Tuesday, December 10, 2013

My Favorite New Shows of 2013

As most shows are winding down for their winter hiatus, it's an apt time to take a look at which new shows are the best and brightest. Well, in my own, personal, opinion. As I did last year and the year before, I'm going to take a look at my favorite new shows of the year. Obviously you probably have other favorites, which I definitely want to hear about in the comments!

Compared to 2012, this list is positively brimming with comedies. Last year saw not-a-one new comedy make the list! Funny how it waxes and wanes like that. I have to be honest, I didn't even check out some of the new shows that are making waves (hello Sleepy Hollow), because there's only so much time and I already have a huge backlog on my DVR. Only so many hours in the day, people! Anyway, enough blathering on about basically nothing. Let's get to the list, in no particular order.

Mom-cast 
I know, another Chuck Lorre sitcom. That gives him four series currently on air, which must be a lot to keep track of. Nonetheless, despite my hate of that one show that shall not be named (but you can probably figure it out), I do love The Big Bang Theory, and I have to say, I really like Mom as well. It's a show not afraid to explore some dark material, such as alcoholism and teen pregnancy. But somehow it doesn't do it in a crass way. It can be actually quite touching at times. And it doesn't hurt that Allison Janney is amazing. Sometimes I'm not sure about Anna Faris in this, but most of the time she's very endearing. Seriously, give it a try if you haven't. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

The-Crazy-Ones
This show seems like it should be ripe for disaster. You've got an aging star coming back to TV after many years, and another who just had a failed show not too long ago. But I'm telling you, it's quirky and funny and it works. It doesn't always seem like it should work, but it does. The jokes are often very smart (when it's not a Robin Williams ad-lib), and I find myself giggling at some random, seemingly throwaway, line quite often. You might be concerned that Williams goes over the top, and maybe sometimes he does, but when you see the outtakes, you can see how much he holds back for the takes that matter. I enjoy it, and hope it is still doing well in the ratings.

almosthuman
Yay! A good, futuristic scifi show is back on the air! Sure, there are a couple other futuristic scifi shows out there, and some of them are good (ie Falling Skies), but they are all full of grit and grime and a decidedly downtrodden, mostly dystopian, viewpoint. While this show certainly isn't depicting any sort of utopia situation, it is pretty slick. But that's really not what makes it a good show. What makes it work are the two leads, Karl Urban and Michael Ealy. They have a great chemistry together that really keeps the show moving. If it weren't for them, I'm not sure I would like this show as much as I do, despite its good use of the futuristic stuff to drive the crimes on the show. Because I'm not a huge procedural fan, and this has been especially procedural so far, it's surprising that I'm still engaged so much. Hopefully they will start opening up more of the overall arc as the show continues.

Honorable Mentions: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Reign (Both of these shows I have enjoyed but have gotten behind on, so I don't feel I can put them up above because I clearly don't feel compelled to keep caught up)

I Want To Like You, But: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Michael J. Fox Show (Sigh and sigh)

So, what do you think? Did I miss any of your favorites? Should I give Agents of SHIELD another chance?  Is Sleepy Hollow as good as people are saying it is? Let me know in the comments!

2 comments:

  1. Yes. Sleepy Hollow is tons of fun.

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  2. Yes. Sleepy Hollow is engaging, loopy in its use of history, funny, and entertaining.

    ReplyDelete