Austin Part 1: The Apple Doesn't Fall Far From the Tree

Writer/Director Jake Kasdan meets his fans after the showing of "The TV Set" at Austin's historic Paramount Theatre.


I've been at the Austin Film Festival since last Thursday and just got back, so this week will be spent mostly reviewing my adventures there. Fear not, I'll figure out a way to tie in TV somehow, though most of the weekend was spent on movies. I also took pictures, which I will try to upload later today.

The festival's opening feature film was "The TV Set," written and directed by one of my favorites, Jake Kasdan. "The TV Set" revolves around a TV writer/producer (David Duchovny), who is desperately trying to get his pilot on the air of a Fox-like network that mostly puts on reality crap. Duchovny has allies in his pregnant wife (Justin Bateman, "Family Ties"), his not-so-supportive agent (Judy Greer, "Arrested Development") and a former BBC producer (Ioan Gruffud, "Fantastic Four") who has been brought into the network to help find projects with some class.

Duchovny, however, finds trouble at every turn, from the miscast lead of his sitcom to the studio executive who is a blithering idiot but thinks she knows everything (Sigourney Weaver in a movie-stealing performance). Sadly, based on what I learned at the Screenwriter's Conference at the Festival, Weaver's character is less of a caricature than you might think.

Kasdan, the son of writing legend Lawrence Kasdan ("The Big Chill," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "Body Heat," "The Empire Strikes Back," et. al.) inherited much of his dad's talent, but may have even more of a knack for biting satire. His debut feature, "The Zero Effect," a modern retelling of Sherlock Holmes starring Bill Pullman and Ben Stiller, was one of the cleverest films of that year. Kasdan got his break into the business directing TV, including much of the series "Freaks & Geeks" (a classic, seriously, get the DVD) and "Undeclared," both the brainchildren of his buddy, Judd Apatow.

Jake is a terrific guy with a lot of charm. He took a lot of questions after the filmed was shown, and both the movie and the session were among the highlights of the festival. I won't say "The TV Set" is the best comedy/satire I've seen this year - that honor still goes to "Thank You For Smoking" - but that I mention the two films in the same sentence shows how much I enjoyed it.

SAD NEWS: R.I.P. Jane Wyatt, who died Friday. Wyatt is best known for her role on "Father Knows Best," but she will always be Spock's human mom to me.

MONDAY'S BEST BET: I got to see a lot of TV talent at the festival, though I was disappointed in not being able to engage them more.

I spoke briefly with Michael Ian Black ("Ed") but wasn't able to get in on his poker game, which was a disappointment on two fronts. America Ferrera ("Ugly Betty") won't be in Austin until this Saturday, apparently. And William Fichtner ("Prison Break") walked by me on the way to the elevator, so I didn't get a chance to talk to him and find out about what's up next.

"PB" (Fox, 8 p.m.) returns to the air tonight after a brief hiatus because of the baseball playoffs. We last left Michael and crew being betrayed by his old cell mate, Sucre; meanwhile, Fichtner's FBI agent murdered another escapee, Tweener.

I enjoy the thrill ride aspect of "Prison Break," even though it crosses the line of unrealism much of the time. I'm willing to look past it because when the writers do cross that line, they manage to keep the story entertaining and don't do it so outrageously to make the story unenjoyable, a' la "24."

I read a report last week that creator Paul Scheuring wants to end the show this year instead of dragging out the story forever, while Fox wants to keep the hit on the air, naturally. I'm hoping Scheuring wins out even if it means the end of the show, because nothing is worse than a show being dragged out past its prime.

Viewers should also note that "Justice" (Fox, 9 p.m.) airs in its new timeslot tonight, replacing the awful "Vanished."

TV fans may also want to check out guest star Jane Seymour tonight on "How I Met Your Mother," (CBS, 8 p.m.) And don't forget TV's best block of programming, "Heroes" (NBC, 9 p.m.) and "Studio 60" (NBC, 10 p.m.)

Just Don't Say Anything To Me About The Mets, OK?

It's been best of times, it's been the worst of times, at least over the past 24 hours.

