Sci-Fi and Drama TV Series: Spring 2012
As usual, I have been collecting upcoming TV series. For the Spring 2012 season, not that many shows are premiering, so I decided to bundle the Sci-Fi and Drama series for once. I discuss the upcoming shows with a synopsis and if available, a preview. Finally, I give my opinion on the show and at the end of this hub, you'll find a list of Do's and Don'ts.
Now that these shows have premiered, you can find out here how they are doing in the ratings and whether they are going to get cancelled or renewed:
Sci-Fi and Supernatural
‘Touch’ marks Kiefer Sutherland’s return to a TV series, while earlier stating that he didn’t want to star in another series after finishing ‘24’. The show also stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw (‘Undercovers’), Danny Glover (‘Lethal Weapon’) and David Mazouz. In a special preview event, FOX aired the series premiere of ‘Touch’ on January 25th; the regular airings will commence on March 19th at 9/8c.
Martin Bohm (Sutherland) has lost his wife in the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001. Ever since, he has been struggling to raise his mute and possibly autistic son Jake (Mazouz). Child Services, represented by social worker Clea (Mbatha-Raw), are threatening to institutionalize Jake, because he keeps climbing cell phone towers. However, with the information Martin gets from a professor he visits on the matter, he and Clea find out that Jake has the mathematical ability to see how everything in life is connected, and can thereby predict the future.
‘Touch’ is a little weird, yet very ambitious and intriguing. After seeing the pilot, there are still a lot of questions unanswered which might be able to help determine whether to watch some more episodes or not. However, this is a show quite unlike any other show on TV right now, and just because of that, I recommend to at least watch the premiere. Also, you can find additional information on the show in my review of the pilot episode.
Drama
Scandal
'Scandal' is formerly known as 'Damage Control', and created by Shonda Rhimes ('Grey's Anatomy'). According to Rhimes, the main character is partially based on George W. Bush press aide Judy Smith. The show premieres on April 5th, at 10/9c on ABC.
When the President of the United States has a problem, who is he going to call? He’ll call Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington). She is a former media consultant for the President who has now started her own law firm, but she seems to have failed to sever all ties from her former employer. Putting big trust in ‘her gut feeling’, she makes problems go away. It seems however that she and her staff are unable to fix their own problems.
Somehow, this story just doesn’t seem that interesting to me. Perhaps it’s the not knowing what type of problems the main characters will have. The story seems to center around these people and their personal lives a lot, but to me this doesn’t seem evident from the trailer. However, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In my opinion, this series will be much more interesting if the main focus is put on the cases Olivia will work on. If you’re into series revolving around personal drama’s however, this series might just be what you’re looking for.
On Sunday, April 15th at 10/9c, Robert DeNiro executive produced cop drama ‘NYC 22’ will premiere on CBS, after ‘CSI: Miami’ ends its run. The show, formerly known as ‘Rookies’ and ‘The 2-2’, revolves around six diverse NYPD recruits. The show is created by Richard Price (‘The Wire’) and stars Adam Goldberg, Leelee Sobieski (‘Deep Impact’), Stark Sands (‘Six Feet Under’), Judy Marte, Harold Moore and Tom Reed as the six rookies.
The trainees include Jennifer, a former college volleyball star and marine; Ray, a former police news reporter with many sources; Tonya, who comes from a family with a criminal history; Ahmed, born in Afghanistan; Kenny, a fourth generation cop; and Jayson, a former basketball legend. The series will follow them on their path from newbies to experienced cops.
Apart from the above information, there is nothing known about the show. There is no preview available, and there is no more specific information about the premise, except that the show follows the rookies. Clearly, solely based on this, I won’t be able to tell you whether you should watch or not. Stay tuned, as I’ll update this page as soon as any more information will be revealed on ‘NYC 22’.
Update: Although the series has been stated to be a drama series, this preview definitely gives off a comedic vibe. I don't expect the series to be all fun and games though, I think they just took the funny parts from the series to make this preview. I'm definitely excited about this series, however. It's basically 'Rookie Blue', but in the US.
