Rueben's Ramblings

The fall TV season is nearly upon us and it is time to take a look at what the major networks have in store for us.

Over the course of this week, I will focus on each individual night of programming; specifically the new and returning dramas that will debut or air their season premieres when the fall TV season gets started.

The following is the Thursday night schedule (courtesy of TV Line):

NOTE: You can double click on the image above to see a larger size of the Monday night chart.

The majority of the network dramas will either premiere or debut on September 25 with Grey’s Anatomy back for its 11th season and Scandal will be back for its fourth season. The new drama How to Get Away With Murder will debut while Bones will be back for its 10th season. Also, Parenthood will be back for its final sixth season.

Grey’s Anatomy will be back for its 11th season and will be a Meredith-centric (series lead Ellen Pompeo) season because she has lost her ‘person’ – Christina (former series regular Sandra Oh) left at the end of last season – and her husband Derek (series regular Patrick Dempsey) wants to move on to someplace else. Supposedly the new season will pick up right where the last season left off. And, there just might be flashback periods to the younger days of Drs. Ellis Grey, Meredith’s mother and Richard Webber. It would appear that Callie (series regular Sara Ramirez) and Arizona (series regular Jessica Capshaw) will continue to have troubles. What is also known is that Dr. Shane Ross (Gaius Charles) and Dr. Leah Murphy (Tessa Ferrer) will not be back for the new season, but the rest of the remaining cast will be back. Also, Caterina Scorsone, who plays Dr. Amelia Shepherd, one of Derek’s sisters, has joined the show as series regular. Veteran actress Geena Davis will also have a major guest arc playing a surgeon, and Annet Mahendru (The Americans) will also guest star.

Scandal, of course, saw Olivia Pope (series lead Kerry Washington) leaving Washington with Jake Ballard (series regular Scott Foley) in tow at the end of last season. The question, as the new season starts, will be “where on Earth is Olivia Pope?” And, President Fitzgerald Grant (series regular Tony Goldwyn) and his family will be reeling with the unexpected death of his son, which was perpetuated by Olivia’s father (recurring guest star Joe Morton). It is known that Harrison Wright (Columbus Short) will not be back on the show and there will be a time jump of about two-and-a-half months, right in time for the election. Guest stars for this new season will include Matthew Del Negro (Teen Wolf), Mary McCormack (In Plain Sight) and Josh Randall (Ed) and Portia de Rossi (Ally McBeal and Arrested Development).

How to Get Away With Murder will focus on brilliant, charismatic and seductive Professor Annalise Keating (Viola Davis from The Help), who gets entangled with four law students from her class, “How to Get Away with Murder”. Little do the students know that they will have to apply what they learned to real life. The cast includes Aja Naomi King (Emily Owens, M.D.), Jack Falahee (Twisted), Katie Findlay (The Killing and The Carrie Diaries), Tom Verica (American Dream), Liza Weil (Gilmore Girls and Scandal), Charlie Weber (Buffy, the Vampire Slayer), Billy Brown (Hostages and Sons of Anarchy), Matt McGorry (Orange is the New Black), Latino star Karla Souza (Instructions Not Included) and Alfred Enoch (the Harry Potter franchise). Guest stars will include Alysia Reiner (Orange is the New Black), Ana Ortiz (Devious Maids and Ugly Betty)

Last season of Bones found Booth (series lead David Boreanaz) and Brennan’s (series lead Emily Deschanel) home riddled with gunfire and Booth being framed and falsely accused of murdering three federal agents, which found him being sentenced to jail. This new season will pick up right where the finale left off, albeit with a four month time jump, with huge ramifications, both physically and emotionally. Brennan will, of course, be trying to find a way to prove Booth’s innocence along with the squints. The way to do that is to finish what Booth started by uncovering who is behind the conspiracy at the FBI. Also at some point in the season, there just might be a chance for Booth and Brennan to have another child. John Boyd (24) will have a recurring role, playing James Aubrey, a junior FBI agent working under Booth, which means Brennan and the squints must find a way to set him free.

Parenthood will be back for its sixth and final season and it is expected that storylines affecting the Braverman family will be tied up. It is possible that viewers will see the loss of family matriarch or patriarch, Zeek (series regular Craig T. Nelson) or Camille (series regular Bonnie Bedelia [but that has not been confirmed]. Since the show has focused on so many hard-hitting subjects – cancer, failed marriages, affairs, heartbreak and the like – it will be interesting to see what comes next for the large Braverman family.

