More Previews

The TV Guy managed to get ahold of couple of advance screeners for a pair of new Fox shows (as well as the season premieres of two returning shows, to be reviewed next week) and happily reports that there are worse ways of spending a couple of hours.

"Justice" mixes elements of two of the best (if short-lived) legal dramas of the past few years, ABC's "Murder One" and Fox's "The Jury." The viewer follows the high-profile law firm headed by Ron Trott ("Alias'" Victor Garber) and his team of very good-looking, very sharp junior attorneys (Kerr Smith, Eamonn Walker, Rebecca Mader) as they tackle the cases that draw the biggest media attention.

What makes "Justice" different is that it examines all aspects of the trial, such as media spin and jury selection. After the verdict is rendered, the viewer is shown the crime and whether or not the verdict was correct.

"Justice" is very stylish and entertaining, and its views on how cases are really tried in the media before they ever reach the courtroom are both sharp and biting. Katherine La Nasa, as a Nancy Grace/Greta Van Susteran-style TV commentator, is particularly good.

The other pilot, "Standoff," doesn't disappoint either. The show follows the adventures of two FBI negotiators (Ron Livingston, Rosemary DeWitt) and the crises they deal with, which isn't helped by the fact they are sleeping together. The always-terrific Livingston and the lovely DeWitt show some great chemistry early on, and with Gina Torres as the boss of the unit, I have high hopes for this show. It should fit in well with "Bones," which precedes it on Wednesday nights.

TV NEWS: Fans of the USA sci-fi show "The 4400" will be pleased to hear that it was renewed for another season on Wednesday.

Fans of "Stargate SG-1," however, are out of luck after this season ends. "SG-1" was the longest-running U.S. made sci-fi show ever. I never got into it, though I did check it out last year when Ben Browder and Claudia Black of "Farscape" joined the "SG-1" cast. There was too much mythos, however, for me to really enjoy it. "SG-1's" spinoff, "Stargate: Atlantis" was renewed for a fourth year.

The BBC announced Wednesday that a "Doctor Who" spinoff featuring Billie Piper was scrapped. Plans for the spinoff featuring the Capt. Jack character, however, are still a go.

RECAP: There was only one thing that ticked me off about last night's "Rescue Me" -- when it was over, it meant there was only one episode left for this season. The world that Tommy Gavin (Denis Leary) lives in -- completely insane to the rest of us, normal if you are a Gavin -- was illustrated with perfection last night when his nutty sister Maggie (Tatum O'Neal) decided to hold her wedding moments after they buried their brother, Johnny (Dean Winters), who was shot to death the week before.

In the season finale, Tommy must decide whether to remain with the FDNY or retire, and choose between his equally-screwy ex-wife Janet (Andrea Roth), who is either carrying his baby or Johnny's, or go off with his screwy cousin's widow Sheila (Callie Thorne).