BEFORE
Apple TV+
Billy Crystal returns to the small screen after almost ten years in this limited dramatic series as both star and producer. His role as a child psychologist who loses his wife to suicide is an intense one, as he tries to cope with what happened to her while attempting to unravel a young boy’s emotional distress. Rosie Perez, Hope Davis, and Judith Light round out the cast.
GEORGE & MANDY’S FIRST MARRIAGE
CBS
Spinoff series are nothing new on the small screen, but a spinoff of a spinoff is something of an anomaly (but not unheard of). This new show starring Emily Osment and Montana Jordan springs from the ever-fertile mind of Chuck Lorre, who first created The Big Bang Theory, then followed that with Young Sheldon, and now George & Mandy’s First Marriage. This sitcom follows Sheldon’s older brother, who marries at 17 and has a child – fans of all these shows will know that Jerry O’Connell played the older version of Georgie in Big Bang.
HAPPY’S PLACE
NBC
Reba McEntire returns to the weekly network sitcom world in this story revolving around a woman who inherits her dad’s restaurant, only to discover she’s got a partner – the sister she never knew she had. Melissa Peterman costars as her “new” sibling in this food-centric series that isn’t likely to evoke The Bear. Hopefully, this one will have more laughs, as that’s what Reba does best as an actress.
NCIS: ORIGINS
CBS
Proving that viewers just cannot get enough of crimes involving the U.S. Navy, this series marks the fifth spinoff of the long-and-still running NCIS. After 20 years on the air, it’s still got the umph to keep fans watching, this time with the origin story of Jethro Gibbs, beginning in 1991. Mark Harmon (who has retired from that role in the original show, but still produces it) is the narrator, while Austin Stowell stars as young Gibbs, just beginning his naval career.
POPPA’S HOUSE
CBS
It’s a family affair on the new sitcom Poppa’s House, as Damon Wayans and his son Damon Wayans Jr. join forces to bring laughs to Monday night prime time. Damon the Elder plays a New York City talk-show host living with his grown son, which sounds a bit like a Black version of Frasier. Hopefully the Wayans comedy magic that’s been on display since In Living Color made the whole family household names back in 1990 will make this one just as funny in its own unique way.