Here is a preview for the final season of Parenthood.

The new drama Gracepoint (the US adaptation of the British mini-series Broadchurch) will debut on October 2 while that same night The Vampire Diaries will be back for its sixth season and the second season of Reign will return too.

Gracepoint will focus on what happens when a young boy is found dead on an idyllic beach in the small northern California seaside town of Gracepoint. A major police investigation is launched with Detective Emmett Carver (David Tennant from Broadchurch and Doctor Who) in charge. He just arrived in Gracepoint to fill a high position in the town’s police force that was previously promised to Detective Ellie Miller (Anna Gunn from Breaking Bad). Miller has to put aside resentment and work the case with her prickly new boss. The cast includes Josh Hamilton (American Horror Story), newcomer Jack Irvine, Michael Pena (End of Watch), Virginia Kull (Boardwalk Empire), newcomer Madalyn Horcher, Kendrick Sampson (The Vampire Diaries), veteran actor Nick Nolte, Kevin Rankin (Justified), Sarah-Jane Potts (Kinky Boots), Stephen Louis Grush (Lucky 7), Kevin Zegers (Transamerica), Jessica Lucas (Cloverfield) and veteran actress Jacki Weaver.

The Vampire Diaries had a massive season finale with Mystic Falls being overrun with Travelers, the group bent on stripping the town of all its magic; but Elena (series lead Nina Dobrev), Damon (series lead Ian Somerhalder) and Bonnie (series regular Kat Graham) coming up with a dangerous plan to destroy them. That didn’t work out, though, ending with Damon and Bonnie being left on The Other Side as the supernatural world crumbled with them vanishing in a white light. The new season will pick up a couple months later with everyone dealing with the loss; namely with Stefan (series lead Paul Wesley) leaving the town to go soul searching, Elena resorting to witchy drugs in her attempt to hallucinate Damon and Jeremy (series regular Steven R. McQueen) drinking alone in the woods. Meanwhile, a mysterious new community watch program will come to the town. Matt Davis will be back as Alaric, who now has a teaching job at the local university; and Jodi Lyn O’Keefe (Nash Bridges and Hit the Floor) and Colin Ferguson (Eureka and Haven) will guest star.

The second season of Reign will see the plague spread, Francis (series lead Toby Regbo) will find Lola (series regular Anna Popplewell) and his newborn son and Bash (series lead Torrance Coombs) knocking down doors to save his wife Kenna (series regular Caitlin Stasey). Of course, Francis and Mary (series lead Adelaide Kane) will face countless obstacles; and the former will have a great deal of guilt hanging over his head. The dynamic between Mary and Catherine (series regular Megan Follows) will remain incredibly tense. Jonathan Keltz has been promoted to series regular and that will allow for an interesting “quadrangle” between he and Greer (series regular Celina Sinden) and her betrothed Lord Castleroy (recurring guest star Michael Therriault) and Castleroy’s daughter Yvette (guest star Sarah Winter). Oh, and don’t rule out seeing Clarissa (recurring guest star Katie Boland) again. Guest stars this season will be Craig Parker (Spartacus and Legend of the Seeker) and British actress Rose Williams.

Lastly, Elementary will be back for its third season on October 30.

Season three of Elementary will experience an eight-month time jump, will find Joan (series lead Lucy Liu) in her own apartment, a steady boyfriend and a solo P.I. gig; then Sherlock (series lead Jonny Lee Miller) returns to the States after working with MI6. And that’s not all: he will be accompanied by a “new and decidedly different protégé named Kitty. Needless to say, the two women in Sherlock’s life will not get off to a good start with each other. Among the guest stars will be Gina Gershon (Rescue Me), British actress Ophelia Lovibond (the mini-series Titanic: Blood and Steel), Raza Jaffrey (Smash), Sonya Walger (Lost), Zak Orth (Revolution), Mamie Gummer (Off the Map and Emily Owens, M.D.) and Jacob Pitts (Justified).

NOTE: There currently is not a trailer for the third season of Elementary, which is most likely due to the later start for the new season.

Mark your calendars!

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The fall TV season is nearly upon us and it is time to take a look at what the major networks have in store for us.

Over the course of this week, I will focus on each individual night of programming; specifically the new and returning dramas that will debut or air their season premieres when the fall TV season gets started.

