt (Justified and Friday Night Lights) and Wallace Shawn (The Princess Bride and Gossip Girl).

December 7 – The Christmas Secret on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries

Airs at 9 PM, starring Bethany Joy Lenz (One Tree Hill), Grayston Holt (Bitten) and John Reardon (Continuum and When Calls the Heart).

The Christmas Secret

December 7 – Merry Ex-Mas on ION

Airs at 8 PM, starring Dean Cain (Hit the Floor and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman), Kristie Swanson (Psych), Lochlyn Munro (True Justice), Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters franchise and The Secret Life of the American Teenager) and Jodi Lyn O’Keefe (The Vampire Diaries)

December 13 – The Santa Con on Lifetime

Airs at 8 PM, starring Barry Watson from 7th Heaven), Melissa Joan Hart (Melissa and Joey), Melissa Sagemiller (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), Jaleel White (Family Matters), Scott Grimes (Party of Five) and John Ratzenberger (Cheers).

December 13 – A Christmas Kiss II on ION

Airs at 9 PM, starring Elizabeth Harnois (CSI), Adam Mayfield (All My Children), Elisabeh Rohm (Law & Order) and Jonathan Bennett (Mean Girls and Veronica Mars).

Best Christmas Party Ever

December 13 – Best Christmas Party Ever on Hallmark Channel

Airs at 8 PM, starring Torrey DeVitto (Pretty Little Liars) and Steve Lund (Bitten).

December 14 – A Perfect Christmas List on ION

Airs at 9 PM, starring Ellen Hollman (Spartacus: War of the Damned), Aaron Hill (Twisted), Beth Broderick (Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Under the Dome) as well as Marion Ross and Richard Karn.

December 14 – The Christmas Parade on Hallmark Channel

Airs at 8 PM, starring AnnaLynne McCord (90210), Jefferson Brown (Rookie Blue) and Drew Scott (Property Brothers).

The Christmas Parade

December 20 – Back to Christmas on ION

Airs at 9 PM, starring Kelly Overton (True Blood) and Michael Muhney (The Young and the Restless and Veronica Mars).

Here are all of the fall finales set by the major networks:

December 2 – Chicago Fire on NBC at 10 PM

December 7 – Madam Secretary on CBS at 8 PM

December 8 – Castle on ABC at 10 PM

December 8 – The Originals on The CW at 8 PM

December 9 – The Flash and Supernatural on The CW at 8 and 9 PM respectively

December 9 – Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on ABC at 9 PM

December 10 – The Mysteries of Laura, Law & Order: SVU and Chicago P.D. on NBC at 8, 9 and 10 PM respectively

December 10 – Nashville on ABC at 10 PM

December 10 – Arrow on The CW at 8 PM

December 11 – The Vampire Diaries and Reign on The CW at 8 and 9 PM respectively

December 14 – Once Upon a Time, Resurrection and Revenge on ABC at 8, 9 and 10 PM respectively

December 15 – Jane the Virgin on The CW at 9 PM

December 17 – The 100 on The CW at 9 PM

Here are the debuts of two new cable dramas:

Girlfriend's Guide to DivorceDecember 2 – The new Bravo drama series Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce will debut at 10 PM

Show Synopsis: Lisa Edelstein (House) stars as Abby, a self-help author who publicly separates from her “perfect” husband (Paul Adelstein from Private Practice) and begins navigating life as a single woman. The cast also includes Beau Garrett (Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior) and Necar Zadegan (Emily Owens M.D.).

December 7 – The new TNT series The Librarians, based on the popular made-for-TV movie franchise, will air its 2-hour debut at 8 PM

Show Synopsis: Noah Wyle (Falling Skies) reprises his role of Flynn Carsen in this new weekly series based on the popular made-for-TV movies that will find Rebecca Romijn (X-Men franchise), Christian Kane (Leverage), Lindy Booth (October Road and Copper), John Kim (Neighbours), Matt Frewer (Eureka and Orphan Black) and John Larroquette (Night Court) as part of the cast. The show centers on an ancient organization hidden beneath Gotham’s Metropolitan Public Library, dedicated to protecting an unknowing world from the secret, magical reality hidden around them.

