Fall TV Preview: 12 New Shows to Watch

1. Maniac - I'm excited about this show for a few reasons. First and most important, Superbad reunion!!! It's crazy to see how far Jonah Hill and Emma Stone have come in just over a decade. Hill has been nominated for 2 Oscars; Stone has one win and another nomination. I don't think anyone could have predicted that. Second, Cary Fukunaga. I wasn't as much in love with True Detective as everyone else, however - there is a lot of good stuff packed in. I think my expectations for it were just too high. I'm still excited to see how Fukunaga's career progresses (although, I just remembered that he did the It remake too and I thought that movie was garbage soooo....I guess we'll see). Third, the premise looks interesting - pretty much a Black Mirror episode turned into a mini-series.

2. The Kids are Alright - The commercial kind of reminds me of The Wonder Years, but I highly doubt it will come close its quality. My interest only peaked when I saw Michael Cudlitz - a criminally underrated television actor (thank goodness he got away from The Walking Dead. I feel so bad for all of the actors still stuck on that show). He should have several Emmys on his shelf for portraying Officer John Cooper in Southland (possibly in my Top 10 favorite characters of all-time and one of my Top 50 favorite shows of all-time). This show looks completely different from anything I've seen him do, but I have no doubt that he will excel.

3. Manifest - A little bit Lost, a little bit The 4400, a little bit The Returned. It could be great, or it could be a confusing mess. I'm going to give it a chance. I'm always hopeful for a great mystery/sci-fi series. Josh Dallas bores me a little bit, but I haven't written him off completely yet.

4. The Little Drummer Girl - I'm not really sure what this show is about, maybe spy stuff? But it has Michael Shannon, so I'm sold.

5. Mr Inbetween - I tend to enjoy shows that are on FX. They seem to put out good content. I passed over this show at first because it seems like it might be boring. And the "bad guy" is more than just a "bad guy" plot has already reached its peak (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul - it just can't be topped). But because it's on FX, I'm going to give it a try.

6. Escape at Dannemora - This is probably my most anticipated show this year - or I guess, this is classified as a mini-series since it has an end already? But, man, that cast is incredible - Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano. Directed by Ben Stiller. The story is insane, but it ACTUALLY HAPPENED, so the world is just a crazy place. I'm happy with this trend of developing these unbelievable true tales into really incredible and entertaining series (like American Crime Story and Waco) instead of crap Lifetime movies.

7. Homecoming - I have no idea what this is about. I just know that Julia Roberts is coming to television, and that's a big deal. People can no longer argue that television is a "lesser" art form than films, or that an actor taking a television gig are somehow taking a step back in their career (I recently heard this argument about Henry Cavill taking a television role. HOW DUMB ARE YOU?). Honestly, my interest in television has surpassed my interest in films. I barely even go to the movies anymore and I'm not even mad about it.

8. The Romanoffs - I have high hopes for this series - there is just so much story to tell. Great actors (Kerry Bishe! So happy to see her face again. I miss Halt and Catch Fire. It's so weird how attached I became after being so bored with it in the beginning). Also, it's from Matthew Weiner (enough said!).

9. Single Parents - I just can't picture Leighton Meester, a.k.a Blair Waldorf, a.k.a Queen Bee, in an adult role. Like, as a mom. For real? I have to see it to believe it. Also, I think this is the only new comedy that I've added to my list this year so it needs to bring it!

10. The First - So, not only is Julia Roberts joining the television world, but so is Sean Penn! Holy shit. Penn is one of my favorite actors of all-time (yes, I'm aware that he's an asshole. Two things can be true at the same time.). Also, I like the premise of this - especially because I'm currently reading The Martian Chronicles. It's very fitting.

11. Wanderlust - I love Toni Collette in anything and everything. She's just amazing. (Nope, I haven't seen Hereditary yet, but it's on the list for this week). I feel like she is very picky about what she is in, so I trust that the script for this is good (although it doesn't really look like my thing - Ugh, marriage blah blah blah, therapy, blah blah blah).

12. A Million Little Things - There was a very long preview that I happened to see about a month or so ago and I almost burst into tears just from that. It kind of reminds me of a This is Us or Parenthood type show that just is so touching and heartfelt. Sometimes I need a good cry so hopefully it will be a welcomed (but sad) addition to my tv schedule.

4 Thoughts on the Emmy Awards

1. The Host(s) - I have seen some terrible awards show hosts in my day, but these guys might take the cake. First, I have no idea who they are. I don't watch SNL anymore and based on this, I can see that I've made the right decision. Second, that's the guy that Scarlett Johansson (aka one of the most beautiful women in the world) is with??? REALLY? THAT GUY? He looks like a boy band reject and has no personality whatsoever. Third, I don't get it. Was the fact that they looked bored and annoyed the whole time supposed to be funny? Because I think it's rude. And last, they did get something right - the "Reparation Emmy" skit was hilarious, but not because of Michael Che, only because they got absolute legends to go along with it.