The following is the Wednesday night schedule (courtesy of TV Line):

NOTE: You can double click on the image above to see a larger size of the Monday night chart.

The drama Red Band Society will debut on September 17 and there will be a sneak peek of the new drama The Mysteries of Laura on September 17 as well.

Red Band Society is based on the award-winning Spanish series Polseres Vermelles and takes a provocative, unconventional and, at times, comic look at the lives of patients in the pediatric ward of Ocean Park Hospital in Los Angeles. The cast includes Oscar winner Octavia Spencer (The Help) as Nurse Jackson, a caregiver with a take-no-prisoners approach; Dave Annable (Brothers & Sisters) as Dr. Jack McAndrew, the country’s top pediatric surgeon and newcomer Rebecca Rittenhouse as gullible and naïve Nurse Brittany Dobler. The patients will be played by Griffin Gluck (Private Practice), a 12-old coma patient (and narrator of the series); Nolan Sotillo (Prom) as Jordi Palacios, the new kid at the hospital; Charlie Rowe (Neverland) as Leo Roth, the leader of the patients; Astro (The X Factor), as Dash Hosney, the rebel among the group who is dealing with cystic fibrosis; Ciara Bravo (Big Time Rush) as Emma Chota, who is coping with an eating disorder and Zoe Levin (The Way Way Back) as Kara Souders, a mean girl cheerleader.

The Mysteries of Laura is an adaptation of the Spanish series Los misterios de Laura that will star Debra Messing (Will & Grace) as Laura Diamond, a brilliant NYPD homicide detective who balances her day job with a crazy family life that includes two unruly twin boys and a soon-to-be ex-husband (Josh Lucas) – also a cop – who just can’t seem to sign the divorce papers. Between cleaning up after her boys and cleaning up the streets, she’d be the first to admit she has her “hot mess” moments. The cast includes Janina Gavankar (Arrow and True Blood) and Laz Alonso (Breakout Kings).

The 16th season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, the second season of Chicago P.D. and Nashville will start its third season all on September 24.

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit will return for a 16th season finding Sergeant Olivia Benson (series lead Mariska Hargitay) juggling work, a new acting commander Dominick “Sonny” Carisi (Peter Scanavion from Person of Interest and The Blacklist) and her new life as a foster mother to baby Noah. Detective Nick Amaro (series regular Danny Pino) will be undercover and this work will involve people connected to Noah’s mother, putting the baby in danger. He will also deal with a long-distance separation from his daughter; and viewers just might meet Rollins’ (series regular Kelli Giddish) mom. Peter Gallagher (Covert Affairs and The O.C.) will have a recurring role.

The season finale of Chicago P.D. found tech and surveillance expert Detective Sheldon Jin (Archie Kao) found dead after being confronted by Sergeant Hank Voight (series lead Jason Beghe) about his snooping into Voight for internal affairs. His death and Voight’s possible connection to it, will divide the unit. Meanwhile, Detective Erin Lindsay (series regular Sophia Bush) and Severide (Taylor Kinney from Chicago Fire) are “going strong” while Officer Kim Burgess (series regular Marina Squerciati) and Office Adam Ruzek (series regular Patrick Flueger) are keeping their romance quite to protect her shot at an Intelligence job. Meanwhile, Detective Antonio Dawson (series regular Jon Seda) will be dealing with the aftermath of his wife leaving and taking their children with her. Actress Markie Post (Night Court) will guest star in multiple episodes of the show, playing Bunny, Lindsay’s mom, a bartender in a dive bar who has been estranged from her daughter.

Nashville will return for season three with Rayna James (series lead Connie Britton) making a decision between old flame Deacon Claybourne (series regular Charles Esten) and new love Luke Wheeler (recurring guest star Will Chase). And Juliette Barnes (series lead Hayden Panettiere) will find out she’s pregnant [writing in the actress’ real life pregnancy). Fans can also expect the departure of Tandy Hampton (recurring guest star Judith Hoag), Rayna’s sister, who will leave for San Francisco to work with a West Coast non-profit organization. Guest stars this season will include Derek Hough (Dancing with the Stars), Alexa Vega (The Tomorrow People and the Spy Kids franchise) and Tony Award winner Laura Benanti (Royal Pains).

Here is a look at season three of Nashville via ABC.

Season 10 of Criminal Minds and the debut of Stalker will air on October 1.

