Tag Archives: The Originals

once-frozen

Favorite shows return to lineup in new fall TV season

If you are a Binge Watcher and are lagging behind on Sleepy Hollow, The Vampire Diaries, Arrow, Supernatural, Once Upon a Time, or Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., you should probably skip this season preview until you’re all caught up.

It’s that time of year again. The weather is turning colder, days are getting shorter, and pumpkin spiced everything is available anywhere you go. This is my favorite season — the time of year for hoodies or warm sweaters, bonfires, and hot apple cider.

It is also when fan*s start counting down to the start of the fall television season. In the next two weeks, our favorites will return and an interesting new lineup will begin. I thought I would take some time this week to look at the returning shows I’m most looking forward to, then next week discuss some of the new shows I’m planning to check out.

As you know if you’ve been reading this column, I am a huge fan of television, and I watch quite a wide range of shows. There are some that I continue to watch simply out of habit or because other members of my household still enjoy them: NCIS, Hawaii Five-O, Blue Bloods, etc. I like the characters and continue to watch, though I’m not as invested in those shows as I am in some others. The majority of my favorite shows have some sort of science-fiction or fantasy aspect to them, but there are a few straight dramas I enjoy. (Not coincidentally, most of them star actors I first discovered on genre shows.) Bones and Castle are probably my favorite crime dramas currently on television.

There are quite a few more genre shows that I’m excited about, starting with Sleepy Hollow. When I added this show to my to-watch list last fall, I thought it looked interesting, but I really didn’t know how the premise was going to hold up. Based on prior experiences with genre TV on Fox, I also didn’t have a lot of hope for it to stick around. Then the show surprised everyone with the quality of the scripts and a brilliant cast. I was pretty sure I would like it, but I never expected it to receive the response it did. Fox rarely makes decisions I agree with when it comes to programming, but I think it made a good choice in keeping the first season short; one thing I’ve learned from British television is that shorter seasons can really add to the quality of a season since writers don’t have to spread out the storyline so far and fill in the gaps.

The first season finale reveal that sin-eater Henry Parrish was not only Ichabod’s son but also one of the Four Horsemen took me completely by surprise, which is something few shows manage to accomplish. With Katrina now in the present and Abbie stuck in limbo, I am anxious to see how they resolve the cliffhanger from season 1 and carry on the second season. I’m also extremely excited about John Noble being added as a regular this year. He is an incredible actor, and the fact that he was never nominated for an Emmy for Fringe is nothing short of criminal.

I’m also looking forward to the return of my CW shows — Arrow and Supernatural much more so than The Vampire Diaries and The Originals. The first season of The Originals was vastly more compelling than anything that’s happened on The Vampire Diaries in the last couple years, though I am very excited that Alaric is returning as a VD regular; I’ve really missed Matthew Davis on the show and have been hoping for his return ever since the CW cancelled Cult (which I just could not get into).

Arrow really stepped up its game last season, especially in the episodes leading up to the finale. I’m a little disappointed that the end of the Slade storyline means we likely won’t see more of Manu Bennett any time soon — and he’ll be unrecognizable in The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies. Still, I’m curious about the direction they’re headed this season, as it seems the flashbacks are moving off of the island. It will also be interesting to see Roy make the transition into a regular member of Team Arrow as he dons the Arsenal costume. I only wish the writers would do something about Laurel. I don’t know whether it’s the writing or Katie Cassidy herself, but I struggle with the fact that I couldn’t care less about her character, which is difficult when I love everything else about the show.

Supernatural will be starting its 10th season this fall, which seems like a miracle to those of us who were waiting on pins and needles back in 2006 to see if it would even get a second run. The show kind of lost its way in seasons 6 and 7 after creator Eric Kripke stepped back from running the show. However, another change in leadership after season 7 has set it back on track, with seasons 8 and 9 being a huge improvement on the previous two.

This season, Supernatural is adding a fourth season regular for the first time, as Mark Sheppard joins the cast. Sheppard’s Crowley is one of those villains everyone loves to hate, and Sheppard himself is well-loved in the genre community. When last we looked in on the Winchester brothers, Sam was mourning and Dean was resurrected as a demon. I have no idea what this coming season has in store for us — aside from the rumors of a “musical” 200th episode — but I’m hoping they let the demon Dean storyline play out. I’m really curious to see what Dean is like as a demon and feel like this is a storyline that would feel rushed if they try to wrap it up and make him human again within the first couple episodes of the season.

One of the returning shows I’m possibly most excited about is Once Upon a Time. When the season ended with a glimpse of Elsa from Frozen, I wasn’t sure what to think. At first, I was a little disappointed because Frozen, though a lovely movie, is everywhere you look, and this felt like the writers were just jumping on the bandwagon. However, I’ve since read numerous interviews in which the creators have stated that Disney had absolutely nothing to do with this decision; the show runners are fans of Frozen and thought the characters would fit well into the series. I’m now willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and see how the Frozen storyline turns out.

