We are currently in the winter hiatus when most shows are in re-runs or taking a break.  But the season kicks off again the first week of January, and we have the full schedule for all of the science fiction and fantasy shows.  This will include five new shows: Alcatraz and Touch from FOX, Lost Girl from Syfy, The River from ABC, and the animated series Blade from G4.  Also, Syfy’s Being Human and HBO’s Game of Thrones both return for their second seasons.  And all of the Fall shows will be starting back up as well (no genre cancellations so far!) beginning in January and continuing into the Spring months.  You can see the full schedule over at our Sci Fi TV Page.  And check back on a regular basis as the scheduled dates and times can change with little or no notice.  Also, watch our Cancellation Watch column for Johnny Jay’s mid-season predictions on which shows will survive and which shows can expect to face the network executioners by season end.

Mid-Season Sci Fi TV Schedule

The New Year is almost upon us and that means a whole slew of new science fiction and fantasy movies set to hit the theaters. The first four months of the year are not quite as heralded as the Summer Blockbuster Season, but the months of January through April of 2012 will deliver their fare share of notable genre entries which will include titles like Underworld: Awakening, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, John Carter, Ridley Scott’s Prometheus, and Joss Whedon’s Cabin in the Woods. We have the full schedule of the science fiction and fantasy movies for those months over at our Sci Fi Movie Page as well as a teaser of what to expect from Summer 2012. So check out the list and get your calendars out to mark down the big releases for the upcoming months!

2012 Science Fiction and Fantasy Movie Preview

MTV’s Death Valley gets the Fall season off to an early start as it debuts at 10:30 PM tonight. This mockumentary series done in the style of Reno 911 follows the UTF (Undead Task Force) of LAPD as they deal with a rash of vampires, werewolves, and zombies that have overrun San Fernando Valley (you can see the trailer at this link). Sounds like it could be good fun and could add another notch in MTV’s belt of viable genre entries (after their previous success with this past Summer’s Teen Wolf).

Then beginning in late September, the Fall season will kick into high gear with new shows like Terra Nova, The Secret Circle, Grimm, Person of Interest, and Once Upon a Time as well as returning series like Fringe, The Walking Dead, Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries, and more. We have pulled together the full schedule of Fall shows, along with their premiere dates, over at the Sci Fi Scroll blog page. Click here to see what’s currently on the schedule and when they will have their Fall debuts. And keep an eye out for Johnny Jay’s Cancellation Watch Fall Preview, which will be hitting this site soon.

Fall 2011 Science Fiction and Fantasy Television Schedule and Premiere Dates

By John J. Joex

The upfronts are over and the schedules from the broadcast networks for the upcoming season are now set (but not in stone because plenty of changes can happen between now and Fall). Below is the schedule as it currently stands which includes a few marginal entries because they may not have much in the way of genre elements (like A Gifted Man on CBS) or they have stars or producers of interest to genre fans (like Ringer starring Sarah Michelle Gellar or J.J. Abrams’ Person of Interest with Michael Emerson). Currently there are eighteen shows on the schedule or slotted for midseason (that’s excluding two of the three mentioned above) which is about the same as last year, and Syfy has not announced which new shows it will unveil in the Fall, so more could be added.

Looking at this schedule, there’s a glaring trend that jumps out. Because Smallville and Supernatural did well for The CW on Friday nights this season and because Fringe was allegedly a success for FOX on that night, the networks have decided to cram as many shows as possible into Friday. If you count A Gifted Man as a genre show, that’s seven programs that will air from in the 8 PM and 9 PM (Eastern time zone) slots! A quick look shows that Nikita will probably be the loser in the 8 PM hour as CBS shows just tend to pull more viewers and diehard Chuck fans will certainly follow that show with its move to Fridays. And ultimately A Gifted Man could get cancelled as well even if it wins its timeslot (which it almost certainly will) because CBS sets higher standards for its shows and tends to look for some pretty large ratings returns to earn a renewal (remember that they cancelled Top 25 show The Eleventh Hour a couple of seasons ago). And at the 9 PM, NBC’s Grimm is a certain goner, squashed between Fringe on FOX and Supernatural on The CW. I know networks have had some success with genre shows on Fridays, but these moves seem rather excessive and sure to doom several shows before the season even begins.

