Happy September, fellow TV addicts! After months of TV drought and reruns (we weren’t complaining, though since we finally got to sit down and catch Breaking Bad in all its gory glory), September is finally here to bring back old favorites and a lot of new shows that we can’t wait to watch.
Here are some of the shows that premiered this week (as well as some sneak previews we caught on Hulu) that you should watch to love, watch to hate or skip altogether.
‘Sleepy Hollow’
The stars: Tom Mison (One Day), Nicole Beharie (Shame), Orlando Jones (Evolution, Drumline)
The hook: This modern-day adaptation of Washington Irving’s “Sleepy Hollow” adds more supernatural elements to the story of the Headless Horseman.
Super score: Watch it! We’re suckers for books that get turned into movies or TV shows; it doesn’t hurt that Tom Mison is also a gorgeous Ichabod Crane. We are eager to see how the writers will prolong the story of the town of Sleepy Hollow to last a full season.
‘Welcome to the Family’
The stars: Mike O’Malley (Glee), Justina Machado (Private Practice), Ricardo Chavira (Desperate Housewives)
The hook: Two sets of parents from different backgrounds are forced together when their kids—newly graduated from high school—who are dating deal with an unexpected pregnancy.
Super score: We all love Kurt’s dad on Glee as the sensitive dad who welcomed a gay son with open arms. Here, Mike O’Malley returns to his comedic roots (he was the abrasive dad on “Yes, Dear”) while Ricardo Chavira shows off his funny bone as well as the other dad who butts heads with O’Malley; their chemistry is solid. Ella Rae Peck as the ditzy, infanticipating teenager is also hilarious.
‘Ironside’
The stars: Blair Underwood (Dirty Sexy Money), Brent Sexton (The Killing)
The hook: The remake of the 1960s show follows Robert Ironside, a paraplegic police officer who solves crimes together with his task force.
Super score: Ironside pushes the boundaries of police procedure—sometimes crossing the line—using his own condition as a means to get what he wants. Brent Sexton plays his role as the guilty partner to perfection. If you love police procedurals, this is a show to add to your viewing schedule.
‘Back in the Game’
The stars: Maggie Lawson (Psych), James Caan (Vegas, Misery), Lenorah Crichlow (Being Human)
The hook: Single mom with daddy issues returns to live with her dad to raise her own son.
Super score: Has potential. Maggie Lawson was funny on Psych, and we love James Caan. The two have chemistry as father and daughter. Lenora Crichlow is hilarious as the rich mom who becomes Lawson’s BFF; the kid actor who plays Crichlow’s gay son is funny as well.
‘Trophy Wife’
The stars: Malin Akerman (Watchmen, 27 Dresses) Bradley Whitford (The West Wing), Marcia Gay Harden (The Newsroom)
The hook: A younger third wife marries a lawyer and inherits two ex-wives and three stepchildren
Super score: Watch it! Malin Akerman shines in her role as the overwhelmed new wife who has to contend with two crazy ex-wives (one a hard-nosed doctor, the other a kooky free spirit), two teenagers and a precocious kindergartner.
‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’
The stars: Andy Samberg (Saturday Night Live, That’s My Boy), Andre Braugher (Last Resort), Terry Crewes (White Chicks)
The hook: This comedy focuses on the antics of a Brooklyn precinct.
Super score: Watch it. Though we weren’t wowed by the pilot, we’re huge fans of Andy Samberg and Terry Crewes. The cast still needs to find its rhythm but we’re going to keep watching until they do.
‘Dads’
The stars: Seth Green, Giovanni Ribisi
The hook: Two video game developers have insufferable dads that live with them.
Super score: We did not like the pilot. The show is coproduced by Family Guy’s Seth MacFarlane and its writers are also from Family Guy. Given their brand of comedy, you can expect jokes that toe the line between offensive and funny, but none of the jokes we heard were funny—they were just racist. This show has been taking bad hits from critics and the network has been telling viewers to give it a chance and not judge it based on the pilot alone.
