April TV Preview: New and Returning Shows to Watch
By Amy Woolsey
Rejoice, TV fans, for April brings an embarrassment of riches to the small screen. Culturess has a guide to all the shows premiering this month.
By all rights, the 2017 TV season should be in full swing. It’s the end of March, roughly halfway between “midseason” and May sweeps, when broadcast network shows typically air their finales. On the contrary, though, we’re just getting started.
April will unleash an avalanche of shows onto the already-crowded television landscape, wiping out your evenings and weekends. Chances are, you’ve marked at least two premiere dates in your calendar, whether it’s a highly anticipated new show like The Handmaid’s Tale or an old favorite like Archer. One of the many benefits of Peak TV is that you can find something decent to watch no matter what time of year it is. Gone are the days of listlessly flipping through channels until you gave up and settled for a House Hunters marathon.
Peak TV can also be overwhelming. There are so many options, and only so many hours. But don’t worry: Culturess has your back. We compiled information about all the shows premiering in April into one handy guide. Make room on your DVR; it’s about to get a workout.
Call the Midwife (PBS)
New or returning: Returning (season 6)
Premiere date: Sunday, April 2, 8 p.m. EST
A transplant from BBC One, Call the Midwife follows a group of midwives in the impoverished East End of 1950s/‘60s London. It’s based on a trilogy of memoirs by Jennifer Worth, which no doubt contributes to the show’s painstaking commitment to realism. In other words, expect less Mad Men and more The Knick, the delicate period-piece aesthetic a backdrop for harrowing birth sequences and incisive social commentary. As Emily Nussbaum said in her New Yorker review, this “soothing cup of tea is spiked with Fireball.”
Heidi Thomas created Call the Midwife, which stars Jenny Agutter, Miranda Hart, and Helen George. (Original lead Jessica Raine left after season 3, though her character lives on through the voiceover narration provided by Vanessa Redgrave.)
Prison Break (Fox)
New or returning: Returning (season 5)
Premiere: Tuesday, April 4, 9 p.m. EST
TV’s recent revival trend hasn’t exactly yielded promising results, with Arrested Development, The X-Files, and Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life receiving mixed-to-negative reviews. But that won’t stop Fox from bringing back Prison Break for nine episodes. Never mind that the show, which aired from 2005 to 2009, struggled to sustain its plot after season 1 and ended with one of its main characters dying.
Prison Break was created by Paul Scheuring. As the title implies, it’s about a wrongly convicted man, Lincoln, who attempts to escape from prison with the help of his brother, Michael. The new season picks up years after the original finale, as evidence surfaces that Michael is alive. Several cast members return, including leads Dominic Purcell and Wentworth Miller.
iZombie (The CW)
New or returning: Returning (season 3)
Premiere: Tuesday, April 4, 9 p.m. EST
Olivia Moore had an ordinary life – a budding medical career, a loving fiancé – until she got turned into a zombie. Now, not only does she need a continual serving of brains to stay lucid, but she temporarily assumes the personality and memories of the people whose brains she consumes. Because this is network TV, she uses her abilities to solve crime, working as a coroner’s assistant and eating the brains of murder victims. Cue action, angst, and hilarity – the basic ingredients for any good CW show.
iZombie was created by Rob Thomas and Diane Ruggiero-Wright. Rose McIver stars alongside Malcolm Goodwin, Rahul Kohli, and Robert Buckley. Season 3 will run for 13 episodes.
Archer (FXX)
New or returning: New (season 8)
Premiere: Wednesday, April 5, 10 p.m. EST
FX has built its brand on three types of programs: gritty, largely male-oriented dramas (e.g. The Shield, Sons of Anarchy); misanthropic comedies (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Louie); and auteur-driven anthology series (American Horror Story, Fargo). Archer contains elements of all three. The animated James Bond riff centers on Sterling Archer, an egotistical, philandering spy, and his fellow agents at the fictional International Secret Intelligence Service. It combines dense (and profane) meta humor with madcap action – a workplace procedural-meets-soap opera.
