NBC
FX
HBO
FOX
September apparently brings 113-degree temperatures this year, but also the usual bounty of new TV shows. Daily Bruin A&E reviewed some of the pilot episodes and gave them a letter grade. Read on to see which ones we think are worth watching, and which ones are probably going to be canceled before the season’s over.
“Raising Hope”
FOX
Tuesdays 9 p.m.
Grade: A
Princess Beyoncé just might be the greatest baby name ever. But being christened with such an epic name could not have prepared the six-month-old for the events of the hilariously memorable pilot episode of “Raising Hope.” After her mother, a convicted murderer, takes a trip to the electric chair, Beyoncé is left with her endearing but clueless 20-something father (Lucas Neff). Between being wheeled around in a shopping cart, riding in a car seat that isn’t attached to the car and being thrown up on during changing time, it’s a rough first couple days. But the underlying warmth and avoidance of relying too much on redneck humor makes this story both funny and endearing, not to mention worth tuning into each week.
““ Samantha Suchland
“Hellcats”
The CW
Wednesdays 9 p.m.
Grade: D-
“Bring it On,” “Bring it on Again,” “Bring it on: All or Nothing,” “Bring it on: In it to win It” and “Bring it on: Fight to the Finish” were clearly not enough. Now, cheerleading drama can be viewed weekly, with ex-Disney Channel stars. Alyson Michalka plays Marti Perkins, a pre-law student at Lancer University in Memphis who loses her scholarship in her last semester. I’m not sure how, but joining the notorious cheerleading squad, led by Savannah Monroe (Ashley Tisdale), means getting her scholarship back, with lots of drama involved. The plot is highly predictable, and the acting is subpar, but if you stomached the “Bring it On” series, maybe this show can entertain your hardened TV appetite.
““ Maryia Krivoruchko
“The Event”
NBC
Mondays 9 p.m.
Grade: B-
“The Event” is the newest show that is trying to fill the mysterious and confusing shoes of “Lost.” “The Event” is a thriller of conspiracies that include missing people and national cover-ups by the government. The show starts off at the end of the story and, of course, displays a series of events that brings us back to that point. Sean Walker (Jason Ritter) is keeping this show alive with his dramatic switch from a sweet guy to a complete psycho all within two minutes after finding out his girlfriend went missing. “The Event” definitely does a good job at confusing the audience and tying in romance with conspiracy, while the timeline-jumping helps keep up the suspense. However, the show now needs to keep away from being too similar to “Lost.”
““ Brittany Taylor
“$#! my dad Says”*
CBS
Thursdays 8:30 p.m.
Grade: C
Based off of Justin Halpern’s Twitter feed that features witticisms and cussword-filled advice from his father, the series stars William Shatner and appears to be a knee-slapping good time … at first. It’s actually more annoying than anything. The sitcom doesn’t go anywhere, and I was tired of Shatner’s predictable cynicism in the first five minutes.
““ Maryia Krivoruchko
“My Generation”
ABC
Thursdays at 8 p.m.
Grade: A-
“My Generation” is smart. It’s modeled as a mockumentary that revisits a group of Class of 2000 Greenbelt High School graduates from Austin, Texas, whose senior year was documented. Flashing 10 years into the future, the show isn’t too far from realistic. Formatted through vignettes of the high school-labeled “jock,” “wallflower,” “punk,” “brain,” “overachiever,” “nerd,” “beauty queen,” “rich kid” and “rock star,” the show captures their modern-day lives somewhat revised from their plans upon senior send-off. The show consists of flashes between past and present and is coupled with the use of a timeline of each character’s life. The pilot stays interesting and ends by bringing each of the former classmates back to Texas as characters are each reunited through a series of unexpected life circumstances.
““ Lauren Roberts
“Terriers”
FX
Wednesdays 10 p.m.
*Grade: B *
There are, without a doubt, too many crime dramas on television. There are even too many in this new fall season. But “Terriers,” about an ex-cop (Donal Logue) and his deadbeat friend (Michael Raymond-James) who start working as private investigators, earns its own spot in the crowd with a much calmer, more homegrown aesthetic than the high-tension professionalism of “CSI” or the new “Detroit 1-8-7.” The crimes seem more believable, the humor feels more natural, and the two men’s backstories provide potential for a whole lot of pathos down the road.
““ Alex Goodman
“Boardwalk Empire”
HBO
Sundays at 9 p.m.
Grade: A-
Created by Terence Winter of “The Sopranos” fame, with a pilot directed by Martin Scorsese, it would have been almost impossible for “Boardwalk Empire” to live up to its hype. The fictionalized story of Atlantic City during Prohibition, starring Steve Buscemi as booze kingpin Enoch “Nucky” Thompson, has started slowly, but all the makings of a classic are in place. The period detail is as meticulous as that of “Mad Men,” and the setting provides the perfect backdrop for the kind of gangster drama Winter and Scorsese do so well. Buscemi should stay vigilant, though; his show could soon be stolen by Michael Pitt as Thompson’s ambitious driver, and Stephen Graham as the not-yet-infamous Al Capone.
““ Alex Goodman
“Running Wilde”
FOX
Tuesdays 9:30 p.m.
Grade: B-
It’s written by Mitchell Hurwitz and features a David Cross cameo and a voice-over announcing Will Arnett’s character made a huge mistake, but “Arrested Development” has not been resurrected. These are just the elements of the pilot episode of “Running Wilde” that make you consider tuning in again … maybe. Wealthy Steven Wilde (Will Arnett) is reunited with his first love Emmy Kadubic (Keri Russell), an environmental activist who thinks she can save Steven from his selfish ways. While the pilot seems to rely on people still missing “Arrested Development” and has a premise that’s shaky at best, it does have some laugh-out-loud moments.
““ Samantha Suchland
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