New Fall TV Shows

It's that time again. Every autumn the television networks march out their crop of new shows for the viewing public. Granted, more and more successful shows are launched at other times of the year than ever before, but September and October remain the prime time for introducing new shows to, well, prime time.

If you've been reading this site for a while, you'll recognize this as one of our traditions around here - the Good/Bad/Ugly rating of new fall TV shows. As always, the rule is that we don't rate a show without watching at least two episodes. And as tempting as it is to break this rule, we're sticking with it.

Big Shots (ABC Thursday): As I've gotten older, I've gotten more selective in what I watch on TV. Well, considering how often I end up watching Curious George with my son, I should rephrase that. If I don't have a good reason to watch a TV show, odds are that I won't watch it, unless I happen to put something on in the background as I wash the dishes. Well, it so happens that I washed the dishes on the same evening and at the same time as Big Shots premiered. In retrospect, I should have washed the dishes earlier. Or later. Or basically any time when I would have managed to avoid Big Shots.

What is Big Shots? It's about some guys who happen to all be CEOs or corporate VPs or the like, but while they are all at the pinnacle of the business world, their personal lives are basically one step from being flaming bags of dog turd. Here's the kicker — by and large, none of these guys is particularly likeable. And since by and large their problems are entirely of their own doing, it's hard to be sympathetic with them. The fact that they're all millionaires doesn't really help either. Quite simply, I don't think there's been a show reviewed here in the past that made me want to break the two episode rule as much as this Ugly mess has.

No Opportunity Wasted (CBC Wednesday): Are you familiar with the concept of Bait and Switch? It's an old school marketing scam — entice people with an offer they can't refuse, but end up selling them something quite different. Well, No Opportunity Wasted has pulled this one off handily. All summer CBC promoted this as being hosted by Phil Koughan of Amazing Race face. Well, Phil does the episode intros and some narration, but frankly, Lorne Greene had more contact with the bears and foxes and ptarmigans on Lorne Greene's New Wilderness than Phil does with anyone on this show.

The whole premise of No Opportunity Wasted is that people with crippling fears are forced to face what scares them so they can move forward in their lives. Examples include fear of heights, sharks, and public speaking. It sounds like compelling television, doesn't it? Unfortunately, it's surprisingly dull. You'd think that watching people swim with sharks wouldn't make for Bad television, but apparently in this case it does.

Kid Nation (CBS/E! Canada Wednesday): It seems that every year or so a new show comes along that is mired in controversy before it even airs. Kid Nation is the one for this year. Imagine Survivor set in the old west without the weekly eliminations, only populated with 40 children instead of a dozen or so quasi-functional adults. And the kids have to work pretty hard, doing such chores as cooking their own meals, hauling their own water, and cleaning their own outhouses (yes, I did say outhouses). So it's basically a summer camp with no cooks or counselors, just a camera crew.

Whence the controversy? Well, the kids have zero on-camera adult supervision, just a host that shows up every so often with a challenge for them to do. That many kids with minimal supervision has people up in arms, and the notion of children actually doing chores gives rise to accusations of child labour. After watching a couple of episodes I found both suggestions rather weak. What's more, despite expecting a show that was going to be really painful to watch, Kid Nation is surprisingly engaging. It's not exactly great, but I think it might qualify as Good.