The Mindy Project
Fox
Tuesdays, 8:30 p.m.
The Mindy Project is one of those shows that makes you say, “I’m so that main character!” Mindy (Mindy Kaling) is a 31-year-old doctor, who that thinks that life should be more like an ‘80s romantic comedy, but of course life doesn’t work that way. After her fairy tale man marries another person, she is left to try to figure out what to do. The show is beyond funny from the moment it starts. Mindy is a relatable character that speaks what is on most people’s minds and isn’t afraid to do so. She has two main co-stars Danny (Chris Messina), a hot-shot doctor who is everything New York and Jeremy (Ed Weeks), a smooth-talking British doctor, that tries to help her get through her life while taking a few jabs at her life along the way. During the second episode, Mindy goes on a date with a guy to get yogurt, but each time she didn’t like the flavor. It turns out she doesn’t like yogurt at all and $50 later they get pretzels instead. It was really funny to see her interact with him and watching her go through each of the flavors. The Mindy Project is a fantastically funny show that has something for everyone to enjoy. –Stephanie Hofmann
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Revolution
NBC
Mondays, 9 p.m.
This new fall drama is about what would happen to America if all of the power turned off all at once. The government has crumbled, and after 15 years a new one has taken its place, the Monroe Republic, which is oppressive and brutal. This show is full of drama and action, something is always happening, be it exposition or action. They transition from heavy drama to high octane action very quickly; in the pilot, negotiations escalate quickly to a shootout and fist fight between the villagers and the militia, ending with Captain Tom Neville (Giancarlo Esposito) pulling out a modern pistol and shooting several villagers. Currently, Charlie Matheson (Tracy Spiridakos) and her uncle Miles Matheson (Billy Burke) is trying to rescue her brother from the militia while General Monroe (David Lyons) pressures Charlie’s mom (Elizabeth Mitchell) to reveal her knowledge about the blackout. All in all, this show has a great plot, little downtime and a lot of action; I recommend it for anyone who is looking for a great new show. – James Amell
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Elementary
CBS
Mondays, 9 p.m.
Modernizing a classic story always comes with a risk. The director has to consider what elements of the original to keep and what to get rid of. CBS has undertaken this process with their take on Sherlock Holmes in their new show Elementary. However, this modern Sherlock contains little aspects of the original. For example the most striking change was the decision to make the supporting character, John Watson, a woman. In the original novels, Watson is Holmes’ roommate and best friend, making Watson a woman instantly creates romantic tension that doesn’t belong in their kind of friendship. In Elementary Sherlock is stuck in a house being supported by his father. This change takes away from the signature 22 B Baker street apartment that serves as the headquarters in the novels. The fact that Sherlock in Elementary is bound to the apartment as an incentive to stay clean from drugs is a mistake that CBS should not have made. This takes away Sherlock’s independence and changes a major point of his character. Along with these major character flaws the plot and storyline in the pilot was horrendous. It was supposed to be modeled off Doyle’s A Study in Scarlet but fell short. They didn’t follow anything from the original story except the murder. They took away the original motive of the killer and the creativity behind it. Overall, this attempt at a modernized version of Sherlock Homes has fallen short. –Shelly Spencer
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Nashville
ABC
Thursdays, 9 p.m.
The new series Nashville on ABC is a lot of things, probably because it is essentially a mash up of everything that ever got ratings. It has the antagonistic girl that everyone learns to hate but of course has a nice side that we all secretly care for, the aging professional who still has hope left, and the underdog love story that gets talked about between girls at lunch tables (because what’s more juicy than high school gossip? Television gossip.). Despite the fact that it is obviously a hybrid created only to acquire ratings, I loved it. I am officially addicted to this country hybrid. It has the daddy issue splash that Dallas has with the young versus old music clash of Country Strong; it takes the strengths from those along with the overarching themes in new teen hits and has you wrapped up in three different love stories, a sob story and a business deal all at one time. Overall, this new series is oddly addicting for a reason you can’t really lay your finger on. –Rachel Sloan
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
The Neighbors
ABC
Wednesdays, 7 p.m.
The Neighbors on ABC is funny in the cheesiest way imaginable. The aliens were so lame and weak looking compared to what modern television has created for aliens. It was like the computer design and graphics for this show were poorly thrown together or created alongside E.T. The comedy in The Neighbors is an old-fashioned kind of funny that doesn’t make you laugh. In the beginning, when the family moves in the aliens follow the tradition of bringing pie to the neighbors. But when they do so, they all bring pie and it was just kind of lame and unimportant to the show. This little “joke” doesn’t really make much sense and it’s kind of pointless. However, it does make a smirk appear and thoughts like “Am I watching this?” pop into your head. This show wasn’t necessarily bad, but it progressed extremely slow. A scene where the family was discussing moving took forever making me want to scream, “Please, hurry up with this! Move along!” It was almost 30 minutes of two adults yelling about trust and such. Half of the scenes weren’t even relevant. With lame graphics and cheesy comedy, The Neighbors fits in but it isn’t long lasting. –Kristin Nicol
Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
