POISON SCOOTER

Fall Television Preview - Dramas Edition

Installment number two of my look at the new season is an overview of upcoming dramas that have potential. Just as with sitcoms, I only see five new shows worth a looksee and that will probably whittle down to one or two after about 3 weeks. I recall last year being high on Invasion, and that lasted about 6 episodes, so I'm gunshy anymore with all the hype about new dramas.

Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip is the yang to 30 Rock's ying apparently. Do we need two shows on the air simultaneously that detail the inner workings of a late night sketch comedy show? Probably not. But, and this is a big but, Aaron Sorkin is behind this show and the cast assembled has some of his West Wing alumni and a certain Friend who is making his way back to the safety of a TV show paycheck. I happen to like Bradley Whitford and Tim Busfield (West Wingers) and Amanda Peet and Matthew Perry had some good chemistry in The Whole Nine Yards. So maybe, just maybe this show will entertain me enough to get hooked in.

For whatever reason, I'm really curious to see Heroes. Although I'm not a huge superhero fan, I like the X Men-esque plot line alluded to in the trailer for this one. Regular joes discovering their super powers around the globe appeals to the kid in all of us, I just worry that this will turn into another Lost. Meaning, do I want another show like Lost in my life that never actually goes anywhere?

That's a good segue into my fears about Jericho. Again, intriguing concept, but might get tiring without any resolution each week. This one is about a nuclear holocaust hitting and the residents of one town have to band together to figure out what is going on. Or something like that. Skeet Ulrich, the poor man's Johnny Depp, is the lead and Simon and Simon/Major Dad star Gerald McRaney plays his old man. We'll see. This one has potential to be the first of this lot that I stop watching early on.

Justice over on Fox has Bruckheimer in the producer chair and looks to be a exploration of the judicial process. Maybe Jerry can do for the law what he has done for forensics ala the CSI franchise? Victor Garber of the late Alias is a lead, but the real reason I'm interested is to see Jack McPhee from Dawson's Creek as a lawyer. I like CSI and Boston Legal, so maybe this will be a nice blend of the two? Then again, it's Fox so I'm not getting my hopes too up.

And finally, I'm looking to see 6 Degrees because J.J. Abrams always gets interesting people on to TV shows. Intertwined New Yorkers, mysterious box, yadda, yadda, yadda. Here's the cast, Hope Davis, Campbell Scott, Jay Hernandez and Erika Christensen. Hmmm. Indie film stars and a couple of teen actors who haven't made too many bad choices (Swim Fan aside). JJ knows a thing or two about making quality shows, so it's gotta be worth a peek, right?

posted by Scooter @ 7:27 PM