Ultimate Guide to the Fall TV Schedule – 2013

Well, the fall TV season is upon us once again, as a few shows have already started and FOX premieres a few more of their shows this week. But, the fall TV schedule gets into full swing starting next week, Monday, September 23rd. To help you find the “Prime” in the primetime fall schedule, I’ve put together this guide for you of links to resources and reviews. Whether you like to listen, read or watch, we’ve got everything you need to know to plan your fall TV viewing.

Fall TV Premiere Dates

Find out when your favorite show returns or when that new fall show you’ve heard so much about will start. This section has links to calendars, lists and schedules in various forms.

• 2013 TV Fall Premiere and Return Schedule and Calendar – Keith McDuffee (@gudlyf) of CliqueClack.com (@CliqueClack) has the fall premiere dates listed by date then show, but you will also find a subscribable GoogleCalendar version at the bottom of the page. Note: the GoogleCalendar works well for Eastern Time Zone, but the times will be off if you are in another time zone.
• Fall 2013 Primetime TV Grids – Kyle Nolan (@kyool) of NoReruns.net (@NoReruns) has put together daily grids with premiere dates.
• Fall 2013 TV Premiere Dates – Sandrine Sahakians (@sosandrine) of TVEquals.com (@TVEquals) has the premieres listed by date and then show.
• Get Your Printable Fall TV Schedules – 2013 – I (@theTVaholic) have put together a one page printable TV schedule with premiere dates for both broadcast networks and cable channels, so you can see what is playing when and up against what all on one page.
• New Fall TV Shows – TVGuide.com (@TVGuide) has the all the new fall shows listed alphabetically and then by date.
• Your Fall TV 2013 Primetime Calendar – Daniel Malen (@theTVaddict) from theTVaddict.com has put together a printable calendar that gives you the fall premieres by day and then show.

What New Fall 2013 TV Shows Look Good?

There is so much TV these days that it is impossible to watch everything. No matter how much I try, it’s difficult to even sample everything these days to see what is good. So, what is a TV fan with limited time supposed to do? Well, in this section you will find links to opinions from around the web on what new fall TV shows are worth your time. I chime in with where I agree/disagree with the following fall picks.

• 6 New Fall Shows to Get Excited About – Joel Keller (@JoelKeller) from AntennaFree.tv (@AntennaFreeTV) gives his six pack of new shows to look out for in this Parade.com (@ParadeMagazine) piece. All pretty good choices, well except for #5.
• Best New TV Comedy Of 2013-2014: TV Critics Share Their Picks (VIDEO) – HuffingPost.com (@HuffPostTV) interviewed various TV critics, including their own Laura Prudom (@LauInLA), Maggie Furlong (@maggiefurlong) and Mo Ryan (@moryan), at the recent Television Critics Association Press Tour about the best new comedies coming this TV season. All pretty good choices, but how did NBC’s The Michael J. Fox Show not get any mention?
• Best New TV Drama Of 2013-2014: TV Critics Share Their Picks (VIDEO) – HuffingPost.com (@HuffPostTV) interviewed various TV critics, including their own Laura Prudom (@LauInLA), Maggie Furlong (@maggiefurlong) and Mo Ryan (@moryan), at the recent Television Critics Association Press Tour about the best new comedies coming this TV season. Not sure how The CW’s Reign and FOX’s Sleepy Hollow get mentions, maybe they misunderstood the question.
• Fall TV: The 9 Must-Watch – Tampa Bay Times TV Critic Eric Deggans (@Deggans) gives his picks for the new shows worth watching this fall, a few that have potential, the ones he believes won’t last long and the four worst shows. My biggest changes would be #4 on his must watch list being in my worst four. I’d also put the fifth one on his potential list in my least likely to succeed category. And, his third least likely to succeed choice would make my Top 9, as would the last show he has listed. Other than those, I can’t argue too much with his picks and pans.
• Fall TV 2013: Watch, DVR, Skip – The gang at TelevisonWithoutPity.com (@tvwithoutpity) has a slide show for each hour of primetime with what to watch, watch later and not to bother with. It starts out with Monday 8pm and runs through to Sunday 10pm.
• Fall TV Preview: The Top 10 New Shows – USA Today TV critic Robert Bianco (@BiancoRobert) gives you his list of best bets for the new TV season with a few thoughts on why and video promos for each series. Also, there is a video interview with Robert talking about some of the series covered in the article.
• Fall-Winter TV Preview: Snap Judgments of 2013–14’s New Shows – The Daily Beast TV Critic Jace Lacob (@televisionary) and culture reporter Kevin Fallon (@kpfallon) each give you their first impressions of 30+ new series. I pretty much agree, with the glaring exceptions of their takes on The CW’s The 100 and ABC’s Lucky 7.
• Take Me To The Pilots ’13 – Daniel Fienberg (@HitFixDaniel) of HitFix.com (@HitFix) gives his first impressions of many of the upcoming fall series. This link takes you to his thoughts on CBS’ Mom, but if you scroll to the bottom of the article you will find links to his take on 20+ other new fall shows. I pretty much agree with his takes, except I liked NBC’s The Blacklist a lot more and ABC’s Lucky 7 a lot less, not that he liked it a whole lot either.
• Top 10 New TV Shows to Watch for Fall 2013 – Tiffany Vogt (@tvwatchtower) from TVWatchtower.com has her picks for fall, which skew towards the sci-fi/supernatural. While I’ll probably be watching most of these, only the first, second and seventh would make my top 10 new fall shows.
• TV.com’s 10 Most Anticipated New Shows for Fall 2013 – Tim Surette (@timattvdotcom) of TV.com (@tvdotcom) picks his favorite new fall shows. I’m looking forward to all but one of them.