Criminal Minds will find the entire main cast returning for its tenth season except for Alex Blake (Jeanne Tripplehorn), who left the show last season. The team will have a new member, Kate Callahan (Jennifer Love Hewitt from Ghost Whisperer and The Client List), a former undercover FBI agent. And fans will possibly find out who was the sender of Hotch’s (series lead Thomas Gibson) text message. An early episode will see the team being called to the site of “one of the largest disasters with mass casualities they’ve seen in their 10-year history.” Guest stars this season will include C.S. Lee (Dexter), Alicia Coppola (Jericho) and Kerr Smith (Dawson’s Creek and The Fosters).

Stalker will find Maggie Q (Nikita) and Dylan McDermott (Hostages and American Horror Story) starring as detectives who investigate stalking incidents, including voyeurism, cyber harassment and romantic fixation, for the Threat Assessment Unit of the Los Angeles Police Department. The cast includes Mariana Klaveno (Devious Maids and True Blood) and Elizabeth Rohm (Law & Order). Warren Kole (Common Law and The Following) will have a recurring role in the series.

The third season of Arrow will start on October 8 and The 100 will be back with its second season on October 22.

Arrow will come back for its third season with Arrow (series lead Stephen Amell) now a hero to the citizens of Starling City. Crime is down and people feel safe, and Captain Lance (series regular Paul Blackthorne) calls off the Anti-Vigilante Task Force. Oliver now believes he can finally have a private life, asking Felicity (series regular Emily Bett Rickards) out on a date; but a deadly villain reappears forcing him to don the hood once again. There will also be flashbacks to Oliver off the island under the supervision of Amanda Waller (recurring guest star Cynthia Addai-Robinson); and Malcolm Merlyn (series regular John Barrowman) will begin training his daughter (series regular Willa Holland) to be so much more than she ever was before. Oh, and Ra’s al Ghul will make an appearance and there will be a Felicity-centric flashback too. There will be a lot of guest stars this season, including Matt Ward (Hellcats), Rila Fukushima (Wolverine), Amy Gumenick (Supernatural), Nolan Funk (Glee and Awkward), David Cubitt (Medium), Charlotte Ross (NYPD Blue), J.R. Ramirez (Emily Owens, MD), Brandon Routh (Superman Returns and Chuck), Austin Butler (The Carrie Diaries and Switched at Birth) and Peter Stormare (Prison Break and The Blacklist).

The 100 will return to explain the aftermath of the fight between the Grounders and the remaining members of the 100 who woke up in sterile white rooms (they are with the Mountain Men on Mount Weather), what was the fate of Finn (series regular Thomas McDonnell) and Bellamy (Bob Morley) and what happens for the surviving members of the Ark who made it to Earth. Reunions will be a key storyline this season; and viewers will learn about other groups on Earth and see an even darker season than last (which saying a lot). Veteran actor Raymond J. Barry (Justified) will have a recurring role.

Here is a recap video of season one of The 100.

Mark your calendars!

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The fall TV season is nearly upon us and it is time to take a look at what the major networks have in store for us.

Over the course of this week, I will focus on each individual night of programming; specifically the new and returning dramas that will debut or air their season premieres when the fall TV season gets started.

The following is the Tuesday night schedule (courtesy of TV Line):

NOTE: You can double click on the image above to see a larger size of the Monday night chart.

The majority of the Tuesday night dramas will either air their season premieres or their series debuts on September 23. NCIS will return for its 12th season while Person of Interest will return for its 4th season. Chicago Fire will be back for its 3rd season and Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will be back for its second season. Also, the new dramas NCIS: New Orleans and Forever will debut.

The number one TV drama will continue in its procedural pattern with the NCIS team solving countless military related cases; and for once not having a tumultuous cliffhanger ending. The premiere episode will find Gibbs (series lead Mark Harmon) and McGee (Sean Murray) heading to Russia to bring a computer engineer back to the USA. Things, of course, go awry. Also on tap this season is putting a face to the long-MIA Mrs. Gibbs No. 2 and unveiling another never-seen Gibbs spouse. And, the storyline of McGee’s dad will be revisited at some point; we will meet Bishop’s (series regular Emily Wickersham) husband and CGIS Agent Borin (recurring guest star Diane Neal) will return. Guest stars this season will include Stephanie Jacobsen (Melrose Place), as a new love interest for Tony, Leslie Hope (24 and Revolution) will be back as the current SecNav and Adam Campbell (Mixology and Touch) will play Ducky in a flashback episode.

