10 best new TV shows to watch this fall, from 'Matlock' to 'The Penguin'
Are you ready for pumpkin spice, everything nice and maybe some new TV?
Autumn is quickly approaching with all the falling leaves, apple picking, plaid and pumpkins you can handle. And, of course, new TV series on broadcast, cable and streaming that you may just want to snuggle up under a fuzzy blanket to binge-watch.
We waded through the avalanche of new fall 2024 series with episodes made available for critics and picked the 10 best comedies, dramas, documentaries and a little bit of horror, from a Batman villain crime drama to a Kathy Bates network TV reboot. (Some high-profile debuts, like Disney+'s Marvel series "Agatha All Along" and NBC's Reba McEntire comedy "Happy's Place," weren't provided before our deadline.) They will delight and entertain you, and certainly not waste your time.
We've got room on the couch Sign up for USA TODAY's Watch Party newsletter
'English Teacher’ (FX)
Mondays, 10 EDT/PDT
Call it "Abbott Elementary," but with more swearing. FX's Texas high school-set comedy has the same defined sense of place and character as ABC's grade school hit but with a distinctly darker and more mature tone. Created by and starring comedian Brian Jordan Alvarez, the genuinely funny series feels distinctly modern without an embarrassing amount of poorly-used Gen Z slang. Instead, it remembers that teenagers are still hormonal time bombs, teachers are doing their best and everyone in public education is exhausted. It finds the funny in all that mess.
Interview: Brian Jordan Alvarez dissects FX's subversive school comedy 'English Teacher'
‘How to Die Alone’ (Hulu)
Friday, Sept. 13
It's a good fall for comedies created by and starring talented comedians. This time it's "Insecure" and "The White Lotus" alum Natasha Rothwell who's flying solo (pun intended) as Melissa, an airport worker stuck in her comfort zone and carrying the (checked) baggage of her failed relationships. After a near-death experience and a chance encounter with a stranger, Melissa's outlook and fortunes change dramatically. Rothwell is a magnetic leading lady (it's about time she got the chance), and the show has a unique point of view that will keep you wanting more.
‘High Potential’ (ABC)
Sept. 17 (Tuesdays, 10 EDT/PDT)
Who would have guessed "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" star Kaitlin Olson would be perfect as the lead of a "Monk"-style procedural network cop show? The idea surprisingly works, as Olson brings a much more family-friendly brand of her humor to "Potential" as a single mom and janitor who stumbles into consulting for the police because of her extremely high intelligence. Cop shows are a dime a dozen, but the combination of Olson's charm, good scripts and a likable cast that includes Taran Killam and Judy Reyes makes "Potential" stand out from the generic pack.
‘The Penguin’ (HBO)
Sept. 19, Thursdays, 9 EDT/PDT
The long-awaited follow-up to director Matt Reeves' 2022 film "The Batman," the series follows the iconic caped-crusader villain Penguin, played by Colin Farrell. A distinctly super-villainous tale, it's as if "The Sopranos" took place in Gotham City instead of New Jersey: All mob hits, gang wars and petty political backstabbing. Farrell turns in a marvelous performance behind all those prosthetics and makeup, alongside a deliciously deranged Cristin Milioti ("How I Met Your Mother") as mob daughter/sociopath Sofia Falcone. You'll find yourself forgetting the dark and gritty drama has any roots in the colorful world of comic books.
‘Matlock’ (CBS)
Sept. 22 (Sunday, 8 EDT/PDT), then Thursdays, 9 EDT/PDT starting Oct. 17
When you hear the words "Kathy Bates in a CBS 'Matlock' reboot," you might not be excited. The world of remakes, revivals and reboots on TV has been distinctly hit or miss in the past half-decade or so. But this one is a pleasant surprise. Bates plays bright, brilliant and folksy lawyer Madeline Matlock (just like the TV show, as she keeps telling everyone), who stopped practicing for several years but somehow wheedles her way into a job at a big-time corporate firm. There are cases of the week and a bigger mystery involving Madeline's past, and the series, from "Jane the Virgin" creator Jennie Snyder Urman, succeeds because of its kicky pacing and sense of fun. Its star may be a septuagenarian, but neither she nor the plot is slowing down.
‘Nobody Wants This’ (Netflix)
Sept. 26
You actually do want this. The rom-com about a cool rabbi (Adam Brody) and an agnostic podcast host (Kristen Bell) falling in love in Los Angeles might sound like it was dreamed up by a drunken artificial intelligence, but it's actually the sweetest, most romantic series of the last few years. The chemistry between Brody and Bell, stars of favorite millennial teen dramas "The O.C." and "Veronica Mars," respectively, now comfortably in their 40s, leaps off the screen as the star-crossed lovers try to sort their way through religious and cultural differences.
‘Social Studies’ (FX)
Sept. 27, Fridays, 10 EDT/PDT
Do you ever worry about teens and their phones? Well, this new documentary series from FX won't exactly make you feel better about all the time your kids spend glued to their devices. The eye-opening episodes, following a group of LA teens who return to in-person school in 2021 after months of COVID-19 lockdowns – and exploring how they use and abuse social media – will make you understand today's teens in ways you perhaps wish you didn't. Like a real-life version of HBO's "Euphoria," the series is disturbing yet sensitive to its subjects. It brings into stark relief the dangers of TikTok, Instagram and their ilk, and offers a more convincing argument for the Luddite life than a bunch of adults bloviating about the apps.
‘Disclaimer’ (Apple TV+)
Oct. 11, streaming Fridays
"Gravity" and "Roma" director Alfonso Cuarón brings his Oscar-winning talents to TV for this limited series about a novel that threatens to expose the dark secret of a celebrated documentarian (Cate Blanchett). The series has what a lot of other big-budget, high-profile miniseries have going for them: A movie star cast (Blanchett, Kevin Kline, an unrecognizable Sacha Baron Cohen), a mysterious death and a story that jumps around in time. But "Disclaimer" is more compelling and feels more important based on its eerie ambience alone. It is a tantalizing story that demands you watch more. And the Venice Film Festival audience agreed; they gave it a five-minute standing ovation.
‘Hysteria!’ (Peacock)
Oct. 18, streaming Fridays
As ridiculous as its title would indicate, this Peacock series follows a teen metal band that takes advantage of local "Satanic panic" in the 1980s to turn their music from something nobody cares about into the dangerous, devil-worshipping hot ticket of the high school cool kids. The problem for the teens is the Bible-thumping adults of the town don't particularly care for the band's pentagrams and black nail polish. Plus there might be something actually supernatural putting everyone in danger. Julie Bowen, Anna Camp and Bruce Campbell appear in the series which mixes comedy, genuine horror and plenty of satire.
‘St. Denis Medical’ (NBC)
Nov. 12, Tuesdays, 8 EDT/PDT
Another workplace comedy winner from "Superstore" and "American Auto" creator Justin Spitzer, "St. Denis" takes the mockumentary format inside a suburban hospital. Like any other office, there are competent workhorses like Nurse Alex (Allison Tolman) and idiot bosses like hospital administrator Joyce (Wendi McClendon-Covey). From the first episode the cast has great chemistry and the writing has a distinct style. It's all more "The Office" deadpan than "Scrubs" saccharine, which is perhaps the best way to laugh about health care in our current era.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Best shows to watch right now: Fall's must-see TV
