Fox unveils ‘American Idol’ season 12, ‘Touch,’ and ‘The Following’ premiere dates

Finally, Fox has made it clear when “American Idol” is coming back for its twelfth season; and in addition to that, we also know about the return of “Touch” coupled with the launch of Kevin Bacon’s new thriller “The Following,” which was actually given a shortened order to accommodate the actor’s schedule.

Let’s start with the news on the singing competition, since it has been the talk of the tabloids courtesy of Mariah Carey and her love/hate relationship with fellow judge Nicki Minaj.  The show will start its two-night premiere on Wednesday, January 16, and it will continue to air in the slot and the following night the rest of the season.

Meanwhile, “Tocuh” is finally going to get its own chance to shine on Friday, February 1 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern time. This will move the “Fringe” series finale to a date a little earlier than planned in January. The Kiefer Sutherland series, which will be joined by Maria Bello this year, was originally pushed back from its launch this fall in order to give Fox a chance to launch “Kitchen Nightmares” while also airing some more repeat broadcasts of their other shows.

Finally, we turn to “The Following.” In what is yet another sign that “The Mob Doctor” is going to be put out of its misery after its initial 13-episode run is over, Bacon’s series will begin airing on Monday, January 21 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern time following “Bones.” Unlike the current timeslot holder, we actually have some big expectations for this to become some sort of a hit.

Which one of these shows are you the most excited to ultimately see on TV?