Living in LA and being part of the entertainment industry, I sometimes get a chance to see things early before they’re released to the public. And being a great lover of tv, I was lucky enough to have seen six of the fall’s most talked about pilots.
I’m now excited to share my brief first thoughts with you on each of them. Then later, once they air, don’t forget to check back for my full reviews.
1. Homeland (Showtime) – Oct. 2 at 10pm
Within the past year, we’ve experienced both the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and the killing of Osama Bin Laden. So now, more than ever, the topics of terrorism, civil liberties, and cost of 9/11 are on people’s minds.
Homeland isn’t a show for everyone because of its serious subject matter and gritty realism, but the production values, acting, and writing are all top notch. I get the sense that this show is what AMC’s The Killing wishes it could have been, a twisty mind-bending thriller.
2. Revenge (ABC) – Sept. 21 at 10pm
FOX ruled the nighttime soap opera category back in the 90’s with 90210 and Melrose Place. But now with this being the last season of Desperate Housewives, ABC is bringing us yet another entry into guilty pleasure appointment tv.
Don’t worry though if you’re not a big fan of Desperate Housewives, I’m not, because Revenge is completely different. More serious than silly, the Revenge pilot starts five months in the future and then goes back to take us through how it all began. The show also boasts a lot of WB/CW alumni including Emily VanCamp, Nick Wechsler, Connor Paolo, and Ashley Madekwe.
3. The Secret Circle (The CW) – Sept. 15 at 9pm
For those of you who like your guilty pleasure more on the sci-fi/fantasy end of the spectrum, we have The Secret Circle. Created by Kevin Williamson of The Vampire Diaries, it shares the same beautiful cinematography, gorgeous exteriors, and great music.
The pilot starts the show off much stronger than The Vampire Diaries two years ago, but contains the same in-depth mythology that will develop over the course of the series. The CW sure has gone all out in marketing, and the pilot is pretty good, so I hope it’s a big success.
4. Hart of Dixie (The CW) – Sept. 26 at 9pm
With the ending of Everwood five years back, television has been asking for another small town series to take its place. Hart of Dixie excels with its fish-out-of-water premise and its endearing, lovable Southern characters.
Rachel Bilson seems to be channeling The O.C.’s Summer Roberts a bit in this new series, but the mixture of comedy and drama keeps it as the most lighthearted of the CW’s three new series. I’m happy to watch some more episodes.
5. New Girl (FOX) – Sept. 20 at 9pm
The best and worst thing about this pilot is Zooey Deschanel. At times she’s adorkable, as everyone’s been saying, but other times it’s a little ridiculous and embarrassing. I did like the pilot, but I don’t know how much I’ll want to keep watching.
6. Ringer (The CW) – Sept. 13 at 9pm
By now I’m sure you’ve seen Ringer. (Since it premiered Tuesday, of course.) I’ll just say there’s potential, but it seriously lacks in execution. The pilot has a very leisurely pace, some silly moments, and the acting could use a little work.
All of these things could get better in time, but for now I was disappointed. Still, I’m really interested in the actors, so I’m willing to give it more time to work itself out.
Thanks for reading, everyone. As a bonus, I’m going to share with you where you can see some of these pilots:
The Homeland pilot is now on Showtime’s YouTube: http://bit.ly/oF3G6Y
You can catch the Revenge pilot here: http://abc.tv/npLvtQ (pw: MN3JozZrq)
The pilot for The Secret Circle is now on iTunes: http://bit.ly/oXqKwD
The New Girl pilot is also on iTunes: http://bit.ly/pe3AI8
And I have three links to watch the Hart of Dixie pilot. So please only ask for it if you’re really interested in seeing it.
Have you seen any pilots? What did you think?