I will be looking at more of these shows in detail and analyzing their chances for success next season as wells as taking a final look at the cancelled shows from this season in several upcoming posts, but wanted to go ahead and get the schedule out there now. Watch for more on this topic in the coming week.  And to read the official synopsis of each of the new shows (and see some of the trailers) go to this link.

2011-12 Season Schedule for Genre Shows:

Sunday
8:00-9:00 PM Once Upon a Time (ABC – New Series)
10:00 PM – 11:00 PM Game of Thrones* (HBO – Returning Series, 2012)
10:00 PM – 11:00 PM The Walking Dead* (AMC – Returning Series)

Monday
8:00-9:00 PM Terra Nova (FOX – New Series)
9:00-10:00 PM Alcatraz (FOX – New Midseason Series)
9:00-10:00 PM Sanctuary* (Syfy – Returning Series)
10:00 PM – 11:00 PM Being Human* (Syfy – Returning Series)

Tuesday
9:00-10:00 PM Ringer** (CW – New Series)

Wednesday
No Genre Shows Scheduled

Thursday
8:00-9:00 PM The Vampire Diaries (CW – Returning Series)
9:00-10:00 PM Person of Interest** (CBS – New Series)
9:00-10:00 PM The Secret Circle (CW – New Series)

Friday
8:00-9:00 PM A Gifted Man* (CBS – New Series)
8:00-9:00 PM Nikita (CW – Returning Series, New Night)
8:00-9:00 PM Chuck (NBC – Returning Series, New Night)
8:00-8:30 PM Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Cartoon Network – Returning Series)
9:00-10:00 PM Supernatural (CW – Returning Series)
9:00-10:00 PM Fringe (FOX – Returning Series)
9:00-10:00 PM Grimm (NBC – New Series)

Midseason shows not scheduled yet: Awake (NBC – New Series), The River (ABC – New Series).

2010-11 cancelled/ending shows: No Ordinary Family (ABC – Cancelled), V (ABC – Cancelled), Medium (CBS – Cancelled), Smallville (CW – Final Season), Human Target (FOX – Cancelled), The Cape (NBC – Cancelled), The Event (NBC – Cancelled), Undercovers (NBC – Cancelled), Caprica (Syfy – Cancelled), Stargate: Universe (Syfy Cancelled)

*Night and time indicated for these series are tentative.
**These shows contain only marginal genre elements and/or include actors and/or producers that will interest sci fi fans.

Fringe returns from its Winter hiatus tonight in its much talked about Friday night timeslot. Christopher Lloyd guest stars as Doc Brown meets Walter Bishop! (He’s not really playing the Doc Brown character from Back to the Future, but wouldn’t it be great?) Also, interestingly enough, tonight’s episodes is titled “The Firefly” and we all know about FOX’s infamous cancelling of Joss Whedon’s Firefly from the Friday night death slot about one decade ago. Let’s not let Fringe become a casualty as well!! Be sure to tune in and spread the word.