Like seasons 5 and 7, season 8 gives the show a makeover, replacing the usual espionage with a noir mystery. This will be Archer’s FXX debut. Archer was created by Adam Reed and features voice work from H. Jon Benjamin, Aisha Tyler, Jessica Walter, and Judy Greer.
The Get Down (Netflix)
New or returning: Returning (season 1, part two)
Premiere: Friday, April 7
Baz Luhrmann became the latest filmmaker to cross mediums last year with this ambitious two-part musical. Set in the Bronx during the 1970s, The Get Down chronicles the rise of hip-hop and disco through the eyes of teenage misfits. As you’d expect from a project with the director of Moulin Rouge! attached, it’s extravagant, combining energetic music numbers with over-the-top violence, schmaltzy romance, and grand historical mythmaking. The first episode clocked in at a full 93 minutes.
The back half of season 1 jumps forward a year to 1978 and runs six episodes. Justice Smith, Shameik Moore, and Herizen F. Guardiola headline an ensemble that consists almost entirely of people of color.
Pierce Brosnan, Sydney Lucas, and Henry Garrett in The Son season 1, image courtesy of AMC
The Son (AMC)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Saturday, April 8, 9 p.m. EST
It seems inevitable that someone would turn The Son, Philipp Meyer’s acclaimed novel about the colonization of Texas, into a cable TV series. The Western genre is back in vogue, as evidenced by HBO’s science-fiction hybrid Westworld as well as films like Logan and the Oscar-nominated Hell or High Water, and antiheroes never went out of vogue. Once again, the antihero is a white man. Orphaned and captured by Comanche as a child, Eli McCullough grows up to become a powerful and ruthless rancher.
Meyer developed The Son with Brian McGreevy and Lee Shipman. Pierce Brosnan steps into the role of Eli after original lead Sam Neill left. The supporting cast includes Henry Garrett (the king in the Beauty and the Beast remake), Zahn McClarnon (Fargo season 2), and Mexican actress Paola Núñez.
Angie Tribeca (TBS)
New or returning: Returning (season 3)
Premiere: Monday, April 10, 9:30 p.m. EST
Angie Tribeca got off to an unusual start, as TBS burned off the entire 10-episode first season in an uninterrupted marathon on January 17, 2016. Nonetheless, the cop comedy managed to find an audience with its endearing blend of deadpan satire and goofy Naked Gun-esque parody. The first two seasons involved the titular detective investigating crimes like a ventriloquist’s murder, a ferret-smuggling spree, and a dating website hack. All the while, Tribeca carries on a will-they/won’t-they romance with her partner, Jason Geils.
Steve Carell created the show with his wife, Nancy. Rashida Jones stars as Tribeca, while Hayes McArthur, Jere Burns, and Deon Cole make up the supporting cast. Among the numerous past guest or recurring actors are Lisa Kudrow, Adam Scott, Keegan Michael-Key, and James Franco.
Better Call Saul (AMC)
New or returning: Returning (season 3)
Premiere: Monday, April 10, 10 p.m. EST
When Vince Gilligan announced that a Breaking Bad spin-off was in the works, few expected it to live up to its predecessor. Spin-offs in general reek of desperation, a reluctance to move on, and it was hard to imagine sleazy lawyer Saul Goodman, the would-be protagonist, anchoring his own show. Lo and behold, two seasons in, Better Call Saul has garnered abundant critical praise and awards attention. Well-acted and visually immaculate, it both elaborates on and subverts the themes presented in Breaking Bad.
Of course, there’s room for fan service as well. Giancarlo Esposito joins fellow Breaking Bad alums Bob Odenkirk and Jonathan Banks for season 3, reprising his role as the formidable meth dealer Gus Fring. Gilligan created Better Call Saul with Peter Gould, a writer and producer on Breaking Bad.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox)
New or returning: Returning (season 4, midseason)
Premiere: Tuesday, April 11, 8 p.m. EST
This isn’t technically a new season for Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but it sure feels like one. The police sitcom returned from winter break in January with a two-part episode, before immediately going back on hiatus – this time for four months. As if to make the wait more excruciating, the two-part episode, titled “The Fugitive”, ended with a major character (hilariously) getting hit by a bus. It does give the show an excuse to hide actress Chelsea Peretti, who revealed in February that she’s pregnant. Anyway, it hopefully won’t be long before the Nine-Nine is back to solving crime and trading energetic banter.
