What You Should Have Watched #16

Hope
(or Shows That I Might Watch Next Season)

The major networks have announced their line-ups for the 2012-2013 season. Here’s a quick run-down of what I’ll probably be tuning into. I’m not going to list the proposed air dates/times, because a LOT of things can happen between now and the fall. I will, however, provide the preview clips that the networks produced for the new shows.

Here are the returning shows I’ll be watching:

NBC

Community is back for 13 episodes. On Friday nights with Whitney.

30 Rock will have a final season of 13 episodes.

The Office

Parks and Recreation

ABC

Modern Family

Suburgatory

Castle

Don’t Trust the Bitch in Apt. 23

Happy Endings

Fox

The Simpsons

Family Guy

Bones

Raising Hope

New Girl

Fringe

CBS

How I Met Your Mother

The Big Bang Theory

Person of Interest

Rules of Engagement (Only one that hasn’t been renewed or cancelled)

AMC

Breaking Bad

Walking Dead

Mad Men

FX

Justified

Sons of Anarchy

American Horror Story

Archer

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

The League        

Louie

Wilfred

CW

Supernatural

TBS

Cougar Town

USA

Psych

Covert Affairs

White Collar

Comedy Central

Tosh.0

HD Network

Drinking Made Easy

Showtime
Californication
Dexter
Shameless
Weeds


HBO
Boardwalk Empire
Game of Thrones
Girls
True Blood
Veep


Starz
Magic City
Spartacus


Here are the new shows I’m going to give a shot:

CBS

I’ll give “Vegas” an episode. I like Dennis Quaid, and I like Michael Chiklis, and Carrie Anne Moss isn’t all that bad. I LOVED Chicklis as an anti-hero in the Shield, and now he’s playing an out-and-out villain, so I hope he can pull it off. CBS seems to be a “safe” network, and I don’t know he’ll be able to pass the Vic Mackey litmus test of evilness.

Although I have yet to watch Sherlock (it’s on my to-do list for this summer), I don’t WANT to like the reimagining of the character in “Elementary.” It just seems so….wrong. But I like Lucy Liu and Aiden Quinn, and Johnny Lee Miller looks pretty decent in the preview clip. So I’m going to give it an episode. Why the hell not.

ABC

 So the guy who brought us “Terriers,” “The Unit,” and “The Shield” has a new show on ABC? I don’t need to hear anymore, I’m already setting my DVR. Also, Beau Johnson, a random homeless man I bought a paper (The Contributor) from on the corner on my way to work this morning, had this to say about “Last Resort”: “It sound like ‘The A-Team’ in a sub.”

The only reason, the ONLY reason, that I’m going to give “Nashville” one episode is Connie Britton. You might know her better as Mrs. Coach Taylor from “Friday Night Lights,” or you might know her from last season FX show “American Horror Story.” She is a dream to watch, so whatever she’s in will garner at least a one-episode commitment from me. Now, while I wouldn’t watch a show BECAUSE of her, I will say that I’m looking forward to seeing more of Hayden Panettiere. And I’m positive that I saw Charles Esten, who I haven’t seen since “Who’s Line Is It Anyways,” as a character in the show, but he’s not listed on IMDB as being on the show, so I’m confused. Also, somebody said this is pretty much the plot of Country Strong. I haven’t seen it, so I can’t comment.

I’ll be watching “How to Live with Your Parents (for the Rest of Your Life)” because of Sarah Chalke, the same reason I watched Mad Love last year. Ugh. That was a bad one, even with Judy Greer and Tyler Labine. This one looks a little better.

Have you seen The Devil’s Advocate? Did you wonder about the other people who lived in Al Pacino’s building? That’s what “666 Park Avenue” looks like. It stars Terry O’Quinn, and he seems to be channeling the more manipulative aspects of John Locke in order to play the devil. I’m in.

“The Family Tools” has two things going for it: J.K. Simmons and Kyle Bornheimer. And Adam Arkin isn’t a slouch in the acting department either. Sitcoms are easier for me to add or remove from my schedule than dramas, so if one has a weak premise (this) but actors I enjoy, I’ll give it more than one episode to find its footing.

Fox

“The Mindy Project” looks like it could be fun. It’s got Ed Helms and Bill Hader in the pilot, so that’s good, and I liked Richard Schiff in “The West Wing” and “House of Lies,” so his inclusion here is also good. After watching her in “The Office” for eight years, I just hope I can separate Mindy Kaling from her character Kelly Kapoor.

A serial killer mystery starring Kevin Bacon? Why yes, “The Following,” I will watch you. And I agree with what Dustin Rowles at Warming Glow said about the show, “The actually does look like an FX show that Fox stole from them.”

“Ben and Kate” looks corny, but the trailer had me chuckling, so I’ll give it an episode or two. I’m slightly disappointed that Lucy Punch left the “Powers” pilot in order to do this.

“The Mob Doctor” gets one episode to win me over. I’m not a huge Michael Rappaport fan, so that’s going against it, but I do like Jordana Spiro and Zeljko Ivanek, and hey! Lookit that! QB1 is in it. Maybe this’ll get two episodes from me.

You’re killin’ me here, Scott Foley. “The Goodwin Games” does NOT look good at all, but you’re a damn good actor. Why are you doing this? Why are you making me watch something that’ll hopefully be cancelled quickly (and the premise suggests it should have no life after one episode). At least there’s some eye candy (Becki Newton) as I watch this crash and burn (if it actually airs…it’s scheduled as a mid-season replacement).

