Fall TV Preview: My 5 (plus 1) Most Promising Picks

I've never been a big fan of Autumn. But this gray, drizzly season has one saving grace: the new fall TV schedule. And this year is no different. I'm most looking forward to seeing my favorite shows return - New Girl, Raising Hope, Bob's Burgers, The Middle, Big Bang Theory, Modern Family, 30 Rock, Parks and Rec, Community, Grimm, and Happy Endings to name a few (I have a lot of favorites). And this year, there are a few new shows that might - just might - get added to that list. Now, I'm not predicting these shows will earn big ratings, or that they'll even last more than a few episodes before getting the ax. They just look like the most fun of the fall premiers.

#1: The Mindy Project - Tuesdays, 9:30/8:30c, FOX
The Office's Mindy Kaling executive produces, writes and stars in this year's most promising new comedy. As an alumn of The Office, Mindy brings the perfect blend of awkward moments, desperate yearnings and ridiculous situations but she grounds it in a world many of us recognize (fleeting youth and missed opportunities). FOX has wisely scheduled the show to follow New Girl for an hour of girl-powered comedy. Premieres Sept. 25

#2: Arrow - Debuts October 10, 8/9c, CW
The preview for this show looks better than half the superhero movies that come out on the big screen, but since the CW has yet to put it on their regular fall schedule, I'm left questioning their confidence in the series. Of course, if this show is as good as its preview promises, it will earn the distinction of being the first CW series that I watch with any regularity.

#3: The New Normal - Tuesdays, 10/9c, NBC
Glee creator Ryan Murphy has put together a stellar cast in what could be the most touching comedy this fall. Andrew Rannells (The Book of Mormon), Justin Bartha (The Hangover) are a young gay couple looking to start a family, but the conflicts (thankfully) are born from the usual challenges of personality and family dynamics - not their sexuality. It also stars the surprisingly caustic and funny NeNe Leakes (Real Housewives of Atlanta) and the always welcome Ellen Barkin. Premieres Sept. 10

#4: Partners - Mondays, 8:30/7:30c, CBS
There aren't many CBS comedy's that I like, but this one comes from Will and Grace creators David Kohan and Max Mutchnick. It stars Michael Urie (Ugly Betty, David Krumholtz (Numbers) as best friends (one gay and one straight) and the challenges they face when they both find romantic partners. I won't lie, seeing "Superman" Brandon Routh in a gay role (as Michael's boyfriend), doesn't hurt either. Premieres Sept. 24.

#5: Animal Practice - Wednesdays, 8/9c, NBC
I'm not completely sold on this comedy...yet. It has a truly silly premise and the leads come off as a little dull. But, it has a high-fiving monkey so, I'm in. Premieres Sept. 26

+1: Elementary - Thursdays, 10/9c, CBS
I always get nervous when anyone tries to modernize Sherlock Holmes. And no one - I mean no one - is going to do it better than BBC's outstanding Sherlock (from Masterpiece Mystery). Anyway, this CBS procedural (again?) has little in common with the Arthur Conan Doyle mysteries beyond the names of the main characters. Still, the early buzz is positive and it has a strong preview, so I'll give it a few episodes at least. Another plus, it stars Jonny Lee Miller, who was outstanding in the short-lived (but wonderful) Eli Stone. Premieres Sept. 27

"Hollywood Treasure" is My Kind of Treasure

Would you (if you could) pay $2 million for Dorothy's ruby slippers? I don't mean any pair. I mean the pair worn by Judy Garland for the close up shot when Dorothy clicked her heals together three times. What if you owned the Panaflex camera that filmed Star Wars - would you sell it? These are the questions that are asked - and answered - on Hollywood Treasure - a show that is right up my alley.

This series, now in its second season on Syfy, follows Joe Maddalena, owner of Profiles in History, a Hollywood auction house and HUGE movie buff as he and his team crisscross the country in search of new and rare pieces of movie memorabilia.

