2012 Fall TV Preview: the New Shows on ABC

Credit: ABC

I was in a sub shop in southeastern Delaware Friday night. The counter girls were Central and/or Eastern girls. One of the girls had golden curls and eyes as blue and deep and soulful as the sky. The other girl had hair as dark as Otradnoe forest at night, and hypnotic eyes. Their accents were light, touched by their native Slavic, completely arresting and adorable, with a kind of musicality in their utterances. The dark haired girl with the hypnotic eyes met my eyes for a second as she looked away from the counter to her right to serve a customer who came in to a pick up an order.

I enjoyed the 120 seconds I spent in the sub shop a quintillion times more than the many hours I spent watching and writing about last year's new crop of ABC shows. ABC experienced a good year with their new shows. Revenge replaced Desperate Housewives, even though ABC twisted the numbers a bit to give the illusion that Revenge is as watched as Desperate Housewives. ABC needed their new dramas to succeed. Once Upon a Time and Revenge were successes. Amazingly so, even. The network is launching three dramas in the fall and two comedies. The comedy department is nearly untouchable now. NBC executives probably cower in the bushes, scheming like villains in a straight-to-DVD kid adventure film, envying the embarrassment of riches ABC has in comedy assets. ABC seems stable; but correct me if I'm mistaken, internet.

Jane Espenson, however, had ominous words about the year in development in general. During a TV panel in early June, Espenson wondered why networks weren't taking more risks. The landscape has significantly changed in the last five years. The market is more niche-oriented than ever, but networks continue developing the same kind of shows, and they lose more viewers every year. Jane saw no difference between the majority of new shows versus the shows developed eighteen years ago. 2012-13 won't be the season for innovative and original series. Of course, though, new shows could surprise and take popular culture by storm. In fact, ABC has one potential series that could explode with the public.

Let's begin!

THE NEIGHBORS

Created by Dan Fogelman

Premiere Date: Wednesday, September 26 at 8:30PM

Premise: (from ABC's press release, May 2012) How well do you know your neighbors? Meet the Weavers, Debbie (Jami Gertz) and Marty (Lenny Venito). Marty, in hopes of providing a better life for his wife and three kids, recently bought a home in Hidden Hills, a gated New Jersey townhome community with its own golf course. Hidden Hills is so exclusive that a house hasn't come on the market in 10 years. But one finally did and the Weavers got it! It's clear from day one that the residents of Hidden Hills are a little different.

Thoughts: Dan Fogelman, the writer of Crazy, Stupid, Love, is cashing in on his cinematic success with an interesting sitcom about a normal nuclear family that moves into a neighborhood populated by aliens. Personally, if I experienced one great movie success like Kevin Williamson, I'd try to get a show on TV as fast as possible. TV creators earn an absurd amount of money. Fogelman's a wise fellow. Anyway, The Neighbors seems like a throwback to older sitcoms like ALF and The Dinosaurs. I have no idea if the series will work. I got an early 2000s vibe from the alien characters, i.e. they reminded me of the aliens in Dude, Where's My Car. Fogelman's series seems interested in playing with audience expectations. The male alien, for example, cries alot and actually gives birth; no idea what the female alien does. The premise itself originates from people's hopes that their new neighbors will be normal. Marty utters such a hope in the first scene of the trailer. Once the alien discovery is made, the normal family discusses how to proceed. ABC's still loves the idea that males no longer rule the household as Marty immediately caves after making a boastful claim about the family's future on their block. The series could revolve around the idea of acceptance and tolerance and understanding. The gated community setting might represent America as Springfield represents the country in The Simpsons.

I like that the series is potentially different from the other ABC sitcoms. ABC sitcoms basically are about families or young professionals. The Neighbors will certainly deal with family issues. The alien aspect should help the series stand out.

Chances of Weekly Review: 5%

LAST RESORT

Created by Shawn Ryan & Karl Gajdusek

Premiere Date: Thursday, September 27 at 8PM

Premise: (from ABC's press release, May 2012) 500 feet beneath the ocean's surface, the U.S. ballistic missile submarine Colorado receive their orders. Over a radio channel, designed only to be used if their homeland has been wiped out, they're told to fire nuclear weapons at Pakistan. Captain Marcus Chaplin (Andre Braugher) demands confirmation of the orders only to be unceremoniously relieved of duty by the White House. XO Sam Kendal (Scott Speedman) finds himself suddenly in charge of the submarine and facing the same difficult decision. When he also refuses to fire without confirmation of the orders, the Colorado is targeted, fired upon, and hit. The submarine and its crew find themselves crippled on the ocean floor, declared rogue enemies of their own country.

Thoughts: Last Resort is the potentially great new ABC drama. The series comes from Karl Gajdusek and Shawn Ryan. Ryan is a former ANGEL writer, and he created The Shield, ran Terriers, and created The Chicago Code. He's among the most skilled storytellers in the business. The trailer is spectacular; it feels epic, like it should be on HBO or in the cinema. Basically, the show follows the crew of the submarine who refuse to bomb Pakistan and take refuge on a remote island in the South Pacific. The government is after them, and the island natives are a danger to them.