Person of Interest ended last season with Samaritan going online and the team heading off in separate directions. As the new season starts, it is about six weeks after Samartian went online with Root (series regular Amy Acker) and Shaw (series regular Sarah Shahi) working as, of all things, cosmetics counter girls in their new identities while it appears that Reese (series lead Jim Caviezel) is now a cop and Harold (series lead Michael Emerson) is a college professor (of sorts). Meanwhile, Detective Fusco (series regular Kevin Chapman) will become a useful asset in a different aspect than before because Samaritan is not aware he worked with the rest of the team. This season will, assuredly, see a battle of the Machine versus Samaritan with the team trying to get back to work together. Jason Ritter (Parenthood), Monique Curnen (Lie to Me) and Cara Buono (Mad Men) will guest star this season.

The finale of Chicago Fire found nearly the entire cast of characters inside a burning building that exploded. The aftermath of that explosion will have ramifications on everyone and not everyone will make it out. Fans can expect a 1 ½ month jump between the building explosion and the ramifications of that horrible incident. This catastrophe will be devastating for Chief Boden (series regular Eamonn Walker), who just got married, has a baby on the way and then this tragedy strikes. What is known is that Severide (series lead Taylor Kinney) will survive, but he will deal with the consequences in a possible self-destructive manner. And the engagement of Gabby (series regular Monica Raymund) and Casey (series lead Jesse Spencer) “is still on”.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ended its debut season with the agency being dismantled from within by Hydra, and the team learning that Grant Ward (series regular Brett Dalton) was actually working for Hydra all along. Ward and Hydra will not be gone this season, with the former discovering just what he wants out of life since he’s been a follower and has been told what to do for so long. There will also be a small time jump at the start of this season with Coulson (series lead Clark Gregg) working to rebuild SHIELD as the new director. But there is the little problem of the alien serum affecting his brain. Among the guest stars this season will be Henry Simmons (Ravenswood and NYPD Blue), Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks), Simon Kassianides (Nikita), Brian Patrick Wade (Teen Wolf), Adrianne Palicki (Friday Night Lights), British actor Nick Blood (The Bletchley Circle) and Lucy Lawless (Spartacus). And, B.J. Britt, who was seen for much of the latter part of the debut season, will be around a lot too. Also, Hayley Atwell will appear as Agent Carter in an early episode, helping to set up the debut of the new series.

NCIS: New Orleans is yet another spin-off series from the franchise, focusing on the local field office in The Big Easy. Leading the team is Special Agent Dwayne Pride (aka King) [Scott Bakula from Quantum Leap); and by his side are Special Agent Christopher LaSalle (Lucas Black from Fast & the Furious Tokyo Drift), Special Agent Meredith Brody (Zoe McLellan from Dirty Sexy Money), Dr. Loretta Wade (CCH Pounder from Warehouse 13) and Rob Kerkovich (Chasing Life) as Sebastian Lund, a forensic scientist. Washington may happen bigger cases, but the NOLA field office goes from Pensacola all the way around the Gulf to Texas so the cases will not just be centered The Big Easy. Viewers can, of course, expect crossovers between the mothership series and NCIS:NOLA.

Forever focuses on Doctor Henry Morgan (Ioan Gruffudd from Ringer and the Fantastic Four franchise), who is New York City’s star medical examiner. But he has a secret. He doesn’t just study the dead to solve criminal cases, he does it to solve his own 200-year old mystery, as he is immortal. The cast includes Alana De La Garza (Law & Order) as Detective Jo Martinez; Judd Hirsh (Taxi) as Abe, Henry’s best friend and confident (and the only person who knows Henry’s secret) and Lorraine Toussaint (Orange Is the New Black) as Lt. Joanna Reece.

And then on October 7, The Flash will debut on The CW followed by Supernatural starting its 10th season.

