It’s only June, but it’s never too soon to start thinking about what we’ll be watching in the fall. Below is a preview of CBS’s new fall and midseason series, a look at CBS’s schedule, a list of the shows that have been renewed for at least another year, those that have been canceled, and those whose fates remain in limbo.
CBS has the most new shows on its fall schedule: four in all. But of those four, two are spinoffs of existing franchises, and one is a reboot of a former series. There is only one original new series that has no connection to an existing franchise. To be fair, this has long been CBS’s strategy: don’t fix what ain’t broke. And in the aftermath of an industry-crippling pandemic, it only makes sense that they would want to play it safe this season.
Schedule
MONDAY
7/8 p.m.: The Neighborhood
7:30/8:30 p.m.: Bob ♥ Abishola
8/9 p.m.: NCIS
9/10 p.m.: NCIS: HAWAI’I
TUESDAY
7/8 p.m.: FBI
8/9 p.m.: FBI: INTERNATIONAL
9/10 p.m.: FBI: Most Wanted
WEDNESDAY
7/8 p.m.: Survivor
8/9 p.m.: Tough As Nails
9/10 p.m.: CSI: VEGAS
THURSDAY
7/8 p.m.: Young Sheldon
7:30/8:30 p.m.: United States of Al
8/9 p.m.: GHOSTS
8:30/9:30 p.m.: B Positive
9/10 p.m.: Bull
FRIDAY
7/8 p.m.: SWAT
8/9 p.m.: Magnum P.I.
9/10 p.m.: Blue Bloods
SATURDAY
7/8 p.m.: Repeats
8/9 p.m.: Repeats
9/10 p.m.: 48 Hours
SUNDAY
6/7 p.m.: 60 Minutes
7/8 p.m.: The Equalizer
8/9 p.m.: NCIS: Los Angeles
9/10 p.m.: Seal Team
New Fall Shows
NCIS: HAwai’i
Official synopsis: The world’s most successful television series continues on the seductive shores of the Aloha State with NCIS: HAWAI ‘ I, where the first female Special Agent in Charge of NCIS Pearl Harbor, Jane Tennant (Vanessa Lachey), has thrived and risen through the ranks by equal parts confidence and strategy in a system that has pushed back on her every step of the way. Together with her unwavering team of specialists, they balance duty to family and country while investigating high-stakes crimes involving military personnel, national security and the mysteries of the sun-drenched island paradise itself.
T’s Take: You know what this is.
FBI: International
Official synopsis: From Emmy Award-winning executive producer Dick Wolf, fast-paced drama FBI: INTERNATIONAL is the third iteration of the successful FBI brand that follows the elite operatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s International Fly Team. Headquartered in Prague, they travel the world with the mission of tracking and neutralizing threats against American citizens wherever they may be. Not allowed to carry guns, the Fly Team relies on intelligence, quick thinking and pure brawn as they put their lives on the line to protect the U.S. and its people.
T’s Take: You know what this is.
CSI: Vegas
Official synopsis: CSI: Vegas, the sequel to the Network’s global hit CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, opens a brand-new chapter in Las Vegas—the city where it all began. Facing an existential threat that could bring down the entire Crime Lab and release thousands of convicted killers back onto the neon-lit streets of Vegas, a brilliant new team of investigators led by Maxine Roby (Paula Newsome) must enlist the help of old friends, Gil Grissom (William Petersen), Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) and David Hodges (Wallace Langham). This combined force will deploy the latest forensic techniques to do what they do best—follow the evidence—in order to preserve and serve justice in Sin City.
T’s Take: You know what this is.
UPDATE:
Truth Lies Here • #CSIVegas is coming soon 🔎 pic.twitter.com/qJJfcGEYXy
— CBS Studios (@CBSTVStudios) July 22, 2021
Ghosts
Official synopsis: Ghosts is a single-camera comedy about Samantha (Rose McIver) and Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar), a cheerful freelance journalist and up-and-coming chef from the city, respectively, who throw both caution and money to the wind when they decide to convert a huge rundown country estate they inherited into a bed & breakfast—only to find it’s inhabited by the many spirits of deceased residents who now call it home. The departed souls are a close-knit, eclectic group that includes a saucy Prohibition-era lounge singer, a pompous 1700’s Militiaman, a ‘60s hippie fond of hallucinogens, an overly upbeat ‘80s scout troop leader, a cod-obsessed Viking explorer from 1009, a slick ‘90s finance bro, a sarcastic and witty Native from the 1500s, and a society woman and wife of an 1800’s robber baron who is Samantha’s ancestor, to name a few. If the spirits were anxious about the commotion a renovation and B&B will create in their home, it’s nothing compared to when they realize Samantha is the first live person who can see and hear them.
