TV Fall 2016: Mondays
Most new shows on Monday nights are being delayed due to the Presidential Debate schedule, since networks didn’t want us to fall out of habit with the new show after just one episode. But when they premiere, I will be checking out:
Timeless: This is an ambitious time travel show where a bad guy is rewriting history, but due to wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff, the female protagonist has already put plans in motion to defeat him. That suggests the show knows enough about sci-fi staples Doctor Who and Star Trek and others to really have some fun with the premise, so I’m optimistic.
Conviction: This is a star vehicle for Hayley Atwell, after her period-piece Marvel show about the 1940s failed to gain traction. Otherwise, it’s a typical lawyer drama with the major twist being that her character is in charge of proving that the already-convicted were innocent in the first place. Given the anti-police climate in the country right now, with some tweaks particularly in casting and marketing, this could be a hit, but I am not expecting it – most people tune out when they see another cop or lawyer show on network TV. That said, I think Atwell is an underrated actress, so I will give her show a chance.
Returning shows that are worth mentioning: Also on October 3, Supergirl moves to its more natural home at The CW, and fanboys around the country are already eagerly awaiting the winter crossover event with The Flash and other DC shows on the CW. Lucifer has returned from hell to put his devilish charm to work on the buddy cop genre, as we hope his scene partner ups her game or they get new writers to give her more to do. 2 Broke Girls and The Odd Couple are an hour of television that I cannot explain why I like it, except that when each is funny, they are really funny (otherwise they border on unwatchable).
The odd man out on my DVR will likely be Scorpion in its move to the 10pm hour for its third season; I already skipped it most of last year as I got tired of the frantic screaming of non-sense nerd jargon, MacGyer-esque jerry-rigging of solutions on the fly, and multiple tiresome will-they-won’t-they romantic pairings. (More on MacGyver in my write up for Friday.)
I may update this page with my assessments for Timeless and Conviction after they premiere on October 3rd.