The Flash is a spin-off from Arrow that will focus on Central City CSI Investigator Barry Allen (series lead Grant Gustin from Glee), who is struck by lightning during an accident when a cutting edge particle accelerator at S.T.A.R. Labs exploded. Nine months later, Barry awakens from a coma, learning that he has developed superhuman speed. He ends up working with disgraced physicist Harrison Wells (series regular Tom Cavanagh from Ed) and his team members Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker from Necessary Roughness) and Cisco Ramon (Carlos Valdes from Broadway’s Once) to determine just how far his new-found powers can go. The cast also includes Jesse L. Martin (Law & Order), Candice Patton (The Game) and Rick Cosnett (The Vampire Diaries). Fans can expect crossovers from Arrow as well as guest appearances by Greg Finley (Star-Crossed and The Secret Life of the American Teenager), Clancy Brown (Sleepy Hollow), Kelly Frye (Rake), Wentworth Miller (Prison Break), William Sadler (Roswell), Robbie Amell (The Tomorrow People) and Robert Knepper (Prison Break) will reprise his Arrow role of the Clock King.

Supernatural opens its 10th season this fall coming off a tumultuous year where the Winchester brothers Sam (series lead Jared Padalecki) and Dean (series lead Jensen Ackles) were not only defeated by Metatron (recurring guest star Curtis Armstrong) but Dean’s life was also taken by the fallen angel. However, Crowley (series regular Mark Sheppard) brought Dean back using the Mark of Cain’s weapon, but Dean is now a demon. Sam will spend the early part of the season searching for his brother while Castiel (series regular Misha Collins) will be dealing with the aftermath of Metatron’s aborted plot to take over heaven and struggling with how to get his angelic grace back. Contained within the new season will be the series’ 200th episode that will be music-based, but isn’t exactly being called a musical episode. Guest stars will include Kim Rhodes, returning as Sheriff Mills, Brianna Buckmaster back as Sheriff Donna Hanscum and a surprise returning character that has yet to be revealed. Also, Scottish actress Ruth Connell will recur as a mysterious old-school witch named Rowena.

Don’t miss out!

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The fall TV season is nearly upon us and it is time to take a look at what the major networks have in store for us.

Over the course of this coming week, I will focus on each individual night of programming; specifically the new and returning dramas that will debut or air their season premieres when the fall TV season gets started.

The following is the Monday night schedule (courtesy of TV Line):

NOTE: You can double click on the image above to see a larger size of the Monday night chart.

The majority of the Monday night dramas will either debut or air their season premiere on September 22. Sleepy Hollow and The Blacklist will both be back for their second seasons while the new dramas Gotham and Scorpion will air their debut episodes.

Sleepy Hollow will pick up right where the season one finale ended with Ichabod (series lead Tom Mison) buried alive, Abbie (series lead Nicole Beharie) trapped in purgatory, Katrina (series regular Katia Winter) kidnapped by the Headless Horseman, Captain Frank Irving (series regular Orlando Jones) behind bars for a murder he did not commit and Abbie’s sister Jenny (new series regular Lyndie Greenwood) among the wreckage of a horrific car crash. All of these events are, in great part, due to Henry Parish (new series regular John Noble), who is actually Ichabod and Katrina’s son and the Horseman of War. There will be a ‘slew of netherworld evils’ for the team to combat as well as guest stars including Matt Barr (Hellcats), Sakina Jaffrey (House of Cards), Timothy Busfield (thirtysomething), Heather Lind (Turn) and Aunjanue Ellis (NCIS: Los Angeles).

The Blacklist will pick up a few months after the events in the season one finale with Berlin (recurring guest star Peter Stormare) back “in full force” and more answers about who this man is and why he is adamant about destroying Red (series lead James Spader) will be revealed. The cases of the week will still happen, but they will take on an international scope, featuring blacklisters that are “delicious, strange and super-dark oddballs”. And, hopefully we will learn if Cooper (series regular Harry Lennix) will survive and if Elizabeth’s (series lead Megan Boone) husband Tom (series regular Ryan Eggold) survived; and we will probably see a darker side of Ressler (series regular Diego Klattenhoff). This season will find Paul Reubens (aka Pee-wee Herman), Lee Tergeson (The Americans), Mary-Louise Parker (Weeds), Krysten Ritter (Veronica Mars) and Norm Lewis (Scandal and currently in Boardway’s Phantom of the Opera) all guest starring.

The new FOX drama Gotham will take a look at the early years of Commissioner Gordon when he was just Detective James Gordon (series lead Ben McKenzie from Southland and The O.C.) – on the job for only two weeks. The cast includes Erin Richard (Open Grave) as Barbara Kean, Gordon’s fiancée; Donal Logue (Terriers and Vikings) as Harvey Bullock, Gordon’s partner; David Mazouz (Touch) as young Bruce Wayne; Jada Pinkett Smith (The Matrix franchise) as gang boss Fish Mooney; newcomer Camren Bicondova as Selina Kyle (the future Catwoman); Robin Lord Taylor (The Walking Dead) as Oswald Cobblepot (soon to be The Penguin) and Sean Pertwee (Elementary) as Wayne butler Alfred Pennyworth.

