Last week’s series premiere set the scene and tone of this newest Muppets TV show, and tonight’s runs with it, having fun all along the way. Josh Groban is the special guest star, and imagine him at the piano, and Miss Piggy atop it, in an allusion to Jeff Bridges and Michelle Pfeiffer in The Fabulous Baker Boys. Then imagine Laurence Fishburne, Jay Leno and Lea Thompson as other guest stars – then tune in, so you can stop imagining and start enjoying.

2015

Sep

GRANDFATHERED By David Bianculli

SERIES PREMIERE: The two new Fox comedies tonight are among the best new shows of the season – which surprised me as well. In this first one, John Stamos plays a restaurateur and lifelong bachelor who discovers, in one very memorable moment, that one of his past sexual relationships resulted in a son. A son who’s now grown, with a young daughter of his own, and with both of them looking to bond with granddad. There aren’t any surprises here, but there are laughs, and Stamos&rsq

2015

Sep

THE GRINDER By David Bianculli

SERIES PREMIERE: The premise here demands an instant suspension of disbelief: Rob Lowe plays the star of a TV legal drama, who, after his show is canceled, returns to his small town and his younger brother’s actual law practice – where star-stricken judges allow him to sit in on cases and even cross-examine. It’s an idea that was done brilliantly, years ago, when the Bluths of Arrested Development hired Andy Griffith as a defense attorney, in his persona as Matlock. The Grinder

2015

Sep

MARVEL'S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. By David Bianculli

SEASON PREMIERE: Season 3 is when this series, following the lead of the latest Marvel movies, begins to explore the world of The Inhumans. It’s a new complication to an already complicated story line, and another is that Skye (Chloe Bennett), after all the emotional familial stresses of last season, now embraces a new, more powerful identity. She’s going by her original birth name of Daisy now – but she’s no blushing flower.

2015

Sep

BEST TIME EVER WITH NEIL PATRICK HARRIS By David Bianculli

NBC, which had planned to move this series to an earlier time slot to lead off the night, has decided to keep it where it is, because last week’s second episode built significantly in audience thanks to riding the wake of The Voice. This week, Tyler Perry is the guest announcer, and announced segments include former Olympic speed-skating star Apolo Ohno in a bit called “Ticket to Slide,” and another “Sing-along Live” home karaoke segment, this week led by former Voi

2015

Sep

FRONTLINE: "MY BROTHER'S BOMBER" By David Bianculli

SEASON PREMIERE: Part 1 of 3. Frontline, the most venerable current documentary series on television, takes on a story that’s decades old, and devotes three episodes to it, beginning with tonight’s opener. The focus is the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, whose Germany-to-Detroit route was cut short by terrorists, with the voyage, and many lives on the plane and on the ground, ending as the plane crashed in Lockerbie, Scotland. This film is by filmmaker Ken Dornstein, whos

2015

Sep

THE BIG BANG THEORY By David Bianculli

Last week’s season premiere focused on Penny and Leonard, who advanced their relationship by getting married impulsively in Las Vegas. This week, Sheldon and Amy’s relationship isn’t advancing – it’s in full retreat. They’ve broken up, and Sheldon (Jim Parsons) has taken to his Fun with Flags webcast to announce and explain his new relationship status. He may not have many viewers, but Amy (Mayim Bialik) is one of them.

2015

Sep

GOTHAM By David Bianculli

With so few good new series presented this fall, it’s comforting to know that at least one of last year’s new shows has come back even stronger than before. Young Bruce Wayne has made his way, finally, into his late father’s hidden basement cave. Jim Gordon has been reinstated to the police force in a position of influence. And the villains! There are new ones joining the old ones, and most are finding that there’s power in numbers. Erin Richards has seen her role as Barb

2015

Sep

I'LL HAVE WHAT PHIL'S HAVING By David Bianculli

SERIES PREMIERE: Phil Rosenthal, the co-creator of Everybody Loves Raymond (think of him as the answer to an SAT question: Phil Rosenthal is to Ray Romano as Larry David is to Jerry Seinfeld on Seinfeld), steps out into his own TV series and spotlight here. Not in a sitcom, but in a very entertaining travel and food nonfiction series, in which he visits a new location each week and dives in, eager to know the local food, and especially the local people. It’s highly recommended, and you can

2015

Sep

THE DAILY SHOW WITH TREVOR NOAH By David Bianculli

SERIES PREMIERE: This new series is the most-awaited late-night show since – well, since Stephen Colbert took over Late Show from David Letterman on CBS. How will Trevor Noah, at age 31, and with a global perspective and biracial background, be different from the previous Daily Show host, the fabulous Jon Stewart? Well, for starters, Noah is biracial, from South Africa… and 31. As for how he puts his own imprint on this program? That starts tonight – so why wouldn’t you

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