Benjamonster's TV

I am ending the season with my miscellaneous awards from the 2018-19 season and a quick look ahead to next season. This summer will be pretty quiet as usual on the blog, but check back from time to time and of course in the fall! Past Miscellaneous Awards:  2017-18     2016-17     2015-16     2014-15     2013-14     2012-13     2011-12     2010-11 BEST RETURNING COMEDY Brooklyn Nine-Nine (NBC) - Brooklyn Nine-Nine seemed to re-find its voice at the end of its final season on FOX but then was unceremoniously cancelled. Getting rescued by NBC a few days later didn't really change Brooklyn 's ratings fortune but it did allow the show to creatively keep up the momentum this season starting with a hilarious episode centered on Jake and Amy's honeymoon. The ramping up of Scully and Hitchcock as main characters (with a back story included!) has also been very fun. Brooklyn is firing on all cylinders again! RUNN...

Here is my recap of this year's new dramas! Please note I haven't seen all the new shows I want to as I still need to watch Fosse/Verdon on FX and a couple different streaming shows this summer. Past New Drama Recaps:  2017-18     2016-17     2015-16     2014-15     2013-14     2012-13     2011-12     2010-11 BEST NEW DRAMA God Friended Me (CBS) - When I first heard about God Friended Me and read the log line last pilot season, I thought it sounded about as dumb as could be. When I saw the trailer and even when I watched the first episode, I was more intrigued but not sure where it could go. Well it ended up being the feel good drama of the year and was delightfully whimsical yet it had a running mystery that was intriguing too. It reminded me of a lighter version of Person of Interest  where the team would get a name and have to piece together a story. Between likable performances and a bright, sunny...

For the final three days of the season, I will take a look back at the season with a focus on new comedies today, new dramas tomorrow, and a variety of things on Wednesday. Enjoy! Past New Comedies posts:  2017-18     2016-17     2015-16     2014-15     2013-14     2012-13     2011-12     2010-11 BEST NEW COMEDY The Kids Are Alright (ABC) - This is only the second time ever (and first since 2012-13) that my favorite comedy is one that was cancelled. The Kids Are Alright was another one in the ABC sitcom machine, but it had a great voice and spirit about it, especially as the season went on. While I'm not devastated to see it go, I do wish I could have seen more adventures of the Clearys in the future. It was set in the 70s, but not as overtly about the decade as The Goldbergs is about the 80s or Schooled is about the 90s. There were perhaps too many kids in the family for the show to develop all the charac...

As usual, I am ending the season with a few miscellaneous awards. The blog will be quiet this summer but I will continue to do the week ahead posts with broadcast TV news as it happens this summer. Then I'll be back for previews, pilot reviews, and more in the fall! BEST RETURNING COMEDY Superstore (NBC) - Superstore was awarded my "Best Returning Comedy" last year, but it only got better in season three. The funniest ensemble on TV took another step forward with some truly hilarious moments (the season premiere, the Golden Globes party, and the Christmas episode to name a few) and some major plot points moving forward. It also has the potential to be surprisingly sentimental at times. I think back to the first year of the show and how I felt like it had so many funny elements but didn't always bring it completely together. Well now it does on a weekly basis and it is one of those shows that just seems to be in the sweet spot of what will hopefully be a long run. ...

Here is my recap of this year's new dramas! Check back later for a tribute to The Middle and check back tomorrow for my final post of the 2017-18 season with some other awards! BEST NEW DRAMA 9-1-1 (FOX) - Since this was a Ryan Murphy show, I was pretty skeptical of 9-1-1 despite the stellar cast. Aside from The People vs. OJ Simpson , I typically find Murphy's stuff over the top. Well, 9-1-1  was over the top but in the best way possible. It was a procedural drama but with the Murphy flairs and it shockingly worked extremely well. The superstar cast helped things a great deal but the cases, based on true stories, were gripping even if they were incredibly creepy or disturbing at times. The home lives of the characters were interesting too without getting too sappy or soapy. This was a show I found myself really excited to watch every week. RUNNER-UP:  Deception (ABC) - I don't think Deception was a great show by any means, but I really loved it and I was sad to see ...

For the final three days of the season, I will be looking back at the season that was. Today will be a look at the freshmen comedies, tomorrow ill be the freshmen dramas, and Wednesday will have some miscellaneous awards! Also, tomorrow I will have a special post about the finale of The Middle . Enjoy! Past New Comedies posts:  2016-17     2015-16     2014-15     2013-14     2012-13     2011-12     2010-11 BEST NEW COMEDY Young Sheldon (CBS) - I am not a fan of The Big Bang Theory and on the few occasions I have watched it, Sheldon Cooper has annoyed me more than amused me. But Young Sheldon is an entirely different story. With a very "ABC family comedy" feel, it was funny and also heartwarming. Young Sheldon Cooper was funny but the entire family made this show what it is (more on them below). It's a testament to the creators of the show that a non- Big Bang fan is interested in watching a prequel every single wee...

BEST RETURNING COMEDY Superstore (NBC) - I love many ABC family sitcoms, they are my favorite genre on any network. But the best comedy of the year wasn't one of them, it was NBC's quirky but hysterical workplace comedy Superstore . I don't feel like it's exaggerating to say that Superstore is the true heir to The Office with a group of misfit but lovable employees and a dense, but well-meaning boss. It had many great episodes and wasn't afraid to occasionally mix in some heart. It had a great sophomore season. RUNNER-UP: The Middle (ABC) BEST RETURNING DRAMA Chicago Med  (NBC) - I have said for years that Chicago Fire is underrated when it comes to critical acclaim and I stand by that statement, but now I would say the entire Chicago franchise (except for the underwhelming Chicago Justice ) maybe fits into that statement after the very strong second season of Chicago Med . My history with medical dramas is that I almost always like them at first but lose...

Here is my look at the new dramas of the year! Tomorrow, check back for my final wrap-up of the 2016-17 season! Past Seasons:  2015-16     2014-15     2013-14     2012-13     2011-12     2010-11 BEST NEW DRAMA This is Us  (NB C)  - The biggest and buzziest new show of the year certainly earned the praise heaped on it. Tugging at the heart strings week after week, it could have easily veered into cheesy territory but real situations and struggles and dynamic performances across the board made it Must See TV even before it officially receives that label next season on Thursdays. The clever plot twist of the pilot was just the tip of the iceberg for a show that gave a completely fresh look at the family drama thanks to its generation-spanning look at one family. Broadcast TV needed  This is Us  in a big way and for someone who finally finished watching  Parenthood  last summer, it has filled the...

For the final three days of the season, I will be looking back. Today is a look at the new comedies, tomorrow the new dramas, and then some miscellaneous awards on Wednesday! Past Years:  2015-16     2014-15     2013-14     2012-13     2011-12     2010-11 BEST NEW COMEDY American Housewife (ABC) When American Housewife premiered, I thought it was a lesser version of the ABC comedies I have grown to love like The Middle, Fresh Off the Boat, The Goldbergs, etc. But it really fits right in with all of them and continued to find its groove as the season wore on. The cast really gels well as a family and the show is smart to mainly focus on the family with just auxiliary scenes with the friends. My complaint in the pilot was that it just seemed to be a litany of fat jokes, but it has instead found a heart and sweetness to it while still being a bit brash. In that way, it seems like a true successor to The Middle , its lead-in this ...