Their finds are truly remarkable. On a recent episode, they found a one-of-a-kind Yoda rehearsal puppet from the original Star Wars auctioned and sold it at auction for over $22,000. In the same episode they found and curated the (self-driving!) original Bumblebee Camero from the first Transformers movie, Katniss' Mockingjay pin from The Hunger Games and a ccreen-used puzzle box from the Hellraiser movies.

Much of the excitement is seeing the team negotiate for the items and then seeing how much they go for at auction. But the real joy (for me) is to simply see these incredibly rare items and knowing that they are stored and cared for by true movie buffs.

Occasionally, Joe has collectors and even stars share items from their collection. His friend, Sean Astin brought by Samwise Gamgee's knapsack (complete with jangling pots and pans) from The Lord of the Rings trilogy and the helmet he wore in the movie Rudy. Sean's helmet had been sitting in his garage for 20 years and was showing signs of damage. As a favor, Joe restored the helmet and prepared a presentation case for it so Sean could enjoy it for many more years.

One couple Joe visited has the most amazing private Sci-Fi and fantasy movie memorabilia collection (outside of Paul Allen) that I've seen. They owned literally hundreds of items including Christopher Reeve's original Superman costume, Picards captain's chair from Star Trek: The Next Generation, Gene Wilder's signature "Willy Wonka" costume, Cylon warrior and Viper flight costumes from the original Battlestar Gallactica. The couple hired Joe to place all the items into auction. It's a collection worth millions and it's all for sale.

So, want to get in on the action, er, auction? This incredible collection goes up for auction in July. You can learn about the upcoming auction here and even sign up to bid online!

As fun as it would be to own even a small piece of some of these beloved films, I'll have to be content seeing them on TV. And thanks to Hollywood Treasure, that is now possible.

New episodes air Tuesdays, 10/9c on Syfy.

Networks Find Magic in Fantasy Genre

In books, the fantasy genre is one that can immerse you in a wondrous world limited only by the imagination of the author (and your ability to suspend disbelief). But it’s also a genre that is notoriously difficult to believably translate into films and television. But thanks to box office hits like Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, and cable series Game of Thrones, Spartacus and True Blood, networks are dipping their toes the fantasy genre – and finding success.

The fairytale characters inhabiting Storybrooke, Maine
have forgotten their true identities.

The most surprising of these is ABC’s Once Upon A Time. It’s hard to imagine network executives green-lighting an idea after hearing the pitch, “Snow White, Red Riding Hood, Prince Charming and a whole slew of fairytale characters are transported to a little town in Maine where only the Evil Queen and Rumpelstilskin know their true identities.” The show cleverly exposes the parallel worlds of the “real” storybook land (where magic is common and true love conquers all) and our world (where love is messy and the bad guy is usually a politician). The key to solving the series’ main mystery is a little boy, Henry, who knows the truth and is desperately trying to get the town’s new sheriff to believe him. Of course, Henry is the boy that the sheriff gave up for adoption years ago (he’s now the adopted son of the Mayor/Evil Queen) and the sheriff is really the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming who was sent to this world in an attempt to escape that curse that doomed them all. As you can guess, the show is really a nighttime soap dressed in a fairytale costume. And as cloying and silly as it sounds, somehow, it works.

Detective Nick Burkhard and his partner, Hank Griffin investigate
supernatural crimes and mysteries in Portland, Oregon.

As fun as Once Upon A Time is, NBC’s Grimm is even better. Grimm is part cop show, part X Files (before it got lame) and part horror story. In this reimagining of Grimm’s Fairytales, Detective Nick Burkhardt is the latest in a long line of Grimms – this world’s monster hunters. Orphaned at an early age, and a upstanding cop, Nick was told of his true heritage by his aunt just before she died. She also left him a trailer full of books and some kick-ass medieval weapons. Like all good cop shows, on Grimm, not every “monster” is bad and not every “good guy” is really good. This is a lesson that both Nick and the community of monsters are learning.

