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Now that San Diego Comic-Con has once again come and gone, all that's left of the annual four-day event are the trailers and teases released by various movie studios and TV networks to build buzz for the films and shows they'll be releasing in the coming weeks and months.
While the Comic-Con-friendly blockbusters understandably dominated the weekend buzz — a predictable outcome when dealing with properties like Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Star Wars, Suicide Squad, Deadpool, and X-Men: Apocalypse — there was a lot of great new television on tap, too. Below, I've compiled a sampling of the nine most "interesting" TV trailers to come out of this year's convention, some of them for better and some of them for worse.
Ash vs. Evil Dead (Starz)
Starz is hoping to continue its rise to pay-cable worthiness with this small-screen continuation of Sam Raimi's 1981 cult horror flick Evil Dead and its sequels. The show is not only helmed by Raimi himself but once again brings back original franchise star Bruce Campbell as Ashley "Ash" J. Williams, the films' chainsaw-armed hero. When the series begins, a Deadite plague is poised to destroy all of mankind, forcing Ash to return to the fight — and in a stellar bit of casting, Lucy Lawless is joining the fray as a woman named Ruby who blames Ash for the new outbreaks of evil. The fun begins on Halloween, when the 10-episode first season debuts, and so far, all signs point to "treat" rather than "trick."
Heroes: Reborn (NBC)
I'm highly skeptical of NBC's decision to reboot — errr, "rebirth" — this show about "ordinary people with extraordinary abilities," especially given its rapid fall from grace in its first incarnation and the state of sci-fi programming on network TV. However: I can't help but feel a little intrigued by Zachary Levi's new villain character and Reborn's getting-the-gang-back-together promise, as Jack Coleman, Masi Oka, Greg Grunberg, and more will all reprise their roles from the original series.
Fear the Walking Dead (AMC)
Ridiculously stupid title and my fatigue with the original series be damned — I've been hearing this Walking Dead spinoff described as "Parenthood, but with zombies," which does hold some promise. Set in the same world as AMC's hit drama (which also debuted a new trailer at Comic-Con) but devoted to chronicling the early days of the zombie apocalypse rather than it aftermath, Fear the Walking Dead will debut August 23 and lead into The Walking Dead's sixth season in October. Here's hoping it'll surprise us by doing something innovative with its portrayal of the rise of flesh-eating monsters as the virus begins to take hold.
Colony (USA)
Lost co-creator Carlton Cuse is reuniting with former Lost star Josh Holloway for Colony, which is also set in an overrun version of the City of Angels. In this case, the threat is "occupation by a force of outside intruders" (read: aliens), and Holloway's character must decide whether to cooperate with the new "authorities" (read again: aliens) or rebel. The series, which is expected to debut in October, looks ... just okay so far. My first impression is that it's going to be skippable, especially because USA isn't exactly known as a purveyor of this type of programming, but I'll give it a shot for a few episodes, at least.
The Bastard Executioner (FX)
Here's your first look at what Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter has been up to since the FX biker drama rode off into the sunset in December: creating an FX period piece that's ... not totally unlike the FX biker drama, except for the parts where he swaps motorcycles for swords and leather vests for suits of armor. The series — which centers on a knight (True Blood's Stephen Moyer) who works for King Edward I — still contains plenty of death, violence, and Katey Sagal, three of Sutter's favorite things.
Outcast (Cinemax)
Robert Kirkman is on quite a tear. His comics have already spawned not one but two TV shows in The Walking Dead and the aforementioned Fear the Walking Dead, and now another one of his works, Outcast, is being adapted for the small screen, as well. The exorcism-themed odyssey revolves around a man who teams up with a reverend to figure out the cause of the demonic possession he's been afflicted by all his life; look for it in 2016.
Damien (A&E)
A sequel to the 1976 film The Omen, Damien comes from former Walking Dead showrunner Glen Mazzara and purports to follow the 30-year-old title character as he comes to terms with the fact that he's the Antichrist. The series will fill in the blanks of what he's been up to for the past 25 years (in part by ignoring everything that happened in The Omen's two sequels), with plenty of callbacks to the original movie.
Into the Badlands (AMC)
There won't be any zombies, aliens, or demons to speak of in this new AMC drama, which should already be enough to pique the interest of viewers who've grown tired of supernatural monsters. Instead, expect a whole lot of kicking, punching, and martial arts-ing when the six-episode drama about a badass warrior named Sunny debuts this November.
Sherlock's standalone Christmas special (BBC/PBS)
Okay, this one isn't for a new show, but who can resist the cheeky banter of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, especially since Sherlock's fourth season is still at least a year away? This first look at the Victorian-era-set one-off (though Sherlock usually takes place in modern times, the 90-minute episode is set more than a century ago) earns bonus points for pretty snow, the return of Watson's mustache, and Mrs. Hudson standing up for herself as a landlady, "not a plot device."