Parks and Rec duo Dan Goor and Michael Schur created Brooklyn Nine-Nine. The stellar cast includes Andy Samberg, Andre Braugher, and Melissa Fumero.
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Return (Netflix)
New or returning: Returning (season 11)
Premiere: Friday, April 14
For 10 seasons that spanned a decade and multiple networks, Mystery Science Theater 3000 (or MST3K) delighted fans with its zany B-movie homages. Each two-hour episode was comprised of a mini movie, which the characters watched and commented on in real time, framed by skits. Although the original run was rather low-rated, the show acquired a devoted following with the rise of the Internet and is now considered a cult classic. In 2015, creator Joel Hodgson organized a crowd-funding campaign for this 14-episode revival.
The revival features a brand-new cast, with Jonah Ray playing the protagonist forced to watch bad movies and Baron Vaughn and Hampton Yount playing his robot companions.
Fortitude (Amazon)
New or returning: Returning (season 2)
Premiere: Friday, April 14
Transparent may be Amazon’s most acclaimed show, but Fortitude is more representative of the streaming service’s output: crime dramas populated by character actors (see also Bosch, Sneaky Pete, Goliath). Originally broadcast in the UK on Sky Atlantic, Fortitude takes place in a remote Arctic Norwegian community. Season 1 revolved around a mammoth carcass, which leads to the murder of a scientist, and starred Stanley Tucci, Christopher Eccleston, and Michael Gambon.
Season 2 features several new actors, including Dennis Quaid and Michelle Fairley, in addition to returning cast members such as Richard Dormer and Sofie Gråbøl. Fortitude was created by Simon Donald.
The White Princess (Starz)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Sunday, April 16, 8 p.m. EST
Starz has yet to achieve the prominence of fellow premium cable channels HBO and Showtime. Perhaps, that will change this year. Like Outlander, by far the network’s most popular program, The White Princess is adapted from bestselling books – in this case, The Cousins’ War series by historical fiction novelist Philippa Gregory. It chronicles the life of Elizabeth of York, the first Tudor queen of England. In 2013, BBC One adapted Gregory’s previous novels as the miniseries The White Queen.
Emma Frost serves as executive producer and showrunner of The White Princess, writing or co-writing six of the eight episodes. Jodie Comer, Jacob Collins-Levy, and Essie Davis star.
Guerrilla (Showtime)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Sunday, April 16, 9 p.m. EST
Here’s yet another historical British show. This one takes place several centuries after The White Princess, in 1970s London. Billed as “a love story set against the backdrop of one of the most politically explosive times in UK history”, it follows a pair of activists who set free a political prisoner and found a radical underground faction. The battle they wage against the Black Power Desk, a real-life counter-intelligence unit, tests their values and relationship.
We’re definitely intrigued; it sounds like a welcome break from the period pieces centered on rich white people that dominate TV (no offense, Mad Men). The participation of John Ridley, who won an Academy Award for his 12 Years a Slave script and created the topical anthology series American Crime, certainly doesn’t hurt. Neither does a cast list that includes Idris Elba, Freida Pinto, and Babou Ceesay.
The Leftovers (HBO)
New or returning: Returning (season 3)
Premiere: Sunday, April 16, 9 p.m. EST
It’s a minor miracle that The Leftovers exists, let alone that it has lasted three seasons. Adapted from Tom Perotta’s 2011 novel, it begins with the spontaneous disappearance of 2 percent of the world’s population. Although the show draws tension from the mystery of the Sudden Departure (is it a tragedy, an act of God, or both, and what does that mean?), it’s more concerned with the emotional aftermath, the various ways people struggle to cope with their new reality. Alternately operatic and intimate, harrowing and life-affirming, and prone to surreal flights of fancy, it’s like nothing else on TV.
