Patrick Ecclesine/FOXYou can keep Christmas, we'll take fall TV season, thank you very much!
The five big networks released their fall schedules last week at their upfront presentations in New York City (you can catch up on all our awesome upfront coverage here, by the way!), but what we get really excited about is getting our first look at the new shows coming to a TV screen near you in just a few short months.
From Kevin Bacon starring in The Following to Connie Britton playing a country superstar on Nashville, here are the 10 new shows we're anticipating most eagerly...
ABC
Last Resort
Let's be real, we're pretty excited to see Scott Speedman back on our TV and in uniform. This submarine action drama from the genius behind The Shield, Shawn Ryan, is set to give us everything we never knew we wanted from ABC. Quite the departure from housewives and fairytales, this thriller is unlike anything else on the small screen.
Nashville
It's Connie Britton, y'all! Music and rivalry, what's not to love? The Friday Night Lights actress wows us with her country twang as a singer trying to reinvent herself in the music mecca. Of course, every hero needs a nemesis, and hers is a young Taylor Swift-esque singer played by Hayden Panettiere. With some great music and longing looks between band mates, we are ready for all the episodes, ABC.
CBS
Elementary
We have to admit we were skeptical about this Sherlock Holmes reboot until we saw the trailer. Jonny Lee Miller looks awesome and just crazy enough to pull off the recently rehabbed British detective. Plus, the much-talked-about twist of Lucy Liu as Holmes' female companion, Dr. Joan Watson, could give this Big Apple version a very different dynamic.
Partners
One Tree Hill's Sophia Bush + Ugly Betty's Michael Urie = win! From the creators of Will & Grace, Urie and David Krumholtz play best friends/architects whose working relationship resembles a marriage. Bush plays Krumholtz's fiancée, while former Superman Brandon Routh is Urie's significant other. From the footage we've seen, it seems like Urie has found himself yet another scene-stealing role.
The CW
Arrow
Um, hello washboard abs and killer bow-and-arrow skills that are giving The Avengers' Jeremy Renner a run for his money as Hollywood's hottest archer! Stephen Amell stars in the network's dark retelling of DC Comics' Green Arrow, which looks to be taking a much different approach to the superhero genre than Smallville (Think Batman Begins). Bonus? Katie Cassidy, one of our favorite TV gals, is the show's leading lady (and eventual Black Canary!).
The Carrie Diaries
Sure, we already know who Carrie ends up with, thanks to a little HBO show you may have heard of called Sex and the City, but isn't the journey usually more fun than the destination? Judging from the first trailer for the prequel, we're going to enjoy watching a 16-year-old Carrie (AnnaSophia Robb) fall in love for the first time...with a boy and New York City. Is it midseason yet?!
Fox
The Following
Hands down, the best pilot script we read this season, Kevin Williamson's The Following looks to be a creepy and compelling ride. If the killer (pun fully intended) script wasn't enough, the cast is top-notch, with Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy starring as a former FBI agent and the serial killer he caught, but can't quite seem to shake. The only negative? We have to wait until midseason to join this cult.
The Mindy Project
Does any show go more perfectly with Zooey Deschanel's New Girl than Mindy Kaling's new comedy The Mindy Project? Don't answer that, it was a rhetorical question! Mindy had us at being arrested for drunkenly riding a bicycle into a pool.
NBC
The New Normal
"A family is a family and love is love." Yeah, this is definitely a Ryan Murphy show! The New Normal centers on a gay couple's (played by The Hangover's Justin Bartha and Andrew Rannells) search for a surrogate to carry their child and the hijinks that ensue once they find the perfect match: Goldie (Georgia King), a Midwestern waitress and single mother, who kind of reminds us of a blonde Rachel Berry (Lea Michele).
Revolution
We want to watch this show, like yesterday. One of our TV gods, J.J. Abrams, has teamed up with Supernatural creator Eric Kripke to bring us this high-concept drama that asks one harrowing question: What would happen if all forms of technology just stopped working? The pilot is directed by Iron Man's Jon Favreau, and judging by the four-minute movie-trailer-style promo, it's going to be just as awesome as the superhero flick. And hello, Billy Burke being a total badass! (So long, Twilight's Charlie Swan!)