Summer TV Roundup, Week 10


We're in that bubble where we're about to transition to the Fall TV season, so new shows have slowed to a trickle. In these weekly posts I review the pilot and second episode of new scripted shows this summer. Don't see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks.

Wednesday Nights:
The A Word, Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on Sundance (Premiered July 13)
About: This latest series on Sundance comes from across the pond and focuses on a family dealing with the revelation their five-year-old son is autistic. The premise is fascinating, and it's timely. Autism is something more and more families are having to deal with, and the show attempts to show the ways parents can be in denial, try to control the situation, or get it wrong. But this show also wants to be a drama about the adults and their myriad of marital and familial issues. That's the part of the show that sort of takes it off the rails for me. I like the idea, but I haven't enjoyed the way the first two episodes of the series were put together. Others may feel different, but this feels like a missed opportunity to me.
Pilot Grade: C
Second Episode: C

Sunday Nights:
Vice Principals, Sundays at 10:30 p.m. on HBO (Premiered July 17)
About: This is the latest comedy from HBO, being paired on Sunday nights with "Ballers." It's a kind of outrageous story about a pair of vice principals (Walton Goggins and Danny McBride) who rebel when they're passed over for a new principal at their local high school. I like McBride and Goggins a lot, and I think both are tremendously talented. I like the idea of this show and their pairing in this show. But I don't like the show. The story feels like a bit too much for me, as is the general construction of the first two episodes. I don't buy into the characters and I don't see where this is all going. To me, despite the talent involved, this show is a bit of a disappointment.
Pilot Grade: C
Second Episode: C-

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