Almost all Science Fiction and Fantasy fans (including comic book aficionados) are eagerly awaiting the geek-a-polooza that will be Summer 2011 with the arrival of such Blockbuster films as Thor, Green Lantern, The Rise of the Apes, Cowboys and Aliens, and Super 8 just to name a few.  But there’s still four months of 2011 to get through before the May 6th debut of Thor.  And movie theaters owners still want to fill up seats between now and then so the movie studios will oblige them.  Now typically the films that come out in the months of January through April are the ones that the studios did not have great confidence in or that they felt would not stand up as well against heavyweight Blockbuster competition.  But it doesn’t mean that they are all cast-offs and rejects.  In fact, the coming months have more than a few intriguing entries that we plan on giving a look-see including The Green Hornet, Season of the Witch, Rango, Paul, Source Code, and Sucker Punch.  And we have put together a preview of all the Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror movies scheduled to hit the theaters over the coming four months.  Consider this a warm up for the big event that will occur with the Summer explosion of genre films.  And there are a definitely few films coming out in the January through April months that should provide some decent popcorn viewing.  Where available, we have included links to each film’s website so that you can view the trailers and get additional information.  And check back on a regular basis for new additions or revisions to the schedule.  Also, watch for our post on the top picks from this batch of films from early 2011.  In the meantime, peruse through our preview and vote on which films you most want to see while biding time for the Summer 2011 Blockbuster season.

Early 2011 Science Fiction and Fantasy Movie Preview

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By John J. Joex

The Fall season is in the process of wrapping up as most shows have already had their mid-season finales with several more to follow this week and next. And when these shows return early next year, there will be a handful of genre shows sneaking onto the schedule for the first time this season, some new and some returning from last year. The count’s not too high this year, falling in line with the Sci Fi-Pocalypse trend that we have been seeing. But still, there’s several worth a look and one that I’m really looking forward to. Among the former category I would count NBC’s new superhero series (please let it be better than seasons two through four of Heroes) The Cape, Syfy’s remake of the British series Being Human, the return of Primeval, and the BBC series Outcasts (originally scheduled to bow this in December, but since pushed back). The one I am most looking forward to, though, is HBO’s Game of Thrones which will adapt George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series of novels. The previews make this one look like a small screen version of Lord of the Rings (though admittedly The Legend of the Seeker’s early previews drew us in with that same tease). Still, HBO has a reputation for quality television so I’m hoping they will give us a winner with this one along the lines of AMC’s The Walking Dead. I even plan on picking up HBO just to catch this show (or I will do their free one month preview deal and then decide if it’s worth keeping it). Also on the schedule for mid-season is the second season of ABC’s V, though the less said about that, the better. We have added the information for all of the mid-season genre shows to our Sci Fi TV page, so you can get the full scoop on them there (premiere dates, timeslots, brief synopsis/spoilers, etc.). And below is the mid-season schedule for all of the Science Fiction and Fantasy shows as its stands at this point. Be sure to check back for updates because we all know that the networks can change their minds at the drop of a hat.

Mid-Season Schedule for 2011:

Monday:

8 PM – Chuck (NBC) Returns Jan 17th
9 PM – The Cape (NBC) Jan 17th – Feb 21st, The Event (NBC) returns Feb 28th
9 PM – Being Human (Syfy) Season One premiere Jan 17th

Tuesday:

8 PM – No Ordinary Family (ABC) Returns Jan 4th
9 PM – V (ABC) Second Season Premiere on Jan 4th
9 PM – Stargate: Universe (Syfy) Returns in Spring

Wednesday:

8 PM – Human Target (FOX) Jan 5th to Jan 12th (2-Hour Blocks)
9 PM – Human Target (FOX) Shifts to this timeslot (post-American Idol) beginning Jan 26th

Thursday:

8 PM – Vampire Diaries (CW) Jan 27th
9 PM – Nikita (CW) Jan 27th

Friday:

8 PM – Smallville (CW) Jan 28th
9 PM – Supernatural (CW) Jan 28th
9 PM – Fringe (FOX) Returns from Winter hiatus to this timeslot beginning Jan 28th Jan 21st
10 PM – Merlin (Syfy) Third Season Premiere on Jan 7th
10 PM – Sanctuary (Syfy) Returns in April

Saturday:

9 PM Primeval (BBC America) Fourth Season Premiere on Jan 1st

Spring 2011:

Game of Thrones (HBO) Premieres April 17th
Outcasts (BBC America) Day and time to be determined

Cancelled:

Medium (CBS) – Will air out its remaining episodes in its Friday 8 PM EST timeslot.
Undercovers (NBC) – Last scheduled airing Dec 1st. No word on when the remaining episodes will air.
Caprica (Syfy) – Syfy will air the last episodes in a five hour block on January 4th.

