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Tuned In: Familiar titles, concepts fill broadcast TV fall schedules

Jordon Nuttall/The CW

Tuned In: Familiar titles, concepts fill broadcast TV fall schedules

While television has transformed into a year-round business with original series debuting all 12 months — or, seemingly, weekly in the case of Netflix — the fall launch of new programs remains a staple among the broadcast networks.

This fall the term “new series” is relative.

Among the 22 “new” series launching over the next two months, three are spinoffs (“Dancing with the Stars: Juniors,” “The Conners,” “Legacies”), two are remakes (“Magnum PI,” “Charmed”) and two are revivals (“Murphy Brown,” “Last Man Standing”). Factor in new titles for series with concepts that seem familiar (cop show, medical show, “Lost”- and “Touched by an Angel”-like shows) and, well, don’t get too excited.

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Here’s what to expect in the weeks ahead on ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and The CW:

From left, Taye Diggs as Billy Baker and Daniel Ezra as Spencer James star in
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Best and worst of fall network TV

SUNDAY

“Dancing with the Stars: Juniors” (8 p.m., ABC): More dancing, smaller stars. (Oct.7)

“God Friended Me” (8 p.m., CBS): Call it “Touched by an Emoji.” A modern version of “Touched by an Angel” or “Early Edition,” this is CBS’s attempt at a feel-good entry for our divisive times. “God Friended Me” follows Miles (Brandon Micheal Hall, “The Mayor”) an atheist — and son of a pastor (Joe Morton, shaking off the rhythms of Shonda Rhimes’ writing on “Scandal”) — who is friended on Facebook by God and then gets friend suggestions that lead him to do good and make a difference in the lives of strangers. Undemanding and with a winning lead, it’s fine if insignificant time-filler TV. (Series premiere at 8:30 p.m. Sept. 30 before moving to its regular 8 p.m. time slot Oct. 7)

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“Rel” (9:30 p.m. Fox): A Chicago working dad (Lil Rel Howery, “Get Out”) has to reinvent his life when his wife cheats on him with his barber. He gets mocked/supported by his little brother (Jordan L. Jones) and shamed by his father (Sinbad). There are occasional glimpses of “Seinfeld”-style humor in this series executive produced by Jerrod Carmichael (“The Carmichael Show”) — the guys have an obsession with small details, like a character’s “loose boots,” which results in the nickname Loose Boots Monica — but the pilot is neither as funny as that NBC classic nor as topical as “The Carmichael Show.” (Previews 8 p.m. Sept. 9).

“Charmed” (9 p.m., The CW): It may seem too soon to completely reboot a series that ended in 2006, but the new “Charmed” updates its feminist credentials by leaning into the #MeToo movement. Executive produced by “Jane the Virgin” creator Jennie Snyder Urman, the “Charmed” redo is stronger when it goes for a laugh — at moments the style of humor brings to mind “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” — than when it goes all-in on supernatural theatrics involving its three sister lead characters. (Oct. 14)

“The Alec Baldwin Show” (10 p.m., ABC): One famous person interviews other famous people. Not available for review. (Oct. 14)

MONDAY

The cast of NBC's
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Wonder when your broadcast network TV favorites will be back?

“The Neighborhood” (8 p.m., CBS): After a stint of fall seasons with a majority of white, male leads in its prime-time series, CBS took the note that it could better reflect the makeup of the country and made strides at inclusion, but the efforts fall somewhat short in this sitcom that’s a little too on the nose. A white family moves into a black neighborhood and disgruntlement ensues. White dad (Max Greenfield, “New Girl”) is overly solicitous; black dad (Cedric the Entertainer) is distrusting and cynical. Can’t we all just get along? (Oct. 1)

“Happy Together” (8:30 p.m., CBS): Cute if trite sitcom about a married couple (Damon Wayans Jr., the always-likable Amber Stevens) who find themselves with a pop music star (Felix Mallard) as a long-term houseguest. Executive produced by former One Direction heartthrob Harry Styles, “Happy Together” is a high concept, fish-out-of-water story that’s at risk of being one joke: Celebrities, they’re not like us! Mr. Wayans, as an uncool accountant, and Ms. Stevens ground the pilot, but the concept seems thin. (Oct. 1)

