NBC may have the fewest viewers but they often have the best shows... that no one watches. In this upcoming season, they have picked up some interesting and some not-so-interesting shows, and at least one potentially great one.
Here are my quicky opinions on each.
Comedies
1600 PENN (mid-season)
A show about what it would be like if the president of the United States had kids who didn't know how to behave themselves properly. It is actually funny (though dumb) and instantly has likable characters. 87 out of 100
ANIMAL PRACTICE (fall)
SCRUBS meets season 2 of BREAKING IN meets animal doctors. It has a few fun moments and I suppose it could become funnier but the pilot is very predictable. A monkey steals the whole episode. 75 out of 100
GO ON (fall)
Horrifically realized show about a man dealing with loss, who ends up in a support group for people dealing with loss. There is virtually nothing original here --and when there is a dash of it, it feels contrived- and Matthew Perry is mostly unlikable in the role. Perhaps it gets better but this was picked up because of the star and nothing more. I can't see any way this will do well unless people really like depressive shows about a dude with a douchie attitude. 50 out of 100
GUYS WITH KIDS (fall)
Lame multi-camera laughtrack show about guys with kids, that is another NBC attempt at making bad CBS type television that interests the masses. I'm not sure the people who watch NBC will find this kind of thing interesting. Though I found it painful to watch, there is some fun chemistry/dialogue between the couple with four kids, but otherwise... lame. 60 out of 100
THE NEW NORMAL (fall)
I guess this is NBC's answer to MODERN FAMILY that has a somewhat ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT feel, about gay men finding a surrogate mother for their baby, with Ellen Barkin as a bigotted grandmother scene-stealer. A very good pilot episode that feels very much like something Ali Adler would write (after writing that I checked... she is one of the creators... man, I'm good). It has potential (though that scene in the park where people talk to the camera like they are making a commercial should be cut). I will be checking it out. 88 out of 100
NEXT CALLER (mid-season)
A show about a satellite radio show. The host is a caveman and the co-host is a liberated woman. Dane Cook's in it so naturally some will flock to it while others will never watch it and claim they saw it anyway and that it sucked. The second group would be closer to the truth. It's just not that funny... or well acted... and lacks likeable characters. 65 out of 100
SAVE ME (mid-season)
When a woman has a near-death (or death) experience with a sandwich, she turns from a psycho alcoholic to a sober and euphoric prophet of god. Very well acted. Too interesting for network TV and will likely die in the ratings because of it. 90 out of 100
Dramas
CHICAGO FIRE (fall)
The opening of this show, about rescue services, is so dumb it should be on CBS. The rest of the episode does get somewhat better but I can't seem to shake the feeling that these guys watched a lot of RESCUE ME and thought to themselves "this would be so much better if it wasn't as much fun!" The fire fighting scenes are exciting but you know subsequent episodes will be filmed for less money and therefor the fire fighting stuff will start to look cheap. 75 out of 100
DO NO HARM (mid-season)
This show is about a doctor who has a split personality problem. One personality is a seemingly nice guy. The other is bad boy who gets laid a lot and hurts people. The two can kind of see/feel the others' perspective but are distinctly different. It has that guy from RESCUE ME in the lead role and that chick from LAW & ORDER. I will be surprised if it does well on NBC. Should be on USA. Still, it is a very interesting show, especially when their worlds collide. 84 out of 100
INFAMOUS (mid-season)
A crime drama where the cop is old friends with the filthy rich people she's investigating. Blahblahblah. So bored. I'm sure someone will find it interesting, just not me. 60 out of 100
REVOLUTION (fall)
WALKING DEAD meets LOST minus the zombies and island. It feels epic. Great acting, music, pacing, writing, cinematography, story and whatever else goes into making a show awesome. Unlike some pilots where you are left thinking "this could be good once they get comfortable telling the story" this one feels excellent from beginning to end. J.J. Abrams (LOST, FRINGE) and Eric Kripke (SUPERNATURAL) may just have created the next big thing. Please, TV gods, let this be successful. 98.4 out of 100
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