Aside from Frozen, I’m really looking forward to seeing all my favorite Once Upon a Time characters again. I am still a little sad they killed Neal last year, but Hook and Emma have such great chemistry, I can’t wait to see what’s next. Then there is the question of how Regina will react now that Robin Hood’s wife is alive and in Storybrooke. Regina is such an easy character to hate, but in so many ways, her character’s arc is the most interesting. I just hope she doesn’t fall back to season 1 Regina. Lastly, I’m really excited about Once Upon a Time in Wonderland‘s Michael Socha joining the cast as a series regular. Socha’s Knave of Hearts was by far the best character of the spin-off series, and the reveal that he’s also Will Scarlet means he has a lot of history with Robin Hood and should fit in well with the Storybrooke residents.

The other returning show I’m most excited about would, of course, be Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. The show had such a slow start, but it hit its stride around episode 6, then really went into high gear with the release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The end of the season left Coulson tasked with picking up the pieces of the shattered S.H.I.E.L.D. after Director Fury handed over the reigns. I cannot wait to see where the show goes from here. From the casting announcements I’ve been hearing, we’ll be seeing a lot more Marvel characters this season and getting some glimpses of Agent Carter in flashbacks — possibly as a sneak peak of what to expect from the Agent Carter series set to premiere mid-season.

S.H.I.E.L.D.’s second year will also be picking up with a team that is already unified and already knows each other, so they can jump right into the mission. I’m curious to see what role Agent Grant Ward will be playing now that we know he’s a Hydra agent. Will his character have a redemption arc? Is he capable (or deserving) of redemption? I can’t wait to find out.

These are just some of the shows I’m looking forward to having return in a few weeks. I also can’t wait for the new seasons of The Walking Dead and Grimm, plus Haven‘s final, double-sized season begins tonight.

What returning shows are you looking forward to? Share them in the comments! And tune in next week when I share which new series I’m most interested in checking out.

Bloodlines

Spinoffs: The often unneeded TV sequels

When a film does well at the box office, Hollywood has a habit of feeling the need to create sequels, regardless of whether the story calls for one or not. If the producers can’t think up a sequel, they turn to backstories and make prequels, which are often worse. Television attempts the same thing; when a series is doing well, a network will try to take advantage of its popularity through the TV equivalent of a sequel: the spinoff.

Television executives started pondering early on that when a series is doing well or has been on the air for a significant period of time, surely another edition with a similar premise will be just as well-received, right? Way back in 1960, a fictional sheriff from Mayberry, N.C., arrested Danny Williams on The Danny Thomas Show, and that fall, The Andy Griffith Show began its eight-year run as one of television’s most iconic series. That series gave rise to its own spinoffs: Gomer Pyle: USMC and Mayberry R.F.D.

Some of the highest rated and acclaimed series of all-time have been spinoffs, including The Jeffersons, Laverne & Shirley, The Facts of Life, A Different World, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Family Matters, The Simpsons, and Frasier. In fact, the most watched series on television right now is a spinoff, though many have long-since forgotten this fact. CBS powerhouse NCIS got its start within the late seasons of the series JAG, which, ironically, premiered on NBC. Then, in the tradition of Andy Griffith and All In The Family before it, viewers’ embracing of NCIS led to the spinoff spawning a spinoff, NCIS: Los Angeles, which I personally find more interesting than the original. Another well-known crime procedural, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, has had similar good fortune.

Of course, while our TV sets have been full of successful spinoffs lately, there have been others that make you wonder why the producers made the effort. Even NCIS has had its spinoff missteps. CBS attempted a spinoff-of-a-spinoff when it aired a planted pilot of what would have become NCIS: Red, starring John Corbett, as an episode of NCIS: Los Angeles last year, but ultimately decided not to move forward with the series.

Undaunted by the lack of a pick-up for NCIS: Red, NCIS aired a two-part backdoor pilot to yet another anticipated spinoff, NCIS: New Orleans, just a few weeks ago. While I enjoy seeing Scott Bakula back onscreen, and I like the New Orleans atmosphere, I can’t help but wonder: is yet another spinoff really necessary (really, is any spinoff necessary)? And why so soon after the previous spinoff attempt failed to make it off the ground?

The CW has recently been getting into the spinoff game in a big way. One of its strongest freshman dramas this season was a spinoff, and next season could possibly see two more added to the schedule. The network did moderately well with the debut of The Originals this year. The series is spun-off from the network’s runaway hit drama The Vampire Diaries and follows the Original Vampires, who have been antagonists on the parent series for the last couple seasons.

