2017’s upcoming fall TV lineup will provide good replacements for shows ending in the summer

Written By Zachary Matthew

Summer does not officially end until Sept. 22, but the fall season of TV has already begun. Viewers are coming off the high of shows like “Game of Thrones” and “Twin Peaks” and need new addictions to soothe their craving for good television.

Plenty of new and returning shows will be gracing televisions in the coming months, including the seventh season of anthology series “American Horror Story” and the highly anticipated second season of the Netflix original series “Stranger Things.”

September brings the most interesting lineup with a mix of dramas, comedies and reality TV, some of which have already begun airing. “American Horror Story: Cult” premiered just this past Wednesday, Sept. 5, taking on the most recent presidential election as a theme. The show, having drawn in a more liberal crowd in its past seasons, was met with praise for its negative portrayal of the election and the newly elected president. New episodes air every Wednesday at 10 p.m. on FX.

The third season of Starz’s “Outlander” premiered Sunday, Sept. 10, at 8 p.m. The story follows a nurse in the British Army during World War II who gets sent back in time and trapped in the year 1743. The show is highly reviewed, with a 94 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, and will likely replace “Game of Thrones” as the must-watch Sunday night show for the fall.

Speaking of replacing “Game of Thrones,” HBO’s “The Deuce” will replace the 9 p.m. time slot Thrones had filled on Sundays over the summer. The new series chronicles the history of the porn industry and its legalization in New York in the 1970s and 1980s. “The Deuce” has a chance at becoming a phenomenal success much like “Westworld” did last fall in the place of Thrones but it will have big shoes to fill with “Westworld” not returning until 2018. “The Deuce” also premiered Sunday, Sept. 10 on HBO.

After a hiatus lasting over a month, the spin-off series “Fear the Walking Dead” has returned for its final two episodes in its third season on Sunday, Sept. 10 at 9 pm on AMC. Its sister series, “The Walking Dead,” also premieres later this fall.

Other dramas coming in September include the new “Star Trek: Discovery,” premiering Sept. 24 on CBS at 8:30 p.m., as well as the return of “Empire” on FOX, starting Sept. 27 at 8 p.m., and “How to Get Away with Murder” on ABC, premiering on Sept. 28 at 10 p.m., both going into their fourth seasons.

Not all series coming this fall have high expectations unfortunately. The new Marvel series, “Inhumans,” is already getting negative reviews with IMDb giving it a 5.5/10. The show seems to fail at following suit with other Marvel series that have done fairly well such as “Jessica Jones” and “Daredevil.” The first episode premieres Friday, Sept. 29 at 9 p.m. on ABC.

But scripted drama isn’t the only thing to look forward to this September as reality TV shows are also making a reappearance after a pretty packed summer lineup. Shows include “Dancing with the Stars,” returning Sept. 18 on ABC, “The Voice,” premiering Sept. 25 on NBC, and “Survivor: Heroes v Healers v Hustlers,” starting Sept. 27 on CBS. Another show to keep a look out for that may not be on everyone’s radar is Netflix’s Japanese reality series “Terrace House.” The fourth part of the second season, “Terrace House: Aloha State,” debuts on Sept. 26.

Lastly for September, there are a few comedies making a resurgence that are worth watching. “The Mindy Project’s” sixth season will be released on Hulu Sept. 12. Comedy Central’s “Broad City” will return for its fourth season on Sept. 13 at 10:30 pm. To finish off September’s comedy lineup, the fifth season of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” is set to air on Sept. 26 on FOX at 9:30 p.m.

October’s list of premiering series isn’t as major as that of September, with the exception of two upcoming Netflix originals and one returning AMC hit series.

Almost every series coming in October is a returning one except Netflix’s “Mindhunter.” The show, based on the novel “Mind Hunter” by Mark Olshaker and John E. Douglas, follows an FBI agent as he tracks down criminals while simultaneously developing techniques used to catch them. The series debuts all of its 10 episodes on Wednesday, Oct. 13.

In the week preceding “Mindhunter’s” premiere, however, are numerous returning shows, all of which come from The CW. “Supergirl” returns for its third season Monday, October 9 at 8 p.m. followed by the new series “Valor” at 9 p.m. The following Tuesday, Oct. 10, debuts “The Flash” at 8 p.m. with DC’s “Legends of Tomorrow” coming right after. Wednesday, Oct. 11’s premieres include “Riverdale” and the new soap opera series “Dynasty.” Thursdays are “Supernatural” and “Arrow.” And finally, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” and “Jane the Virgin” premiere Friday that same week.  

“The Walking Dead” returns yet again for its seventh season on Sunday, Oct. 22 at 9 p.m. on AMC. The season will pick up where it last left off with Rick Grimes and his group facing off against Negan and the Saviors.

“Stranger Things” then finishes October off with its second season that every Netflix binger is dying to see. This season promises new mysteries, new characters and new monsters all in nine episodes. The season will be released on Friday, Oct. 27.

November doesn’t bring a lot to the table in terms of new series. The only noteworthy show premiering in November is Marvel’s “Runaways,” set to be released on Hulu on Tuesday, Nov. 21. The series is expected to perform better than “Inhumans,” although neither have officially aired so things may likely change.

Overall, the fall lineup for 2017 is looking good for avid TV watchers. With episodes airing almost every weekday as well as new series to binge coming on both Netflix and Hulu, fall TV should be able to carry on the excitement after the end of the summer’s biggest shows.