It’s that time of year again: TV networks are rolling out their new line-up of fall shows, featuring both new series and returning favorites. While many of the new shows typically don’t survive through a second season, there’s always a surprise hit or two. Returning shows also face the pressure of living up to viewer expectations and bringing something new to the story.
Here are some of the new and returning TV shows I’m most looking forward to this season (coincidentally, they all turned out to be superhero themed, but that’s probably not surprising). 😉 What shows do you plan to watch this fall?
Gotham (Sept. 22)
Fox’s new series “Gotham” takes place in the famous fictional city protected by the superhero vigilante Batman, but don’t expect to see much (if any) of the caped crusader. The show is more of a prequel, following a young James Gordon, who eventually becomes commissioner. Viewers can also expect to see origin stories for some famous “Bat” villains like the Joker and Poison Ivy. I like the idea of a spin-off for Gordon’s character, and there should be plenty of character development opportunities. However, the challenge will be if Fox can convince viewers to watch a show about Batman mythology that doesn’t actually have Batman in it.
Agents of Shield (Sept. 23)
ABC’s “Agents of Shield” premiered last year with what seemed to be a lot of potential … and then received complaints from viewers about not living up to that potential. The characters didn’t seem to gel as a team, the plots weren’t always engaging, and the show didn’t have the same magic spark as the Marvel movies. Thankfully, that all changed with the second half of season one, and the show made a great comeback, introducing a stronger overarching story line and deeper character development. I’m curious to see where the show heads in the second season, and if show runners can continue moving the series in the right direction. The shocking reveal about Shield in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” should continue to provide intriguing plot lines in the second season.
The Flash (Oct. 7)
Inspired by their success with “Arrow,” The CW is launching a new superhero show, “The Flash,” about a lightning-fast superhero crime fighter. The network introduced the character during “Arrow” last season and is attempting to create a spin-off. I liked Grant Gustin’s portrayal of Barry Allen/The Flash on “Arrow” last season, and I’m hoping The CW can successfully expand the character into his own show. “The Flash” will be less gritty than “Arrow,” but early fan reactions seem to be positive. It will be interesting to see if it can win over “Arrow” fans, especially if the new show is a little heavier on humor.
Arrow (Oct. 8)
“Arrow” — a show about a wealthy playboy turned hooded vigilante — is one of my favorite currently running series on TV. It returns for a third season on The CW after a strong second season with plenty of shocking twists (Spoiler alert! Killing Oliver Queen’s mother was a gutsy and surprising move) and plenty of cliffhangers (Will Oliver and Felicity FINALLY end up together?). I’m curious to see how the show will move on without some of its major characters; Moira Queen, Oliver’s mother, was one of the most interesting and complex characters, and her loss will be felt on the show. While I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Oliver’s nemesis Slade, we’ll hopefully get some new villains this season as well, along with some new challenges for Oliver. I’m also interested in what will happen to Thea, who has apparently teamed up with Malcolm Merlyn, who revealed himself to be her real father.
Hi Ashley, good to see u back!
So, DC can’t compete w Marvel @ the box office, so are trying to rule TV? 3 out of 4 come from DC. Th only time I got a chance to watch Arrow was in-flight – seemed pretty decent (never thot Oliver Queen would get his own TV spot!)
http://bradscribe.wordpress.com/2014/09/09/utterly-compelling/
Cheers!
Thanks! 🙂 Got back from taking a vacation, and it’s nice to be blogging again. 🙂 It is interesting to see how many DC TV shows there are, maybe they are trying more TV since they’ve had more challenges than Marvel at the box office. “Arrow” is one of my favorite shows, I’d definitely recommend people check it out!
I’ll be following all these shows or at least for the new shows give them a chance for several episodes. I like the one, two punch of Flash and Arrow, there’s potential for exciting cross over story lines and characters. I really want to see Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. firing on all cylinders from the premiere episode and gain back some viewers. Gotham might just be the biggest hit of them all, I just hope it’s really good. 🙂
I also hope to see some crossover between Flash and Arrow; I’m a big fan of Arrow and I hope Flash will be good too. I’m hoping Agents of Shield comes out of the gate strong. My fear is that if it doesn’t start strong it may start losing viewers again — keeping my fingers crossed. Are you planning on blogging about any of the shows this fall? I really enjoyed your AoS posts last season! 🙂
I might do posts on the premiere episodes. I’ll probably won’t be doing weekly episode recaps though 🙂
Will look forward to reading those, then! 🙂
Appreciate you reading and commenting on my posts, especially for all those ASOS ones, it’s not that popular of a show so it’s nice knowing there’s other fans that are interested in discussing it. 🙂
I’m hoping more people will give AoS a shot this season, and that it will make good use of its second chance. 🙂
I’ll watch The Flash and Arrow. Totally given up of Shield and being Fox I am waiting until a second season is confirmed for Gotham before I watch it 😀
Yeah, Fox does have a track record of canceling some of my favorite shows — Firefly, Arrested Development, Futurama, etc. 😉
Sad times 😦
Just thinking about Fox canceling those shows makes me mad all over again. 😉