REMOTE PATROL
The best of the fall TV lineup.
It’s impossible to keep up with all the new shows on “television” (which now includes Internet streaming galore) these days — but that isn’t going to stop us from trying. • New series this fall include the latest in the “Star Trek” franchise, “Discovery,” along with additions to the Marvel comicbook universe (“Inhumans,” “Runaways”), “The Big Bang Theory” spinoff “Young Sheldon” and, inevitably, another “Law & Order,” this one devoted to true-crime stories. • There are also some intriguing, off-the-beaten-path titles, so our critics have sifted through the buzz to find the six shows we’re most excited about.
‘The Deuce’ Premieres: Sept. 10 on HBO.
Before the Internet, um, democratized porn, the seediest of all entertainment industries was legalized and revolutionized in New York in the 1970s, and that’s the subject of HBO’s East Coast answer to “Boogie Nights.”
James Franco stars as identical twins Vincent and Frankie Martino — inspired by real-life brothers — who turn their Times Square massage parlor into a dirty-movie studio that’s also a front for the Mob.
“The Wire” creator David Simon has teamed up with frequent collaborator George Pelecanos, the bestselling crime-fiction author, on the series, which also stars Maggie Gyllenhaal as Candy, a prostitute who becomes a director in this dubious cinematic renaissance. Gyllenhaal tells Esquire magazine that “The Deuce” is “a story about misogyny, but it’s also a celebration of sexuality. I like that the first time Candy gets involved in porn, we see the awakening of an artist.”
Simon adds that he wanted to make sure that his critique of pornography didn’t itself become pornography: “At the moment that you start thinking, Hey, this scene could be hot, I want the camera to give you some element of humanity … which ruins it.”
‘Mike Judge Presents: Tales From the Tour Bus’ Premieres: Sept. 22 on Cinemax.
Mike Judge’s cartoon sitcom “King of the Hill” was one of the most sympathetic portrayals of red-state America (specifically Texas) in mainstream television. Now Judge — also famed for “Beavis and Butt-Head” and the films “Office Space” and “Idiocracy” — is back at it with a series of half-hour animated documentaries that will “chronicle the tales of some of country music’s most eccentric characters.”
It’s VH1’s “Behind the Music” ... with twang.
Judge narrates the series, which features behind-the-scenes interviews about the exploits of the likes of Waylon Jennings, Tammy Wynette and Jerry Lee Lewis.
The opener is devoted to Johnny Paycheck, best known for his hit recording of “Take This Job and Shove It,” whose drug problems eventually landed him in prison.
The subject matter is near and dear to Judge: Before hitting it big in TV, he played bass for Texas bluesman Anson Funderburgh.
‘The Good Doctor’ Premieres: Sept. 25 on ABC.
For the past four years, Freddie Highmore offered one of TV’s best, most unsung performances in A&E’s “Bates Motel.” As the murderous Norman Bates, the actor could be boyish, endearing, maddening, frightening and ultimately heartbreaking.
That show ended this year, but he quickly returns to the screen with a character that offers more challenges. As Dr. Shaun Murphy, Highmore plays a young pediatric surgeon with autism, which proves to be both helpful and a hindrance.
The show comes from David Shore, who knows his way around medical dramas (he created “House”) and ex”Hawaii Five-0” actor Daniel Dae Kim.
‘Me, Myself & I’ Premieres: Sept. 25 on CBS.
Here’s a gimmicky sitcom, but with an interesting gimmick: “Me, Myself & I” revolves around a man named Alex Riley at three different stages in his life. We see him as a teen in 1991, a modern-day 40something and a retired 65-year-old in the 2040s (gulp — those actually aren’t that far away).
Making this compelling are two really funny guys in the adult leads. Bobby Moynihan, now ready for prime time, left “Saturday Night Live” to play midlife Alex; and John Larroquette, who ruled the Emmy Awards in the ‘80s, is older Alex. Young Alex is played by Jack Dylan Grazer, currently being terrified by a clown in “It.” Plus, in a supporting role, Jaleel White — Urkel alert!
If the writing can live up to the cast, this could be a winner.
‘The Gifted’ Premieres: Oct. 2 on Fox.
The show has has some intriguing connections that make it notable. It is part of Marvel’s “X-Men” universe, as it follows a suburban family who learn that their children have mutant powers.
Bryan Singer, “X-Men” director, helmed the pilot. The parents are played by two vets of cultish TV faves, Stephen Moyer (ex-“True Blood”) and Amy Acker, late of “Person of Interest,” “Angel” and “Alias.”
This has the potential to be really interesting or wildly mediocre. We’re hoping for the former.
‘She’s Gotta Have It’ Premieres: Nov. 23 on Netflix.
Iconic African-American filmmaker Spike Lee revisits his 1986 directorial debut with a remake/update. The halfhour comedy stars newcomer DeWanda Wise as Nola Darling, a Brooklyn artist with three lovers and an allergy to monogamy.
Lee’s black-and-white movie was critically acclaimed for its exploration of black stereotypes and double standards about sexual adventurism, and it’s intriguing that the director has chosen his breakthrough work for this foray into episodic television.
And it looks like he plans to stick around on the small screen: Variety reports that he’s shopping a new project as executive producer (and pilot director) of “Archer,” a dark comedy about an African-American tech entrepreneur created by and starring Chad Sanders, based on his own rise from Google staffer to hot-shot business developer.