I got to see the premiere of Jake Kasdan's new film, "The TV Set" Thursday night, then met the writer-director himself after the screening. More on that in tomorrow's posting.

Then I went to a bar and watched a baseball game. The less said, the better.

I'm having a good couple of days, spending a lot of time with other socially inept, self-obsessed screenwriters, so that's been a blast.

But then I check my e-mail today to find that NBC is no longer going to be scheduling original dramas and sitcoms in the 8 p.m. timeslot, instead going with game shows and cheap reality programming. I blame society in general; if more people would watch what I tell them to watch, this wouldn't be happening.

Check back in over the weekend for words and pictures (gasp!) from the Austin Film Festival.

WEEKEND'S BEST BETS: "Kidnapped" (NBC, 9 p.m.) returns to the air on Saturday, so this is your chance to send NBC a message and let them know there is still a place for high-quality drama. You have 10 episodes to do it in before the show is yanked.

The wankers at A&E have finally gotten around to showing "MI-5" once more. There is an all-day marathon beginning at 11 a.m. and running eight episodes. Sorry, I shouldn't say wankers. I meant to say bloody stupid wankers. Anyway, what these programming geniuses at the most inaccurately named network on the dial fail to realize is that "MI-5" is TV's best and most realistic spy show. My recommendation is to enjoy the ride.

Finally, Game 1 of the World Series (Fox, 8 p.m.) throws its first pitch Saturday night. I won't be watching.

Keeping Up With My Streak of Blogposts, Even When I Don't Have A Lot To Say

The Mets' Game 5 loss has left me in a crummy mood, so it's going to be a small update for today. Besides, based on TV ratings, no one listens to me much anyway.

Game 6 of the NLCS (Fox, 8 p.m.) goes tonight, assuming more cooperation from Mother Nature. Maybe tonight, Mets pitchers will get to throw into the same strike zone as Cardinals pitchers. Just a thought.

The good folks at Fox ordered three more episodes each of "Happy Hour" and "Til Death" for reasons passing understanding.

They also sent me an e-mail to let you the viewer know that apsiring filmmakers can earn their chance to work with Steven Spielberg on the upcoming reality series, "The Lot." Visit thelot.com for information on how to send in your submissions.

There isn't a whole lot of love given to reality shows on this site, but "The Lot" has some passing interest for me because of my unhealthy waste-of-time obsession with the movie industry. However, I doubt "Lot" producers Spielberg and Mark Burnett ("Survivor") will be able to surpass "Project Greenlight," a marvelous series about how bad movies get made in bad ways that failed to draw viewership on either HBO or Bravo. No word, but it seems unlikely that producers Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Chris Moore will go to the well a fourth time. Incidentally, the third Greenlight movie, "Feast," should be hitting the DVD shelves any time now.

Incidentally, the winner of "The Lot" gets a $1 million development deal at Dreamworks.

Elswhwere on the dial, Justin Timberlake with be the musical guest for the new Victoria's Secret special that airs on CBS Dec. 5 at 10 p.m. If I watch, it will be with the mute button on.

Over at the CW, "Veronica Mars" co-Executive Producer Diane Ruggiero has announced a new superhero pilot for the network. Focused on super-powered women, it's described by The Hollywood Reporter as "Sex & The City" meets "Batman." (Thanks for that image, guys.) These days, I'm sticking with superhero shows that have either Japanese time-traveling office geeks or Erica Durrence in them, but hey, who knows, I may mellow in a few months.

WEDNESDAY'S BEST BET: Should I even bother to do these best bets anymore? You, the viewers, allowed "Criminal Minds" (CBS, 9 p.m.) to virtually tie (sorry for the split infinitive) "Lost" (ABC, 9 p.m.) in that timeslot. Seriously, what are you people thinking? Why give CBS more license to produce more criminal procedurals? Why no love for one of TV's top three shows all of a sudden?

If you aren't watching "Lost," then you are definitely not watching "The Nine," (ABC, 10 p.m.) so maybe I shouldn't bother telling you that you are missing one of TV's best new shows.

I'll be spotty the rest of the week with my blogging, since I am out of the office. But check out the Web site anyway (and tell your friends) because I need the hits.

Lists

This is what writers do when they can't think of anything to write about. We come up with lists.

Zodin2008 posted a comment on Monday's blog about how "Heroes" was his favorite new show of the season. It's mine, too, probably the one I would be most upset about if I missed an episode for some reason. Anyway, here's my Top 5 new shows:

1. Heroes
2. Studio 60
3. Ugly Betty
4. Friday Night Lights
5. The Nine

Three of those shows will probably be gone by the end of the year, if not sooner, which kind of sucks. No. 6 on that list, "Kidnapped," will definitely gone by the end of the year, with NBC only ordering 13 episodes and burning them off on Saturday nights.

Still, a third of the new shows making the cut isn't bad, and there are other new shows further down the list, such as "Justice" and "Standoff" on Fox and "Shark" on CBS that should make it. Of course, there are new shows such as "Brothers and Sisters," which just got renewed this week, that will also survive, for which there is no rational explanation.

"Heroes" continued its strong run last night with yet another kick-in-the-pants twist that compels you to see what happens next, while "Studio 60" rebounded with a very good episode over what I thought (but apparently no one else who likes the show) was a weak offering the week before.

By the way, for a great interview with "Heroes'" breakout star Masi Oka, go here: http://www.superherohype.com/news/featuresnews.php?id=4807

TUESDAY'S BEST BET: NLCS Game 5, take two (Fox, 8 p.m.) Let's see if Mother Nature cooperates.

If she doesn't, here is one final plea for "Friday Night Lights" (NBC, 8 p.m.) Honestly, free will is highly over-rated; you should just watch my TV picks instead.

Why Can't You People Watch Better TV? Seriously

So my brother sends me an article over the weekend from that bastionof journalism, the New York Post, which says no one is watching "Studio 60" because it's too smart.

This is why I weep for the future of television. I wrote last week (or maybe the week before, I can't remember, I'm getting old) about how this could be considered a "golden age" of TV because of the quality shows currently on the air.

Yet for the most part, ratings remain same-old, same-old. Three "CSIs" are in the top 10. Only two new shows, ABC's "Ugly Betty" (No. 12) and CBS' "Shark" (No. 18) are in the top 20.

Remember when NBC used to be on top of the television world? When it had a lineup that included "Friends," "ER," "Seinfeld" and "Frasier?" Not counting the Sunday night NFL game, the Peacock only has one show - "ER" (No. 14) - in the top 20.

It isn't for lack of quality. There are positive things you can say about most of NBC's new fall slate, which includes "Heroes," "Studio 60," "Friday Night Lights" and "30 Rock," smartly written, well-produced TV. (Yes, I gave a negative review to "30 Rock" and I stand by it, but the show has a couple of good points about it - which I previously mentioned - and other people seem to like it.) But among those shows, only "Heroes" has been renewed for the rest of the season. "Kidnapped," one of NBC's best new shows, will be canceled after 13 episodes and has been shifted to the graveyard that is Saturday nights.

Of all of them, "Studio 60" seems the biggest disappointment ratings-wise. Is it because it's too smart? I'll admit, much as the writer in the Post pointed out, jokes about Moliere aren't going to connect with a lot of audience members, but as Aaron Sorkin pointed out in another of his shows, TV shouldn't be looking to reach the lowest common denominator, it should be looking to raise it.

I think a lot of people thought "Studio 60" would be a comedy because it's about a "Saturday Night Live"-styled show, so maybe they are disappointed by the drama. I think the biggest thing is that there no longer is patience among the audience anymore. Sorkin is taking his time getting into the backgrounds of his characters each week, since there are so many, and perhaps the viewers want some sort of payoff to that.

NBC isn't the only one suffering. ABC has two of the best new shows on the airwaves, "Ugly Betty" and "The Nine," but only the former seems to have the staying power to last the season. CBS has already canceled "Smith," which had a lot of potential and a good cast.

I'm not really sure there is any sort of solution. Taste is up to the individual, even if it's bad taste, and if the general population prefers "Survivor" to "Studio 60," there's really not much that can be done. I just hope the networks don't give up on smart TV.

TREEHOUSE OF HORRORS: "The Simpsons" will be airing its annual Halloween-fest in early November, and viewers have a chance to write the promo for it. Go to www.thesimpsons.com/treehouse. The winner will get a chance to go to L.A. for the show's 400th episode party, set for May of 2007.

COOL CASTING: Nathan Fillion ("Firefly," "Buffy") will appear in the Nov. 8 episode of "Lost" as someone from Kate's past. Also, Lucinda Jenney appears on "Battlestar Galactica" as Apollo's mom in a flashback episode later this season. Beginning Nov. 2, Salma Hayek, an executive producer of "Ugly Betty," appears in front of the camera in several episodes.

MONDAY'S BEST BET: For regular readers of this column, it should be obvious to both of you that Monday's best bet is always going to be "Heroes" and "Studio 60," so I'm really not going to point that out anymore.

Game 5 of the NLCS (Fox, 8 p.m.) will also take place, though heavy rain is forecasted.

Game Show Schadenfreude

I was always the guy who rooted against people on game shows who didn't quit and take the money.

Take "Wheel of Fortune," for example. You'd get a puzzle that read "W_at time is it?" and some greedy twerp contestant would spin the wheel one more time so he or she could get the extra money for guessing "H" even though they knew the answer already. Inevitably, that person always landed on "Bankrupt" and I'd cheer because greed got the better of them.

I'm not a fan of "Deal or No Deal" (NBC, various times of the week), but the principal is the same. Some dufus has something like six suitcases left to guess with, gets an offer of $140,000 or something that represents three years salary for that person, and inevitably, the person doesn't take the money and instead picks the one wrong briefcase that knocks the next offer down to $21,000. I usually cheer at that as well.

I should give my own game show history at this point, brief though it is. I've taken the "Jeopardy!" test twice - once in Atlanta, once in L.A. - and passed it twice, and neither year did I get the call. Inevitably, they choose a woman who collects ornate cat collars or some such. (You're dead to me, Trebek!) So, maybe it's a bitter pill for me and game shows, since I'm now past my prime.

I got a DVD of the pilot for "1 vs. 100," (NBC, 9 p.m.) and it has all the elements of game shows I both love and hate. Like pretty much every other game show on TV these days, it's ripped off from a European game show idea and Americanized. Hopefully, it won't be overplayed on the air like "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" or "The Weakest Link" were.

Bob Saget serves as host. The contestant faces off against the "Mob," a group of 100 players that includes MENSA members, teachers and "Jeopardy!" all-time champ Ken Jennings. The point values of each clue raises with each question the contestant gets right. He or she gets money every time members of the Mob miss it. Once the rest of the Mob is eliminated, the contestant gets $1 million. On the other hand, if the contestant misses a question, the surviving members of the Mob split whatever the contestant has won to that point.

Contestants can walk away at any time, hence the greed factor, although I can say that neither of the first two contestants are guilty of this.

It's actually not a bad game show, except that the questions were ridiculously easy, and the contestant has three choices and two lifelines in which he or she can ask the Mob for help.

FRIDAY'S BEST BET: Tonight's episode of "Doctor Who" (Sci Fi, 8 p.m.) was one of the most anticipated episodes of Season 2 when it aired in England earlier this year. Anthony Stewart Head ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer") appears as the headmaster of a boarding school where strange things are afoot, while two of the Doctor's companions from earlier versions of the series that ran in the '70s, Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) and the robotic dog K-9 (voiced by John Leeson) also appear. This episode proved so popular that the BBC and "Doctor Who" producer Russell T. Davies are in the early planning stages of a Sarah Jane spinoff.

Also, because of Wednesday's NLCS rainout, the baseball playoffs are amended slightly. Game 3 of the ALCS is supposed to air at 4:30 p.m. on Fox, while Game 2 of the NLCS begins tonight at 8 p.m. on Fox.

By the time you are reading this, it's probably already too late, but Bravo is re-airing all of Season 3 of "Project Greenlight" in the morning and afternoon. The series has always made for better television than the movies that have come out of the contest, but if you want some real insight on the filmmaking process, it's a fascinating show.

Too Much TV For My Own Good

As the TV critic for the people (or at least the five or so that read this blog) I try to watch as many programs as I can to steer you toward good shows and away from bad ones. (At least in my taste, which is the only one that counts).

Unless it's something that I have a serious interest in, it's usually one-and-done, such as with "20 Good Years."

But every so often, there comes along a show that I have no prior interest in, but manages to hook me. This year, there are two.

I finally got to see the first two episodes of "Ugly Betty," (ABC, 8 p.m.) and I can easily see why critics fell in love with this show over the summer. It has charm and wit. I can't think of a subject I'm less interested in than fashion magazines, yet I feel compelled to tune in.

That's great credit to the cast, most notably America Ferrera as the title heroine, and the clever writing. The scene where Betty tries to dress for success for her first day of work and what she chooses was laugh-out-loud funny.

The other show that grabbed my attention after I watched it was "Friday Night Lights." (NBC, Tuesday, 8 p.m.) While the show does have some holes to it, it rings true with anyone who has ever had ties to high school football, and the writing has been clever enough to leave every episode open-ended, so you feel compelled to tune in next week to see what's next. (Also a trend with NBC's "Heroes.")

I have had people comment about both shows, liking them well enough and wondering about their sustainability (particularly "Lights" - what are they going to do when the football season ends but the school year continues?), but you can make that argument about any show. Right now, I'm just enjoying the ride.

MCNIGHTMARE: In case you "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC, 9 p.m.) fans hadn't heard, stars Isiah Washington and Patrick Dempsey got into an on-set scuffle earlier this week. Washington reportedly grabbed Dempsey by the throat and shoved him during a heated exchange. Washington probably heard the phrase "McDreamy" one too many times and finally snapped.

DVD PICKS OF THE WEEK: This is a shout-out to my brother, Alex, who is a big fan of two series that are being released this week, neither of which I watch myself.

Coming out is the first season of "Everybody Loves Chris" a UPN show that survived the merger and now runs on the CW. It's the semi-true adventures of a young Chris Rock. The other show, which also had its debut season, was "Big Love" from HBO, starring Bill Paxton as a man with three wives.

I never watched "Chris," because of its timeslot, and I gave up on "Big Love" midway through the first episode. I find HBO shows to be a bit hit or miss. Some shows, like "The Sopranos," "Six Feet Under" and "Rome," are terrific. But some of their other offerings I've never really gotten into.

Also out is "South Park: The Hits: Volume 1," in which show creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone select their 10 favorite episodes of the Comedy Central hit. Also included is the original short that launched the phenomenon, "The Spirit of Christmas."

I try to stick with TV on DVD here, but I do want to mention that my favorite movie of 2006, "Thank You For Smoking," came out last week. Writer/director Jason Reitman is perfect in his adaptation of Christopher Buckley's satirical novel, and Aaron Eckhart deserves an Oscar nomination for his note-perfect performance as Nick Naylor, the spokesman for big tobacco.

THURSDAY'S BEST BET: If you haven't given "Ugly Betty" a try, now might be the time. Also, "Supernatural," (CW, 9 p.m.) has built on a strong freshman season. And, for those into guest appearances, Green Arrow makes his first appearance on "Smallville" (CW, 8 p.m.), a week after his alter ego, Oliver Queen, was introduced.

Also, the Mets and Cardinals try again in Game 1 of the NLCS (Fox, 8 p.m.)

Where Have You Gone, Jerry Seinfeld?

It's hard to say any network has had a better history with comedies than NBC.

"Cosby," "Family Ties" and "Cheers" in the '80s. "Friends," "Seinfeld" and "Frasier" in the '90s. "The Office" and "Scrubs" today. It's not just that these comedies were funny; they were also innovative.

NBC's two newest sitcoms, "30 Rock" (8 p.m.) and "20 Good Years" (8:30 p.m.) won't be joining that august list.

Let's start with "30 Rock," which I had high hopes for because it was being done by Tina Fey. But all of the edgy writing Fey is known for is absent here. While the pilot had a few clever one-liners mixed it, the overall plot was bland and the show itself couldn't decide whether it was going for traditional sitcom or hip and edgy. It's neither.

I will say some around the office liked it better than I did, so watch for yourself and decide. The two stars that shine are Alec Baldwin as a somewhat clueless (or is he?) network executive who tries to shake up a "Saturday Night Live"-style show. Baldwin has always shown a knack for good comic timing, and he does well with the part here. Jane Krakowski ("Ally McBeal") genuinely shines as the show's extremely neurotic lead actress.

The rest of the cast is hit and miss. Fey hasn't really written herself a great part that could display all of her talents. I found Tracy Morgan, who plays a Martin Lawrence-type superstar who joins the show, to be annoying mostly. The big scene in which he rescues the fake show in the pilot fell flat for me and didn't deliver any laughs.

"30 Rock" is the second of NBC's "SNL"-type, behind-the-scenes series after "Studio 60," and even though both shows are completely different in their presentation, the former suffers in comparison to the latter. (Though the NBC promo of Baldwin talking to Fey and believing he was on "Studio 60" were brilliant.)

Meanwhile, "20 Good Years" were 22 excruciating minutes to watch. John Lithgow and Jeffrey Tambor play a surgeon and a judge, respectively, who come to figure they have 20 good years left on Earth to do all the things they wanted to do. The show is grating and painfully unfunny. It may not make it past the pilot. There's a reason why NBC flip-flopped the two sitcoms earlier this fall.

"30 Rock" has at least enough talent to improve down the road; "20 Good Years" is a lost cause.

WEDNESDAY'S BEST BET: The New York Mets continue their run to glory with the first game of the National League Championship Series (Fox, 8 p.m.), battling the St. Louis Cardinals. While the Mets' starting pitching has kind of limped along because of injuries, the bullpen and the offense have been brilliant.

Game 2 of the ALCS airs on FX at 8 p.m.

Non-functioning Unit

When I first heard over a year ago that CBS was going to be airing "The Unit," (CBS, 9 p.m.) I was eager with anticipation. Not only did the cast include Dennis Haysbert ("24"), but it was being produced by two giants in the industry, David Mamet ("The Untouchables" and many other movies) and Shawn Ryan (creator of "The Shield").

No one writes better dialogue than Mamet, and Ryan re-defined the genre when "The Shield" debuted.

So I watched the pilot when "The Unit" made its debut last year as a midseason replacement, and it fell well short of expectations. Not to worry, I thought, so they stumbled out of the gate. Surely, with the talent associated with the show, it will pick up over the next few weeks.

It didn't.

It wasn't that "The Unit" is a terrible show; it's that it's so ... average. Ordinary.

I look at it this way. I've been known to tackle a screenplay or two, and for someone who has never made a dime off it, I still have a little game. The screenplays that impress me most are the ones I know I never could have written in a lifetime, no matter how much help I got. I never could have created "The Shield." The concept may be simple enough, but the execution is flawless. Nothing I've written is remotely in the same hemisphere as Mamet.

"The Unit" feels like something I could have done. The military stuff on the show seems trite, and the civilian stuff involving the soldiers' wives gets positively annoying. After last season's ludicrous finale, in which the team gets targeted for assassination at a celebration dinner, I gave up. I have yet to catch an episode this season.

Obviously, I'm in the minority, since the ratings have been good enough for CBS to give the show its full season renewal already. It's a little irritating, because "The Unit" plays it safe while new shows that have a real edge to them, shows like "The Nine" and "Studio 60," struggle to find an audience (though last night's "Studio 60" misfired a lot).

It's not as if I wish "The Unit" were canceled; I'm sure the cast and crew puts in a sufficient effort in making it. Maybe it's my fault for having such high expectations. Maybe all that talent will yet jell. I just won't be around to see it. With "Veronica Mars" and "House" in the same timeslot once the World Series is over, there's too much well-produced options out there.

OURTUBE: Google is in the process of buying YouTube, the Web site devoted to unaired pilots and other TV oddities. YouTube has been something of a revelation in the TV industry. The series "Nobody's Watching," which never aired on broadcast television after the late WB decided not to pick up the pilot, got so many hits on YouTube that the cast and crew are re-assembling to create new episodes. "Nobody's Watching" was created by Bill Lawrence ("Scrubs") and tells of two slackers who are given their own reality show on a network.

