Ken Leung and Jim Caviezel of CBS’s “Person of Interest,” which had a fabulous first season. (
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Now that basic cable has gobbled up all the Emmy nods, what do the once network stalwarts have to offer us? Plenty. Here are a few Emmy-unworthy but entertaining picks, which all start anew this week:
“Castle” (Monday, 10 p.m., ABC) As the fifth season opens, star Nathan Fillion has to be wondering how long this gig can last, seeing as how his career has tended toward short-term work (his fantastic “Firefly” couldn’t stay aloft past its freshman season, and he boasts a string of other short-lived series). But with the Emmy-ignored crime solver now set up for a syndication-induced ratings bump (a la “NCIS” and “Big Bang Theory”), the mystery writer and his partner (Stana Katic) will have to figure out how to keep the magic alive now that they’ve hit the sheets.
“Hawaii Five-0” (Monday, 10 p.m., CBS) McGarrett (Alex O’Loughlin) discovered his mother is still alive in the second season finale of this fluffy-but-fun rehash of the original island series. And mom’s got some ’splainin to do, letting her kids (Taryn Manning will make another appearance as McGarrett’s little sis) believe she was dead. Even better, the underrated Daniel Dae Kim’s Chin will have to deal with the aftermath of opting to rescue his wife over cousin Kono (Grace Park) when forced into the Sophie’s choice by psycho Delano (William Baldwin).
“NCIS” (Tuesday, 8 p.m., CBS) Guest star Richard Schiff can let everyone on the set admire his Emmy (from “The West Wing”) when he re-appears as the bomber who destroyed the Navy yard and NCIS headquarters at the end of Season 9. Naturally, they launch right into a good, old-fashioned manhunt for the tenth season of this ratings superstar that can’t get any Emmy love. Twenty million viewers can’t be wrong, can they?
“Private Practice” (Tuesday, 10 p.m., ABC) Admit it: You didn’t even know this show was still on the air, and yet the “Grey’s Anatomy” spin-off enters its fifth — yes, fifth — season. Tim Daly bid adieu to Seaside Wellness in the season finale, and we’ll pick up five months later with the show attempting to skew younger by adding Matt Long (from “Jack & Bobby”) to the rotation. And look for Alfre Woodard later this season to pop up as Sam’s (Taye Diggs) mom.
“Law & Order: SVU” (Wednesday, 9 p.m., NBC) The two-hour season premiere picks up where we last left off: with a dead hooker in Captain Cragen’s (Dann Florek) bed. But the best part is that the newscaster covering the ensuing scandal is played by the former Ch. 4 news anchor Sue Simmons, who was sacked from the NBC-owned station this spring after 30-plus years on the air.
“CSI” (Wednesday, 10 p.m., CBS) We last left the team discovering that D.B. Russell’s (Ted Danson) granddaughter had been kidnapped. So, lots of laughs there. But in the new “One Degree of Frasier” game, Russell’s wife shows up, played by Peri Gilpin, who played Frasier’s producer after he left Boston, and Danson’s Sam Malone. Its New York counterpart launches into its ninth season on Friday with guest star Rob Morrow.
“Scandal” (Thursday, 10 p.m., ABC) So the new Shonda Rhimes creation isn’t the best political drama Mama ever set eyeballs on, but the beautiful, engaging Kerry Washington’s Olivia is worth the price of admission — and a look from the Emmys — to this often heavy-handed series about a crisis-management firm with very personal ties to the president (played by Tony Goldwyn).
“Person of Interest” (Thursday, 9 p.m., CBS) Ahhh, “Lost.” Despite your actors attempt to escape your orbit, they always end up being flung into each other’s new shows. Emmy-winner Michael Emerson begins the second season as techie crime-fighter Finch welcoming former islander Ken Leung. But they may not get much of a reunion, seeing as how Finch was kidnapped in last season’s finale by tongue-twister worthy Amy Acker’s hacker Root.
Phil Mushnick’s column will return Sept. 30.