Majestic Twelve - 12 Most Anticipated TV Shows of 2014

The Majestic Twelve returns with another top 12 list. Last week we concluded out celebration of all things Smash Bros (for now). So let’s kick things over to celebrate the new Fall Premier season. There are a lot of interesting shows this year (or starting early next year) that we’re all excited for. Here are twelve that we’re looking forward to most. Some of these are new, and some are returning so we get a nice mix of both.

#12 – Once Upon a Time – Nearing the bottom of my list for a variety of reasons, OUaT is a show I love and hate at the same time. Bringing a cute and fun premise to the world with fairy-tale characters co-existing in a shared universe (like the Marvel heroes) we mix in a mystery and some magic and you have Once Upon a Time. The bad news is while the concept was fun and interesting at a time, I feel the series has mostly run its course. Last season tried to introduce the Wizard of Oz and the witch from said story to the world of OUaT, but I didn’t really like it too much given it revived characters we thought were dead and I stopped watching about halfway through the season. The new season is bringing in Elsa and Anna from Frozen and while I see potential for this to be interesting, I’m going to sit on the fence and see how it plays out first. I liked Frozen, but I might have cooled down a bit since I’ve seen it… though it doesn’t help Let it Go is played in so many places that a song I once liked has gotten stale really fast.

#11 – Always Sunny in Philadelphia – There’s not much to say here. I like the kind of comedy Always Sunny brings to the table, crude or not. I still haven’t caught up on the series as NetFlix hasn’t put up the newer seasons yet and I have a hard time finding good links online. But more Sunny is always good and I’m looking forward to more laughs.

#10 – Sons of Anarchy – A series I’m only kind of in right now, having only seen a handful of episodes. I like it thus far and want to see where it goes. From what I hear, this is their last season coming up, meaning once it’s done, I can catch up and watch EVERYTHING without pause. Given everything I’ve heard from friends about this show, I can’t wait.

#09 – Walking Dead – You know that I love the Telltale games more than the show, but Walking Dead is still a fun show to watch (sometimes). Last season was bitterly hated (by me) for its first half being slow, stale, and retreading ground it already had in season three with the Governor by… bringing back the Governor for another pointless fight. But that ended and the second half of the season was arguably my favorite bit of Walking Dead in recent memory other than the early bits of season one. Now that things are moving again and we’re dealing with what are likely cannibals in Terminus, I’m actually excited about more Walking Dead on TV and I haven’t been able to say that for a really long time.

#08 –Modern Family – Another comedy, thus not much to say. I feel the show only gets better as it goes on and we see the kids grow from awkward children to young adults. Haley surprised me last season with how much she has changed since season one (in a lot of small, but good ways). While this show continues to be one of the best ensemble casts in recent years on TV, it’s safe to say it’s also one of the best comedies on TV right now with very few other ones even getting my attention with bad titles or horrible sounded premises. The only other show that can contend for the title of “best comedy” at this point (for me) is likely Community, which won’t be making this list until I know when Yahoo is planning to give me more of my beloved Community-crack.

#07 – The Simpsons – Since I started college, I’ve found it much harder to keep up with the episodes. You know, responsibilities and all that. But this new season is shaping up to have interesting things happen, including TWO cross-overs with other animated shows (Family Guy and Futurama) . And with another cast member now gone (the voice of Edna Krabopple), I have to wonder how they’ll fill that void in the show now since she was Flanders’ fiancé and Bart’s teacher of over 20 years. Think what you will about the show in recent years, it still holds a special place for me and it’s something I can keep coming back to time and again.

#06 – American Horror Story: Freakshow – Still need to see their witches season from last year, but American Horror Story is right beside Walking Dead as a bizarre new genre to hit TV in recent years that no one expected to get as popular as it is. Horror has taken the world by storm and few have done so with the same level of quality and skill as AHS. And their format of a new mini-story and theme each season keeps the show and the horror fresh so we don’t grow tired of the same old tricks and tropes season to season and getting familiar with the monsters and boogeymen. Keep up the work, guys. It’s still brilliant.

#05 – Agents of SHIELD – Back for a second season, I’m really interesting to see how Agents will shape up from last season and use everything they’ve learned to make future episodes better. It took half-a-season for the show to find its footing and start standing up on its own without relying too heavily on the MCU. With that in mind, Agents is looking to basically rebuild the SHIELD organization from the ground up and how it does so will be the question. We also have some cast changes and new characters in the future and I’d like to see what Marvel heroes and villains will be making appearances. I might have been too kind to season one, but I think season two will be where Agents shines and becomes a bigger hit than ever before.

#04 – Gotham – I hate putting DC over Marvel, but if there’s any one thing DC has that can “legitimately” compete with Marvel at the moment… it’s Batman. Gotham is much to Batman what Smallville was to Superman, a show about their life growing up into the roles they take on as a response to the life they’ve led… and also named after said cities where they grew up, ironically. Gotham aims to introduce us to the villains and heroes before they ever become the villains and heroes we’re familiar with such as Penguin, Ivy, and Riddler. I don’t know much about the show beyond that but if they can deliver on some pre-Scarecrow Scarecrow, then I’m all about it because nothing is better than a well-done Scarecrow. SCARECROW!!!!

#03 – The Flash – Again, while I’m a Marvel guy, DC has always had ONE character that I personally loved better than almost any superhero, The Flash. The TV show aims to bring DC’s colorful and upbeat hero to the small screens this fall with an origin story and high-speed action the likes of which we probably haven’t seen yet. My expectations are low given this is a spin-off of Arrow and I don’t trust the dark-and-brooding DC to make someone like the Flash right. But we’ll find out soon and my fingers are crossed this is the one time DC doesn’t cock shit up.

#02 – Legend of Korra Book 4: Balance – I wouldn’t have put this on the list if not for the fact season four WILL BE AIRING JUST OVER A MONTH after season three ended. This will be Legend of Korra’s final season and while that’ll be disappointing to know we won’t get more after this, I hope that the creators will have put everything into it they can to make it the best season yet. There’s a lot of aftermath to deal with from season three and I can only imagine just how dark they’ll take it this time around. My biggest hope is that this isn’t the end for the Avatar universe… but knowing Nickelodeon… they’ll cock shit up.

#01 – Better Call Saul – Based off the BEST TV SERIES EVER, Breaking Bad spin-off, Better Call Saul, focuses its energy and attention on the second best character from the original show… Saul Goodman. This lawyer reminded me of a more competent version of Lionel Hutz from Simpsons (back when Phil Hartman was still alive), and I always loved that kind of character. An over-the-top-sleazy lawyer that plays on all the tropes as hard as possible. Saul was a genius at dodging the law in just the right way to keep Walt and Jessie out of jail and I’m looking forward to the stupid misadventures he’ll have in helping other criminals in their misdeeds as well.

Those are the top twelve shows I’m most excited to see coming back or premiering for the first time this upcoming 2014-2015 season. While I’m fully expecting certain publishers like WB or Nickelodeon to cock shit up, I’m cautiously optimistic this will be one of the better years for television in quite a long buggering time. See ya next time.