Coming this fall: Geek TV -- with trailers

With only a month or so to go until the fall’s new premieres, I figured I’d rescue this post from the old Geek Watch blog. In some cases, I found some updated trailers to include — all in one convenient package.

It looks like some promising shows are coming for geeks. Especially geeks who are more into fantasy than sci-fi.

Of course, this season will also be known for what didn’t get picked up.

I do hope Warner Bros. is smart and releases the “Wonder Woman” pilot like they did for “Aquaman.” There are a lot of curious fanboys. If you do some digging, you can find it online. I watched it, and I think the script definitely had problems, but Adrienne Palecki would have been great. There was great potential buried beneath some stupid stuff. I wish it had gotten a better chance.

I’m also especially disappointed that “Precinct 17″ didn’t get a fall order. The mystical cop procedural from “Battlestar Galactica’s” Ronald Moore (and starring some talented “BSG” alums) sounded like the rare combo that could actually make me interested in a cop show — and seemed more original than “Grimm.” (Basically, it was a “CSI”-type show set in a modern-day world where magic exists.)

And “Chuck” (Oct. 21) is moving to Fridays? Seriously? Maybe, like “Fringe,” it’ll buck the Friday trend.

But here’s what we geeks will be getting:

ABC

Once Upon a Time (8 p.m. Sundays — Oct. 23) – And they all lived happily ever after ” or so everyone was led to believe. Emma Swan knows how to take care of herself. She’s a 28-year-old bail bonds collector who’s been on her own ever since she was abandoned as a baby. But when the son she gave up years ago finds her, everything starts to change. Henry is now 10 years old and in desperate need of Emma’s help. He believes that Emma actually comes from an alternate world and is Snow White and Prince Charming’s missing daughter. According to his book of fairy tales, they sent her away to protect her from the Evil Queen’s curse, which trapped the fairytale world forever, frozen in time, and brought them into our modern world. Of course Emma doesn’t believe a word, but when she brings Henry back to Storybrooke, she finds herself drawn to this unusual boy and his strange New England town. Concerned for Henry, she decides to stay for a while, but she soon suspects that Storybrooke is more than it seems. It’s a place where magic has been forgotten, but is still powerfully close… where fairytale characters are alive, even though they don’t remember who they once were. The epic battle for the future of all worlds is beginning, but for good to win, Emma will have to accept her destiny and fight like hell.

Eric: This looks and sounds very cool — and reminds a bit of “The Charmings” (bonus points to anyone who remembers that sitcom). I love fairy tales, though with all the Snow White movies coming up, this may bit a bit much. It also treads some of the same ground as DC Comics/Vertigo’s “Fables” comic but with a decidedly different twist.

The River (midseason 2012) – Famed explorer Dr. Emmet Cole (Bruce Greenwood) went looking for magic deep in the uncharted Amazon and never returned. The shocking truth about his disappearance is out there, somewhere, just waiting to be discovered. To the millions of kids who grew up watching his nature show, Dr. Cole was a hero. To his own son, Lincoln (Joe Anderson), he was more of an enigma. Now, six months after he vanished, Lincoln is finally ready to bury the past when Dr. Cole’s emergency beacon suddenly goes off. At the urging of his mother, Tess (Leslie Hope), Lincoln reluctantly joins her on a search for his father. To fund the rescue, they agree to let Dr. Cole’s cagey ex-producer, Clark (Paul Blackthorne), film the mission documentary-style. The mixed crew of old friends and new acquaintances includes the sexy and resourceful Lena (Eloise Mumford), loyal mechanic Emilio (Daniel Zacapa) and lethal bodyguard Captain Kurt Brynildson (Thomas Kretschmann).

Eric: Yawn. They’ll save money on the lighting budget, but this seems like yet another “Blair Witch”/”Cloverfield” redux.

http://youtu.be/7YEYU0NryzY

CBS

A Gifted Man (8 p.m. Fridays — Sept. 23) – a drama about a brilliant, charismatic surgeon whose life changes forever when his deceased ex-wife begins teaching him the meaning of life from the “hereafter.” Michael Holt (Patrick Wilson) is an exceptional doctor who lives a materialistic life of luxury thanks to his work-obsessed career and powerful and wealthy patients; however, Michael’s ordered world is rocked when his ex-wife, Anna (Jennifer Ehle), an idealistic free-clinic doctor and the love of his life, mysteriously appears to him. Michael’s off-beat sister, Christina (Julie Benz), a single mom to her teenaged son, Milo (Liam Aiken), is thrilled that Anna’s back in her brother’s life, even as an “illusion,” because Michael was always a better person with her. Curious about Michael’s sudden change in behavior is his efficient assistant, Rita (Margo Martindale). When Anna asks Michael to go to her clinic to help keep it running, he meets Autumn (Afton Williamson), a volunteer carrying on Anna’s work with the underprivileged. Touched by those in need and accepting of Anna’s compassionate “presence,” Michael’s attitude toward serving the rich and poor is turned upside down, and he begins to see that there’s room in his life for everyone.

Eric: Not overtly geeky, but it does have potential for those missing “Ghost Whisperer,” and Patrick Wilson is a fave.