The Librarians Small

Here are the Christmas episodes of some cable dramas:

December 8 – A special Christmas episode of Switched at Birth and The Fosters will air at 8 and 9 PM respectively on ABC Family

December 9 – The Christmas episodes of Pretty Little Liars and Chasing Life will air on ABC Family at 8 and 9 PM respectively

December 28 – The Call the Midwife holiday special will air on PBS at 7:30 PM

Special Synopsis: The nurses and nuns of Nonnatus House try to have a happy holiday between births in this bonus episode that finds narrator Vanessa Redgrave appearing as the mature Jennifer Worth for the first time.

Here are the mini-series and/or other specials for the month:

December 4 – The live airing of Peter Pan will debut on NBC at 8 PM

Special Synopsis: Following The Sound of Music Live, this version tells the beloved story of Peter Pan, the mischievous little boy who ran away to Neverland. The cast includes Allison Williams (Girls), screen legend Christopher Walken, Christian Borle (Smash) and Kelli O’Hara (Sex and the City 2).

Peter Pan

December 5 and December 6 – The two-night, four-hour event One Child will air on Sundance TV at 9 PM (both nights)

Mini-Series Synopsis: The film follows the journey of a Chinese-born young woman adopted by British parents as she struggles in the face of crisis to determine her family loyalties, true identity and the meaning of family. The cast includes Katie Leung (the Harry Potter franchise), Elizabeth Perkins (Weeds) and Donald Sumpter (Game of Thrones).

Red Tent

December 7 and 8 – The Lifetime two-night mini-series The Rent Tent will air at 9 PM (both nights)

Mini-Series Synopsis: The mini tells the sweeping tale that takes place during the times of the Old Testament, told through the eyes of Dinah, the daughter of Leah and Jacob. It begins with Dinah’s (Rebecca Ferguson from The White Queen) happy childhood spent inside the red tent where the women of her tribe gather and share the traditions and turmoil of ancient womanhood. The film recounts the story of Dinah’s mothers Leah (Minnie Driver), Rachel (Morena Baccarin from Firefly and Homeland), Zilpah and Bilhah, the four wives of Jacob (Iain Glen from Game of Thrones). Dinah matures and experiences an intense love that subsequently leads to a devastating loss, and the fate of her family is forever changed. Debra Winger (Terms of Endearment) portrays Rebecca, Jacob’s mother while Tudor stars as Joseph, Dinah’s brother.

December 15, 16 and 17 – The new Syfy drama Ascension will air at 9 PM each night

Show Synopsis: The drama follows a covert U.S. space mission launched in the 1960’s that sent hundreds of men, women and children on a century-long voyage aboard the starship Ascension to populate a new world. Half way into their journey, as they approach the point of no return, the mysterious murder of a young woman causes the ship’s population to question the true nature of their mission. The cast includes Brian Van Holt (Cougar Town), Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica), Gil Bellows (Ally McBeal), Ryan Robbins (Sanctuary) and Andrea Roth (Rescue Me).

Ascension Small

Lastly, here are a few other special events that viewers will want to know about for December:

December 9 – The series finale of Sons of Anarchy will air on FX at 10 PM

December 12 – The Netflix drama Marco Polo will debut

Show Synopsis: The series is set in China in the 1200s, in a world replete with astonishing martial arts, sexual intrigue, political skullduggery and spectacular battles. The cast includes Italian newcomer Lorenzo Richelmy, Benedict Wong (Prometheus), Zhu Zhu (Cloud Atlas), Tom Wu (Skyfall), Remy Hii (Treading Water) and Rick Yune (Olympus Has Fallen).

Mark your calendars!

Using her favorite online handle, Rueben is an East Coast-bred gal who is now a permanent Californian and a lifelong tv-oholic. She watches at least 25 TV shows a week, goes to the movies as often as possible, listens to music every waking moment, reads every day and “plays” on the internet every chance she can. Some of her current favorite TV shows are Outlander, Sweet Magnolias, Wednesday, The Mandalorian, The Equalizer, Fire Country, Miss Scarlet, Hudson & Rex, SkyMed, The Rookie, Bridgerton, Cobra Kai, Virgin River, The Witcher, Leverage: Redemption and School Spirits. She is looking forward to the fall TV season, including the return of Outlander, Tracker and The Equalizer and the debuts of the new dramas Matlock, Murder In a Small Town, NCIS: Origins and Cross. Follow her at @ruebenrambling or contact her at rueben@nicegirlstv.com. Please also check out her Rueben's Ramblings website for even more entertainment news.