Ten years ago, if you put a show in a Friday night primetime slot, you would have been giving it a death sentence. Now, shows are thriving in the previous dead zone – dramas, comedies, even reality shows are breaking rating records and becoming pop culture fixtures.
So, in case you’re wondering what you should be watching, here’s a list of Friday night TV that you should stay in to see.
“Grimm,“ 9 PM on NBC
If ABC’s “Once Upon a Time” is too fluffy for you, you’ll get a perfect amount of darkness with “Grimm.” Â Entering its third season, the show’s serialized format makes it perfect to jump into at any time. Â Plus, stand-out character Monroe, a Wider Blutbad (“Grimm'”s werewolf equivalent), makes the show worth watching.
“The Neighbors,” 8:30 PM on ABC
I admit, I was really against this show when it premiered. Â It was stale, unfunny, and unoriginal – but “The Neighbors” outgrew all of that in its first season. Â The show is slowly becoming one of the funniest shows on broadcast, so you better catch it now before it hits its prime.
“Blue Bloods,” 10 PM on CBS
When “Blue Bloods” was moved to Fridays, the television industry was floored.  Why put a solid Tuesday night performer in a time slot built for failure?  Yet, when ratings increased in its new slot, “Blue Bloods” shocked everyone in the best possible way.  This family police drama is way more “The Good Wife” than “CSI,” making it Friday must-see.
Other shows worth watching are ABC’s “Shark Tank,” Fox’s “MasterChef Junior,” and IFC’s “Comedy Bang! Bang!”