What New Fall TV Shows Should I Avoid?

• Fall TV 2013: Five Worst New Shows – San Jose Mercury News TV Critic Chuck Barney (@chuckbarney) gives his picks for the worst the fall season has to offer. I can’t really argue with any of them.
• Fall TV 2013 Shows That Seem Good … But Aren’t – Denette Wilford (@DenetteWilford) gives her picks over at HuffingtonPost.ca for the shows that look better in the promos than the actual show turns out to be. Totally disagree with her second pick, as it is one of my favorite new comedies.
• Fall TV Comedies To Avoid Like The Plague – Mo Ryan (@moryan) from the Huffington Post (@HuffPostTV) gives her reasons to avoid seven of this fall’s new crop of comedies. Hard to really argue with much of her list, although I did like The Goldbergs even if she is right about it being kind of loud. Yet, it could just be my fondness for things set in the 1980s that is coloring my judgment.
• Fall TV Preview: Caution – Don’t Get Attached to These Shows – Diane Gordon (@thesurfreport) of StudioSystemNews.com (@TSSNews) lists the shows she believes won’t last long and why. I think CBS’ Intelligence and CBS’ Mom have more potential than she, but otherwise can’t really disagree.
• Worst New TV Show Of 2013-2014: TV Critics Share Their Picks (VIDEO) – HuffingPost.com (@HuffPostTV) interviewed various TV critics, including their own Laura Prudom (@LauInLA), Maggie Furlong (@maggiefurlong) and Mo Ryan (@moryan), at the recent Television Critics Association Press Tour about the worst shows coming this TV season. It’s hard to argue with any of their picks.

What About Shows Returning to the Fall TV Schedule?

