This week: Star Trek: Discovery, American Vandal, Young Sheldon, The Good Doctor, People of Earth, This Is Us, Lethal Weapon, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Blacklist, Speechless, Modern Family, Seal Team, STAR, American Housewife, Best Baker in America, Grey’s Anatomy, Superstore, The Good Place, Will & Grace, Chicago Fire, How to Get Away with Murder, Marvel’s Inhumans, The Deuce,
Ten Days in the Valley
Star Trek: Discovery
Episodes 1–2 now streaming – New episodes Sundays 8:30PM
on CBS All Access
The ladies of Geek Girl Riot used #TrekRiot to live tweet this new Star Trek series last night, and that turned out to be hashtag serendipity. At the start, Star Trek: Discovery lulls you with a classic teacher & student moment. The chemistry between Captain Phillipa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) and First Officer Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) is immediate, as is the sense they share a deeper bond of friendship. But then BOOM the series explodes with a 1-2 punch two-episode premiere that pulls you into the federation universe and holds you until the very last second There is not one moment that plays out like a traditional Star Trek series. Our heroine, Michael, is as brash as Kirk, as strategic as Picard, as measured as Sisko, and is more in your face than any lead we’ve seen before. She simply does not conform and that makes for two hours of your heart racing at warp speed. And the protagonists…ooh…the Klingons are back and they’re like some fabulous crossbreed of Stargate Goa’uld and the Ancient Egyptian god Anubis—which makes for gorgeous production design and compelling adversaries.
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American Vandal
Now streaming in full
on Netflix
American Vandal is a combination of satire, high school drama, and dick joke. It shouldn’t work. It shouldn’t be riveting. Yet the series is so deftly done, all we can do is praise it. Using the Making A Murder format made famous by Netflix, American Vandal takes an investigative look at a lewd act of vandalism, perpetrated on the faculty at an Oceanside, CA high school. To encapsulate: Somebody spray-painted giant phlorescent dicks on the teachers’ cars. The accused is “most likely to end up a felon”, Dylan (Jimmy Tatro). Dylan is a f#©k-up of the highest degree and he’s known for drawing dicks on things. Everybody expects the worst from him so that means he must be the worst…right? Challenging that notion are documentarians and fellow classmates Peter (Tyler Alvarez) and Sam (Griffin Gluck). Peter doesn’t care about Dylan’s innocence as much as he needs to uncover what really happened, and if someone gets hurt, oh well, that’s because truth hurts…right? American Vandal may go a little too heavy on the penis talk but the series is the Instagram story of the current state of American culture—it lambasts how our obsessions are undoing us and that perception far too often becomes reality—finally asking: Does the truth still have bite when our arrogance has knocked out its teeth? American Vandal is well worth watching and should be talked about.
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Young Sheldon
Special Series Debut Monday Sept 25 – 8:30PM
on CBS
We’re surprised it’s taken this long for CBS’s hit show The Big Bang Theory to get a spinoff, but the creators now have an extensive backstory to pull from with this prequel. Enter young Sheldon, about the character which, if we’re all being totally honest, is the #1 reason we watch TBBT. Set in East Texas, the show follows the childhood prodigy that is Sheldon Cooper. Growing up in a rural and often anti-science hometown, the series brings to life all the stories that we’ve only heard in passing anecdotes from adult Sheldon and his long-suffering mother. For anyone who’s a fan of TBBT, this will only endear you more to the character who, at times, does test the boundaries of endearment. Here, Sheldon is—brace yourselves because we never thought we’d say this—adorable. His family is too, proving to be a lot more than the one-dimensional “apes” Sheldon describes them as, which may just have you tearing up rather than laughing hard. You all know and love the (semi) grown-up Sheldon Cooper, now get to know where he came from, in this spin-off show that doesn’t always need to make a joke in order to pull you in.
From CBS:
9-year-old Sheldon Cooper is a once-in-a-generation mind capable of advanced mathematics and science but learns that isn’t always helpful growing up in East Texas, a land where church and football are king, on the special series debut of the new comedy Young Sheldon, Monday, Sept. 25 at 8:30/7:30c.
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The Good Doctor
Mondays – 10PM
on ABC
We’re fans of Korean Dramas and ABC has two remakes of popular K-drama series. With Daniel Dae Kim at the helm of this one as executive producer—same title as the original—we’re hoping for a show that’s as addictive as the source material (…and maybe next time we’ll get an American lead of Korean-descent). Yes please.
