Now that your favorite network shows have wrapped up for the season, here are some new and returning programs to fill the void in your soul or at least keep on your radar.
NBC
Gillian Anderson and Mads Mikkelsen in "Hannibal."
Hannibal (NBC, returns June 4)
Returning for a highly anticipated third season, the show picks up with Hannibal Lecter’s escape to Italy with his personal psychiatrist, Bedelia (Gillian Anderson). With only 13 episodes per season, a rarity for network TV, Hannibal has the ability to focus on fewer plot points and steer clear of bloated seasons. The program has drawn critical acclaim for its visual style and storytelling capabilities, and Mads Mikkelsen’s performance in the title role consistently thrills and disturbs.
Bravo
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Jill Kargman points fingers in "Odd Mom Out."
Odd Mom Out (Bravo, premieres June 8)
Bravo’s first scripted project, Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce, started out last year as a Sex and the City wannabe but developed into an equal parts funny and dramatic show worth watching. The network is trying its hand at another scripted series with this sarcastic comedy, created by and starring author Jill Kargman. It’s about her character’s interactions and relationships with other mothers living on New York’s Upper East Side. The humor is found in her general distaste for women she calls “momzillas,” and the show certainly has potential since Kargman has decades of stories and experiences from which to mine. Much of the cast is relatively unknown — the most famous being Abby Elliott (Saturday Night Live) and Andy Buckley (Michael Scott’s boss on The Office) — but that’s not necessarily a negative. Like Girlfriends’ Guide, everything is contingent on the writing. If the humor is as wicked as the previews imply, Odd Mom Out could be the perfect fit for your summer TV schedule.
Watch the Odd Mom Out preview.
Netflix
"Orange is the New Black"
Orange Is the New Black (Netflix, returns June 12)
It’s difficult to think of a more beautifully chaotic TV show than Orange Is the New Black, thanks to heated interactions — dramatic and comedic — among the most unique cast of characters in the medium. At the end of second season, everything has fallen apart at Litchfield Penitentiary, though series creator Jenji Kohan thankfully tied up many of the season’s loose ends. Red (Kate Mulgrew) ratted out main antagonist Vee (Lorraine Toussaint) after some convincing from Sister Ingalls, but it’s a bit too little too late. Just when we think Vee has escaped, we see Rosa (Barbara Rosenblat) do something that had “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” branded into our brains for quite some time. Hopefully in this third season, viewers will get to see some of the characters they know and love make a return. Also, we’re itching for another Alex/Piper interaction.
Watch the Orange Is the New Black preview.
ABC
"The Astronaut Wives Club"
The Astronaut Wives Club (ABC, premieres June 18)
After the end of Mad Men, ABC is hoping to capitalize on period-piece withdrawal. This drama series is based on a Lily Koppel novel about the wives of the Mercury Seven, the original American astronauts. It stars JoAnna García Swisher (Reba), Evan Handler (Californication) and Odette Annable (House) and focuses on the interactions among the wives and their relationships with the astronauts. The series was originally scheduled to air last year but was pushed back to undergo changes, implying perhaps that it’s just not good enough to have a place in ABC’s regular season schedule or that the network wants to try it out against lesser competition. Astronaut Wives does do something right, however, in that it combines viewers’ interest in space (think of recent films Gravity and Interstellar) with nostalgic period pieces (Mad Men, Downton Abbey).
Watch the The Astronaut Wives Club preview.
HBO
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in “Ballers.”
Ballers (HBO, premieres June 21)
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson stars as a former pro football player who now handles personal and financial matters for current athletes in the league. From the previews, the show is branded as a comedy with dramatic undertones, somewhere at the intersection of Friday Night Lights, The Wolf of Wall Street and Entourage. It’s poised to at least find an audience with young men, and being on HBO gives me confidence that Ballers could be a quality narrative worth watching. Johnson has shown quite an aptitude for comedy in guest spots on Saturday Night Live and Lip Sync Battle, and Ballers is his chance to become a bona fide television star. Rob Corddry (Children’s Hospital) plays his eager second in command.
TNT
Rhona Mitra (l. to r.), Adam Baldwin and Eric Dane in "The Last Ship."
The Last Ship (TNT, returns June 21)
Do you have a hankering for a nautical-themed pandemic tale? Look no further than The Last Ship. Entering its second season, the show stars Eric Dane (Grey’s Anatomy) as the commanding officer of a naval destroyer and Rhona Mitra (Boston Legal) as a scientist sent to the arctic to find a cure for a deadly disease. Unfortunately, the pandemic has spread throughout most of the world and now it’s up to them to find a cure. While it might seem like a stretch, the recent Ebola scare gives some context to the plot. Summertime is traditionally slim pickings for many genres, but The Last Ship is one of the better choices for some small screen action.
Watch the The Last Ship preview.
Lacey Terrell / HBO
Colin Farrell in "True Detective."
True Detective (HBO, returns June 21)
Will the second installment of HBO’s critically acclaimed anthology live up to the high standards of the first season? When the new cast was first announced, it sounded like it belonged in a romantic comedy. In the past few years, Vince Vaughn and Colin Farrell’s stock in Hollywood has been pretty low — but if anything can reinvigorate their careers as dramatic actors to be taken seriously, it’s the True Detective series. The cast also includes Taylor Kitsch (Friday Night Lights) and Rachel McAdams. Kitsch plays a police officer who comes upon a crime scene and works with detectives (Farrell and McAdams) to solve the mystery. Beyond that, much of the upcoming season has been kept under wraps.
Watch the True Detective preview.
Comedy Central
Natasha Leggero in "Another Period."
Another Period (Comedy Central, premieres June 23)
It’s no secret Comedy Central has been on a roll lately with successful series like Inside Amy Schumer, Key & Peele, Broad City and Comedy Central Roasts, and frequent roaster Natasha Leggero is giving it her best go with Another Period. Think of this series as the Kardashians in the Downton Abbey era. It stars Leggero, co-creator Riki Lindhome (Garfunkel and Oates), David Koechner (Anchorman) and Paget Brewster (Criminal Minds) as the regal Bellacourts in early 1920s Rhode Island. Leggero and Lindhome portray a pair of sisters concerned only with their fame and money (so you see where the Kardashian connection lies). Another Period has a ton of potential; it seems to have the right cast, premise and network. All that’s left is for the writing to deliver.
