2024 Fall TV Roundup #01 – What a Cast! – Snark Squad

There are few things Snark Ladies love more than launching new stuff and pilots, so we’re bringing back our Fall TV Roundup. Join us as we sample and review as many fall pilots as we can.
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English teacher on FX

In summary: Brian Jordan Alvarez plays an idealistic and overwhelmed English teacher in the suburbs of Austin.

What Mari thinks: English teacher fires off often sharp, sometimes clever, always topical jokes at a rapid pace, making the short episodes feel overstuffed and almost frantic. It’s a style I think works well in this genre of comedy, but it’s not one I’m drawn to all that much. The show is best served by its supporting actors and their willingness to make everyone the butt of the joke, from the Gen Z students Evan is deeming “less woke” this year to the always charming Enrico “Papa Mars” Colantoni and the rest of the teachers. It’s worst served by its title character, who just feels a little undercooked.

That said, once the pilot was done, I just let the rest of the episodes that had already aired play through. It’s a show that I think could functionally get better with time, as it finds its voice, cements its pieces, and grounds its main character.

B.

What Sweeney thinks: I had already seen quite a few papers comparing this to Abbott Elementary School before i ever tuned in and I get itbut I also think that’s a bit like saying that every crime drama Law and order. Like, sure, there are similarities, but also: a public school classroom is a space that we’ve all dealt with. And I would actually rather have 92 shows about teachers than about cops, but maybe it’s just me. But more than that, the tone of Abbot is crucial to his charm and appeal, so a darker, edgier Abbot is fundamentally not Abbot. tl;dr I think this comparison does an injustice to both series.

I don’t have much to add to Mari’s review other than I think the whole show is a bit underbaked. I think focusing on one title character was probably a move to differentiate from Abbotwhich is quite an ensemble, but it felt like they weren’t sure if they wanted to go that way or not.

B.

Overall rating: B

Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist on Peacock

In summary: An eight-episode series based on “something that really happened” about a small-time businessman who gets into trouble with a mob boss while planning a party.

What Mari thinks: This cast is deep. Before I decided to do this fall TV recap, I wasn’t really up to date on this new TV season, so I was genuinely and pleasantly surprised when I went through the cast list. After watching the pilot, I still think the cast is the best and most impressive. My biggest complaint is the pacing. It took so long to explain all the parts and characters that I thought it was pretty well explained in the opening scenes of the 55-minute pilot. My second biggest complaint is Dexter Darden as Muhammad Ali. In a series of big performances, Darden felt cartoonish at times. If I keep this up, that will definitely happen on a weekly basis. I think I can work up enough interest to watch it for an hour at a time, especially for (did I mention?) that cast.

B-.

What Sweeney thinks: This cast is amazing. I had a similar complaint about Darden in the beginning, and it reminded me of my least favorite parts of The Wonderful Mrs. Maiselwhich I recently started rewatching. In fact, it always felt like the show was winking at me in a way that was super annoying every time the show introduced a real historical figure (except for Lenny Bruce, who is so thoroughly fictionalized that it feels like a creation of the show). Darden’s performance gave that vibe. In this case, it feels a little more purposeful — “Hello, I’m The Guy, but I’m not really The Point” — and I found it more enjoyable by the end of the first episode. My biggest complaint is really, really petty, and that is that I really don’t like Kevin Hart. As much as I loved the rest of the cast, I was always infinitely less pleased whenever we returned to his plot. That said, I will almost certainly continue watching this, and I have a feeling my dislike for Kevin Hart is not the show’s fault.

Final grade: B+.

Overall rating: B

The perfect couple on Netflix

In summary: A six-part miniseries about a wealthy wedding that is interrupted by a murder.

What Mari thinks: I haven’t read the book this adaptation is based on (or anything by Elin Hilderbrand), but a soapy detective drama about rich people? I’m not ashamed to say that this is the most “for me” pilot of the bunch, and I mean that sincerely, from Nicole Kidman’s wig to the dance sequence credits to the final scenes that made me cry. The show establishes its ridiculousness early on, both in its look at the lives of ridiculously rich people through the lens of tired detective fiction and in its melodramatic approach to all the genre tropes and trappings. Do I think everyone should watch this? No. Will I watch the whole thing? Definitely.

B.

What Sweeney thinks: Large soap White Lotus-like fun! I prefer White Lotus and would recommend that to someone more than this, but I did enjoy myself – until the end of the very first episode, when I said I wouldn’t watch the rest. Now that I’ve had time to recover and process it, I realize I lied and I’m absolutely going to watch the whole thing. And I have to say again, “Wow, this cast!”

B-.

Overall rating: B?

How to Die Alone on Hulu

In summary: A near-death experience inspires Natasha Rothwell to live a little.

What Mari thinks: If you are on paper, The perfect couple was the show I was most likely to keep watching, How to Die Alone is the sleeper hit. It managed to thread the needle of seriousness and exaggeration to create something sweet and funny. Unlike, say, English teacher, I found the main character easy to root for and easy to like and by the time she ends the episode with a little bit of light identity theft, honestly? I thought that was great for her.

A.

What Sweeney thinks: This show has, without a doubt, the character I root for the most out of all the things we’ve watched. Although I didn’t love her minor identity theft, just because it felt like she was wasting it? Let your rich friend pay for you and do credit card fraud for something else! Work smarter, not harder! Either way, I’m going to watch every episode and go nuts for a season or two before it inevitably gets canceled early.

A.

Overall rating: A

High potential on ABC

In summary: A woman with Sherlock-like skills is paired with a grumpy detective to solve crimes.

What Mari thinks: I feel like I’ve seen this show before. It honestly feels like the kind of show I would catch up on after the 10 season run was over. I would binge watch 5 seasons until Sherlock and Grumpy Detective finally kissed, and then I would stop watching, never to finish. I hope that describes this show as well as I think it does.

I found the opening bits stronger than the case solving bits and found the obligatory Grumpy Detective lines about “touch nothing, say nothing” a bit forced. The cast has potential and this is a tried and true premise, even if the pilot had some hollow notes.

C+

What Sweeney thinks: I watched these shows in this order, so my reaction is definitely colored by the fact that it’s almost midnight and the end of my frantic binge is nearing. Disclaimer out of the way: within the first 5 minutes I messaged Mari to say that this is clearly the dumbest/worst show on this list, and I can’t wait to binge watch 17 seasons of it. My least favorite part of the episode is the part where she explains why she’s the way she is, which is actually the wrong move. Your premise is dumb and we all know it, please don’t make me think about it! This show is just vibes! Let her fall out of a coconut tree, free of The Context!

Again, this series is NOT good and I am going to watch every episode.

C+

Overall rating: C+

Have you checked out any of these? Let us know in the comments what you thought of these pilots!