Here are seven plot developments I’m looking forward to on old favorites this fall season. (Technically, TV’s best show, “Friday Night Lights,” is a fall returnee — Oct. 28 on DirecTV — but I’ll be blogging about Season 4 next spring when I see the episodes on NBC. I’m very interested to see what Coach Taylor does with his new team.)
1. “The Empire Strikes Back” gets parodied on “Family Guy” (8 p.m. Central Sundays on Fox, returns Sept. 27).
Following the 2007 “Star Wars” parody “Blue Harvest,” we’ll finally get “Family Guy’s” “Empire Strikes Back” parody, “Something, Something, Something, Dark Side.” It’s supposed to air sometime this season, and there’s no way it won’t be great. TV.com also lists a “Return of the Jedi” parody for the spring, but it seems unlikely they’d air two “Star Wars” parodies in one season. Not that I’m complaining about the notion.
2. The alternate universe is explored on “Fringe” (8 p.m. Central Thursdays on Fox, returns Sept. 17).
Season 1 ended with a “holy crap!” moment on par with the original “Planet of the Apes” when Heston realizes he’s been on Earth all along. In “Fringe’s” case, we see that Bell exists in an alternate universe where the World Trade Center still exists in 2009. In Season 2, “Fringe” will presumably explore what that means for the characters — for example, Peter is apparently not Walter’s son, at least not in our universe. But how can Peter be from a different universe and not know it? These answers — and many, many questions — await. Not that I minded the “weird s*** of the week” approach, but I’m so glad “Fringe” has embraced its identity as a mythology-laden show.
3. Hilary and Joanna guest star on “Gossip Girl” (8 p.m. Central Mondays on The CW, returns Monday).
I would be completely done with The CW if “Gossip Girl” didn’t exist. Two big pieces of casting news make it even more appealing: Hilary Duff will play a successful movie star who becomes Vanessa’s college roommate; and Joanna Garcia, late of “Privileged,” will play Nate’s new girlfriend. It’ll be interesting to see how these actresses handle the “Gossip Girl” style.
4. Echo develops a personality on “Dollhouse” (8 p.m. Central Fridays on Fox, returns Sept. 25).
This show came about because Eliza Dushku didn’t like playing the same character every week, so Joss Whedon cast her as a doll, a blank slate that’s programmed with whatever personality a client desires. But maybe Dushku and Whedon realized that’s actually kind of boring — it’s character development that’s interesting — so Echo will start to fight off her treatments (a.k.a. mind-wipes). Also, in casting news, two Whedonverse vets will have guest roles. Summer Glau (“Firefly”) will play a Dollhouse employee and Alexis Denisof (“Angel”) will play a politician looking to expose the Dollhouse.
5. Cad Bane is his usual bad-a** self on “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (7 p.m. Central Fridays on Cartoon Network, returns Oct. 2).
OK, so not many fans joined me in my support of Ahsoka Tano, Anakin’s “oh by the way he has an apprentice” apprentice. But it’s OK if there were cool bounty hunters around before Boba Fett grew up, right? Cad Bane (no relation to Darth Bane — “Bane” is like “Johnson” in “Star Wars”-land), with his “Star Wars” equivalent of a cowboy hat, looks like he rode in from the desert to claim his bounty, and he’ll be back in the season premiere.
6. Jim and Pam get married and have a kid on “The Office” (8 p.m. Central Thursdays on NBC, returns Sept. 17).
With any other show, these plot developments would mean it’s jumping the shark. Indeed, any time you start talking about sitcom characters’ personal lives rather than what hijinks they’re getting into, it’s time to worry. But I gotta think “The Office” is better than that.
7. I have a reason to locate CBS on my dial thanks to “Medium” (8 p.m. Central Fridays on CBS, returns Sept. 25).
Finally, “Medium” joins the network it always belonged on in the first place — CBS, the procedural-laden channel that espouses the comforting notion that it’s OK if you don’t catch every episode. I just hope it doesn’t do the “Ghost Whisperer” thing and have Allison explaining her powers to someone in the middle of every hour.
What returning shows are you looking forward to this fall?
Comments
Clarification (so to speak) on “Something, Something, Something, Dark Side”:
TV.com reports that it will air on May 16.
Wikipedia (citing sources) reports that it will be released on DVD on Dec. 16.
I am guessing that it will air before it is released on DVD.
The May air date makes sense, because that would coincide with the 30th anniversary of “The Empire Strikes Back.” “Blue Harvest” aired in conjunction with the 30th anniversary of “Star Wars.”
Since this episode was pushed back from last season, perhaps the DVD information is out-of-date, and it will be released in December 2010.# Posted By John Hansen | 9/11/09 1:44 AM