CW Fall 2013 Roster: Cheese or Not Cheese?

One of my initial posts on this site covered last year’s CW fall lineup, and let’s just say not a lot of those shows survived or are doing well as expected. While the CW is infamous among netizens for having cheesy shows, they still chunk out some enjoyable ones from time to time. Arrow, Nikita, Smallville, The Vampire Diaries (minus the annoyingly frequent makeout sessions) and One Tree Hill to name a few. Yes, I will also admit that I do enjoy watching America’s Next Top Model when I was younger.

Anyway, the CW released full trailers for their upcoming roster this fall. They’re almost three to four and a half minutes in length, so we have a lot of material to work with. Interestingly, all of the shows are science fiction, fantasy, or a period piece. Yey to no high school drama shows? Don’t kid yourself, it’s the CW and they will insert teen angst into almost any concept. However, will one of these shows to prove to be an exception? Or will they all be nothing but CW’s long string of cheesy shows?

1.) The Originals

httpv://youtu.be/WTKj52BUEeU

I know a lot of you guys aren’t really fans of The Vampire Diaries, so many of you will dismiss this spin-off right off the bat. TVD has its ‘teen’ moments with the love triangles and romantic subplots, but the lore and history behind the whole premise was compelling in my opinion. Consequently, The Originals promises to give us exactly that. In this show, we follow Klaus and his siblings (the original vampires) in New Orleans. Judging from the trailer, this show looks like it’ll be a lot more ‘mature’ than TVD. I was quite happy that there was no high school set-up or that the main storyline doesn’t fully revolve around winning someone’s affection. In conclusion, I still think there will be cheese in this since this is a CW show but hopefully the kind that many of us enjoy.

2.) The Tomorrow People

httpv://youtu.be/JwXVsRUi53k

I like almost any show with powers, so I will personally give this show a chance. Initially, I thought that it was mainly about teleporting because it did feel similar to the film ‘Jumper.’ Guy has the power to teleport, but an organization seeks to weed out his kind. However, it turns out there are a variety of other powers this show would like to showcase. I feel like I’ve seen this premise before, but a compelling story can outweigh novelty in my book. This is cheese I’m willing to give a try.

3.) Star-Crossed

httpv://youtu.be/2DJ0kqEKIvc

I can smell the spoiled cheese just by watching this trailer. To be fair, the whole premise of aliens trying to assimilate in our planet is pretty cool. It reminds me of District 9, but then I know that this show won’t be anything like it. One funny comment I read noted: “You guys already did this with Kyle XY” (the team behind this did that show too). The acting looks terrible. It’s too romance driven, that the whole alien narrative seems like a glittery backdrop. Cheese all the way.

4.) Reign

httpv://youtu.be/reeEulk6cX0

As a fan of period dramas like Downton Abbey and Tudors, I was excited about this show when I first heard of it. However, as one netizen puts it: “Gossip Girl in the 16th century?” Yes, it does seem to look that way but it has potential to become a riveting drama so I won’t dismiss this show right away. For now, I’ll take a slice of this by watching the pilot and we’ll go from there.

5.) The 100

httpv://youtu.be/Bum7f5XAbkE

Okay, this show looks interesting. When I saw this, I immediately thought of After Earth and Oblivion but hopefully it’ll have a unique spin to it. I do like the conflict presented in the trailer wherein some criminals want to help save humanity while others just want Earth for themselves. There’s definitely going to be some romance here, but it’ll be more of a subplot than a driving force (I’m happy with that).