Fall TV Excitement

The arrival of the Fall TV Preview Issue of Entertainment Weekly is one of my favorite events of the year, it’s kind of like Christmas Eve but I get to open presents for days and days. There are new shows to learn about, premiere dates and teasers for existing shows and my secret favorite part…planning my weekly TV schedule.  I have carefully curated some resources for you to make your own list. 

See previews and reviews of the Fall 2012 Series, including midseason shows

Night by Night Guide to Fall TV

Premiere Dates for Fall Shows

The 8 new shows I am most excited for (reviews to come):

The New Normal-Premiered September 10, NBC or watch now

What: A gay couple tries to have a baby using a surrogate with a young daughter and a racist/homophobic  angry grandma

Why I am Excited: Andrew Rannells performance was delightful in girls and I can't wait to see what will come out of Ellen Barkin's mouth

Revolution-Premieres September 17, NBC, 10 PM

What: Power goes down, a girl must avenge her family and try to find out how to turn it back on

Why I am Excited: Dystopian fantasies are comprising so much of my reading…why not my TV?

Partners-Premieres September 24, CBS, 8:30 pm

What: The creators (one straight, one gay) of Will & Grace mine their 30 year friendship  to make this comedy

Why I am Excited: I miss the heart and silliness of Will & Grace

Ben and Kate-Premieres September 25, FOX, 8:30 pm or Watch Pilot Now

What: A loveably quirky brother who never quite gets his life together moves in with his sister who had to grow up too quickly when she had her daughter

Why I am Excited: All the characters are a little ridiculous and completely loveable in the pilot

The Mindy Project-Premieres September 25, FOX, 9:30 PM or Watch Pilot Now

What:  A successful OB/GYN is obsessed with living in a romantic comedy but her life is actually comically/tragically far from her favorite movies

Why I am Excited: I am pretty sure Mindy Kaling and I would be best friends, evidenced by my book review and the fact that I compulsively check her blog even though she hasn’t updated in months

Elementary-Premieres September 27, CBS, 10 pm

What: A newly sober Sherlock Holmes reimagined in modern New York with a lady Watson as his sponsor

Why I am Excited: I love all things Sherlock

Arrow-Premieres October 10, CW, 8 pm

What: A rich playboy fights for justice in this comic book adaptation

Why I am Excited: A well-crafted super hero is something I can never get enough og

Nashville-Premieres October 10, ABC, 10 pm

What: Soapy drama about an aging country singer and a poppy young upstart making their way in the music business

Why I am Excited: Music by T Bone Burnett and Connie Britton regularly wearing sequins

The 8 friends/tv shows I can’t wait to see again:

Parks and Recreation

Up All Night

New Girl

Blue Bloods

Revenge

Hart of Dixie

30 Rock

Happy Endings

Hmmmm, who wants hand knitted items…this seems like a pretty big couch time commitment.

Sleepwalk with Me

I love a good story and I especially love a good story told by a funny person. Sleepwalk With Me, the movie based off the book that was based off the one man show that was based off a story told on This American Life, is a great story. I haven't heard, read or seen those other versions of Mike Birbiglia's tale of his battle with a dangerous sleeping disorder and his struggle with how to be an adult but I loved the movie. I first heard about the movie on an interview Mike and Ira Glass did on Fresh Air. If the above preview doesn't lure you in then watch this amazing short film Mike made called Fresh Air 2 Fresh 2 Furious. As a giant fan of Terry Gross that video made me even more sure that Mike Birbiglia and I would be friends in real life. This movie will make you laugh, think and walk out thinking....at least I don't act out my dreams.
I was lucky enough to see the movie with a Q&A with Mike Birbiglia. He was hilarious and seem so genuinely thrilled to have made this move to share with the world. Go see it!

Carol Channing: Larger than Life

Carol Channing first caught my attention as the white queen in the TV movie Alice in Wonderland, she was so silly and entertaining with her distinctive voice and expressive face. She is a one of a kind entertainer that one can’t help but smile at whenever she is on stage or screen. The recent documentary Carol Channing: Larger than Life is a great tribute to her stage persona and a fun look at many of her famous performances. It also shows a lovely romance when she reconnected with her junior high sweetheart in their eighties after more than sixty years apart. As she walks down Broadway in the movie, performers and tourists stop her to tell her about how much they love her and it’s easy to see why. She makes time for her fans throughout the movie and cast members from her Broadway shows are clearly smitten with her. While the movie doesn’t go into much depth about her life (including what sounds like a very unhappy marriage), it is a wonderful salute to one of America’s greatest performers. 

In case you needed further evidence of her amazingness: Carol Channing in Hello Dolly, performing Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend and as Muzzy in Thoroughly Modern Millie.