2012 MIDSEASON PREVIEW: CABLE & PREMIUM CHANNELS
Lord Polonius, in Shakespeare's Hamlet, says, "Therefore, since brevity is the soul of wit,
And tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes, I will be brief..." and then proceeds to describe Prince Hamlet as mad, truly mad. Well, friends and well-wishers, there are many shows on cable and premium channels (returning and new) premiering in early 2012. The amount of content is actually overwhelming. The Futon Critic website let me down today. I rely on its efficient database to keep track of the many shows on the various cable and premium channels. I located the premiere dates for returning or new shows (SCRIPTED shows) through Google. I'll honor the words of Polonius more than ever today; I do not have an encyclopedic knowledge of every show listed in today's entry; however, the relevant information's included for each show listed.
Ironically enough, this is the longest post of the Midseason Preview.
ABC FAMILY
PRETTY LITTLE LIARS
Created By I. Marlene King
What Season? Second half of Season 2
Premiere Date: Monday, January 2 at 8PM
Thoughts: The four ladies want to kick some A--which is a pun. A represents the word 'ass.' A is also the nefarious character in Pretty Little Liars who's been creating a mess of drama for our pretty little liars. I read a piece in Entertainment Weekly about the series some months ago. ABC Family's successfully adapted several young adult novels. PLL has a devoted fanbase. I also remember TWoP comparing the Aria in PLL with the Arya in ASoIF (Arya would wipe the floor with all of the pretty little liars). What seems important from the ABC Family promo is that the girls are poised to take the game to A (or something).
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
THE LYING GAME
Created By Charles Stratt, Jr.
What Season? Second half of Season 1
Premiere Date: Monday, January 2 at 9PM
Thoughts: The Lying Game is another young adult adaptation. The series premiered a month before Ringer, which was unfortunate because the shows have identical premises. The promo I watched during Boy Meets World suggests the lying game will continue in the New Year. People might discover the secret of our female lead, who is portraying two different characters. The new season will include makeout sessions on a bed between Alexandra Chando and a generically handsome male actor and expressions of shock and vengeance. I forget what else I watched. Just remember: it's about pretty people and nonsense drama.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
SWITCHED AT BIRTH
Created By Lizzy Weiss
What Season? Second half of Season 1
Premiere Date: Tuesday, January 3 at 8PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
JANE BY DESIGN
Created By April Blair
Premiere Date: Tuesday, January 3 at 9PM
Premise: (From ABC Family Press Release, November 2011) Jane Quimby is a fresh-faced fashionista juggling life both as a regular high school student and as an assistant to a high-powered fashion executive -- all while trying to keep her true identity a secret.
Thoughts: Every main character in ABC Family is hiding his or her true identity from the people around her. Young adult writers love themes of duality. Why bother hiding your job as an assistant to a high-powered fashion executive? I'm sure Jane Quimby has a homely best friend who'll be most betrayed when he or she learns about Jane's stylish other life. Andie MacDowell (or McDowell) stars as the high-powered fashion executive. My reaction to that fact: WOW. What happened, Andie?
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
AMC
THE WALKING DEAD
What Season? Second Half of Season 2
Premiere Date: Sunday, February 12 at 9PM
Thoughts: Fans are more interested in the possible difference between the Darabont episodes and the Mezzara episodes than in what happens next. I used 'possible' because the episodes could be exactly the same as they were during the Darabont era. Remember: significant stuff happened in the mid-season finale. Tune in if you want to watch the fallout.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
BET
THE GAME
Created By Mara Brock Akil
What Season? 5
Premiere Date: Tuesday, January 10 at 10PM
LET'S STAY TOGETHER
Created By Jacque Edmonds Cofer
What Season? 2
Premiere Date: Tuesday, January 10 at 10:30PM
COMEDY CENTRAL
SOUTH PARK
Created By Matt Stone & Trey Parker
What Season? 16
Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 14 at 10PM
Thoughts: I should've included two or three episodes in my Best Episodes of 2011 posts. But I didn't. Hopefully I remember their season sixteen episodes in December 2012.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
FX
JUSTIFIED
Created By Graham Yost
What Season? 3
Premiere Date: Tuesday, January 17 at 10PM
Thoughts: One day I'd like to watch Justified. Raylan's got a new criminal to deal with in addition to the world of dirty politics.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
ARCHER
Created By Adam Reed
What Season? 3
Premiere Date: Thursday, January 19 at 10PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
UNSUPERVISED
Created By David Hornsby, Rob Rosell & Scott Marder
Premiere Date: Thursday, January 19 at 10:30PM
Premise: (From FX's Press Release, September 2011) Unsupervised is a comedy about optimistic best friends "Gary" and "Joel" navigating the harsh landscape of teenage life and trying to do what's right without any parental guidance whatsoever.