I believe part of why The Originals works is that the main characters were already well-established on The Vampire Diaries. Klaus, Rebekah, and Elijah are characters that fans of The Vampire Diaries have grown to love, even if they have created nothing but trouble for the protagonists of the show. Even though these were the kind of bad guys we loved to hate, their stories on The Vampire Diaries could only last so long before the characters would become stale, and I have a feeling they were getting close to that point.

By creating the spinoff centered around the Mikaelson vampires, the writers were able to start telling new stories and even take steps toward possible redemption. I’ve been watching The Originals all season and, I have to admit, I’m finding it much more compelling than The Vampire Diaries at the moment. Either Klaus and Elijah were the best part of the original series or I’ve finally had enough of Elena being Elena (possibly both).

Following the good showing put up by The Originals, the CW is now planning two more spinoffs for next season from two other dramas: Arrow and Supernatural. I am actually excited about one of those series, but I have some reservations about the other — and, surprisingly, the one I’m worried about is the spinoff from a series that’s been at the top of my list of favorite shows for years.

Earlier this season, Arrow introduced us to Barry Allen, the young man destined to become the Flash. At the end of the two-part episode, Barry was injured when a particle accelerator exploded. Next season, the series The Flash will show us how he becomes the comic book superhero. Writers had originally intended for Barry to make another appearance on Arrow before the end of the season; however, the network decided it would rather have the Flash’s origin explained in his own series, not on Arrow.

I admit when the producers first announced Grant Gustin had been cast in the role of Barry Allen, I had my doubts — maybe in part because I was still a little bitter about that slushie he threw in Blaine’s face on Glee. I just wasn’t sure Gustin had the charisma to play lead in his own series. However, I really liked the character when he appeared on Arrow. I’m still not sure if he will be able to carry a series, but with a good supporting cast, this show could be great. I’m really looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

On Tuesday, the CW’s longest running drama, Supernatural, will air a backdoor pilot for proposed spinoff Supernatural: Bloodlines, renamed from Supernatural: Tribes. (I have to say, I wish they would just drop the colon title entirely. I prefer series with original titles for spinoffs, such as The Originals or Angel. Fans are smart enough to figure out which series the new show is connected to.) Supernatural: Bloodlines will be set completely in Chicago and focus on mafia-style monster families within the city, and a new, young hunter who goes up against them.

This is the series I have some reservations about. I love Supernatural — so much so that I traveled all the way to Vancouver for a fan convention back in 2009. However, I’m just not sure how this series will work out. One of the things that makes Supernatural unique is the road trip nature of the show; the ’67 Impala they drive around in is as much a character in the show as Sam and Dean. What will a version of the series set in a single city be like? How will they maintain the tone of the original? It’ll also be interesting to see how they distinguish this series from other shows with a similar premise, such as The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, or True Blood.

I don’t want to put the show down before it has even aired — I’ll give it a chance based on my appreciation of the original — I just can’t help but be skeptical. I also feel introducing new characters into a series for the sole purpose of creating a spinoff makes the entire situation feel contrived. It didn’t work so well for NCIS: Red, or for the Bones spinoff, The Finder, a few years ago (though I actually enjoyed The Finder).

As I stated earlier, part of The Originals‘ appeal was the fact that these were already established characters that fans loved, much like when Angel was created as a spinoff from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Fans already knew and loved Angel and Cordelia, so they were willing to follow them to another series. Angel was another case where the spinoff almost felt necessary to keep the characters and stories seeming fresh and not going in circles.

The Angel spinoff occurred at an organic point in the storyline, where characters were graduating and moving on, so it made sense that some would be making a fresh start far from Sunnydale. Not all spinoffs have a natural starting place; the CSI spinoffs did fairly well coming from planted pilots, but I believe using familiar characters at a natural point in the story gives a spinoff a better chance of standing on its own. The Flash isn’t using this technique, but the character of Barry Allen is already familiar to many of the fans who are currently watching Arrow.

And then there’s the spinoff that has almost no real connection to the original series. Next year, we’ll likely see the premiere of How I Met Your Dad, from the creators of How I Met Your Mother but, aside from having a similar structure, the series has no other relationship with its predecessor. This type of spinoff is really just hoping fans of the parent series will give it a chance, as they have no more reason to watch this than any other new sitcom premiering next year. In fact, this particular series may actually suffer from the backlash created by the How I Met Your Mother finale a few weeks ago.

So are spinoffs really necessary? No, most of the time, I don’t believe they are. They’re just a way for a network to attempt to capitalize on the popularity of a series — just like Hollywood tries to attempt to capitalize on a film’s popularity in any way possible. They’re also a way to connect a concept for a new series to an already established one in order to draw in fans of the original in an attempt to take advantage of an existing audience.

However, once in a while, a spinoff could be the answer to continuing a character’s journey in new and interesting ways. It worked for Angel, and so far it has worked for The Originals. Next season, we’ll see which of the new series are able to find the formula for spinoff success.