A year ago, ABC changed the TV...
A year ago, ABC changed the TV landscape with Desperate Housewives and Lost, which generated huge buzz at the Television Critics Association summer press tour and went on to be major game-players.
At this year's TCA, the network enjoyed its new critical and popular high, but resisted being cocky about it. In part, that may be because none of ABC's new fall shows scream "instant breakout" this year.
One drama, though, is poised to capitalize on Lost's imaginative breakthrough, fusing character-based stories onto a genre thriller. That would be Invasion, from Shaun Cassidy (who's overdue a hit), which follows Lost on Wednesdays and, like Lost, gets underway with a spectacular pilot episode that sets up a mystifying premise. In the premiere, a mammoth hurricane slams into the remote town of Homestead, Fla., on the edge of the Everglades. During the storm, weird objects descend from the skies, and some of the main characters emerge mysteriously changed. The show is about the aftermath — the first season will comprise a time span of only eight weeks — and is described as an allegory of survival as much as a sci-fi tale.
The Invasion press conference was stimulating enough to convince even skeptics that the show is worth a second look. And ABC will be promoting it hard, just as it did a year ago with aggressive marketing for Lost and Desperate Housewives.
The other new show getting a major launch campaign is Commander-In-Chief, an engrossing drama starring Geena Davis as the first female president, an Independent, inheriting her job amid a cloud of controversy and resistance when the popular Republican president dies. Those expecting a West Wing clone may be disappointed, but give this one a chance.
Wish I could be as enthusiastic about the remake of the horror-show Night Stalker by The X-Files' Frank Spotnitz, starring Stuart Townsend as the reporter who hunts down terrifying bogeymen. The pilot lacks any of the quirky humor that defined the classic '70s original, but Spotnitz promises to fix that in future episodes. The scariest thing about Stalker is its Thursday time period: 9 pm/ET.
As for comedy, ABC continues to struggle. But be prepared for a critical wave of affection at mid-season for the improvisational family comedy Sons & Daughters, an instant hit at TCA. (Fred Goss of Bravo's Significant Others is the visionary here.) Evocative of Arrested Development in its unique, offbeat tone, but much more grounded in emotional reality, it's just the sort of hilarious and endearingly original series we keep hoping for, but once we see it, we fear the public won't catch on.
Already some critics are contemplating a "Save this show" campaign, even before we know when and where it will air. Put it on your radar: Sons & Daughters.
For the first time since the marathon TCA summer press tour began more than two weeks ago, I'm feeling anxious for the new season to begin. That's what comes from hanging with ABC for a couple of days.