“Magnum PI” (9 p.m., CBS): From the executive producer of “Hawaii Five-0” and feeling quite similar in style and tone, this reboot stars Jay Hernandez as Thomas Magnum. This time he has a goatee instead of a mustache and Higgins is a woman (Perdita Weeks) who Magnum flirts/fights with frequently. (Actor Zachary Knighton from the late “Happy Endings” is on hand as Magnum’s buddy to provide comic relief.) The pilot begins with a promising if minor twist but it’s all paint-by-number plotting from there with one “Fast and the Furious”-style stunt sequence (but with less believable effects). It’s fine, escapist fare but lacking in much imagination. (Sept. 24)

“Manifest” (10 p.m., NBC): Another show with an intriguing “Lost”-like concept — a plane full of people disappears for five years between takeoff and landing — that seems like it should be a movie instead of a serialized weekly series. “Manifest” focuses on assorted characters from the flight and their loved ones who thought they were missing and presumed dead until they return and start evincing a form of ESP. (Sept. 24)

TUESDAY

“The Conners” (8 p.m., ABC): Family comedy spinoff that’s “Roseanne” minus Roseanne Barr. ABC won’t say what the storyline is that dispatches with Roseanne but seems possible the character is killed off post knee surgery given how “Roseanne” wrapped in the spring. Not available for review. (Oct. 16)

“The Kids are Alright” (8:30 p.m., ABC): Basically a ’70s period version of “The Real O’Neals” (minus a gay son) crossed with “The Wonder Years,” this single-camera comedy is one of the fall’s bright spots thanks to crackling writing and characters that are well-defined in the pilot. Mom Peggy Cleary (Mary McCormack, “The West Wing”) and dad Mike (Michael Cudlitz, “Southland”) preside over an Irish Catholic household of eight boys, including one studying to be a priest. (Oct. 16)

“FBI” (9 p.m., CBS): A rare non-NBC show for executive producer Dick Wolf, this pilot certainly fits the CBS procedural mold. Lots of things blow up as two FBI agents (Missy Peregrym, Zeeko Zaki) search for bombing suspects and speak in bombastic tones that suggest scripted TV characters rather than real people. Black and white pedestrian characters and plots may satisfy traditional CBS viewers, but it won’t win over many new recruits. (Sept. 25)

“New Amsterdam” (10 p.m., NBC): Pretty much a cross between the hectic pace of “ER” and the sudsy stories of “Grey’s Anatomy,” this poorly-titled medical drama stars Ryan Eggold (“The Blacklist”) as the new medical director of a New York public hospital who suffers from some crises of his own. It’s a fine if unremarkable broadcast network-style series. (Sept. 25)

“The Rookie” (10 p.m., ABC): Nathan Fillion (“Castle”) returns in fall’s most entertaining procedural as a construction worker from Foxburg, Clarion County, who gets divorced, thwarts a local bank robbery and then heads to Los Angeles to become the LAPD’s oldest rookie. He’s one of three newcomers on the force in a series that, while focused on Mr. Fillion’s character, still has a more ensemble feel than “Castle.” “The Rookie” sometimes evokes the feeling of a less ambitious version of Fox’s “9-1-1.” (Oct. 16)

WEDNESDAY

“All American” (9 p.m., The CW): Academically strong and athletically gifted but attending a subpar Compton school, Spencer James (Daniel Ezra) gets recruited by the coach (Taye Diggs) at a Beverly Hills high school to join their football team where he encounters resentment from some players and attention from the ladies. It’s a well-made teen drama pilot that traffics (mildly) in some social issues and ends with a welcome, soapy wallop. (Oct. 10)

“Single Parents” (9:30 p.m., ABC): Fall’s funniest new comedy follows a group of single parents who bring a single dad (Taran Killam, “Saturday Night Live”) into their group after he tries to get them to volunteer at their children’s school. “We’re single parents, we don’t volunteer,” explains single mom Angie (Leighton Meester). “We just try to survive until a time in the day when it’s appropriate to open wine.” (Sept. 26)

