Appointment Viewing: The New Fall Shows Are Here including "Glee," "Modern Family," "Hawaii Five-O" and More!

It's Friday and that means its time to take a look ahead at a week of Appointment Viewing, and this week the new fall season really gets going. Not only are there plenty of old favorites to watch, there are also a bunch of new shows making their debut.

HBO kicks off more new episodes of Real Time with Bill Maher Friday. As much as I may enjoy segments like "New Rules," the panel discussions often leave me yelling at the TV. However, this week Maher's guest list has me intrigued. In addition to Rich Galen and Jennifer Donahue, Keith Olbermann will join the panel. Considering how Olbermann avoids arguing on Countdown (when Olbermann disagrees with his guests, it usually comes with such a subtle touch, it goes over most viewers' heads) it should be interesting how he participates on the panel.

Meanwhile, Maher's interview guests are also promising, as Maher will be talking with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Dexter Filkins and comedian Louis C.K.

Alma Award co-hosts George Lopez and Eva Langoria.

NBC will be airing the 2011 ceremony for The NCLR Alma Awards Friday. Looking to honor the achievement of Latinos in the entertainment industry, the Almas have a pretty inclusive history and this year's nominees include Glee's Naya Rivera, The Office's Oscar Nunez, Ricky Martin, along with AE faves like Christina Aguilera and Sofia Vergara.

 Lifetime has the season (and likely series) finale of Roseanne's Nuts as Roseanne plans a lu'au to launch her brand of macadamia nuts. However, the planning doesn't go easy as some of the guys want to hunt one of the pigs that roam on her land and serve it at the celebration. I think I'm going to let this episode sit on my DVR until I can find a recipe for kalua pig you can make in an oven. Just that episode description made me hungry.

Friday also brings four new challenges on  a new One Man Army, while Syfy has a new Haven.

Saturday brings the debut of the newest MSNBC talk show with the debut of Up with Chris Hayes. Airing for two hours early in the morning on Saturdays and Sundays, the show will feature The Nation editor and MSNBC contributor discussing current issues.

I'm always happy to see Hayes sitting in the host's chair on MSNBC, he's great at putting together a show that's engaging and yet information-dense, a show that includes topics not often discussed on cable news, so I'm excited to see him get a regular spot on the TV schedule.

John Fugelsang. Wait until you hear his Chris Matthews impression.

As much as I'm thrilled to have two hours with Hayes every week, I'm especially excited about Saturday's debut, which will include a chat with comedian John Fugelsang. In the past couple of years, I've become a big fan of Fugelsang, who is an extremely funny and sharp-witted gay ally. Fugelsang also comes from a liberal Catholic home, a background that makes him a great argument that the likes of Pat Robertson aren't the only people who get to speak for what the Bible says.

I've been looking for the chance to get to highlight Fugelsang since I expect a lot of you will end up sharing my enthusiasm.

Let's hope Blue Mountain State doesn't cut down on the locker room scenes.

Meanwhile, Spike TV kicks off a new season of its raunchy fraternity comedy Blue Mountain State Saturday. The series has struck an interesting balance, delivering a comedy that fits the Spike TV voice (which seems to think its audience comes from a cartoonish stereotype of what men are like) that also manages to deliver plenty of beefcake, while also skewering sports' focus on living up to masculine gender roles. It doesn't manage to be anywhere as subversive as It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, but it has been a surprise for Spike TV and has earned a following among AfterElton readers.

The season premiere tackles sexting, as a picture on Alex's phone starts to spread around campus. From the episode titles, I expect both the men and women of Blue Mountain State will have pictures to inspire embarrassment.

Comedian Jimmy Carr

BBC America's Ministry of Laughs is going to take a short break in a couple of weeks, so instead of debuting a new series Saturday, the comedy block debuts a two-part special, Funny as Hell. Filmed at the 2011 Just for Laughs comedy festival in Montreal, Funny as Hell will spotlight acts from UK comedians like Russell Howard, Greg Davies, Jimmy Carr and Nina Conti.

Before Funny as Hell, BBC America has what looks like another spooky episode Doctor Who as the TARDIS arrives at a hotel where the things don't stay in place and the rooms seem to be conspiring against the people within. I'm going to go into the episode hoping we see a glimpse of the Amy who could figure out how to make her own sonic screwdriver when necessary, like the one we met (and lost) last week.

Sunday is pretty quiet as most TV moves out of the way for The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards. With Jane Lynch hosting, I'm hoping the show manages to live up to Lynch's talent at comedy. Meanwhile, with presenters like Kaley Cuoco, Amy Poehler, Bryan Cranston and Melissa McCarthy, I'll be hoping that Lynch isn't responsible for all of the ceremony's funny moments.

Still, even with the Emmys we have Valerie Harper appearing in a new episode of Drop Dead Diva, while Walt Jr.'s sixteenth birthday finally arrives on a new episode of Breaking Bad.