The new CBS drama Scorpion is inspired by a true story about eccentric genius Walter O’Brien (Elyes Gabel from Body of Proof) and his team of brilliant misfits who comprise the last line of defense against complex, high-tech threats of the modern age. The other members of Walter’s team includes Eddie Kaye Thomas (the American Pie franchise) as Toby Curtis, an expert behaviorist; Jadyn Wong (Being Erica), as Happy Quinn, a mechanical prodigy and Ari Stidham (Huge), as Sylvester Dodd, a statistics guru. The cast includes Robert Patrick (The Unit), as federal agent Cabe Gallo and Katharine McPhee (Smash) as Paige Dineen, a waitress who helps translate the world for the team and who has a young, gifted son.

Then on September 29, Castle and NCIS: Los Angeles will be back for their seventh and sixth seasons respectively.

Castle will obviously pick up where the season finale ended with the car crash that derailed Castle (series lead Nathan Fillion) and Beckett’s (series lead Stana Katic) wedding. But while fans can speculate that it was either a simple accident, the 3XK Killer taking revenge or Castle’s spy father Jackson Hunt, the plan is to go in a different direction. Now that the mystery behind Beckett’s mother’s murder has been solved, a “brand-new, overdue chapter in Castle’s life” will be focused on throughout the season; but the powers that be behind the show are committed to their relationship. Don’t be surprised, though, if the latter two (3XK and Hunt) don’t show back up again at some point. Guest stars will include Matt Letscher (Eli Stone and Scandal), Rebecca Wisocky (Devious Maids) and Gina Ravera (The Closer).

NCIS: Los Angeles will also continue from its season finale with Callen (series lead Chris O’Donnell) and Sam (series lead LL Cool J) trapped inside that submarine along with two terrorists and ammonium nitrate. Meanwhile, Hetty (series regular Linda Hunt) will go to Washington to face a hostile Senate committee seeking the truth about NCIS’ White Ghost op; and, on a lighter note, there will be more romantic tension between Kensi (series regular Daniela Ruah) and Deeks (series regular Eric Christian Olsen) now that undercover DEA agent Talia Del Campo (recurring guest star Mercedes Masohn) will still be around.

NOTE: The above is a fan-made video not an official video from the studio or network.

On October 6, The Originals will return to The CW for its second season while the new CW drama Jane the Virgin will debut on October 13.

The Originals will return for its second season after a debut season that saw Hayley (series regular Phoebe Tonkin) transition into a hybrid; while she and Klaus (series lead James Morgan) had their baby, named Hope, who was taken by Klaus’ sister Rebekah (former series regular Claire Holt) [and whose death was faked by Klaus to protect her] and saw the return of the Mikaelson parents, Michael and Esther. As the season opens, Francesca (recurring guest star Peta Sargeant) has run all vampires out of the quarter – except “The Originals” who are “holed up in their compound while Marcel (series regular Charles Michael Davis) is living across the river. Guest stars in season two will include Colin Woodell (Devious Maids), Daniel Sharman (Teen Wolf) and Sonja Sohn (Body of Proof).

Jane the Virgin is about a Jane Villanueva (Gina Rodriguez from Filly Brown), a 23-year-old soon-to-be-teacher (and wanna-be-writer) who, based on values instilled by her grandmother, believes that women must protect their virginity at all costs (and that telenovelas are the highest form of entertainment). But when she is inadvertently inseminated during what should have been a regular check-up with her doctor, Jane has to deal with the ramifications and how it will affect her fiancé Michael (series regular Brett Dier from Ravenswood), her young-at-heart mother Xo (Andrea Navedo from Golden Boy), her still-devout grandmother Alba (Ivonne Coll from Switched at Birth and Teen Wolf) and the biological parents Rafael (Justin Baldoni from Single Ladies) and Yael Grobglas (Reign).

NOTE: The new ABC drama Forever will air a sneak peek on September 22 while The CW will air a Supernatural retrospective special on October 6. Regular episodes of Forever and Supernatural will both air on Tuesdays and each show will be spotlighted in my separate Tuesday night article.

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