Person of Interest (9 p.m. Thursdays — Sept. 22) – Jim Caviezel, Emmy Award winner Michael Emerson and Academy Award nominee Taraji P. Henson in a crime thriller about a presumed dead former-CIA agent who teams up with a mysterious billionaire to prevent violent crimes by using their own brand of vigilante justice. Reese’s (Caviezel) special training in covert operations appeals to Finch (Emerson), a software genius who invented a program that uses pattern recognition to identify people about to be involved in violent crimes. Using state-of-the-art surveillance technology, the two work outside of the law using Reese’s adept skills and Finch’s unlimited wealth to unravel the mystery of the person of interest and stop the crime before it happens. Reese’s actions catch the attention of the NYPD, including homicide detective Carter (Henson), and Fusco (Kevin Chapman), a cop who Reese uses to his advantage. With infinite crimes to investigate, Reese and Finch find that the right person, with the right information, at the right time, can change everything.

Eric: More plain high-tech than real sci-fi, it could have potential in the “Human Target” vein. But is J.J. Abrams overextending himself?

http://youtu.be/w3-cDzF7Xls

CW

“The Secret Circle” (9 p.m. Thursdays — Sept. 15) – Cassie Blake was a happy, normal teenage girl “- until her mother Amelia dies in what appears to be a tragic accidental fire. Orphaned and deeply saddened, Cassie moves in with her warm and loving grandmother Jane in the beautiful small town of Chance Harbor, Wash. “- the town her mother left so many years before -” where the residents seem to know more about Cassie than she does about herself. As Cassie gets to know her high school classmates, including sweet-natured Diana and her handsome boyfriend Adam, brooding loner Nick, mean-girl Faye and her sidekick Melissa, strange and frightening things begin to happen. When her new friends explain that they are all descended from powerful witches, and they’ve been waiting for Cassie to join them and complete a new generation of the Secret Circle, Cassie refuses to believe them “- until Adam shows her how to unlock her incredible magical powers. But it’s not until Cassie discovers a message from her mother in an old leather-bound book of spells hidden in her mother’s childhood bedroom, that she understands her true and dangerous destiny. What Cassie and the others don’t yet know is that darker powers are at play, powers that might be linked to the adults in the town, including Diana’s father and Faye’s mother ” and that Cassie’s mother’s death might not have been an accident.

Eric: Well, we’ve done vampires, werewolves and zombies, it’s time for witches. Like “Vampire Diaries,” it comes from Kevin Williamson and is based on a book series. I’ll probably give it a look; it could be a guilty pleasure.

Fox

Terra Nova (8 p.m. Mondays — Sept. 26) – The series centers on the Shannon family as they join the Tenth Pilgrimage of settlers to Terra Nova, the first colony established in this beautiful yet foreboding land in our past. Jim Shannon (Jason O’Mara, “Life on Mars”), a devoted father with a checkered past, guides his family through this new world of limitless beauty, mystery and terror. Jim’s wife, Elisabeth (Shelley Conn, “Mistresses”), is a trauma surgeon and the newest addition to Terra Nova’s medical team. Josh (Landon Liboiron, “Degrassi: The Next Generation”) is their 17-year-old son who is angry to leave life as he knows it behind; upon arriving at the settlement, he finds himself instantly drawn to the beautiful and rule-breaking Skye (Allison Miller, “Kings”). Maddy (Naomi Scott, “Life Bites”), Josh’s endearingly awkward 15-year-old sister, hopes Terra Nova will give her a chance to reinvent herself. Although Elisabeth’s medical training secured the family a spot on the pilgrimage, a secret involving their five-year-old daughter, Zoe (newcomer Alana Mansour), soon endangers their place in this utopia.

Eric: One of my most-anticipated shows, for sure. It looks amazing (how far we’ve come since “Jurassic Park” effects-wise), and it’s been in the making for a long time. Let’s just hope that doesn’t mean it’s been cooking too long.

http://youtu.be/xhpIc3JWIc4

NBC

Grimm (9 p.m. Fridays — Oct. 21) – Detective Nick Burkhardt thought he was ready for the grim reality of working homicide in Portland, Ore. That is, until he started to see things… things he couldn’t quite explain. Like a gorgeous woman suddenly transforming into a hideous hag, or an average Joe turning into a vicious troll. Then, after a panicked visit from his only living relative, Nick discovers the truth about his visions: He’s not like everyone else, he’s a descendant of an elite group of hunters known as “Grimms” who are charged with stopping the proliferation of supernatural creatures in the world. And so begins his new life journey — albeit a reluctant one at first — as he solves crimes with his partner who knows something about Nick has radically changed but can’t quite put his finger on it. Along the way, Nick finds himself unexpectedly getting help on some of the more difficult cases from Monroe, a guy who seems normal at first but is soon revealed to be what you might call a “big bad wolf.” Literally!

Eric: I was expecting something more medieval-based when I first heard about this series, but it’s in modern times. I’m cautiously optimistic. Glad to see “Caprica’s” Sasha Roiz. Too bad it’ll be on against “Fringe.” (Luckily, I can DVR more than one show at a time.)

http://youtu.be/Kh3rFsv_WSE