So much TV, too little time! In the era of peak TV, viewers have to be choosier than ever when committing the slots on their DVR and debating the exhaustion of their precious eyeballs. Us Weekly has rounded up five new shows worth watching this fall to save some time … for more TV, of course!
Stumptown
It’s the ad everyone with a television has seen a million times during the past few months, but the program itself is due the airtime. The Marvel-ous Cobie Smulders stars as soldier-turned-private-investigator Dex Parios. The ensemble cast features a roster of familiar faces, including Jake Johnson (Grey McConnell), Michael Ealy (Detective Miles Hoffman) and Camryn Manheim (Lieutenant Cosgrove).
In addition to showing off the How I Met Your Mother alum’s scrappy side, the show already has a TV staple in the works. “If you were to see a love triangle, it would probably be more like an octagon,” Ealy told Us Weekly. “It’s going to be messy, it’s going to be complicated. It’s never going to be standard.” (ABC, Wednesdays at 10 p.m.)
Prodigal Son
Heebie-jeebies alert! The thriller not only delivers a satisfying twist in an era of television that struggles to surprise viewers, but it also lives up to its eerie premise. Michael Sheen (Dr. Martin Whitly) and Tom Payne (Malcolm Bright) play a father and son, respectively, with certain differences. The former is a serial killer, and the latter is an investigator hoping to use his dad’s mind to his advantage. Megaproducer Greg Berlanti can put another win in his column. (Fox, Mondays at 8 p.m.)
The Unicorn
Sitcoms make the list too. Walton Goggins (Wade Felton) leads the comedy centered around a rare type of man: single, over 40 and with a job. The widower and father gets back out there after his friends encourage him. Rob Corddry (Forrest), Michaela Watkins (Delia), Omar Benson Miller (Ben) and Maya Lynne Robinson (Michelle) shine as his costars. (CBS, Thursdays at 8:30 p.m.)
Evil
There are more scares in store if Evil has anything to say about it. From the creators of The Good Wife, Katja Herbers’ clinical psychologist (Dr. Kristen Bouchard) and Mike Colter’s priest-in-training (David Dacosta) team up to look into seemingly unexplainable supernatural occurrences. (CBS, Thursdays at 10 p.m.)
Emergence
The new Manifest? Most viewers love a show that sucks them in via a mystery to be untangled. Emergence gives that to its audience in the form of a child — with a noticeable resemblance to the main character — found by Allison Tolman’s police chief (Jo) after a plane crash. (ABC, Tuesdays at 10 p.m.)