New Fall TV: Week 1

For those of you who have been reading here at the Tower for awhile, you'll recognize this time of year as when I valiantly attempt to watch a lot of new TV shows, write about them, and fail miserably. So I'm not going to even attempt this year, at least not the way I normally go about it. I think some of it has to do with my complete apathy toward most of the new shows this year, but it's mostly just an attempt to keep my sanity.

Instead, I'm going to preview each week's new premieres with some quick thoughts about what to expect. If I actually watch a show, I'll probably come back with a slightly more in-depth review. So without further ado, let's get going with Week 1.

As with most years, this is where the CW attempts to get some traction with their new shows before the other networks start up for the year. You may recall that last year featured the new Melrose Place (18 episodes before cancellation), TBL (2 episodes before cancellation, although you can watch 3 more on YouTube - yay?), and The Vampire Diaries (back Thursday and still going strong). This year, the CW is only debuting two new shows: Hellcats and Nikita.

Hellcats - CW Wed. 9/8 Central

Inheriting TBL's spot from last fall, I will be horrified at the taste level of the American public if this lasts more than two episodes. Ostensibly along the same vein as the brilliantly saccharine Bring It On, Hellcats details the "secret life" of college cheerleading. Outside of the concept itself though, it looks like everything goes horribly wrong with this one. I've only seen brief preview clips, but the level of acting featured here is on par with made-for-TV ABC Family movies. I guess that's what you get when you cast two Disney Channel graduates as your leads. I'd recommend staying away, unless you really like cheerleading.

Nikita - CW Thu. 9/8 Central

I honestly have no idea what to make of this one. Based off of the critically acclaimed movie and TV series "La Femme Nikita", Nikita is the story of a deadly, but beautiful, female assassin. CW isn't sharing much in the way of real previews on their website, so I can't tell you if this will be any good. The formula seems like it would be hard to mess up: take a pretty actress and have her beat up a bunch of people. If that sounds at all appealing, I'd recommend you give it a try. I'll give it a shot to impress me this week. Knowing the CW's track record, it probably won't.

FX is debuting a new show this week, too. Unlike the CW, their shows are usually pretty good.

Terriers - FX Wed. 10/9 Central

I'll throw some words at you and see if they stick. Creator of "The Shield". Writer of Ocean's Eleven. Donal Logue. If you're me, all of the above are reason enough to give this show a try. Billed as a comedic drama, this is the story of two would-be private investigators struggling to make a living in the modern world. The PI's are played by the aforementioned Logue ("Grounded for Life", The Tao of Steve) and Michael Raymond-James (the "Cajun" from season 1 of True Blood), so I'm expecting it to be both funny and well-acted which is all I can really ask these days. I'll report back with more on this one after the premiere.

If you're into the cartoon thing, Cartoon Network also premiered a couple of shows this week. Sandwiched on Monday nights in between two episodes of "Adventure Time" (a fun and quirky show in its own right) are:

Regular Show - Cartoon Mon. 8:15/7:15 Central

Despite the title, this is no regular show. Featuring a blue jay, a raccoon, a talking gumball machine, a lollipop-headed man, and a yeti (voiced by Mark Hamill), Regular Show is an infectious and funny little show. The first episode (which you can track down on YouTube if you're so inclined) involves a Casio keyboard (stolen from a wizard) that grants the player magical powers. Clocking in at 12 minutes, it's easily short enough to maintain its high-octane pacing without wearing you out. Check it out.

MAD - Cartoon Mon. 8:30/7:30 Central

This is essentially the folks at MAD magazine attempting to crank out a kid-friendly version of "Robot Chicken": short vignettes and parodies that are more miss than hit. The first episode (also on YouTube) had a couple funny bits, but the largest pieces (a parody of Avatar and a mash-up of all things "CSI" with "iCarly") both fell flat for me. This show is also only 12 minutes long, so if it sounds even remotely funny to you, it probably wouldn't hurt to check it out. I'll pass.

I'll be back next week with a preview of three brand new shows. Week 3 will be the real doozy as that's when almost everything new (17 shows) finally debuts.