Damon Lindelof (of Lost fame) serves as showrunner along with Perotta. Justin Theroux, Amy Brenneman, Carrie Coon, and Christopher Eccleston form the main cast, while Liv Tyler, Regina King, and Kevin Carroll occupy key supporting roles. This is the final season of The Leftovers. It will last an abridged eight episodes.
Veep (HBO)
New or returning: Returning (season 6)
Premiere: Sunday, April 16, 10 p.m. EST
Compared to real-life, the politics of Veep seem downright sensible. At least it’s funny in a real, laugh-out-loud way instead of in an ironic, laugh-to-keep-from-crying way, though, like creator Armando Iannuci’s previous work, In the Thick of It and In the Loop, the show doesn’t shy away from dark and provocative humor. Last season’s finale not only brought Selina’s tenure as President of the United States to an anticlimactic end, but also decimated her legacy, as the new administration claimed responsibility for a deal that she negotiated. How will she cope with life outside the White House?
Julia Louis-Dreyfus stars in a role that has won her five Emmys. She is supported by four-time Emmy nominee Anna Chlumsky, two-time Emmy winner Tony Hale, Timothy Simons, and Matt Walsh.
Fargo (FX)
New or returning: Returning (season 3)
Premiere: Wednesday, April 19, 10 p.m. EST
Three years ago, Fargo surprised viewers and critics by transforming the Coen brothers’ beloved film into a compelling, idiosyncratic TV narrative. It went on to win the Emmy for Outstanding Limited Series, defeating HBO’s flashier True Detective. Season 2 proved that it wasn’t a fluke, setting its small-town crime tale amid the social and political turmoil of the late ‘70s. For its third installment, Fargo returns to the near-present – the year 2010, to be precise. The plot remains wrapped in secrecy, though we know it involves a sibling rivalry, social media, and bridge. If the trailers are any indication, we’re in for a fun ride.
As an anthology show, Fargo overhauls its casts each year. The season 3 ensemble is the most star-studded one yet, with Ewan McGregor in dual roles, Carrie Coon as the obligatory sheriff, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead as a femme fatale. Noah Hawley serves as showrunner and head writer.
Girlboss (Netflix)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Friday, April 21
Pop culture is full of stories about ingenious male entrepreneurs, from The Social Network to The Founder. When they exist in these stories, women tend to be subordinate, either wives/girlfriends who thwart the male lead’s ambitions or assistants who nurture his ambitions. Girlboss aims to change that. It fictionalizes the story of Sophia Amoruso, who, at age 22, started the online retail store Nasty Gal Vintage and went on to become one of the richest self-made women in the world.
Creator Kay Cannon has expressed her desire to avoid the standard empowerment narrative and embrace Amoruso’s complexities. Britt Robertson (Tomorrowland) occupies the lead role, while Johnny Simmons, Ellie Reed, and Dean Norris provide support.
Rose Byrne and Oprah Winfrey in The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (2017), image courtesy of HBO
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (HBO)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Saturday, April 22, 8 p.m. EST
Between Big Little Lies, last year’s Confirmation, and this, HBO finally seems to be interested in telling stories about women (that interest doesn’t extend behind-the-scenes, however, as all these projects are directed by men). The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks adapts Rebecca Skloot’s award-winning nonfiction book about the origins of HeLa, a particularly durable kind of cell that is often used for scientific research. Far from dry, this saga involves a web of thorny issues, from the impact of race on health to ethics in science.
George C. Wolfe directs and writes the movie, whose cast includes Oprah Winfrey, Rose Byrne, Renée Elise Goldsberry, and Courtney B. Vance.
Silicon Valley (HBO)
New or returning: Returning (season 4)
Premiere: Sunday, April 23, 10 p.m. EST
After a somewhat shaky freshman season, Silicon Valley has evolved into a critical and awards favorite almost on par with fellow HBO satire Veep. Broadly speaking, it follows a group of tech whizzes and entrepreneurs as they struggle to find success in Silicon Valley. The plot can get dense, entangled in corporate maneuvering and legal technicalities, but the show is buoyed by its winsome cast and sharp, off-kilter sense of humor. The season 4 trailer promises lots of drama, as Richard decides to quit Pied Piper, and at least one rad fashion choice.