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People of Earth
Mondays 10:30 PM ET
on TBS
People of Earth is one of those shows we read about on Twitter but didn’t think we would like. It’s about a support group for alien abductees (they prefer “experiencers”) who meet in a church basement. The main character is an affable yet detached journalist named Ozzie (Wyatt Cenac) who’s ’fro is so magnificent he often gets mistaken for Hamilton’s Daveed Diggs. See? We weren’t intrigued either, but we watched because sometimes you’re mad at your significant other on Monday night because they halfway unloaded the dishwasher, but didn’t tell you and now you don’t know which dishes are clean and which they just licked clean because they’re a pleb and you need something to take the edge off. That’s when you realize People of Earth is something we need in this jam packed era of everybody gets a TV show, the premise is just a vehicle to explore human relationships and how trauma shapes character AND it’s funny. The absurdity flies high. For example there are three kinds of aliens: Reptilians (see V: The Final Battle), Grays (see Close Encounters of the Third Kind), and Whites (see romance novels). As the humans and the aliens get honest with each other about their personal motivations it endears them to each other and to us. This is a good show, and we’re looking forward to where it’s going to take us next.
From TBS:
Episode 210 – “Game Night” (Season Finale)
Monday, September 25, at 10:30 p.m. (ET/PT)
Gerry and Yvonne host a group game night. Agent Foster meets a person from her past. Walsh, Jeff, Don, and Kurt enact their mutiny against Eric.
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This Is Us
Returns Tues Sept – 9PM
on NBC
If you’re unfamiliar, This Is Us is the heartwarming (and oftentimes heartbreaking) drama following the complicated and unconventional lives of the Pearson family. Season 1 ended with Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rebecca (Mandy Moore) having an enormous fight which ended in a marital split. Season 2 opens the day after that fight, with Jack moving out, and The Big Three—triplets Randal (Sterling K. Brown), Kate (Chrissy Metz) and Kevin (Justin Hartley)—celebrating their 37th birthdays. (If you recall the series pilot kicked off with their 36th birthday.) We love This Is Us because it’s all about how the past informs the present. Thanks to the emotional storylines and time-jumping structure, we see the mom and dad’s early struggles as well as the kids’ grown-up endeavors decades later. Season 2 will explore the turning points in the Pearson family before and after Jack’s death as we follow Randall and Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson) on their adoption quest; watch Kate as she explores her singing career; and witness Kevin balancing a new film project while rekindling a relationship with his ex-wife.
– Walker
From NBC:
A FATHER’S ADVICE (TV-14)
SEASON PREMIERE — The season two premiere picks up during the Big 3’s 37th birthdays as Randall and Beth debate a big life change, Kate takes the first step in pursuing a new passion and Kevin balances the demands of his career and relationship. Meanwhile, Jack and Rebecca deal with the fallout of their big fight.
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Lethal Weapon
Tuesdays 8PM
on FOX
Lethal Weapon the television series is back for season 2…and we’re digging it. It wasn’t easy to live up to the furious fun and explosions of the movie franchise, not to mention the feels Danny Glover and Mel Gibson gave us as Murtaugh and Riggs, but Damon Wayans and Clayne Crawford have come through in the clutch.
From TV Guide:
El Gringo Loco
Season 2 Premiere
In the Season 2 premiere, Murtaugh follows Riggs down to Mexico, where he plans to avenge his wife’s death and finish off Tito Flores. Once back in the States, they have a few people to answer to during the ongoing investigation around Flores, including Murtaugh’s family. Meanwhile, Avery is questioned by Internal Affairs about the integrity of his department.
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Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Returns for Season 5 – Tues Sept 26 – 9:30PM
on FOX
The fifth season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine premieres this week, and trust me when I say you don’t want to miss it. The last season ended on a shocking cliffhanger with intrepid detectives Jake and Rosa being sentenced to 15 years in jail after a corrupt cop framed them for a bank robbery. There are so many questions left to be answered: How is the rest of the 99th precinct coping without Jake and Rosa (especially Boyle)? Will Rosa somehow break free on her own or will she adapt to a prison environment (and does Adrian Pimento know his girlfriend’s in jail)? Can Amy and Jake’s relationship survive yet another obstacle? Has Gina had her baby yet (and does that mean Ryan Phillippe will guest-star again)? And will the stoic Captain Holt ever smile again?? (More importantly, does he even know how to smile?). Brooklyn Nine-Nine has one of the best ensemble casts currently on TV, and this season promises to be just as funny, thrilling, and clever as the previous four.
– Sam Devotta
From TV Guide:
The Big House Pt. 1
In the Season 5 premiere, Jake and Rosa assimilate to their new lives behind bars, but both cope in very different ways. Jake bonds with his cellmate and is forced to join a prison gang led by a notorious inmate. Meanwhile, in the women’s prison, Rosa puts Holt and Terry to the test by having them complete outrageous favors for her. Back in the precinct, Amy and Charles are doing all they can to exonerate their colleagues.
