NBC:
The Irrational: World-renowned behavioral science professor Alec Mercer (played by Jesse L Martin of The Flash & Law & Order) uses his unique expertise in psychology, body language, emotion and more to help solve difficult, high-stakes cases. He works with his research assistants, his tech-savvy sister and his ex-wife who also happens to be an FBI agent to solve those cases. He is known for asking the right questions, making observations no one else can and studying every scene in new ways, there’s no case too tough for his brilliant mind to crack except maybe his own mysterious past. The Irrational is based on the 2008 non-fiction book Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions by Dan Ariely.
Verdict: Renewed. There is something about Martin that could be his charm or his charisma when he acts you just feel like you are going to have fun and be there to enjoy the ride. He is always playing a likable person and this time he isn’t playing a cop he is a behavioral science professor which is intriguing and he sometimes narrates the show as well. Since it is based off a book it will be interesting for fans of that to see how much of the source material they are using to tell the story. Normally he isn’t the brightest person in the room when playing a cop on either show he was on so it is nice to see him be the smartest person/he is the main character not just one of them. He works with the police and the FBI but the only issue is in a one hour drama there is drama in it. His ex-wife is supposedly the FBI agent he works with which is a waste because of the tension between people who are divorced. He lives with his sister who is supposedly a tech-wiz but has been barely used so far so again wasted scenes. I do like his supporting cast of research assistants because they just are there to do their jobs. It will be interesting to see how elaborate each episode gets with him trying to figure out each mystery and solving his own mystery as well. With Magnum PI, La Brea, the Blacklist ending and most sitcoms cancelled there is room for a different kind of procedural crime solving show to maybe stand out amongst Chicago Wednesdays & Law & Order Thursdays, because this network is only those six shows. Well NBC did give it one more episode which is always a good sign for a show to be renewed and well guess what it was renewed for season two proving there was room in the schedule for a show that has some good and bad things about it. It is clever that they mention people are always irrational hence the name and that “Memory is the greatest con-man of the human nature”.
Found: Recovery specialist Gabi Mosely and her team are dedicated to finding America’s missing people forgotten by the media, law enforcement and the public. They’ll stop at nothing to solve these cases because for them it’s personal. Every member of the team has firsthand experience with a mysterious disappearance, whether it was them or someone they love. But Gabi’s willingness to cross the line could be the very thing that brings her down, because she’s enlisted her own childhood kidnapper to help while keeping him locked in her basement.
Verdict: I don’t know what it is about this show as it could be the writing or the plot twists or the chemistry between the actors in the show, or that I am familiar with most of the cast but it also could be all of those factors. I have yet to be bored so far when watching each episode/case as the writing really gets you to really pay attention to all the details because every detail, even small ones matter. Like the flashbacks are helpful in telling the current story as each episode they are looking for a lost person but it also has the overwhelming plot of her past and how it is affecting the current story. The first reaction was wow NBC why did you push the show back to the Fall but now it is like this is the perfect time with barely any new shows due to the strikes because it has room to shine. Each character has a purpose on the show with them obviously having the experience of being a kidnap victim like they have a tech person, an enforcer, a legal student who is their lawyer, someone with great deductive skills like “Sherlock Holmes” and her police liaison. It is nice to see Brett Dalton(Agents of Shield & Chicago Fire) in another show in some sort of law enforcement, Gabrielle Walsh (of 911) who was kidnapped at the same time as the main character/whose working with her and became like sisters, and Karan Oberoi (of Flash & Roswell New Mexico are all well casted in their roles. Unfamiliar with the lead investigator Kelli Williams (of Lie to me & the Practice) and the lead herself Shanola Hampton (of Shameless) but both are very believable in their roles as well. The biggest shock is seeing Mark Paul Gosselaar (of Saved by the Bell & Frank & Bash) playing a bad guy he usually is playing a good guy but the last five shows he has starred in/was reoccurring have been cancelled quickly. The twist of her using her kidnapper to help find other people who are kidnapped by using his insight of a kidnapper is a great decision by the writers, and if the characters have some personal drama it makes sense because all of them still have trauma from being kidnapped but are channeling it into helping others out with their skills. If this show was on in the Spring with it being compared to Fox’s Alert(missing people) it would beat it in the ratings due to everything mentioned so far and because it doesn’t have the dumb married couple/divorced drama/their kid being found or not. With NBC having nothing on the air due to Magnum PI, La Brea, the Blacklist ending and most sitcoms cancelled, there is room for a different kind of procedural crime solving show to maybe stand out amongst Chicago Wednesdays & Law & Order Thursdays because this network is only those six shows. Well NBC decided to renew it because that was the right decision to make!
Fox:
Krapopolis: Set in mythical Ancient Greece, the series centers on a flawed family of humans, gods and monsters that tries to run one of the world’s first cities without killing each other. The family consists of Tyrannis, the mortal son of a goddess who is the king of Krapopolis, Deliria is Tyrannis’ mother, goddess of self-destruction and questionable choices, Shlub, Tyrannis’ father, Stupendous who is Tyrannis’ half-sister, daughter of Deliria and a Cyclops and Hippocampus is Tyrannis’ half-brother, the offspring of Shlub and a mermaid.
Verdict: Cancelled. It might be TV history that a show was renewed for a 3rd season even before the first episode debuted and changed show runners a few times. It made no sense for Fox to renew a show before it even was on the air when it has been so cringe and bad. The jokes and humor on this show have been very crude and been so low brow/sophomoric/stupid that it has been very hard to get into the show or laugh. None of the characters are redeemable or interesting enough to get behind that normally you find one you like but none are likeable. It is frustrating that with a good voice cast that it isn’t great even with Matthew Berry (of What we do in the shadows) & Richard Ayoade(Of the Double & the Watch), plus a great guest star list that includes Keith David, Kevin Michael Richardson, Tara Strong, Dee Bradley Baker and even Joel Mchale. No offense to Dan Harmon who created Community where he pulled some of these guest stars and created Rick & Morty he should stick to that cartoon not this. Bob’s Burger was the only animated sitcom that has been on the air past three seasons since American Dad was cancelled/King of the Hill ended except Duncanville before it was cancelled, and the Great North which has been on the air for four seasons. So this show will be in that historic place with other Fox animated sitcoms but it will not deserve it, hopefully it gets cancelled after the three seasons it airs on Fox.
