Fall TV Roundup, Week 2

We’re making our way through September and the traditional Fall TV season is starting, of sorts. With the ongoing strike this Fall looks a little different. But what of the new shows is worth your time to check out? Let this weekly post be your guide as I review the pilot and second episode of new scripted series this Fall. Don’t see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks.

Tuesdays:
The Swarm, Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on The CW (Premiered September 12)
About: The CW was an early adopter of imported programs and has been using them to fill the Prime-Time lineup since the summer. This one is a globe-trotting adventure, mostly focused on Canada and England. It’s focused on the ocean, or rather the creatures of the ocean and their evolving relationship with man. Most of the first episode is about setting an ominous mood but it isn’t until the last act with get to the main show. This is about nature taking a deadly turn. The subject matter feels right up my alley. I liked some of the basics of set up and the production was solid. I’m curious to see where this goes. In a Fall with a dearth of options, this feels like something potentially intriguing.
Pilot Grade: C

Sunday:
The Gold, Streaming Sundays on Paramount+ (Premiered September 17)
About: This mini-series from England was originally slated to come out in the summer but pushed back to the Fall. The series is adapted from true events and centers around a robbery in London in the 1980s. The cast includes Jack Lowden, Sean Harris and Dominic Cooper, among those involved in the crime, and Hugh Bonneville and Charlotte Spencer among those hunting the robbers. The series is six episodes, each about an hour, that previously aired in England. Now it’s making its domestic debut. The first two episodes streamed Sunday with subsequent episodes airing weekly. It’s a strong cast but the first two episodes played out as a slow burn. Still, the premise is engaging, and this feels like an interesting enough prestige option during a slow period for content.
Pilot Grade: C+
Second Episode: C+

Streaming Series:
The Other Black Girl, Now Streaming on Hulu (Premiered September 13)
About: The latest from Hulu is a 10-episode half hour that seems ideally timed for the spooky season. It’s based on the novel from Zakiya Dalila Harris. It centers on Nella Rogers (Sinclair Daniels), an editorial assistant at Wagner Books. She is on the verge of a promotion after working hard to win the trust of her boss (Bellamy Young). When the company hires Hazel-May McCall (Ashleigh Murray), Nella is thrilled to have another woman of color as a co-worker. They become fast friends but soon cracks in the façade begin to show. When Nella finds an ominous note, she begins to wonder if Hazel-May is responsible. The tone of the show is dark and ominous at times. It has sort of a fatal attraction vibe at other times. The first two episodes build the world, the mystery and the sense of danger. I liked the ideas and the way it got put together. There’s some potential here, especially in a series that feels a bit different. And with 10 episodes all available, it’s a quick binge.
Pilot Grade: C+
Second Episode: C

Wilderness, Now Streaming on Prime Video (Premiered September 15)
About: Jenna Coleman and Oliver Jackson-Cohen take the lead in this new series about a British couple who come to America and hit a rough patch. After she discovers he’s been having an affair, he pitches an epic trip through the National Parks for them to mend their relationship. Based on the novel from B.E. Jones, while he thinks it’s a trip of healing, she has revenge on her mind. The moody first episode sets up the conflict and what becomes the central premise. The second episode deepens the action and widens the conflict, adding in the other woman (Ashley Benson). This is a six-episode limited series, the cast is solid, and the story is engaging. It’s a short binge commitment, with episodes running from 40 minutes to an hour. It’s a dark tale but you can’t help but be drawn in by Coleman in the lead role.
Pilot Grade: C+
Second Episode: C+