Each episode is a stand-alone “monster of the week” mystery with a season-long arc about the forces trying to wipe out the Grimm. To help in his quest, Nick has two crime-fighting partners. One is his police partner Hank, who has no idea that some of the criminals they’re searching for are really witches, dragons or demons in human form (only Grimms and other creatures can see their true shapes). His other partner is Monro,e a Blutbad (werewolf) who reluctantly (at first) gives Nick the inside track into the otherworldly underworld. The show is in turns exciting, funny and, frequently, genuinely scary.

This first season of both Once Upon A Time and Grimm are quickly coming to a close, but you can catch up online, on iTunes or via On-Demand.

Once Upon A Time: Saturdays, 8/7c on ABC

Grimm: Fridays, 9/8c on NBC

TV Tour: New York City

It should come as no surprise to anyone who knows me that I view every new experience through the lens of television. Recognizing locations from favorite TV shows and movies is always foremost on my mind in any new city. So on my first trip to New York City, I wasn't really visiting "The Big Apple," I was visiting the sets for Ugly Betty, How I Met Your Mother, Flight of the Conchords, Sex and the City, 30 Rock, Saturday Night Live, Mad Men, the list goes on and on...

For instance, my hotel room had a spectacular view of "that building from King Kong." I hear it's actually called The Empire State Building, but that didn't stop me from peering at the top and picturing a 40-foot tall ape there.

Stopping at Rockefeller Center had me scanning the crowds for a glimpse of Tina Fey. My walk through Central Park brought to mind scenes from The Clock, Six Degrees of Separation and Green Card. And when I saw the statue of a sled dog there, I knew at once that it was Balto from the 1995 animated film.

Of course, no trip to NYC would be complete without stopping at at FAO Schwarts to see the oversized piano from the movie, Big (it does not disappoint) and the New York Public Library from Ghost Busters. And while Time Square was the electric, energetic and bustling location you'd expect, I got excited because I knew that not long ago, Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin were here ringing in the New Year.

The one exception was Grand Central Station. Sure it was featured in Madagascar, Superman: The Movie,  Men in Black and I Am Legend. But the first thing I thought when I saw it? Oh my God, it looks just like the model from Legoland!

Next time, I need to visit that store from Breakfast at Tiffany's and that museum from Night at the Museum.

Tabatha Takes Over (My Life)

I admit it. I'm totally obsessed with Tabatha Coffey – that bossy, brassy and bitchy star of Bravo TV's Tabatha Takes Over. I never miss a new episode. And when there's a marathon on, well, the rest of the world will just have to wait.

Now in its fourth season, the reality show (formerly called Tabatha's Salon Takeover) has expanded its format, so now Tabatha not only helps troubled hair salons, she's using the harsh truth and her no-BS attitude to help bars, cafés and doggie daycares too.

In each episode, Tabatha "takes over" a struggling business for one week where she assesses the management, staff and environment before making her recommendations to reverse the business's decline. This often means helping the owners re-discover their passion for their business, weeding out bad employees and giving the business a design makeover. Her direct style and sharp tongue often make her advice a bitter pill to swallow, but the owners that listen invariably end up with a stronger, happier and more profitable business.

What I love about Tabatha (a breakout star from the first season of Bravo's Sheer Genius) is her stone-cold honesty when discussing the issues that are leading to a business's decline. She never holds back. And as far as I can see, she's never wrong. She gets called a bitch on her own show a lot. Does she care? Not a lick. Because she knows the truth sometimes hurts, but somebody's got to have the nerve to say it. The smart people see that she really is trying to build them up and make them stronger, so most folks learn to appreciate her style in short order. But business owners that fail to take her advice (and there are some) do so at their own peril. Those stories usually end with employees walk outs, fewer customers or even closed businesses.

After she's made her final recommendations, Tabatha hands the keys back and heads off to her next adventure. But lest the the owner and the employees fall back into their old ways, Tabatha returns after six weeks to make sure they're still walking the walk. It's nice to see that almost all are happier and more profitable than ever.

Now, if only we could get her to take over a few city councils or even congress. Then we'd really see some action.

New episodes of Tabatha Takes Over air on Bravo TV, Tuesdays at 10/9c.