The fall TV season brings the return of network shows, back after the summer hiatus. That’s 32 series and season premieres on old-school broadcast television, which plenty of viewers still watch, including NBC’s One Chicago franchise, which returns in its Wednesday block on Oct. 7. But a number of popular shows are being held for mid-season, more than I can remember in years previous, including “Bob’s Burgers” on Fox, “High Potential” and “Will Trent” on ABC and “Matlock” and “Ghosts” on CBS. At least “Ghosts” has two hour-long holiday specials planned in the meantime: A Halloween episode airing Oct. 29 and a “Die Hard”-themed Christmas special airing Dec. 10.
Here’s a further look at what’s on tap this fall, listed in chronological order:
“The Varnell Hill Show”
A spinoff of the 1990s-era sitcom “Martin,” the workplace comedy stars Tommy Davidson as the host of a long-running late-night talk show struggling to remain relevant. “Between network executives eager to modernize the show, a chaotic writers’ room, celebrity guests, family drama and his own outsized ego, Varnell quickly discovers that keeping a television empire together may be harder than building one in the first place.” (Sept. 1 on Paramount+)
“Slow Horses”
Jackson Lamb, the farting, foul-mouthed, ill-tempered spy chief with a disdain for basic hygiene, is back with his assortment of British intelligence irregulars in the show’s sixth season. The target this time appears to be everyone working at Slough House. Also back, a character who was supposedly killed off in Season 1. Lamb just shrugs: “We’ve all faked our own death at one time or another.” (Sept. 16 on Apple TV)
“Line of Fire”
Is TV really TV without Peter Krause headlining a show? From “Sports Night” to “Six Feet Under” to “Parenthood” to “9-1-1,” the man has been a reliable television presence for decades. This time he’s playing a Secret Service agent. In fact, his whole family is a cornucopia of law enforcement types who put their personal differences aside to work on cases for the FBI, U.S. Marshals, Secret Service and Department of Justice — until one case goes belly up and now the whole family is … in the line of fire. The show apparently answers that burning question: How many law enforcement agencies can one series fetishize? (Sept. 21 on NBC)
“Brothers”
Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey star as fictionalized versions of themselves who discover they might be brothers. “As Woody turns (McConaughey’s) ranch upside down in pursuit of the truth, Matthew finds himself juggling an entirely different identity crisis: a potential run for Governor of Texas.” McConaughey has publicly said he’s interested in running for office, so if he’s using this series as a way to juice those efforts while collecting a paycheck, well, shame on Apple for going along with it. (Sept. 23 on Apple TV)
“A Different World”
Pack your bags, we’re headed to Hillman College. That fictional institution for higher learning is familiar to anyone who watched the original campus comedy set at a historically Black college. The multi-camera sitcom ran from 1987 to 1993. The reboot abandons the multi-cam approach, but some familiar faces return, including Jasmine Guy, who played Whitley. (Sept. 24 on Netflix)
“War”
A legal drama from across the pond about the lives of London’s most powerful lawyers duking it out in a “ruthless world where ambition is currency, betrayal is strategy and winning is everything.” The big case centers on the “explosive” divorce between a tech mogul (Dominic West) and his movie star wife (Sienna Miller). (Oct. 1 on HBO)
“Tip Toe”
Alan Cumming and David Morrissey star in this British series from Russell T. Davies (“Doctor Who”) about Manchester neighbors — an electrician and a pub owner — who see their ordinary suburban world turned upside down by lies and violence. (Oct. 2 on Starz)
“Eternally Yours”
The premise for this comedy is basically “Meet the Parents,” except the parents are vampires who are less-than-thrilled to learn their daughter is dating a human: “Living in present-day Seattle with their oddball coven, they’ve settled into an eternal rut — until their daughter’s earnest human boyfriend unexpectedly enters their lives and forces them to confront whether their love can survive forever … or if forever is a life sentence.” (Oct. 8 on CBS)
“Cupertino”
Another legal drama, huzzah! And this one comes from “The Good Wife” creators Robert and Michelle King. The setting is Silicon Valley, where a seasoned attorney (Mike Colter) teams up with a newbie (Rachel Keller) to defend clients who are up against the considerable resources of muscle-flexing tech giants. (Oct. 8 on CBS)
“The Diplomat”
The witty Netflix drama returns for Season 4 with Kerri Russell as the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom once again trying to keep everything from imploding on the international stage, a task inevitably complicated by her husband, played by Rufus Sewell. Their fates are linked — for better or for worse — with that of the president (Allison Janney) and her husband (Bradley Whitford). As show creator Debora Cahn puts it: “They’re two couples strapped together in one car on a crumbling roller coaster.” (Oct. 15 on Netflix)
“Newlyweds”
Téa Leoni and Tim Daly star in this comedy about opposites — she’s a free spirit, he’s buttoned up — who get married shortly after meeting and falling in love. Sounds like “Dharma & Greg.” Anyone? Is this thing on? The extra frisson here: Leoni and Daly are a couple in real life. (Oct. 23 on NBC)
“Nocturne”
Liev Schreiber and Zazie Beetz star in this adaptation of Lars Kepler’s crime novels “Lazarus” and “The Sandman,” about a police detective who moves from Philadelphia to a small town in Pennsylvania in search of a quieter life. Too bad there’s a serial killer there, so the detective teams up with his former mentee, who is now an FBI agent. (Oct. 30 on Apple TV)
“Stick”
I liked the first season of this show starring Owen Wilson and Marc Maron, which channeled Ron Shelton circa “Tin Cup.” A wry sports comedy about a shaggy dog looking for a small measure of redemption, Wilson plays a washed-out pro golfer who spots a teenage phenom and decides to coach him to greatness. In Season 2, the kid is no longer an unknown, and now he has to actually live up to everyone’s expectations. Meanwhile, Wilson’s character decides to launch a comeback to become the oldest golfer ever to win a major. Rhea Seehorn joins the cast. (Nov. 4 on Apple TV)
“The Altruists”
The eight-episode series centers on Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the cryptocurrency derivatives exchange FTX, and Caroline Ellison, the CEO of the cryptocurrency trading firm Alameda Research — both of whom racked up fraud convictions as a result of their business dealings. According to co-showrunner Jacqueline Hoyt: “I think viewers will find the deeply intimate story of these two individuals with morally conflicted motives fascinating, and will ultimately have a better understanding of why they did what they did.” That last point is probably a good indication of whether or not this show is for you: Are you, in fact, interested in understanding why they did what they did? If so, strap in. (Nov. 19 on Netflix)
“Dig”
Amy Poehler and Hugh Laurie star in this comedy about archeologists overseeing a group of college students on an archeological dig in Greece. According to the press materials, “Their discovery of a rare artifact sends them on the adventure of a lifetime.” (Nov. 23 on Peacock)