This series seems like the type of risk Espenson spoke about during her panel. The scope is large. The last network show with a scope as large as Last Resort was LOST. I don't mean to be the guy to bring LOST into it but it needed to be done. Enough drama exists in the main narrative between the USS Colorado and the United States to make an entertaining movie. Last Resort has the intrigue of the remote island and personal strife for the characters as a result of the game-changing decision made under the water. Honestly, too much is going on in the teaser trailer; it's all fireworks and life-changing moments. The show is meant to be viewed and reviewed and judged on its pilot. The feedback from the critics is overwhelmingly positive. I think it's worth checking out. Ryan's track record as a creator and writer is great.

Chances of Weekly Review: 90%

666 PARK AVENUE

Created By David Wilcox

Premiere Date: Sunday, September 30 at 10PM

Premise: (from ABC Press Release, May 2012) At the ominous address of 666 Park Avenue, anything you desire can be yours. When Jane Van Veen (Rachael Taylor) and Henry Martin (Dave Annable), an idealistic young couple from the Midwest, are offered the opportunity to manage the historic building, they not only fall prey to the machinations of the mysterious owner Doran and his mysterious wife, Olivia (Vanessa Williams), but unwittingly begin to experience the shadowy, supernatural forces within the building that imprison and endanger the lives of the residents inside.

Thoughts: The producers of Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars are involved in this show in some way. If you enjoy either series, 666 Park Avenue could be for you. I'm most impressed by the mileage Terry O'Quinn is getting out of the few months he portrayed The Man in Black on LOST. The first shot of him is of him smiling devilishly at the camera. ABC doesn't hide the soap qualities of 666 Park Avenue. The show is all-soap. The supernatural elements remain a mystery; that's why we should tune in, to find out what the ghost at the end is about, and why every person's desires come true in The Drake. Creepy/haunted/mysterious hotel settings work sometimes. ANGEL's "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been?" uses the hotel setting splendidly, and John Cusack's 1408 is good, as well. The trailer suggested that couples have sex a lot in The Drake and then look mistrustfully or fearfully at everyone.

The show ends ABC's Sunday night lineup. Revenge is the lead-in. Night-time soap fans will get 2 hours of nonsense. I expect 666 Park Avenue to succeed because people want their stories. I wish Terry O'Quinn picked a better show to do. Hawaii Five-O wasted him. 666 Park Avenue would be foolish to waste O'Quinn. He possesses the talent to make 666 Park Avenue a nuanced night-time soap.

Chances of weekly Review: 0%

NASHVILLE

Created By Callie Khouri

Premiere Date: Wednesday, October 10 at 10PM

Premise: (from ABC's press release, May 2012) Chart-topping Rayna James (Connie Britton) is a country legend who's had a career any singer would envy, though lately her popularity is starting to wane. Fans still line up to get her autograph, but she's not packing the arenas like she used to. Rayna's record label thinks a concert tour, opening for up-and-comer Juliette Barnes (Hayden Panettiere), the young and sexy future of country music, is just what Rayna needs. But scheming Juliette can't wait to steal Rayna's spotlight.

Thoughts: The country music scene isn't an area of expertise for me. Country never engaged my ear. Connie Britton's a great actress. Hayne Panettiere was stuck doing HEROES for four seasons, then she acted in the underwhelming Scream 4. Nashville seems like Hayden's breakout hit, if she needs a breakout. Hayden plays a different character from her norm. Juliette Barnes is young, sexy and a threat to the established Rayna James. I don't know what the week-to-week stories will be. Nashville doesn't seem designed to sustain a multiple season run. I think it's worthwhile to explore the underbelly of any music scene though, of putting the spotlight on the competitive nature of the industry. Juliette and Rayna are initially clashing because of age, but their conflict is interesting because it'll touch on generational divides, culture wars, etc. Juliette is overtly sexy; Rayna is a mother-of-two, who took the scene by storm with her vocals, not her breasts. There's a scene when Rayna reminds Juliette to tuck her breasts in. Juliette just smiles. So, I'd say I'm interested in Nashville. I'm not sure if it'll be the kind of show I think it could be. I'll just have to watch.

Chances of Weekly Review: 76%

MALIBU COUNTRY

Created By Kevin Abbot

Premiere Date: Friday, November 2 at 8:30PM

Premise: (from ABC's press release, May 2012) When Reba Gallagher (Reba) discovers that her husband, Bobby, (Jeffrey Nordling) a country music legend, has a cheatin' heart, her world is turned upside down. Reba dreamt of becoming a country star herself, but put her career on hold to raise a family. Now she's questioning all of that, big-time.

Thoughts: Reba has an unspecific charm. Maybe it's the red hair. Maybe it's the southern drawl. I never actively disliked her sitcom on TheWB. I don't actually know what the premise of TheWB sitcom was. Reba is an aspiring country artist in the ABC series. After her husband left, she's living with her children and mother. Her quest is to be a successful and independent woman. When she thinks about returning to her husband, her mother reminds her that she must be strong. Reba's an everywoman; she needs to pay the bills and deal with her adolescent daughters kisses with the good-looking boy next door. I'm unsure of the show's potential to succeed. A WB size audience won't be enough to keep Malibu Country around. I will not be watching because the show will go head-to-head with Community.

Chances of Weekly Review: 0%

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