Silicon Valley was created by Mike Judge, John Altschuler, and Dave Krinsky. The main cast is comprised of Thomas Middleditch, T.J. Miller, Kumail Nanjiani, Martin Starr, and Zach Woods.
Great News (NBC)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Tuesday, April 25, 9 p.m. EST
30 Rock writer and producer Tracey Wigfield returns to NBC with another workplace sitcom, this time one she created. Great News has a more high-concept premise, revolving around the relationship between a TV news producer and a new intern – who also happens to be her mother. At the show’s TCA panel, Wigfield and executive producer Tina Fey emphasized that the show is more interested in exploring the mother-daughter dynamic than making a statement about current events or the media. However, expect plenty of rapid-fire jokes like the ones that made 30 Rock so engaging.
Briga Heelan stars as Katie Wendelson, the central character, while Andrea Martin plays her mother/intern.
The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Wednesday, April 26
When Hulu ordered an adaptation of The Handmaid’s Tale in April 2016, there was no way of knowing that the miniseries would feel so urgent. Of course, Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel about a fascist society that has abolished women’s reproductive rights and personal freedom was always relevant; there is a reason it ends up on many high school reading lists. But images have a power that even the most eloquent words lack, lending substance to the abstract. We get chills just watching the trailers for The Handmaid’s Tale.
The Handmaid’s Tale was created by Bruce Miller. Elisabeth Moss, perhaps the most in-demand Mad Men alumnus, plays the heroine Offred. She’s joined by Samira Wiley, Joseph Fiennes, and Yvonne Strahovski.
Dear White People (Netflix)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Friday, April 28
Dear White People premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival to hype disproportionate to its actual merit. The movie, directed by first-timer Justin Simien, has a likable cast and a smattering of interesting moments, but its depiction of racial relations ultimately feels shallow and didactic. Hopefully, it will fare better as a show. Ten 30-minute episodes should provide plenty of room to develop more nuanced characters and ideas. Like the film, Dear White People follows minority students as they struggle to navigate a prestigious, predominantly white university.
Simien created the series and wrote several episodes. Except for Dennis Haysbert, who supplies narration, the actors are entirely different, with Logan Browning taking on the role originated by Tessa Thompson.
Catastrophe (Amazon)
New or returning: Returning (season 3)
Premiere: Friday, April 28
With all the relationship comedies about middle-class white people floating around TV these days, you might have trouble keeping them straight. Catastrophe is the British one, though one half of its central couple is American and the other half is Irish. Sharon Morris and Rob Norris meet when he’s on a business trip to the UK, engaging in a brief yet passionate fling that results in her getting pregnant. As is the case with most shows in this vein, the humor becomes evident only once you get past the logline and grow used to the specific foibles of the characters.
Catastrophe was created by Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney, who also star as Sharon and Rob and write every episode. Like its predecessors, season 3 will last a slim six episodes.
American Gods (Starz)
New or returning: New
Premiere: Sunday, April 30, 9 p.m. EST
In the world of American Gods, Neil Gaiman’s lauded fantasy novel, mythological creatures and deities are real, brought into being and sustained by people’s beliefs. Ancient gods, such as Odin (known here as Mr. Wednesday) and Thoth/Mr. Ibis, coexist with newer gods, such as the god of computers and the goddess of television. Released from prison after his wife’s death, Shadow Moon gets caught up in a battle between the old gods and the new.
American Gods isn’t “cinematic” like Game of Thrones. Instead, it eschews a concrete plot and exciting action in favor of vignettes and meticulous world-building. But that also gives showrunners Bryan Fuller and Michael Green greater latitude when it comes to deviating from the source material. In fact, they have already added new characters. At the very least, with Fuller attached, the show will no doubt have a distinctive visual style.
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The cast includes Ricky Whittle (as Shadow Moon), Ian McShane (Mr. Wednesday), Emily Browning (Laura Moon), and Crispin Glover (Mr. World).
Which of these series will you watch, and which are passes for you?