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'Flash Forward,' 'The Good Wife' and 'Mercy' rise to the top with returning favorites
(October 6, 2009) -- With the Fall season of television viewing underway, couch potatoes like myself who don't possess a DVR are facing a real-time dilemma -- watch seasoned favorites or sample new offerings.
For me, the viewing choice has been easy -- NCIS, CSI, CSI: New York, Castle, Criminal Minds and The Mentalist (with a dash of comedy tossed in when the Panthers aren't playing on Monday Night Football.
I have tried two new programs -- Flash Forward and Mercy, and found both to be entertaining enough for return visits. Mercy is up against The New Adventures of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried, two comedies on CBS that I don't have to watch on a regular basis. Too bad, however, for Hank (with Kelsey Grammer) and The Middle (with Patricia Heaton) over on ABC that are in the same 8 p.m. time slot.
As for Flash Forward, I missed the season premiere (I just had to give Bones one more chance after that season-ending debacle back in May) but caught up by going to www.fancast.com. The concept of Flash Forward is intriguing and, admittedly, I am hooked for at least the rest of the year. In addition to Bones, the show goes up against Survivor: Samoa on CBS and The Vampire Diaries on The CW in the 8 p.m. slot on Thursdays. For me, it is a good lead-in to CSI and The Mentalist.
CBS strategically positioned newcomer Accidentally on Purpose between How I Met Your Mother and Two and a Half Men; so it is safe -- unless you're a House watcher on FOX. Over on NBC, newcomer Trauma is facing veteran shows Two and a Half Men and The Big Bang Theory from CBS and Dancing with the Stars from ABC.
Tuesday's lineup is wide open for NCIS to be a runaway hit -- again. NCIS is opposite Dancing with the Stars on ABC, 90210 on The CW, Hell's Kitchen on Fox and Biggest Loser on NBC. As for NCIS: Los Angeles, my jury is still out (the show has not clicked for reasons unbeknownst to me); however, it has little competition at the nine o'clock hour. Unfortunately, The Forgotten (ABC) and The Good Wife (CBS) face off in the 10 p.m. slot, that also includes The Jay Leno Show. I favor The Good Wife because I like Julianna Margulies (remember her in the short-lived Canterbury's Law?).
On Wednesdays, I would've given ABC's Modern Family and Cougar Town a shot, but the half-hour shows are opposite Criminal Minds at 9 p.m. on CBS. And, if I had not stumbled onto Mercy on NBC at 8 p.m., I might have sampled Hank and The Middle on ABC. I have become enamored with Mercy's Taylor Schilling, who plays Nurse Veronica, and her co-stars Michelle Trachtenberg and Jaime Lee Kirchner as fellow RNs.
Thursday night tube sitting is a no brainer for me -- Flash Forward at 8, CSI at 9 and The Mentalist at 10. Never mind Fringe, which was moved from opposite NCIS last season to going against CSI this season, and Grey's Anatomy. Neither cuts the mustard for me. If NBC had had the foresight to schedule Community in another time period, I think I would've tried it out. I like Chevy Chase and Joel McHale, but enjoy CSI a lot more.
Finally, Friday night is Monk and Psych night until the USA staples run their course. For other viewers, that leaves CBS' Ghost Whisperer against FOX's new show, Brothers, at 8 p.m. and FOX's Dollhouse against retread Medium, now on CBS at 9. At 10, CBS' Numb3rs is safe against Leno.
As for Saturdays and Sundays -- well, those nights are reserved for FVO (football viewing only).
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