Oh, ABC. How adorable that you felt that your sad new sitcom Man Up! (8:30/7:30c) deserves an exclamation point. As in, maybe: Yikes, this sucks! The network describes this latest "comedy" about male insecurities as being "in the vein of The Hangover." Only in the vein of people who watch The Hangover and think: Boy, I wish I could be that funny.
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Eating brains was only part of the pleasure for Jewel Staite when she guest-starred on Friday's episode of The CW's Supernatural (9/8c).
"I saw that Jensen [Ackles] was directing," Staite tells TVGuide.com. "He's an old friend of mine, so I thought, 'Ooooh, fun! That would be great.' Luckily it all worked out. When you get on a show where one of the actors is directing, it can go either way. Sometimes they can stress out if they have too much on their plate, but he was so calm and so cool and so collected. He just really impressed me. We had some days we didn't even go the full 12 hours of shooting. We were let out early because he knew exactly what he wanted and when he got it, he moved on."
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FRIDAY
Tonight's Top Pick: When worlds collide, Fox's cult gem Fringe (9/8c) is at the top of its game. You've never seen a murder-mystery manhunt like tonight's chilling and provocative episode, in which the Fringe team from the "other" world enlists "our" Olivia to cross over to track down a serial killer in the alt-universe — by bringing along the madman's doppelganger from our world, who happens to be a professor specializing in forensic pathology and profiling. The "what-if" vibes are fascinating as the professor — and by extension everyone in the dual-universe loop — considers the vagaries of fate and environment when confronted with "the path not taken." The story is suspenseful, poignant and wonderfully original. And in case you're wondering why Walter stays behind, surrounding himself with a cacophony of music: It may have something to do with that nagging disembodied voice he can't stop hearing. Hurry home soon, Peter Bishop!
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This busy premiere week is far from over. Here's a night-by-night look at how the weekend is shaping up this fall, with some thoughts on the new-season pilots, several key season premieres, and other highlights.
FRIDAY
The Night in a Nutshell: If you're not a CBS loyalist on this low-viewership night, then it's best to have a healthy appetite for cult TV. CBS is expected to rule as usual, with the new A Gifted Man grafting the popular voices-from-beyond genre of Ghost Whisperer and Medium with a medical procedural, leading in to CSI: NY (which barely got renewed this year) and Blue Bloods. Once again, Fox's mind-blowing Fringe and the CW's undying Supernatural duke it out for out-there enthusiasts, with the underrated spy thriller Nikita taking over Smallville's old time period. NBC enters the game in mid-October, launching the final 13 episodes of Chuck alongside the third supernatural offering in the 9/8c time period: the fairy-tale/mystery hybrid Grimm. Reality fans will soon be able to choose among ABC's transplanted Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and Shark Tank and Fox's Kitchen Nightmares.
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The Emmys are the big draw this weekend — my predictions (a combination wish list/analysis) can be found here — but here's a look at some of the other TV this weekend that stands out.
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