Lucky Break?

Tonight marks the debut of the new thriller "Daybreak" (ABC, 9 p.m.) with its two-hour pilot running in the timeslot normally reserved for "Lost."

The show's opening ratings will probably be pretty good, since ABC has given it such a good slot and promoted the heck out of it, but the key will be whether the new show can sustain it.

Already, ABC has been giving up ground at 9 p.m., since "Criminal Minds" (CBS, 9 p.m.) has actually been outperforming "Lost" in the ratings the past couple of weeks. So holding "Lost" until February for an unproven show has to be one of the biggest risks for any network in recent memory.

"Daybreak" focuses on a cop (Taye Diggs) who is framed for the murder of a district attorney. A' la "Groundhog Day" he relives the same events over and over again, but with variations each time he changes things.

"Groundhog Day" worked because there was a definite end to it. Since "Daybreak" is a TV series which presumably wants to have a long run, how much can keep going over the same day again and again? How sustainable is the concept? So far, the reviews of "Daybreak" have been lukewarm, at best. Star Taye Diggs' lone network series, the much touted "Kevin Hill" on UPN, died after a half-season.

One might compare "Daybreak" to the BBC's superior "Life on Mars," in which the hero believes he has been transported back from current times to 1973. But "Life on Mars" explores the vastly different world of cops in two different eras, and the hero doesn't know if he has gone back in time, is in a coma or is simply going mad. The viewer can enjoy the roller coaster ride alongside him.

"Daybreak" is the same ride over and over. No one wants to keep riding Space Mountain again and again.

WEDNESDAY'S BEST BETS: ABC is maximizing its bet for Wednesday's by airing the season finale of the very popular "Dancing With Stars" as a lead-in.

Meanwhile, "Medium" (NBC, 9 p.m.) returns to the air earlier than expected with a two-hour season premiere. "Medium" is one of those shows that seems to get decent enough ratings, but you never meet anyone who is actually a fan of the show. When the Emmys gave the best actress award to star Patricia Arquette over the vastly superior Glenn Close for her turn in "The Shield" two years ago, it showed how bogus those awards had become.