So, NBC has announced much of its line-up for next season and from what I have seen has generally been panned for it (and let us be honest, Ben Silverman has it coming). The common complaint is that there is nothing original here. This is fair to a certain extent, but besides your occasional Lost or Chuck, how much of network television is? Half of the top 20 shows on television are procedurals, CSI-spawn. Another decent amount are competition reality show drivel. Looking at NBC’s announced shows, though, I don’t see that and I definitely don’t see the Knight Riders and Bionic Womans of recent memory. Instead a see a batch of shows that I think may surprise people.
Community is the one which most attracted me and the one that looks most promising. With Chevy Chase and Joel McHale and some of the Arrested Development team it looks witty, and interesting, and seems to feature legitimate characters. Considering the cast and topic, it should have cross-generational appeal and I could see it fitting very nicely into the Thursday night comedy block.
I’m also excited about Parenthood. It is being run by Friday Night Lights showrunner Jason Katims, and for those who have actually seen FNL they know that parenthood is even at least as much attention as football and it is done in a very successful and often touching manner. If Katims’ can translate that here and can get proper marketing, I think the show could soar.
Day One also seems promising. Although there was no footage available, the concept is one that appeals to me but I felt was badly handled with Jericho. The more urban setting with more focus on characters and an overall better-looking cast could make it stick. If nothing else, it seems like a natural pairing for Heroes (Chuck needs a different time spot anyway).
Trauma and Mercy aren’t really my sort of shows, and although I could envision a world where Trauma steps in and becomes the new ER, the released scenes look pretty horrible. I’m more optimistic about Mercy’s chances. Yes, it is Grey’s Anatomy with nurses, but I can’t see that audience objecting. I assume it will catch on.
100 Questions looks like a flop.
One complaint that I will back-up is that none of these shows appear to be the stand-out hit that NBC needs right now, ala Lost and Desperate Housewives for ABC earlier in the decade. On the whole, though, I feel as though these shows are a lot higher of quality than recent NBC offerings sans Chuck, 30 Rock, and Friday Night Lights (none of which premiered last year, the first of which may not come back and the latter of which barely still belongs to them).
