As August arrives, TV viewers get fidgety.
They wonder when the fall season will begin. The answer — for the four big networks — depends on what they’re looking for:
— Scripted shows? A few arrive early — ABC’s “R.J. Decker,” Sept. 15; NBC’s new “Line of Fire,” Sept. 21; Fox’s shows, Sept.22 (including “Best Medicine,” shown here) and 27. More consider Oct. 4 to be premiere week.
— Unscripted ones, however, arrive earlier. ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” has a two-night blitz, Sept. 15-16; NBC’s “The Voice” has a three-nighter, Sept. 21-23. All the others have September starts, including NBC’s new “Traitors” spin-off, Sept. 17.
— And football? Well, that waits for no one. We’ll start there; this round-up is confined to the four big commercial broaadcast networks, in prime time:
FOOTBALL
— College Saturday games start Aug. 29 on ABC and Fox.
— Fox’s Friday college games start Sept. 4. The next day, everyone is busy; there are even Sunday games Sept. 6 on ABC and NBC.
— The pros start Sept. 9 and 13 on NBC; then ABC’s “Monday Night Football” begins on Sept. 14.
UNSCRIPTED
(Some summer shows continue: NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” ends Sept. 23, CBS’ “Big Brother” ends Oct. 1 and “Celebrity Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” is ongoing.)
— “Dancing With the Stars,” 8-10 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 15-16, ABC; then 8 p.m. Tuesdays.
— “The Traitors: New Blood” (new show), 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 17, NBC.
— “The Voice,” 8 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, Sept. 21-23, NBC; then 8 p.m. Mondays.
— “Celebrity Name That Tune” and “Celebrity Weakest Link,” 8 and 9 p.m. Monday, Sept. 21, Fox
— “The Floor” and “99 to Beat,” 8 and 9 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23, Fox.
— “Survivor,” 8-10 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23, CBS; then 8-9:30 p.m.
— “Hell’s Kitchen” and “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test,” 8 and 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 24, Fox.
— “Survivor,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23 (two-hour opener, then 90 minutes), CBS.
— “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” 7 p.m., Sept. 27, ABC. Opens with two hours, leading into the 9 p.m. opener of “Wonderful World of Disney” movies, starting with “Inside Out 2.”
— “Shark Tank,” 9-11 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30, ABC; then 10 p.m.
— “The Amazing Race,” 9:30-11 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30, CBS.
— “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune,” 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, ABC.
NEWS MAGAZINES:
— CBS’ “60 Minutes” starts at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13 and is 7 p.m. the next week. It does both times, depending on football, but stays at 7 on the West Coast.
— ABC’s “20/20” and NBC’s “Dateline,” 9-11 p.m., Sept. 25.
— CBS’ “48 Hour,” however, waits for 10 p.m. Oct. 10.
SCRIPTED, EARLY ARRIVALS
— “R.J. Decker,” 10 p.m. Sept. 15, ABC.
— “Line of Fire” (new), 10 p.m. Monday, Sept. 21, NBC.
— “Best Medicine” and “Doc,” 8 and 9 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, Fox.
— “The Simpsons,” Animal Control,” “Universal Basic Guys” and “Grimsburg,” 8-10 p.m. Sept. 27, Fox.
— “Scrubs,” 8 p.m., Sept. 30, ABC; two episodes that week, then one a week.
PREMIERE WEEK STARTS, CBS:
— Sunday, Oct. 4: “Marshals” and “Tracker,” 8:30 and 9:30 p..m. (The next week, they’re 8 and 9.)
— Monday, Oct. 5: “FBI,” “CIA” and “Harlan Coben’s Final Twist,” 8, 9 and 10 p.m.
— Tuesday, Oct. 6: “NCIS,” “NCIS: New York” (new) and “NCIS: Origins,” 8, 9 and 10 p.m.
–Thursday, Oct. 8: “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage,” 8 p.m.; “Eternally Yours” (new), 8:30; “Elsbeth,” 9; “Cupertino” (new), 10.
— Friday, Oct. 9: “Sheriff Country,” “Fire Country,” “Boston Blue,” 8, 9 and 10 p.m.
MORE PREMIERE WEEK STARTS
— Wednesday, Oct. 7: “Chicago Med,” “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago P.D.,” 8, 9 and 10 p.m. , NBC. Also, “Abbott Elementary,” 8:30 p.m., ABC.
— Thursday. Oct. 8: “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” and “Law & Order,” 9 and 10 p.m., NBC.
COMING LATER
— Thursday, Oct. 15: “9-1-1,” “9-1-1: Nashville” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” 8, 9 and 10 p.m., ABC.
— Friday, Oct. 23: “Happy’s Place” and “Newlyweds” (new), 8 and 8:30 p.m., NBC.
— Monday, Nov. 2: “St. Denis Medical” and “The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins,” 8 and 8:30 p.m., NBC.
— Also: Prior to its mid-season return, CBS’ “Ghosts” will have one-hour Halloween and Christmas specials, Oct. 29 and Dec. 10.
MID-SEASON:
— ABC: “High Potential,” “Will Trent,” “The Rookie,” “Shifting Gears” and “The Bachelor,” plus new spin-offs of “The Rookie” and “Grey’s Anatomy.”
— CBS: “Ghosts,” “Matlock,” “NCIS: Sydney” and the new “Einstein.”
— NBC: The new “Rockford Files” and “Sunset P.I.”
— Fox: “Murder in a Small Town,” “Memory of a Killer,” “The Masked Singer,” plus several cartoons and food shows. Also, new show — “Baywatch,” “The Interrogator” and the unscripted “Marriage Market.”