Thoughts: The Always Sunny gang's fingerprints are all over Unsupervised. Kaitlin Olson will lend her voice to the cast. Kristen Bell's one of the many talented people lending their voices as well. Cricket, aka David Hornsby, is a co-creator. One hopes this animated comedy will find the success How to Be Gentlemen didn't.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
HBO
ANGRY BOYS
Premiere Date: Sunday, January 1 at 10PM
Premise: (From HBO's Press Release, December 2011) Series creator and writer Lilley, who was also the creator and star of the acclaimed HBO series "Summer Heights High," uses his chameleon-like talents to play multiple roles in a mock-documentary look at the lives of average boys and men, displaying their day-to-day interactions and struggles to fulfill their obligations to family and friends.
Thoughts: The press release stated the show's purpose as an exploration of 21st century masculine identity. It may or may not be set in Australia.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
LUCK
Created By David Milch
Premiere Date: Sunday, January 29 at 9PM
Premise: (From HBO Press Release, July 2011) This new drama series is a provocative look at horse racing - the owners, gamblers, jockeys and diverse gaming industry players.
Thoughts: HBO already aired the first episode, which I didn't watch. I may or may not watch the series when it officially premieres at the end of January. David Milch is a celebrated writer and producer. Deadwood's hailed as one of the great American TV shows in history. I used to love horse racing, but my feelings changed after the Barbaro tragedy. This show would've been for me 4 or 5 years ago.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
GAME OF THRONES
Created By David Benioff & D.B. Weiss (Based on A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin)
What Season? 2
Premiere Date: April 2012
Thoughts: Technically, GOT Season 2 is part of the spring schedule, but I'm not going to write a spring preview. Season 2 will be different. The world of Westeros expands. New characters are introduced and more shocking twists loom. I'm quite interested in how Benioff & Weiss adapt certain parts of the book as well.
Chance of Weekly Review: 100%
SHOWTIME
SHAMELESS
Created By Paul Abbott
What Season? 2
Premiere Date: Sunday, January 8 at 9PM
Thoughts: I'm considering watching the second season despite not watching the first season. Honestly, I'd like to watch Emmy Rossum on a weekly basis. I wonder if I'll be lost and unable to connect with the narrative by passing over season one. Perhaps William H. Macy's hair will be too much to take and I'll bail at the half-hour mark. No one cares what I think, though. Some folk love Shameless.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
HOUSE OF LIES
Created By Matt Carnahan
Premiere Date: Sunday, January 8 at 10PM
Premise: (from Showtime's Press Release, December 2011) HOUSE OF LIES is the new dark comedy about all the screwed up ways big business is practiced these days.
Thoughts: Kristen Bell's presence in House of Lies completely altered my perception. Whereas I previously felt bored by the premise, I now am interested enough to watch an episode or two. It's about time Kristen Bell moved away from horrible romantic comedies and into the familiar world of television.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
CALIFORNICATION
Created By Tom Kapinos
What Season? 5
Premiere Date: Sunday, January 8 at 10:30PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
STARZ
SPARTACUS: VENGEANCE
Created By Steven S. DeKnight
What Season? 2
Premiere Date: Friday, January 27 at 10PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
SYFY
MERLIN
Created By Julian Jones
What Season? 4
Premiere Date: Friday, January 6 at 10PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
BEING HUMAN
Created By Jeremy Carver
What Season? 2
Premiere Date: Monday, January 16 at 9PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
LOST GIRL
Premiere Date: Monday, January 16 at 10PM
Premise: (From SyFy's Press Release, December 2011) Anna Silk (The Ghost Whisperer) stars as seductress Bo, a Succubus (a powerful female entity in folklore) who feeds off sexual energy. Raised by human parents, Bo had no reason to believe she was anything other than the girl next door - until she "drained" her first boyfriend to death.
Thoughts: I watched the 86 second trailer. The pretty blonde lead and an attractive brunette electrocuted a demon, and then the pretty blonde quipped, "Smells like fried bitch." She's not Buffy Summers, but LOST GIRL could be fun.
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
USA
WHITE COLLAR
Created By Jeff Eastin
What Season? 3
Premiere Date: Tuesday, January 17 at 10PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
ROYAL PAINS
Created By Andrew Lenchewski
What Season? 3
Premiere Date: Wednesday, January 18 at 10PM
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
COMMON LAW
Created By Cormac Wibberly
Premiere Date: Thursday, January 26 at 10PM
Premise: (From USA Press Release, November 2011) The new original series COMMON LAW kicks into high gear when two cops discover they have one problem - each other. Despite their differences, they are still the best detectives on the force but when things come to a head on the eve of their "seven-year itch," their captain forces them into couples' therapy to save their "marriage."
Chance of Weekly Review: 0%
THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK
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