Do I Really Watch That Many Network TV Shows?

The Fall TV season is almost upon us, now that it’s September, but I haven’t had much of a chance to look at what new shows are out yet. I suppose the reality is that I don’t watch too many shows on network TV anymore, but I should at least find out what’s on…

Here’s my attempt to identify the shows I’d be interested in watching this Fall…at least on the ‘big 5’ – cable and streaming shows are harder to pin down.

Monday

So, starting on Monday, I’m looking forward to Supergirl who’s moved to The CW from last year’s CBS. With her at 8, I move over to Fox at 9 for Lucifer which was a pretty fun show last season. We’ll see how Mr Moningstar deals with his mother – Tricia Helfer (Number 6 from Battlestar Galactica) this season and I expect it to be a good sophomore season.

Tuesday

I used to watch Agents of Shield from Tuesday nights, but I feel off last season. I just couldn’t get into what they were trying to do and while I like the tie ins to the movies, it didn’t hold my interesting it used to – I’m not sure I’ll watch this. The Flash is a definite watch – I really like,what they did last season and am looking for more. No Tomorrow is a new ‘drama’ on The CW, but I’m not convinced it’ll be worth watching. Finally, Scream Queens on Fox. I enjoyed the first season, but the idea got a bit old towards the end – I might give this one a few episodes this year.

Wednesday

Wednesday is gonna be a night of new experiences for me. I’ve dropped Blindspot because it’s NBC and I’m boycotting them and it got pretty bad after the promising first episodes – I mean how many times can they decipher a tattoo just in time to catch a bad guy who’d been planning something for years…they figured it out hours before the bomb was gonna go off – too corny. So instead of that, I’m looking at 3 possibilities – new shows that could be worthy. Lethal Weapon, Frequency, and Designated Survivor. Least likely to last is Leathal Weapon – I just don’t see a whole series based on the movie franchise, a suicidal cop show doesn’t really float my boat. Designated Survivor has Keifer Sutherland so it should be good, and Frequency is based on a movie from 2000 where a ham radio is used to talk to the past, they both look promising, especially if Keifer can recapture his 24 vibe.

Thursday

Not a single thing interests me here. I used to watch Supernatural years ago, but haven’t in the past 4–5 years so there’s too much to catch up on. Legends of Tomorrow never grabbed my attention though I wanted it to…too bad. The only thing i might give a chance is The Good Place because I like Kristen Bell and Ted Danson, but shows that I watch based only on who’s cast usually fall off pretty quick. And it’s on NBC, so…not gonna do it. Oh and I used to watch The Blacklist, but it got bad and…it’s NBC.

Friday

Friday looks interesting with 2 new shows I could watch – The Exorcist and MacGyver, and than Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. I’m not really a fan of horror and I’ve only recently seen the movie, but The Exorcist looks like it might be pretty good. I gave Damien a chance last season and it was ok, but my tepid response was reflected by many as it did not get picked up for a second season. Hopefully, The Exorcist will make a better showing. As far as MacGyver goes, I loved the original so much that this’ll have a high bar to get over, hopefully it’s worthy. Finally for Friday, I am excited to see what a new season has in store for the gang over on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. This was one of my favorites last season – the quirky mix of music and an obsessive girlfriend was a must see in my book and I hope they can match that level again this year.

Sunday

Sunday is of course The Simpsons day as it has been for over 2 decades. While it might not be as great as it once was, it’s still enjoyable to see Bart and Homer go at it each week. A new show is following it this year though, Son of Zorn. It’s a mix of animation and live action that could be a hit or a disaster – I’m pulling for a good freshman season, and I’m holding the third one is the charm for Last a man on Earth. I really thing Last Man fell off during its sophomore season and I look for it to come back. At this point though, I’m not gonna hold my breath. And finally, on Sunday is Elementary. I’ve enjoyed the show. I don’t think I’ve ever ranked it in my top 5, but it’s been pretty solid over the years.

As usual, I most likely won’t be watching these on the days and times they air, but will be using my trusted TiVo to time lot of them. So here’s the rundown by network:

Fox – 7
The CW – 4
CBS – 2
ABC – 1
NBC ~ would be 2 but I’m boycotting

I guess, I do actually watch things on network TV – 14 shows is quite a bit of programming, but I probably won’t be sticking with a few of these…we’ll see. Along with shows going bad, I need to cull some of these to get down to a manageable level of TV watching.