NBC

If Justin Kirk is going to be starring in “Animal Practice” next season, does that me he was the one killed at the end of “Weed’s” season finale? Boo. He and the prospect of seeing Mary Louise Parker’s boobs were pretty much the only things keeping me interested in the show. So, this new one looks funny. I’m in. And hey, Tyler Labine is back.

“Revolution” looks like it has promise. Just like “FlashForward” did. Just like “The Event” did. Just like “Jericho” did. Although it looks good, I don’t have high hopes for it lasting more than a season. Genre shows like this don’t typically last long on NBC. If I end up liking the show, this’ll be the only NBC drama that I’ll be watching.

Matthew Perry is back in the game with another sit-com. I wish him luck, and I’ll be tuning in to “Go On.” Granted, the guy plays Chandler Bing in everything he does, but I like Chandler, so that’s why I watch everything he does.

The preview clip for “1600 Penn” had nothing to do with the synopsis I read. The synopsis sounds horrible (“Jenna Elfman as a step-mother in the White House married to the President [Bill Pullman] trying to win over the kids). The clip looks pretty funny. I’ll give it a shot.

I’ll watch “Next Caller” despite it starring Dane Cook. Why? Jeffrey Tambor. He was most of the reason I tuned into “Bent,” and that turned out to be a decent show that NBC threw in the crapper.

HBO

I will watch any show that Aaron Sorkin creates. "Newsroom" is a no-brainer.

Trailer #2

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (Movie Review)

I thoroughly enjoy the Hellboy comics, but I’m not a regular reader of them. I don’t know why, I’m just a bit strange like that.

I also thoroughly enjoyed the first Hellboy movie. Ron Perlman is an underused and underrated actor, and if I’m not mistaken, this was his first starring vehicle. Sure, he was the Beast in the Beauty and the Beast TV show in the ‘80s, but there was so much makeup on him that you couldn’t even tell it was him. And really, that was 20 years ago at least. This is definitely Ron Perlman, and Ron Perlman is definitely Hellboy.

Let’s move on to some more of the cast before we get into the story. First, Jeffrey Tambor. If you’ve never watched Arrested Development, you’re cheating yourself out of one of the best comedies ever put on TV. I never saw The Larry Sanders Show, but I heard he was great on it. He was pretty much the only saving grace of a very short-lived sit-com last year, one that I can’t even remember the name of. But it’s Arrested Development that does it for me. He’s wonderful in it. And he was good as the director of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense (henceforth known as the BPRD) in the first movie. I’ve just started watching the sequel, so I’m hoping he gets a larger role in this movie.

Doug Jones got shafted in the first movie. He played Abe Sapien, but the character was voiced by David Hyde Pierce (Niles from Frasier). He gets his revenge this go around, though. If I’m not mistaken, he’s playing three different characters and actually gets to speak as Abe Sapien. I’m not knocking Pierce, but even the guy Gollum was based on in the Lord of the Rings movies got to do the voice.

The first Hellboy movie is the only thing I’ve liked Selma Blair in, and as of right now I can only remember her in Cruel Intentions and Kath & Kim, where she pretty much played the same character in both. Here, her character is much more subdued and not dressed like a prostitute. This makes her quite much more attractive.

I imagine in the first film the budget was somewhat modest. The villains were human, for the most part, and there weren’t a lot of monstrous henchmen to deal with. The end of the movie probably soaked up all of the FX budget. Then the director, Guillermo del Toro, did Pan’s Labyrinth. This was a fantastical masterpiece. It was beautiful and horrible at the same time. And I don’t mean horrible in a bad way, like the story or acting or whatever was horrible. It was the creatures. What could have been a beautiful fairy tale was made into a nightmare, and it was wonderful. After this, I then imagine that the budget for Hellboy 2 was upped significantly. And it shows. More creatures. More action. More fun stuff to watch. Fot God’s sake, just take a look at the Troll Market.

Just a general observation/question: why is it that when someone falls out of a building in a movie or a TV show, there’s always a car to fall on? Is that really more dramatic than splatting on the sidewalk, or is it just cheaper?

Correct me if I’m wrong, but the forest elemental...was he running around with his wang all a-flippin’ and a-floppin’ in the breeze?

This sequel was definitely more spectacular, if not more grand, than the first. The effects are on par, but there are just more. There are more of everything: more monsters, more villains, more fighting, more plot, more character development, more conflict...but less humans. Huh.

I don’t really know how specific to get with this. There are scenes that I really liked, that made me feel for different characters, but if you’re reading this and are trying to decide if you want to watch it, I don’t want to spoil that for you, to "Rosenblatt" you, as some of the kids are calling it.

Suffice it to say, this movie was as good if not a bit better than the first. It feels like a cross between Hellboy and Pan’s Labyrinth, just because del Toro could do more with the sequel. If you enjoyed the first, I have no doubt that you’ll enjoy the second. I just hope there’s enough demand for a third. Heck, I’d think a BPRD TV show would be awesome. Granted, two of the actors already have their own shows, but I’m pretty sure one will be canceled (really, does anyone like Kath and Kim?) and the other will end up killing the character off (that's gotta be what Sons of Anarchy is leading up to). That’ll free them up. Do it, TV! I command thee!

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Listening to: Avril Lavigne - The Best Damn Thing
via FoxyTunes