Welcome back to our TV Preview series! In case this is your first time joining the series, let me explain: Over the next couple of months, I’ll be investigating the shows highlighted in our TV Preview: New Friends post, and letting you know—in my humble opinion—what’s worthy of watching live, what can wait until the weekend, what can wait until it’s on Netflix, or what can wait, well, forever.
Warning! Possible spoilers ahead.
Premiered: Sept. 21 on NBC (Watch online.)
Twitter Pitch
Blindspot: Mixing America’s fascination with crime procedurals, the underdog, and the love of nekkid ladies. #girlswithtattoos #andamnesia
Familiar Faces
Jaimie Alexander as Jane Doe
Sullivan Stapleton as Kurt Weller
Marianne Jean-Baptiste as Bethany Mayfair
Rob Brown as Edgar Reed
Ashley Johnson as Patterson
Johnny Whitworth as ???
Faces That Might Become Familiar (If You Keep Watching)
Ukweli Roach as Dr. Borden
Audrey Esparza as Tasha Zapata
Redeeming Qualities
Blindspot is a unique and fascinating show, and I’m a massive sucker for procedurals with a mystery at the heart of the plot. I’m really curious to see how this one unravels, and to learn more about Jane Doe’s past. Plus: Jaimie Alexander is a total badass and absolutely gorgeous. However ...
It's Not Me, It's You
… the number of times Jane had to be naked or barely clothed—even in the show’s opening credits—felt awfully gratuitous. I get that looking at her tattoos is an integral part of the show, but they’ve got pictures now. Let Jaimie have a proper wardrobe.
Let's Do This Again
I’m definitely going to be checking in with Blindspot next week, and likely for the rest of the season. It’s too intriguing of a mystery for me to quit it at the very start. Here’s hoping Agent Weller or Agent Reed (or Dr. Borden, but that's even less likely) get equal time in their skivvies before all is said and done.
Premiered: Sept. 21 on CBS (Watch online.)
Twitter Pitch
Four segments of a larger family who all have disparate lives are still OK with hanging out with each other. Sometimes. #familiesareweird
Familiar Faces
Angelique Cabral as Colleen
Thomas Sadoski as Matt
Jordan Peele as Chad
Dianne Wiest as Joan
James Brolin as John
Colin Hanks as Greg
Zoe Lister Jones as Jen
Dan Bakkedahl as Tim
Betsy Brandt as Heather
Faces That Might Become Familiar (If You Keep Watching)
Niall Cunningham as Tyler
Holly J. Barrett as Samantha
Giselle Eisenberg as Sophia
Redeeming Qualities
The best part of the entire episode, hands down, was precocious little Sophia. How adorable is Giselle Eisenberg? When I eventually have kids, I hope they’re like Sophia. I also think the four parts dynamic is an interesting way to introduce the various parts of the whole family before they’re presented as a whole.
It's Not Me, It's You
I’ve feel awfully repetitive saying this, as I’ve said it many times before, but I’m not big on sitcoms, or family dramedies. I also didn’t find much about this first episode of Life in Pieces to laugh at/with, aside from Sophia. I think the coffin gag at the end was supposed to be funny? Maybe some things in the episode just hit a little too close to home to be entertaining. I have a 70-year-old father who treats his age with a similar weird morbidity. And, as a woman in her early 30s who plans on someday having kids, I don’t need to be told what kinds of awful things happen after you give birth. As far as I’m delusional concerned, everything is unicorns and rainbows and sweet smelling chubby cheeks.
Let's Do This Again
Nothing about this first episode of Life in Pieces made me feel like I need to watch again. Could it get funnier? Possibly. Am I going to wait around until it happens? Eh … probably not. (Sorry, Colin Hanks! Loved you in Roswell!)
Premiered: Sept. 21 on Fox (Watch online.)
Twitter Pitch
Instead of trying something original (again), Fox tries a scifi reboot with a built-in fan base. #wheresTomCruise #whatstheoverunder
Familiar Faces
Stark Sands as Dash
Meagan Good as Lara Vega
Li Jun Li as Akeela
Wilmer Valderrama as Will Blake
Laura Regan as Agatha
Andrew Stewart-Jones as Peter Van Eyck
Zoe Doyle as Olivia Van Eyck
Alex Paxton-Beesley as Liz Rutledge
Michael Copeman as Rutledge
Tina Lifford as Lily
Daniel London as Wally
Nick Zano as Arthur
Faces That Might Become Familiar (If You Keep Watching)
Zhane Hall as Rico
Redeeming Qualities
Gotta love a look at a future that’s just slightly futuristic. Unlike a full-on science fiction show, Minority Report feels like a fantasy that could feasibly become a reality in our lifetime. (I mean, selfie drones? They’d be a HUGE hit.) I also really love Minority Report (the movie version) and I like that this show expands on the universe and tells us what happens after the credits rolled. Of course, it seems like it’ll be a pretty typical crime-of-the-week situation when you boil it down, but I don’t always think that’s a bad thing. Also, the fact that Nick Zano is playing a somewhat serious, somewhat morally ambiguous character, rather than his typical comedic dude bro role, is interesting.
It's Not Me, It's You
Lara Vega is a little too much “I’m a tough cop and I want everyone to know it.” If women still aren’t getting equal treatment in the 2050s, and therefore have to act like this, we have more problems than foiling bad guys and their evil schemes.
Let's Do This Again
I’m totally down for a near-future procedural (RIP, Almost Human), and I think Dash is adorable, but it’s going to take me a bit before I warm up to Vega. I’ll keep watching for now, but I need a little more partner chemistry if I’m going to stick around. But honestly, I’m just hoping the show will be aired in order and not canceled before it even gets a chance to get good. Yeah, I’m definitely side-eyeing you, Fox.
Did you watch any of these shows? If so, voice your thoughts in the comments!