Traditionally, TV slows down in the summer months, but that was in the days before pay-cable came to prominence. “Game Of Thrones” et al might be winding down for the season, but HBO will debut “The Leftovers” and the final season of “True Blood” in just a few weeks, while Showtime still has some “Penny Dreadful” to unspool. And while FX is still technically a basic cable station, they have as impressive a line-up as anyone: right now, with “Fargo” and ‘Louie,” they have two of the best shows on TV.
And when they wrap up in a couple of weeks for the season, they have some promising replacements waiting in the wings. Stepping into the “Fargo” drama slot (along with the second season of the solid “The Bridge“) is “Tyrant,” a hotly-tipped new drama from “Homeland” creators Howard Gordon and Gideon Raff, described as, essentially, “The Godfather” in the Middle East.
Originally intended to have its pilot be helmed by Ang Lee, the show was eventually taken over by “Harry Potter” director David Yates, and has suffered a somewhat troubled production, but now looks to be coming together nicely, if the trailer that FX debuted today is anything to go by. The show, which stars Adam Rayner, Jennifer Finnigan, Ashraf Barhom and Justin Kirk, begins airing on Tuesday June 24th, and we look forward to checking it out then.
Meanwhile, sister network FXX are premiering two new comedies around the same time, and both look like they’ll be checking out too. “Married,” created by Andrew Gurland, promises to be a raw and honest look at marital life (it looks somewhat similar to a TV version of something like “This Is 40”), toplined by the excellent Judy Greer and Nat Faxon, and also starring Jenny Slate of “Obvious Child,” and practiced scene-stealer Brett Gelman. From the trailers and promos, it certainly looks like it could be worth a watch.
Airing alongside it will be “You’re The Worst,” a sort of twisted romantic comedy about two terrible, terrible people (British actor Chris Geere and “The Wolf Of Wall Street“‘s Aya Cash) who, without planning it, end up in a relationship together. The pilot was directed by Playlist favorite Jordan Vogt-Roberts (who just landed the “Metal Gear Solid” directing job), and this also looks like it could be an acerbic antidote to the “Friends” archetype. It and “Married” both begin airing on July 17th. Check out trailers and spots for all of the shows below.