January’s New Shows To See!

Four new shows make their debuts this January. Some look hilarious, others action-packed and one possibly twisted in the best kind of way. Read on to see the new shows you have to check out this January! 🙂

L.A. To Vegas

Premiers on January 2 on FOX

Jackpot Airlines is a budget carrier whose junket flight from Los Angeles to Las Vegas and back is filled with dreamers hoping to finally make that big score. Long-suffering flight attendant Ronnie holds things together in the cabin, managing the revolving door of bachelor parties and 21st birthdays, and developing a location-based relationship with Colin, an economics professor who is a frequent passenger on her flights. Theirs isn’t the only relationship fostered by proximity. Together, the rest of the crew and regulars, they are part of an unconventional family from Friday to Sunday, whether they like it or not.

Here is a comedy that has everything it needs to be a runaway hit, from its executive producers to its cast. It looks funny… but something about it also makes me feel like it has an immediate shelf life. But trailer invokes a lot of laughs, and I’m not the easiest person to crack up, so maybe I’m being a little short-sighted. I have been pleasantly surprised by new comedies (American Housewife) and let down by others (9JKL). So, I hope this show has some staying power, and honestly that is all I have to say on it except for reiterating that so many comedic geniuses are behind this show, I do have hope it may just be comedy gold. We’ll see! 🙂

The Best New Show of Fall – Period!

Out of all of Fall’s new shows, I thought there would be a few vying for the top spot. But this year there is a clear winner, rising above the rest in every way possible. Congratulations to Fox’s newest Marvel drama: The Gifted.

The Gifted

Premiered on October 2 on FOX                                     Rating: 

Family adventure series The Gifted, tells the story of a suburban couple whose ordinary lives are rocked by the sudden discovery that their children possess mutant powers. Forced to go on the run from a hostile government, the family joins up with an underground network of mutants and must fight to survive. 

The Gifted warrants its own post – there’s that much to say about it. First, addressing the elephant in the room – superhero shows are a dime a dozen now. Some are interesting (Jessica Jones, Legion) or just very entertaining (The Flash, Arrow, Agents of SHIELD) and others are catastrophes (Inhumans). If you are into superheroes it can be a little much, too much even, and if you’re not into superheroes it can be annoying and “Ugh, this again.” But I challenge superhero fans and non-fans to check out The Gifted, which is not only unique but is the only show on right now that fully understands and stays true to the original concept of the X-Men: being on the outside, looking in.

The Last of Fall’s New Shows – Did They Have What It Takes?

Kevin (Probably) Saves The World

Premiered on October 3 on ABC                                     Rating:

The series follows Kevin Finn, a cluelessly self-serving man whose life brings him more trouble than he bargained for. Upon returning home to stay with his widowed twin sister and her daughter, he is recruited by a celestial being (a.k.a. a guardian angel) named Yvette, who enlists Kevin. Giving him a new mission to save the world, this gives Kevin a new purpose in life, allowing him to help people.

Once is every generation… a show is hard to figure out – is it good, or does it suck? Kevin (Probably) Saves the World is one such show that I am still trying to figure out after seeing seven episodes. Here is a dramedy that focuses on a once-awful human being, Kevin. He was selfish, self-obsessed who took advantage of innocent people (via Wall Street of course) and is essentially the kind of guy you just want to avoid. Or at least he was…

Present-day Kevin is a person who is lost, after dealing with a lot of personal stuff culminating in a suicide attempt. He is trying to find his way, and a purpose. Enter an angel played by Kimberly Hebert Gregory, who tells him that he is one of 36 righteous souls, who saves the world by simply existing. The problem is something has happened to the other 35, making him the last. His mission, find 35 new righteous souls and make them righteous again.

To say this show might take on too much is an understatement and a few of its problems need to be resolved if this show wants to see a second season.

First of all, it is hard to see Jason Ritter, who plays Kevin, as an asshole. A lost or flaky person – sure, but everyone keeps talking about how awful he used to be – like scumbag awful, but we don’t ever see that. Sure there are flashbacks, but even those don’t begin to capture this version of Kevin, as described.

Second, there is the religion thing. This isn’t a liberal thing, frowning on religion on TV. I loved Touched By An Angel. My issue isn’t that this show features a heavy dose of religion, but instead how it’s executed. All of the religious references and throwbacks are hokey, forced and awkward. Like when something is trying too hard to be something, without actually going there because its afraid of potential fallout. Kevin avoids being overtly religious, while still trying to have a religious undertone that is just as in your face if it embraced religion in the first place, but it doesn’t actually fit. I wish this show would either show its own take on conventional Christianity (preferably this one actually), or just embrace religion, and those who take issue with it be damned.

October’s Hottest New Shows, And How They Measured Up

It’s that time again to see how Fall’s new shows measured up. October’s new shows fared better than September’s new shows overall (for more new September shows click here). While three of these shows are lacking that special something the shows that shine nearly make up for it, because they’re just that good. Read on to see where these shows stand. 😉

Ghosted 

Premiered on October 1 on FOX                                                       Rating:

A cynical skeptic (Craig Robinson), and a genius “true believer” in the paranormal (Adam Scott), are recruited by a secret government agency to look into the rampant “unexplained” activity in Los Angeles — all while uncovering a larger mystery that could threaten the existence of the human race.

Ghosted is essentially a buddy comedy with a supernatural/X-Files/Ghostbusters backdrop. It has so much potential, in terms of story, cast (Craig Robinson and Adam Scott) and the cast’s chemistry with each other. So why doesn’t it work? It’s still trying to figure that, and itself, out.

Basically, Ghosted doesn’t have a voice or direction yet. Every episode so far seems to have a different tone, and it’s not that you don’t know where this show is going, it just seems to be going nowhere. But because of the cast (everyone really does the best they can with the material given) and the basic premise (not so much the story of each episode) there is so much this show could be, that I hope it’s given the chance.

I really do think that Ghosted will eventually come into its own; it just isn’t there yet.

Justice League: A Superhero Ensemble Done Right!

Justice League

Released on November 17, 2017                                                      Rating:

Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists newfound ally Diana Prince to face an even greater threat. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to recruit a team to stand against this newly awakened enemy. Despite the formation of an unprecedented league of heroes — Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and the Flash — it may be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.

There were two ways that DC’s newest superhero film, Justice League, could have gone: horribly wrong like its predecessor, Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, or all kinds of right like this year’s Wonder Woman. Thankfully, it went the latter. Justice League is a superhero film of epic proportions, putting together DC’s flagship team of superheroes for the first time. And let’s face it, an ensemble superhero movie is easier to mess up than one focusing on a single hero, but this film did almost everything right.