Posted on August 7, 2012
By Kate Kulzick
Idiot Box
Thanks to the Olympics, NBC is currently enjoying gangbuster ratings and, understandably, they’ve decided to take advantage of this increased viewer base to launch several of their new series this week. Most of the new fall series won’t be starting up ‘til September, but here’s a look at the August premieres coming up this week.
Go On, NBC
Premieres Wednesday, August 8th after the Olympics
Matthew Perry stars as Ryan King, a sportscaster who’s recently lost his wife due to a car accident. The series follows King, who’s been forced by his boss Steven, John Cho, to enter counseling and centers on the support group meetings King attends, as well as his personal and working life. Its regular timeslot will be Tuesdays at 9pm ET.
Animal Practice, NBC
Premieres Sunday, August 12th after the Olympics Closing Ceremony
Justin Kirk stars as Dr. George Coleman, a veterinarian at Crane Animal Hospital who is less than pleased when his ex-girlfriend, Dorothy Crane (played by JoAnna Garcia Swisher), inherits the family business and becomes his boss. Tyler Labine and Bobby Lee play other veterinarians at the clinic and Kym Witley and Betsy Sodaro round out the human cast. The cast member most prominent in the ads, though, is Crystal, the monkey known to Community fans as Annie’s Boobs. Its regular timeslot will be Wednesdays at 7pm ET.
Stars Earn Stripes, NBC
Premieres Monday, August 13th at 8pm ET
Produced by Survivor’s Mark Burnett, this reality competition series follows a group of celebrities as they compete in challenges based off of military training exercises to earn money for charity. The cast will include Dean Cain, Laila Ali, Nick Lachey, and Todd Palin, among others, and each celebrity will be paired with a special ops trainer who will help whip them into shape.
Grimm, NBC
Premieres Monday, August 13th at 10pm ET
This is, of course, not a pilot, but as it’s returning so far ahead of the rest of the fall shows, it seemed worth a mention. Back for its second season, Grimm is premiering early this year and will air its first three episodes in August. The cast remains mostly unchanged, except that Bree Turner, who plays Monroe’s love interest Rosalee, is now a regular on the series, rather than a recurring guest star.
Another interesting premiere this month is-
Bullet in the Face, IFC
Premieres Thursday, August 16th at 10pm ET
In this blackly comic half-hour series, sociopathic criminal Gunter Vogler (Max Williams) is forced to work undercover for the police after a jewel heist goes awry. Sent to take down the city’s crime lords, including guest stars Eddie Izzard and Eric Roberts, Vogler proves more difficult to handle than anticipated. The six-episode first season will run in its entirety over two days, with the first three episodes airing on Aug. 16th (10-11:30pm ET) and the final three episodes airing on Aug. 17th (10-11:30pm).
Copper, BBC America
Premieres Sunday, August 19th at 10pm ET
Set in New York City during the aftermath of the American Civil War, Copper follows an Irish immigrant police officer who patrols the violent Five Points area of New York and seeks information about his missing wife and dead daughter. The series is co-created by Homicide: Life on the Streets creator Tom Fontana and stars, among others, Tom Weston-Jones and Franka Potente. This is the first original series from BBC America.
2012, Animal Practice, BBCA, Bullet in the Face, Copper, fall, Go On, Grimm, IFC, nbc, Olympics, pilot, premiere, Stars Earn Stripes, TV
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Kate is a violinist by day, TV-aholic by night, and film geek by somewhere around dawn. While attending UIUC, she earned a Masters Degree in Violin Performance and a Schrute Buck in a Pop Culture Trivia Contest; of the two, so far only the latter has hung on her wall. Her favorite movies are The Princess Bride, Casablanca, and The Third Man and her favorite TV shows are Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Wire, and Arrested Development. 
Annie’s Boobs is the greatest monkey ever.
Copper sounds interesting. BBC shows are high quality. just watched The Hour. Wow. Hope it’s the same with BBCA.
And how is any Palin a “star”? Next it’ll be the Romney Boys. No political offense meant.
Thanks for all this information. I didn’t realize that Grimm was starting so soon. That Stars & Stripes show looks ridiculous. I’m definitely interested in checking out Copper, and I didn’t realize it was created by the Homicide guys. That makes it a must-see for me.
Good call, Sean- thanks for the reminder! I’ll add it to the list.
Nice work! Another non-NBC one that has potential: BBC America’s “Copper,” which reteams Tom Fontana and Barry Levinson from OZ and also one of my favorites, Homicide: Life on the Street. That starts August 19th.