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EMPIRE
Series Returns for Season 4 – Wednesday Sept 27 – 8PM
Noble Memory
on FOX
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Blacklist
Season 5 | Episode 1 – Wednesday Sept 27 – 8PM
Smokey Putnam
on NBC
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Speechless
Series Returns for Season 2 – Wednesday Sept 27 – 8:30PM ET
on ABC
Speechless is a show that you’re either in love with or want to skewer with a harpoon. We’re on the upside of that equation. It’s about a dysfunctional family that celebrates their madness rather than being oblivious to it. Minnie Driver is the ace in the deck as mom, Maya, but the cast is all win. Cedric Yarbrough as Kenneth, the aide to main character JJ (Micah Fowler), is the ridiculous dose of realism the family often needs. We also finally have a show with a leading man who is disabled on and off camera—and there’s no inspiration porn. Instead there’s as much harpooning of our stupidity as there is laughter at the DiMeo family. Yeah, we’re loving it.
From ABC:
W-E– WE’RE B-A– BACK!
Season 2 Premiere
When Maya encourages the parents of the new special needs kids at Lafayette High to demand full-time aides, the school administrators tell her anything the new students get will spell losses for her beloved JJ. Meanwhile, Dylan develops a hooky habit, unprepared as she is to return to the same school for a second year; JJ pushes Kenneth toward romance with his teacher; and Jimmy endeavors to enjoy a long-awaited uninterrupted shower.
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Modern Family
Season 9 | Episode 1 – Wednesday Sept 27 – 9PM
Lake Life
on ABC
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Seal Team
Season 1 | Episode 1 – Wednesday Sept 27 – 9PM
Tip of the Spear
on CBS
We know nothing except this is a David Boreanaz show, and as such “hello” was the moment it got us.
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STAR
Season 2 | Episode 1 – Wednesday Sept 27 – 9PM
The Winner Takes It All
on FOX
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American Housewife
Season 2 | Episode 1 – Wednesday @ 9:30PM
Back to School
on ABC
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Best Baker In America
Wednesday at 10pm
on FOOD Network
Photo by: Katrina Marcinowski
Welp, America TV just wouldn’t be American TV without a British knockoff. The ladies of Geek Girl Riot are not at all guilty in our pleasure at watching The Great British Bake Off. We kind of have to watch this American version of the show, but we’re worried the producers may feel the need to add “DRAH-ma” and “personality” which will ruin the mix. We’ll have to report back on whether this baking reality series rises or falls flat.
From TV Guide:
CAKE – Sept 27
Eight of America’s top bakers gather to put their baking brilliance to the test. Host Adam Rapoport announces that in the first skills challenge, the bakers must create flawless mini upside-down cakes.
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Grey’s Anatomy
Thursday Sept 28 – 8PM
Break Down the House; Get Off on the Pain
on ABC
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Superstore
Season 3 | Episode 1 – Thursday Sept 28 – 8PM
Grand Re-Opening
on NBC
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The Good Place
Thursdays 8:30PM
on NBC
One cannot simply begin to explain the insanity in season 2 of The Good Place. If we did, we might end up confusing you more than resident philosophy professor Chidi’s thesis, and we may accidentally spoil the huge twist that gives this show its charm. Yeah, it’s just that crazy, and we love every second of it. So instead, we’ll give you a brief setup of season 1: The Good Place is Heaven, where only the best and purest people end up in the neighborhood of their dreams, in a house of their design, with a soulmate to spend eternity with. That’s where we meet Eleanor, someone who is not even close to Heaven’s usual suspects. And when there’s one loose thread…well, the whole thing is bound to unravel. Season 2 sees a…reset of sorts of season 1, and the tapestry’s come undone, ’til the whole show starts to resemble our first ever attempt at knitting. It’s madness to the highest degree, rolling snort-inducing comedy, endearing shortcomings, and what-the-hell-just-happened hijinx into a show that you absolutely need to see for yourself.
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Will & Grace
Returns Sept 28 – Thursdays @ 9/8c
on NBC
Honey, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Will & Grace & Jack & Karen are back! Yes, they all deserve their names in this show’s title, because we’ve missed the four of ’em so so much. And y’all, that original ending we all hated? It disappeared faster than the drink in Karen’s hand. This is W&G back on its stiletto-sharp, savage AF, on point commentary-laced top form. You’ll alternate between squee-ing with excitement at seeing your old favs, and laughing hard at the quickfire snark. The characters have grown in some ways since the show left off: Grace deals with life’s obstacles with more introspection and strength than ever before, and our two leading men face ageing with (some) dignity. Karen…well, she’s still Karen. In all the best ways though, it’s almost like they never left. Welcome to reunion heaven, population you.
