Television finding a new fall equilibrium

With year-round scheduling, multiple platforms and an explosion of scripted programming, fall television isn't what it used to be.

It's more, and less.

It's more than a few big broadcast networks going head-to-head with shows that may be canceled before viewers discover they're on. And it's less in that those same networks, taking a cue from their cable and streaming competition, are as likely to roll out their best shows in January as they are in September.

Fall's longer nights offer viewers plenty of time to consider the rebalanced mix, including these promising possibilities from the dozens of new and returning shows.

- Ellen Gray, Daily News TV critic
The Bastard Executioner. (FX, 10 p.m. Sept. 15) From Kurt Sutter, creator of FX's often savage "Sons of Anarchy," we get a show about an executioner in 14th-century Wales. What could possibly go wrong?

FX exacted a promise that it wouldn't just be "a head in a basket every week," and Sutter delivered a mix of mystery and history - starring Lee Jones as the reluctant title character that had me hooked by the end of the two-hour premiere. (Twitter: @TheBastardEx, Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheBastardExecutioner.)

Blindspot. (NBC10, 10 p.m. Sept. 21) In one of the most arresting images of the fall, a woman (Jaimie Alexander, "Thor: The Dark World") emerges from a duffel bag in Times Square, naked and covered with tattoos.

She wants to know who she is. FBI agent Kurt Weller (Sullivan Stapleton, "Strike Back") wants to know why his name's inked between her shoulder blades. Maybe they can help each other.

Created by Martin Gero, whose "L.A. Complex" first caught the eye of uber-producer Greg Berlanti, it's an action-heavy thriller with characters who might be worth getting to know. (Twitter: @NBCBlindspot Facebook: www.facebook.com/NBCBlindspot)

The Muppets. (6ABC, 8 p.m. Sept. 22) They're back. And while things have changed - Miss Piggy and Kermit are splitsville and he's dating a pig named Denise - they're still the Muppets.

The series, set behind the scenes of a late-night show, "Up Late With Miss Piggy," will feature music, celebrities and the mockumentary style of "The Office." Executive producer Bill Prady ("The Big Bang Theory"), whose early credits include "The Jim Henson Hour" and "Fraggle Rock," says "the goal here is to be exactly the same and completely different." (Twitter: @TheMuppetsABC, Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheMuppetsABC)

Empire. (Fox 29, 9 p.m. Sept. 23) Last winter's breakout hit from West Philly's Lee Daniels, about a music industry mogul (Terrence Howard), his force-of-nature ex-wife (Taraji P. Henson) and their talented, fractious family, returns.

We'll get 18 episodes, up from last season's 12, though Fox is splitting the season in two to make it last. (Twitter: @EmpireFox, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EmpireFOX)

Quantico. (6ABC, 10 p.m. Sept. 27) Indian actress Priyanka Chopra, a former Miss World who's been famous for years in a country bigger than ours, makes her U.S. TV debut as FBI recruit Alex Parrish, whom Chopra describes as "Jason Bourne in female form."

The pilot flashes back from a terrorist attack, owes a bit to "Grey's Anatomy" and "How to Get Away With Murder" and has an insane ending that renders it no less watchable. (Twitter: @QuanticoTV, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/QuanticoABC)

The Daily Show With Trevor Noah. (Comedy Central, 11 p.m. Sept. 28) With Stephen Colbert now in place at CBS' "Late Show," Trevor Noah's debut behind the desk Jon Stewart vacated last month marks the end of the latest round of late-night musical chairs (until Samantha Bee's show arrives on TBS in January).

Noah, who grew up in South Africa as the son of white father and a black mother, brings an intriguing outsider's perspective to his stand-up. How that will translate into delivering the fake news remains to be seen.Twitter: @TheDailyShow, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedailyshow

Grandfathered. (Fox29, 8 p.m. Sept. 29) John Stamos may be going back to his TV roots in Netflix's "Fuller House," but here he's taking a step forward as a fifty-something bachelor who discovers he's not only the father of a grown son (Josh Peck, "Drake & Josh"), but a new grandfather, too.

Created by Daniel Chun ("The Office," "Trophy Wife") and co-starring Paget Brewster, it's charming and funny. And if you find you like handsome, slightly delusional men, you can stick around for Fox's Rob Lowe sitcom "The Grinder," which follows at 8:30 p.m. Twitter: @Grandfathered, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Grandfathered

Code Black. (CBS3, 10 p.m. Sept. 30) Marcia Gay Harden, Luis Guzman, Raza Jaffrey, William Allen Young, and Bonnie Somerville star in a fast-paced medical show inspired by physician (and executive producer) Ryan McGarry's documentary on the wildly busy trauma bay at Los Angeles County Hospital.

If you preferred "ER" (or "NY Med") to "Grey's Anatomy," this could be for you. Twitter: @CodeBlackCBS, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CodeBlackCBS

Homeland. (Showtime, 9 p.m. Oct. 4) Season 5 finds Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) in Berlin. "Berlin is an absolutely fascinating spy city," says executive producer Alex Gansa, who promises that Mandy Patinkin and Rupert Friend will be back. Twitter: @SHO_Homeland, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HomelandOnShowtime

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. (CW57, 8 p.m. Oct. 12) Musical comedy doesn't get much wackier than this show, originally developed for Showtime, about a driven young lawyer (Rachel Bloom) who moves across the country in pursuit of her first crush (Vincent Rodriguez III).

Smartly paired with the second season of "Jane the Virgin," it's like nothing else on TV. Twitter: @CW_CrazyXGF Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/crazyxgf

Fargo. (FX, 10 p.m. Oct. 12) If we learned anything from "True Detective," it's that Season 2 of an anthology series can be tricky. I've seen the first episode of "Fargo's" new season, and I'm not worried. Set in 1979, it stars Patrick Wilson as a younger Lou Solverson, the character played by Keith Carradine in Season 1, as well as Ted Danson, Kirsten Dunst and Jean Smart. It involves, as the first season did, a fair amount of blood and snow. Look for Cherry Hill's Cristin Milioti as Lou's wife (and the still-young Molly's Solverson's mother) and for Ronald Reagan (Bruce Campbell) to show up at some point, too. Twitter: @FargoFX, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FargoFX

Supergirl. (CBS3, 8 p.m. Oct. 26) I grew up in the DC Comics universe and couldn't be happier with the pilot for this fun update, which casts Melissa Benoist ("Glee") as Kara Danvers/Supergirl, Calista Flockhart as her "Devil Wears Prada" boss and Mehcad Brooks ("True Blood") as the photographer formerly known as Jimmy Olsen, who's now much hotter and goes by the much cooler "James." Twitter: @supergirlcbs, Facebook: www.facebook.com/SupergirlCBS

The Man in the High Castle. (Amazon, Nov. 20) Adapted by Frank Spotnitz ("The X-Files") from the Philip K. Dick novel about life in a North America in which the Allies lost World War II, this pilot was enthusiastically embraced by Amazon users after its release in January. Prime subscribers can look forward to bingeing on a 10-episode season in the week before Thanksgiving. Twitter: @HighCastleTV, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HighCastleAmazon