T’s Take: Finally, something original! That said, I’ve yet to see a supernatural comedy that has worked on any network. And as much as I enjoy a decent supernatural comedy, and as much as I adore Rose McIver, I am not confident this is going to be the series to reverse the trend, at least not based on this trailer. But points to CBS for the diverse cast and for trying!
Midseason
Smallwood
Official synopsis: Smallwood, based on professional bowler Tom Smallwood’s life, stars Pete Holmes as Tom, a stoic Midwest husband and dad who gets laid off from a car assembly line and makes the extraordinary decision to provide for his family by following his dream of becoming a professional bowler. As a skilled player, Tom knows that in bowling you get two chances; no matter what you do with the first ball, you get another one to make it right—the ultimate second chance. Keeping that in mind, Tom begins his new career with the loving okay from his wife, Jen (Katie Lowes), and the unfaltering support of Archie (Chi McBride), his mentor and the proud owner of Archie’s Lanes: Home of the Curly Fry. It remains to be seen if Tom will strike it big on the Pro Bowler circuit, but right now, the pins are set, he’s taking his second shot and it’s 300 or bust!
T’s Take: I wish there were a trailer for this one. All I can say is that I really like Pete Holmes and Chi McBride, so as long as it’s not a big broad multi-camera comedy, I’ll give it a shot.
Good Sam
Official synopsis: Good Sam stars Sophia Bush (“Chicago” franchise, One Tree Hill) and Jason Isaacs (Star Trek: Discovery, “Harry Potter” films) in a drama about Dr. Sam Griffith (Bush), a gifted heart surgeon who excels in her new leadership role as Chief of Surgery after her renowned boss falls into a coma. When her former boss wakes up months later demanding to resume his duties, Sam is tasked with supervising this egotistical expert with a scalpel who never acknowledged her stellar talent. Complicating matters is that the caustic and arrogant Dr. Rob “Griff” Griffith (Isaacs) also happens to be her father. As Griff defies Sam’s authority and challenges her medical expertise, the big question becomes whether this father and daughter will ever be able to mend their own relationship as expertly as they heal the hearts of their patients.
T’s Take: Alternative title: Dr. Daddy Issues. For those of you who watched Lost, this looks and sounds a LOT like the Jack and Christian Shepherd Show, but with a lot less substance abuse and fewer mysterious islands. I love Jason Isaacs, and will watch most things he is in, but this looks too feel-goodish to my cynical soul.
Come dance with me
Official synopsis: In Come Dance With Me, exceptionally talented young dancers from across the country invite one inspirational, untrained family member or other adult who has supported their dance dreams, to become their dance partner for a chance to strut their stuff for a grand prize. The series is hosted by Philip Lawrence with judges Jenna Dewan, Tricia Miranda and Dexter Mayfield. Each week, these aspiring kids will share their love of dance with their mother, father, grandparent or other hero on an uplifting and emotional journey to learn and perform challenging routines, with the assistance of professional choreographers, in a competition with other duos
T’s Take: Kids dancing with their family members feels like the post-pandemic feel-good cry a lot of people are going to want. CBS should have aired this one this summer, honestly.
Cancellations
- All Rise
- MacGyver
- Mom
- NCIS: New Orleans
- The Unicorn
Renewals
- B Positive
- Big Brother
- Blue Bloods
- Bob Hearts Abishola
- Bull
- Clarice: Moving to Paramount+ (maybe) (unless it’s canceled, which it very well might be)
- The Equalizer
- Evil: Moving to Paramount+
- FBI
- FBI: Most Wanted:
- Love Island
- Magnum P.I.
- NCIS
- NCIS: Los Angeles
- The Neighborhood
- SEAL Team: Moving to Paramount+
- S.W.A.T.
- Tough as Nails
- United States of Al
- Young Sheldon
Shows Still Up in the Air
- The Amazing Race
- Blood & Treasure (returns this summer)
- Survivor