From NBC:
That’s right, honey! A decade after their unforgettable eight-season run, comedy’s most fabulous foursome is back. Debra Messing, Eric McCormack, Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally reprise their infamous roles as Will, Grace, Jack and Karen in this exclusive 16-episode first season as well as a 13-episode second season. The legendary James Burrows, director of every original “Will & Grace” episode, returns along with a slew of razor-sharp jabs and dirty martinis. Behold once again, from the minds of Max Mutchnick and David Kohan, TV’s wittiest ensemble ever.
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Chicago Fire
Season 6 | Episode 1 – Thu Sept 28 – 10PM
It Wasn’t Enough
on NBC
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How To Get Away With Murder
Season 4 | Episode 1 – Thu Sept 28 – 10PM
I’m Going Away
on ABC
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Marvel’s Inhumans
Fridays at 8PM
on ABC
Introduced in Agents Of Shield, Inhumans expands on the “secret history” of this offshoot of humanity. The Inhumans seem entirely ordinary until they are exposed to Terrigen mist and acquire random superpowers. On Earth, they are feared and hunted by the authorities, but elsewhere… Guided by Scott Buck, who was showrunner for Netflix’s Iron Fist, the pilot for Marvel’s Inhumans has strengths and weaknesses. The actors are all very good in their roles and sell their individual issues in an abbreviated space. There’s a really good show in all of this…or at least the possibility of one. Inhumans has the potential to be different from anything Marvel has done before. We’ll see if it makes the most of that opportunity.
– Drew Bittner
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The Deuce
Sundays at 9pm
on HBO
New York, New York, the place where you can be anything—and in The Deuce, it’s anything your client tells you to be. Set in the early ’70s in the big apple, where the porn industry is booming thanks to its recent legalization, The Deuce follows twin brothers Vincent and Frankie Martino who become fronts for the Mob, and Candy, a sex worker who’s interested in veering her career towards acting in the adult film industry. There’s drugs, sex, booze, and violence in a place and time where the outfits aren’t the only thing that’s outrageous. Oh, and it’s got an all-star cast of James Franco, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Margarita Levieva, and Kevin Breznahan, and it’s created by David Simon and George Pelecanos (The Wire), so you know it’s gon’ be good. You’ll be taken on an addictive thrill-ride wondering where this gritty, ambitious, and cutthroat world will spin to next; it goes deep and dark, taking a no-holds-barred look into the grittier side of NY history. The Deuce is a show as fast-paced and high-flying as its characters’ tumultuous lives, where the porn stars ain’t the only ones getting screwed.
From HBO:
Episode 4 – “I See Money” – Oct 1
Created by George Pelecanos and David Simon (The Wire) and starring James Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Deuce follows the story of the legalization and subsequent rise of the porn industry in New York’s Times Square from the early 1970s through the mid-1980s, exploring the rough-and-tumble world at the pioneering moments of what would become the billion-dollar American sex industry. George Pelecanos, David Simon, James Franco and Nina K. Noble executive produce.
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Ten Days in the Valley
Premieres Sunday Oct 01 – 10PM
on ABC
Kyra Sedgwick does messed up but loveable so well, and here she’s got her back against the wall and a pocket full of drugs as Jane Sadler, the showrunner of a television hit. Jane is a single mom who’s in the middle of a nasty divorce with the living embodiment of male ennui. Can she be blamed for needing a pharmaceutical escape hatch? Ten Days in the Valley says yes, especially after Jane takes one pill too many and wakes up to find her daughter is missing. The police, in the form of the divine Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, her ex Kick Gurry, the network, and her police informant all come knocking at the same time. Now Jane has got to hide what she did wrong while trying to save her daughter from whomever the hell took her…and it’s looking more and more like an inside job. The first two episodes of this new ABC series are taut with tension and very bad people, there’s not a moment when we weren’t anticipating something else going wrong, and that makes for ten days of good television.
From ABC:
“Day 1: Fade In”
Emmy Award-winning actress Kyra Sedgwick (“The Closer”) stars in “Ten Days in the Valley” as Jane Sadler, an overworked television producer and single mother in the middle of a fractious separation. When her young daughter goes missing in the middle of the night, Jane’s world – and her controversial police TV show – implodes. Life imitates art: everything is a mystery, everyone has a secret and no one can be trusted.