Yes, I know. There's a big football game on TV today. I assume there is something about it in today's Sports section.
Meanwhile, the coveted time slot immediately following the game belongs to Fox this year. This is where a network hopes to entice the millions of viewers too lazy or worn out to change the channel to stick around to check out what's offered.
Last year, CBS gave us The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. In 2015, NBC ran an episode of The Blacklist. Previous years saw The Voice (2012), Glee (2011), Friends (1996) and even Lassie (1967, 1968, 1970).
This year, Fox has opted to use the space to introduce its action thriller spinoff 24: Legacy.
What would Jack Bauer do?
We won't find out with 24: Legacy. Jack's not involved with this one. The Super Bowl kicks off around 5:30 p.m., with the new series scheduled for 9:30. The second episode airs in the show's normal slot at 7 p.m. Monday.
Bauer may not be on board, but the thrills and chills are still the same. Fox breathlessly claims "the series chronicles an adrenaline-fueled race against the clock to stop a devastating terrorist attack on United States soil."
Anything fueled by adrenaline or that takes me "on an emotional roller coaster ride," or is "a fast-paced thrill ride ripped from today's headlines" has my attention from the beginning. Fox also notes 24: Legacy follows the same real-time format of the previous "genre-defining series."
I'd quibble that any genre was actually defined by 24. There's a long-standing TV tradition of maverick antiheroes that 24 slipped into nicely. It did have the clever "real-time" gimmick (each episode took place over an hour) that still occasionally played fast and loose with how long it took to get from point A to point B.
24: Legacy follows the fate of a squad of U.S. Army Rangers who, six months previously, went on a mission in Yemen and killed terrorist leader Sheik Ibrahim Bin-Khalid.
In the aftermath, Bin-Khalid's followers vowed revenge against squad leader Sgt. Eric Carter (Corey Hawkins, Straight Outta Compton), his men and their families. The former Rangers are forced into the federal witness protection program, but their safety is short-lived.
People start dying and Carter and his wife (Anna Diop, The Messengers) barely escape an assassination attempt.
Exposed, Carter seeks the help of the brilliant and ambitious Rebecca Ingram (Miranda Otto, Homeland), the former head of the Counter Terrorism Unit who was in charge of the raid in Yemen.
Ingram had resigned her position to help her husband, Sen. John Donovan (Jimmy Smits, NYPD Blue, The West Wing), run for president.
Subplot: Ingram loves action and the counter-terrorist game. Can she settle into the rather passive role of first lady? Can she get fully behind her husband's campaign, or will Carter's predicament draw her back into the intelligence business?
One thing is certain -- the deeper Carter and Ingram dig into the threat, the more sophisticated the terrorist network grows. Whom can they trust? We'll find out.
Bonus: Fan favorite Gerald McRaney (Simon & Simon, Major Dad, Deadwood, House of Cards, Longmire, This Is Us) co-stars as Henry Donovan, the senator's father.
And Carlos Bernard (Hawaii Five-0, Castle) will reprise his original 24 character, Tony Almeida, in a recurring role.
• APB. Fox has come up with a nifty companion for 24: Legacy. The high-concept police procedural APB premieres at 8 p.m. Monday following Part 2 of the 24: Legacy debut.
Justin Kirk (Weeds, Tyrant) portrays cocky and driven Chicago-based billionaire engineer Gideon Reeves who, after he witnesses his best friend's murder, is granted control of the city's crime-infested, underfunded 13th Police Precinct.
Reeves spends tons of money to equip the district police with state-of-the-art, high-tech, crime-fighting gadgets, gizmos and doodads.
Along for the adventure is street-wise Detective Theresa Murphy (Natalie Martinez, Under the Dome) who, after initial reluctance, agrees to give Reeves' innovations a try.
Caitlin Stasey (Reign) plays tech officer Ada Hamilton; Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters) is skeptical Capt. Ned Conrad.
APB is a clever twist on the traditional cop show. We've got futuristic toys and it's set in the real murder capital of the United States. I'd love to see the series explore some larger themes beyond the expected. I doubt that'll happen, but we can always hope.
The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email:
mstorey@arkansasonline.com
Style on 02/05/2017