“A Million Little Things” (10 p.m., ABC): Call this one ABC’s attempt at an emotional, “This is Us”-like series crossed with “The Big Chill.” It’s the story of four guy friends in Boston and the aftermath when one of them, a successful businessman (Ron Livingston), commits suicide. Tears are shed, secrets are revealed, questions get raised. The soapy drama turns out to be a bit too much, and if that’s what the creators think is necessary to sustain the show, it might hint at structural flaws that a TV series can’t overcome. (Sept. 26)

THURSDAY

“Legacies” (9 p.m., CW): Spinoff in the “Vampire Diaries” and “The Originals” universe that’s set at a boarding school for teen vampires, werewolves, etc. Not available for review. (Oct. 25)

“I Feel Bad” (9:30 p.m., NBC): I’d feel worse that I didn’t dig “I Feel Bad” if it were better than it is. This single-camera centers on an Indian-American mom (Sarayu Blue) who works with nerds and seeks their advice in raising her daughter. Jokes about farts, falling down, hypersexualized kids and grabbing the wrong person’s rear end ensue — but they’re obvious, predictable and not funny. (Previews 10 p.m. Sept. 19; time slot premiere Oct. 4)

FRIDAY

“The Cool Kids” (8:30 p.m., FOX): Diversity in all forms is welcome on TV and that includes underrepresented stories about the elderly but, woof, this effort is a dog. Anyone hoping for a “Golden Girls” redo will be disappointed by this formulaic sitcom set in a retirement home where three guys (David Alan Grier, Martin Mull, Leslie Jordan) mourn the passing of a friend and try to block a newcomer (Vicki Lawrence, “Mama’s Family”) from joining their mealtime table. Great cast, but they’re not served well by an unfunny pilot script that brings to mind the wan comedies Fox used to attempt prior to the single-camera comedy revolution ushered in by “Malcolm in the Middle” in 2000. (Sept. 28)

TV writer Rob Owen: rowen@post-gazette.com or 412-263-2582. Read the Tuned In Journal blog at post-gazette.com/tv. Follow RobOwenTV on Twitter or Facebook.

First Published: September 6, 2018, 4:00 p.m.

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From left, Madeleine Mantock as Macy Vaughn, Melonie Diaz as Mel Vera and Sarah Jeffery as Maggie Vera star in "Charmed."  (Jordon Nuttall/The CW)
From left, Taye Diggs as Billy Baker and Daniel Ezra as Spencer James star in "All American."  (Ray Mickshaw/The CW)
Zeeko Zaki and Missy Peregrym star in "FBI."  (Michael Parmelee/CBS)
The cast of the "Murphy Brown" revival includes, top row, from left, Nik Dodani as Pat Patel, Grant Shaud as Miles Silverberg and Jake McDorman as Avery Brown and bottom row from left, Tyne Daly as Phyllis, Faith Ford as Corky Sherwood, Candice Bergen as Murphy Brown and Joe Regalbuto as Frank Fontana.  (Robert Tractenberg/CBS)
From left, Cedric the Entertainer and Max Greenfield star in "The Neighborhood."  (Bill Inoshita/CBS)
Sarayu Blue and Paul Adelstein star in "I Feel Bad."  (Evans Vestal Ward/NBC)
Nathan Fillion stars as John Nolan in "The Rookie."  (Tony Rivetti/ABC)
Sawyer Barth, Christopher Richards, Andy Walken, Santino Barnard, Caleb Foote, Mary McCormack, Jack Gore and Michael Cudlitz star in "The Kids Are Alright."  (Tony Rivetti/ABC)
Clockwise from top left: Leslie Jordan, Martin Mull, Vicki Lawrence and David Alan Grier star in "Cool Kids."  (Pamela Littky/FOX)
Ryan Eggold stars in "New Amsterdam."  (NBCUniversal)
Jordon Nuttall/The CW
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