Broadcast channels, cable networks, and streaming services have unveiled their next wave of
new and returning shows, and there's a lot to look forward to.
But not every series can be a hit.
Will your new favorite guilty pleasure thrive, or will it even survive the year?
Here's a look at some new TV shows that probably won't survive 2018.
Living Biblically
In 2007, humorist A.J.
Jacobs made waves with his book My Year of Living Biblically, in which he tried to live
every aspect of his life according to the rules set forth in the Bible.
Now, the book has been adapted as a gimmicky sitcom.
Jay R. Ferguson, hot off of the quickly-cancelled sitcom The Real O'Neals, plays Chip Curry,
a guy at a crossroads in his life: After the death of a friend and with a baby on the way,
he freaks out and opts to live, you know, biblically.
It could be funny, but for whom?
Living Biblically risks offending true believers, but the subject matter could also easily alienate
non-religious viewers.
That's a tough balancing act, so something will have to give.
"So when God says 'Do not worship false idols,' he's talking about Beyonce."
Rise
An idealistic teacher at a cash-strapped school is determined to put on a musical and show
his students the power of their dreams.
You'd expect Rise to be inspiring.
Instead, it's oddly depressing, despite featuring How I Met Your Mother's Josh Radnor and boasting
a bunch of supposedly uplifting musical numbers.
Glee proved that something like Rise could be good, but so far, it's too earnest for
its own good.
Unless it learns how to lighten up, Rise may soon fall.
"This isn't just about your vision, Mr. Mazzu.
These are people's lives you're dealing with."
American Idol
It was once the most popular TV show in the world.
But just two short years ago, fans had become so burned out on American Idol that it was
unceremoniously dumped by Fox.
Now it's back on ABC, but in a world dominated by NBC's The Voice, do fans even want more
American Idol?
Sure, it boasts Katy Perry at the head of a new lineup of judges, but it also features
the return of embattled host Ryan Seacrest, who has become something of a Hollywood pariah
after accusations of harassment surfaced.
He was later cleared by a network investigation, but just like nobody was asking for the show
to return, nobody was asking for Seacrest to return either.
It's just not a good way to start what was bound to be an uphill climb for American idol
anyway.
Titans
There have been a lot of shows based around Teen Titans, the scrappy DC Comics property
about the adventures of a squad of young superheroes and erstwhile sidekicks, which at various
times has included characters like Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad, Raven, and Starfire.
But while the animated versions of Teen Titans have been popular over the years, the new
live action Titans has had a very troubled development.
TNT announced the show in 2014 but the pilot never materialized.
Instead, the team behind the popular line of DC shows on The CW announced a new version
in 2017… but it's not going to be on The CW, instead debuting at an undetermined date
on DC's upcoming streaming service - which doesn't actually exist yet.
It's going to take some real superheroics to save this one.
Heathers
A TV series is almost certainly doomed to fail if it never actually airs, right?
The Paramount Network's TV adaptation of the 1988 high school black comedy Heathers is
looking like it could enter the rare gallery of shows canceled before they broadcast a
single episode.
Scheduled to debut in early March, Heathers was delayed indefinitely due to the Parkland,
Florida school shooting.
Taking Heathers off the table was a move made out of good taste.
Like its 1988 cult classic source material, it's a story about getting back at bullies
through school violence.
Daniel D'addario of Time said the series "makes broad and sloppy comedy out of the idea of
teens dying, by their own hand or at the hands of other teens.
It's seemingly designed to provoke and to offend."
That might have worked 30 years ago, but it doesn't work now.
Here and Now
Created by Alan Ball, Here and Now combines the complicated family dynamics and awareness
of his series Six Feet Under, with the kooky supernaturalism of his other series, True
Blood.
The result is less than the sum of its parts, with Tim Robbins and Holly Hunter playing
parents to an international conglomeration of adopted children, allowing them to have
unnaturally Important Conversations about the Issues of Our Time.
Multiple characters also have weird prophetic dreams and spooky hallucinations, numerology
is an important plot device, and Robbins' character is anxious about aging and is also
having an affair.
In other words, Here and Now tries to be too many things to too many people, and as a result
actually does nothing for anybody.
Ratings have been terrible and critical reception has been even worse, suggesting Here and Now
may soon be Then and Gone.
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