Moved from a Midseason 2011 to Fall 2011:

Terra Nova (FOX)

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It’s been a long wait since the last episode of FOX’s Human Target which aired mid-April last season, and the wait was extended even longer when the show got moved from its originally planned debut for Season 2 of October 1st.  But Christopher Chance (Mark Valley), Winston (Chi McBride), and Guerrero (Jackie Earle Haley) finally make their return tonight at 8 PM EST.  This season will also add two female leads to the cast as Indira Varma comes onboard as a widowed billionaire who becomes involved with Chance and his operation and Janet Montgomery also comes into the fold as a thief reluctantly tied to the group.  Tim Goodman at the Hollywood Reporter got an early look at Season 2 and said that it still delivers the same popcorn fun that we saw in the show’s first season.  So fans should not worry too much about any network tinkering that has occurred since we last checked in on Chance and his crew.  And last season delivered a regular who’s who of genre veterans in guest roles and this year looks to follow the same trend with Tahmoh Penikett (Battlestar Galactica, Dollhouse) showing up in tonight’s episode and M.C. Gainey (Lost) and Lennie James (Jericho, The Walking Dead) dropping by in the coming weeks. If you missed this one during its first season, be sure tune in tonight at 8 PM EST for a great action/espionage romp with a superb cast and good sense of fun.

Watch Episodes on Human Target Online for Free at Hulu.com

Buy the First Season of Human Target on DVD from Amazon.com

Did you feel like the first half of Caprica‘s Season 1 was somewhat slow and a bit of a let down?  Then join the club because that seems to be the general consensus on the Battlestar Galactica prequel series.  But the show’s producers insist that the action will start to pick up with the second half of the season (and you can check out the recap trailer for the first half of the season at this link) which begins tonight on Syfy at 10 PM EST following Stargate: Universe.  Caprica was originally not supposed to return until January, but apparently Syfy changed their mind and decided to pair it up with new episodes of SGU this Fall.  Whether this is a good move or just an attempt to burn off the rest of the season before cancelling the show remains to be seen.  Caprica definitely underperformed last Spring and SGU did not set off any ratings fireworks last week with its Season 2 premiere.  Still, the two sci fi epics seem to complement each other and maybe they will create some synergy that will draw in more viewers.  As for Syfy’s other scripted Fall show Sanctuary, they have decided to keep that one on Friday nights and it will get its Season 3 premiere on October 15th at 10 PM EST.

Buy Caprica, Stargate: Universe, and Sanctuary on DVD from Amazon.com:

If you are looking for the first episode of FOX’s Human Target which our Fall Preview previously indicated would happen tonight, you’re going to have to wait a bit.  FOX has shuffled its schedule after its quick cancellation of it’s failed drama series Lone Star.  This re-shuffling will result in Human Target returning to the Wednesday 8 PM timeslot that it had for most of last season.  But it won’t show up there until November 17th.  We’re not really certain why this move should result in a delay of the second season premiere of Human Target and we’re also not certain that any of this is good news for the show.  The series never pulled stellar ratings in that slot last season and its genre competition over on NBC, Undercovers, is currently languishing in the spot.  On the other hand, the Friday night timelsot that FOX had previously cast the show into did not hold a lot of promise either.  So we will count the news as neutral and will just have to wait patiently for the return of this over-the-top but great fun series.  In the mean time, you can check our Fall Preview page to see what other Science Fiction and Fantasy shows are currently airing that can keep you occupied until then.

Buy Human Target Season One on DVD from Amazon.com: