Starring: David Tennant (“Broadchurch”), Anna Gunn (“Breaking Bad”), Jack Irvine (“The Killing”), Josh Hamilton (“American Horror Story”), Michael Peña (“End of Watch”), Virginia Kull (“The Following”), Madalyn Horcher, Nick Nolte (“Luck”), Jackie Weaver (“Silver Linings Playbook”), Kevin Rankin (“Breaking Bad”), Kendrick Sampson (“The Vampire Diaries”), Sarah-Jane Potts (“Holby City”), Kevin Zegers (“Gossip Girl”), Stephen Louis Grush (“Lucky 7?) and Jessica Lucas (“Cult”)
Genre: One-hour drama (“limited event series”)
Premiere Date: Thursday, October 2, 9 p.m., Fox (Global in Canada)
Direct Competition: Thursday Night Football (through Oct. 23)/”Two and a Half Men” and “The McCarthys” (Oct. 30-) (CBS), “Bad Judge” and “A to Z” (NBC), “Scandal” (ABC), “Reign” (CW)
Premise (in 140 characters or less): This remake of the U.K. program “Broadchurch” follows the mystery of a young boy’s death, and the lives of a small town’s inhabitants.
Initial Reaction: If Anna Gunn weren’t here, I’m not sure I’d watch a second episode. Even now I’m not so sure.
Conclusion: As I appear to be the only television enthusiast who hasn’t seen “Broadchurch,” I went into “Gracepoint” without biases. Unfortunately, that did nothing to change my mind that this is no different than countless other murder mysteries. Tennant and Gunn make an interesting pair, and that’s the show’s most obvious selling point. It’s also superior to ABC’s “American Crime,” another limited whodunnit that’s bound to be overshadowed by this program unless it outright flat lines in its debut.
“Gracepoint” focuses on the death of a child, and for some, the choice of victim will be enough to entice them. Others might find themselves intrigued by the idea of a small-town mystery as opposed to the usual metropolis backdrop of broadcast television’s crime dramas. Neither of those factors push this show over the edge, though.
This fall, America will bare witness to a slew of underwhelming new shows, and “Gracepoint” just happens to be one of them. Perhaps it isn’t fair to judge a 10-episode series without seeing past the pilot, but it’s hard to imagine the show aspires for more than standard crime drama fare. TV has enough of that. I don’t need more.
Watch Live, DVR or Skip?: DVR only if your Thursday night lineup isn’t crowded enough as it is. I’ll probably add it to my Hulu Plus queue and binge watch if I find time. I’m not making any promises, though.