• Fall TV 2013: 20 Most Anticipated Returning Shows – Daniel Fienberg (@HitFixDaniel), Alan Sepinwall (@sepinwall) and Liane Bonin Starr (@HitFixLiane) of HitFix.com (@HitFix) have put together a slide show of the 20 shows they are looking forward to coming back this season. They give you a quick hit of where things left off last season and why they are so excited for its return. I’m looking forward to all but four of these. Can you figure out the two, other than the two reality shows that get mentioned, I’m not looking forward to?
• Fall TV 2013: Who’s In, Who’s Out on Your Favorite Shows – Rick Porter (@Zap2ItRick) of Zap2It.com (@Zap2It) has a photo gallery slideshow giving you the who you will and won’t be seeing on your favorite shows this season.
• Fall TV Preview: The 10 Most Anticipated Returning Series – Amy Amatangelo (@AmyTVGal) for xfinity (@xfinity_tv) gives you her picks for the returning fall series viewers can’t wait for. She reminds you where things were, gives an idea of where they are going and includes a fun fact along the way.
• Fall TV Preview: Top 10 Returning Comedies to Watch – Diane Gordon (@thesurfreport) of StudioSystemNews.com (@TSSNews) lists the comedies she is most looking forward to having back on her TV. Other than Eastbound & Down, it’s a pretty good list.
• Returning TV Shows 2013-2014: TV Critics Share Their Favorites (VIDEO) – HuffingPost.com (@HuffPostTV) interviewed various TV critics, including their own Laura Prudom (@LauInLA), Maggie Furlong (@maggiefurlong) and Mo Ryan (@moryan), at the recent Television Critics Association Press Tour about the returning shows they can’t wait for this TV season. I’m looking forward to all mentioned except FX’s American Horror Story, HBO’s Boardwalk Empire and FOX’s Glee.

Fall TV Preview Podcasts

• The Complete Guide to Everything Fall TV Preview 2013 – Hosts Tim Daniels and Tom Reynolds (@tomreynolds) from TCGTE.com (@CompleteGuide) preview the fall TV season, which starts at the 15:30 mark.
• Tuned In Podcast On What’s Worth Watching This Fall on Broadcast Networks – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette TV Critic Rob Owen (@RobOwenTV) is joined by some fellow TV critics to talk about what looks good for fall 2013.
• TV Rewind 2013 Fall Preview – TV Rewind Podcast (@tvrewind) host Stephanie Weak (@angelsteph) goes through the fall TV schedule, which starts at the 10:30 mark.
• TV times Three Fall TV Previews 2013 – I (@theTVaholic) am joined by various guests (@AmyTVGal, @CarlaDay, @danielletbd, @DocBrown_TV, @kyool, @mekeishamadto, @mytakeontv, @raelee & @ShowPatrol) to cover the fall season. Find links to individual fall preview episodes covering ABC, CBS, The CW, FOX, NBC and Cable.
• Rob Has a Website Fall TV Show Preview: The 5 Best & Worst Pilots of the 2013 TV Season – Host Rob Cesternino (@RobCesternino) is joined by Media Columnist from the Colorado Springs Gazette Terry Terrones (@TerryTerrones) to talk about the best and worst the fall TV season has to offer.
• SpoilerTV Fall TV Preview Part 1 – SpoilerTV Podcast (@STV_Podcast) hosts (@CJSonic & @theODI) cover the new and returning shows for ABC and CBS, which starts at the 23:38 mark.

See for Yourself – Early Online Fall TV Premieres

Some new and returning shows have been released online before their fall premiere dates. Check out the list below. You may also find some of these or others in the OnDemand section of your cable.

• Back in the Game (ABC): Series Premiere.
• The Goldbergs (ABC): Series Premiere.
• Ironside (NBC): Series Premiere.
• The Mindy Project (FOX): Season Two Premiere.
• Trophy Wife (ABC): Series Premiere.
• Welcome to the Family (NBC): Series Premiere.

Official Network Fall Previews

• ABC Fall Preview – Links to interviews, photos and trailers for their new and returning series.
• CBS Fall Preview – Find links to interviews, promos, photos and recaps of returning shows.
• The CW Fall Preview (Video) – Link to their fall preview episode with clips and interviews with cast.
• FOX Fall Preview – Find links to show descriptions and trailers for new and returning show.
• NBC Fall Preview (Video) – Link to their fall preview episode with Sean Hayes (Sean Saves the World) taking you through NBC’s fall primetime schedule.

What new fall show are you most looking forward to seeing? Is there a returning show you are excited to have back? Read a great review or found a fall TV schedule resource we should know about? Let us know in the comments.