2. The Winners & Losers - I'm going to say it. Fuck Game of Thrones. There is no way in Hell that it was the best Drama on television this year, last year, or any other fucking year it's been on. I enjoy the show, but a lot of it is very dull and repetitive, and some of the acting is questionable. Out of the nominated Dramas - The Americans should have won (I got my hopes up when Matthew Rhys won, but Kerri Russell dominated that show, such a shame she wasn't showered with awards). I would have even been happy with The Crown. But, no, Game of Fucking Thrones took home the big award. UGH. Other than that, I wasn't terribly upset about any other wins or losses. Some exceptional talent was nominated, it just keeps getting tougher and tougher to decide what's "best". I still haven't seen The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel yet (on the list! The massive never-ending list.), but Amy Sherman-Palladino is a joy of a person and Gilmore Girls was brilliantly written, so I have no doubt that she deserves a win. I also have not seen Godless or Barry, but I definitely need to. Speaking of Godless, I had no idea Merritt Wever is in it (moving it up the massive never-ending list now). I was so excited when they called her name because she gave my favorite awards show speech ever ("Thank you so much! I gotta go, bye"), and I was really hoping for something golden (she didn't deliver, but I still love her). My favorite win of the night was definitely Darren Criss. This performance was the most memorable of the year for me (along with Jodie Comer, who wasn't even nominated! UGH).

3. The Show - Just, so, so bad. If it weren't for the proposal, no-one would have talked about it the next day. The opening monologue was way too long and I didn't laugh at all. The "we solved it" skit that opened the show kind of seemed a little demeaning. Plus, it became even more awkward when ONLY WHITE people were winning awards. I think it's much funnier to be honest about how fucked up the entertainment industry is (like with the "Reparation Emmy" skit) than to do a meta skit that basically pats itself on the back (like look how diverse we are, but NOT REALLY, but REALLY). Thandie Newton (love!) had my favorite line of the night "I don't even believe in God, but I'm going to thank her tonight". And I think the only time I laughed out loud was with the Patton Oswald clip (I can't seem to find it, but basically he says something terrible and then says something like "I hope this doesn't get quoted out of context" - hilariously used out of context). Overall, though, this is one of the worst Emmys I've ever seen.

4. The Fashion - UGH, my biggest pet peeve trend for awards show dresses appeared way too many times - how many times do I have to say it, people, big white dresses are not flattering on anyone (not even on your wedding day). I would have loved Jessica Biel's dress if it was in another color. I guess if I had to pick a favorite, it would be Mandy Moore's, just because it's pretty, looks different than everyone else's and it's extremely flattering on her. My least favorite dress, though, was definitely Tracee Ellis Ross. It looked like she wrapped herself in cotton candy.

Thoughts on 5 New Shows

1. Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan - I've only seen the first two episodes so far, but I'm in. I enjoy the Jack Ryan character, but I enjoy John Krasinski even more. He's just so charming and earnest and...tall (**swoons dreamily**). I'm also really happy that Wendell Pierce is doing something a little bit better than Suits (yes, I totally watch Suits, I have from the beginning - but it's not a "good" show). Pierce has been a television staple for the past 20 years (most notably known as "Bunk" from The Wire). He seems a bit bored by his role here - but I think that's partially the character description. The first episode was really, really long (and it felt long), and took too long to get to the point, but the second episode was infinitely better.

2. American Woman - I'm actually a little sad that this show was already canceled after its first season. It was pretty strong, but I guess Paramount didn't like their numbers (also, maybe no-one knows what the Paramount network is??). The show was a little bit like the female side of Mad Men, but obviously not as nuanced and a little bit more cute. I think Mena Suvari was the standout for me (I was never a big Suvari fan when she was really popular, but now I think she's great). Alicia Silverstone is a legend - she's just always going to be great (and also ADORABLE - which might be why the show came off as cute instead of serious). I guess writing about this show is now pointless, so moving on...

3. Castle Rock - Seven episodes in and this is one of the most disappointing shows I've watched in a while. The cast is spectacular, but the plot has been boring as Hell. I liked the first episode - leaving it on a cliffhanger was a smart move, and then picking it up in the second episode in a completely unexpected way. That's about the only nice thing I have to say about any of the story. I think it's purposely trying to be weird and that gets tiring really quickly. I keep watching though, because THAT CAST (a highlight for me is Noel Fisher - he was great as Mickey in Shameless too. I'm excited to see what he does next).

4. Take Two - I know this is supposed to be a stupid summer show, but it's like, really, really stupid. I do love me some Rachel Bilson, though. The premise is cute, but it got stale very quickly. I did like the "alien abduction" episode best, because it wasn't as predictable and they made several references to The X-Files. It's weird to me that this show wasn't cancelled yet, but something more substantial like American Woman is (again, I think it's a network problem).

5. Disenchantment - This wasn't on my original list of Summer shows to watch, but I didn't really see any advertisement for it until like a week before it premiered (a huge problem that Netflix must address - their marketing for original content sucks). I wouldn't say I'm the biggest Matt Groening fan, but I'm not NOT a fan. I enjoy The Simpsons very much, but I LOVE Futurama. This show doesn't feel like it's in the same league as either of them. It's actually quite boring and not funny. There's too much plot (and repetitive plot, at that), not enough humor.