TV Fall Preview - NBC Comedies

*blows the dust off*

Huh. Been a while since I've blogged at all. Will probably be just as long between future posts. But the network upfronts are starting, and while I'm sure we'll cover a lot of this on TV Dudes in the next couple weeks, I had a desire to write about them.

First of all, cautionary words from NPR's Linda Holmes about just how useful any of this speculation will really be. In short, speculating based on upfronts is not much different than throwing a dart at names on a board, in terms of predicting quality and/or success.

Which won't stop me from doing it. While I'm a regular reader of Alan Sepinwall, most of my thoughts are based on three articles from NPR's pop-culture blog Monkey See. One on NBC's new comedies, one on NBC's new dramas, and one on FOX's new shows.

This post covers NBC comedies. I may or may not write about NBC dramas and FOX shows in later posts.

ABC and CBS will come later, and I may or may not write about them, although honestly I don't watch a ton of shows on either network. I definitely won't have anything to say about the CW, which programs at a frequency that might as well be invisible and inaudible to me, as I am not a teenage girl.

NBC Comedies:

Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea:
Upsides: Laura Prepon (pretty and funny), funny title
Downsides: Laugh track, showrunners from Dharma & Greg, I have no idea who Chelsea Handler is
Likelihood of Watching More Than The Pilot: 25%

Bent:
Upsides: Amanda Peet (pretty and funny), Jeffrey Tambor (just funny), executive producer helped run Scrubs
Downsides: Unfunny trailer, boring premise, executive producer also helped run Samantha Who? and Perfect Couples)
Likelihood of Watching More Than The Pilot: 25%

Best Friends Forever
Upsides: Uh... you never know what might be funny?
Downsides: Head writer's list of credits not wildly impressive, don't know the cast, don't care about the premise
Likelihood of Even Watching the Pilot: 25%

Free Agents
Upsides: I love both Hank Azaria and Kathryn Hahn, the leads. The promo image that so offended Linda Holmes kinda cracks me up. The showsrunners include John Enbom of Veronica Mars and Party Down.
Downsides: NBC's track record with comedies is spotty at best
Likelihood of Watching More Than the Pilot: 75%, unless it's terrible

Up All Night
Upsides: Will Arnett & Christina Applegate is a likable pairing. Trailer is funny.
Downsides: Don't know much more about it, and both Arnett & Applegate have had weak sitcoms in the past
Likelihood of Watching More Than the Pilot: 50%

Whitney
I neither know nor care who Whitney Cummings is, and the show looks pretty dull and by-the-numbers.