When the deal finally goes through, YouTube's influence will only increase.

TUESDAY'S BEST BET: The Oakland A's and the Detroit Tigers square off for Game 1 of the American League Championship Series (Fox, 8 p.m.). Considering the starting pitching of both teams, this should actually be a pretty good matchup. Hopefully, one of these teams will be losing in the World Series to the Mets sometime beginning next week.

A Golden Age?

Television gets a lot of deserved criticism. Lots of new shows come out that seem like ripoffs or variations of old shows. How many new cop dramas, legal dramas, medical dramas do we really need?

Maybe it was the sudden surge in quality cable programming, or maybe Hollywood producer types have finally started to see the light, but these past couple of years have had about as good amount of quality shows as any time period I can remember. When people are having arguments about whether "Lost" or "Grey's Anatomy" or "Battlestar Galactica" or new shows like "Studio 60" and "Ugly Betty" is the best, you know you've got a lot of strong competition.

Honestly, there isn't an empty hour for me on every night except Saturdays. Shows I was only going to give a cursory look because of this blog, like "Ugly Betty" and "Friday Night Lights," are compelling enough to make me tune in every week. New shows like "Studio 60" and "The Nine" have met the expectations I've had for them. Even shows that miss in the ratings, like "Kidnapped," aren't doing so because of a lack of quality, but rather not finding the right audience.

That's not to say every new series has been great. We've gotten our usual share of stinkers, like Fox's "Kidnapped," which likely won't be around much longer. But the ratio of two or three good shows to one bad one is a ratio I'll take any day.

Tonight brings the third episode of "Heroes" and the fourth of "Studio 60." "Heroes" is the first new show of the season to get a full order by a network, which makes me happy because I think it's my favorite new show. The writers are hitting the right notes in terms of pacing and exposition, and have managed to introduce a plot twist each week that knocks your socks off. And the twists themselves aren't gimmicky; each week, if you reflect back, you can see the little clues the writers left to tip you off.

TV NEWS: CBS' "Smith" has gotten yanked from the lineup. The crime drama, starring Ray Liotta and Virginia Madsen, wasn't bad, but failed to bring in any sort of consistent viewership.

"House," on Fox, will move back to its traditional timeslot of 9 p.m. on Tuesdays once it returns after the World Series.

Don't forget, "How I Met Your Mother" (CBS, 8 p.m.) is moving up a half-hour, flip-flopping with "The Class." Also, CBS gave "The New Adventures of Old Christine" (CBS, 9:30 p.m.) a full-season order.

MONDAY'S BEST BET: Yet another plug for "Heroes." (NBC, 9 p.m.) The final shot in the final scene will be one of TV's most indelible images for years to come. If you missed last week's episode, Sci-Fi always repeats them on Fridays at 7 p.m. and is repeating it tonight at 7 p.m. as well.

Who is your favorite of the "Heroes," or even your favorite superhero? If you could have one set of powers, which would it be? (Hiro is my favorite on the show, but I'd have a working Green Lantern ring.) Post your replies on the Comments board.

Friday, Part II: About Frakkin' Time

I'll admit it. I was a little skeptical when I heard that Sci-Fi was doing a re-imagining of the cult favorite "Battlestar Galactica" as a miniseries a couple of years ago.

As an 8-year-old kid, I was thrilled by the original series, although today it comes off as a little cheesy. Still, I thought, are there no new ideas? What's next, a remake of "Jason of Star Command?"

It took all of about 15 minutes to realize how good the new "Battlestar Galactica" really was. The concept itself wasn't too re-imagined, but all of the characters definitely were. What made this series really stand out, however, was the post-9/11 tone of the writing.

"BSG" is simply the smartest show on TV, bar none. Yes, I even include "Lost" when I say that. Whereas "Lost" challenges its viewers by creating puzzles around the events on the island, "BSG" paints all of its characters in shades of gray. The Cylons, the machine villains who blew up the human world of Caprica, are evil from our point of view. But from their perspective, they are doing "God's will." And the humans, who we empathize with because we see ourselves in them, aren't exactly the best of the good guys. There's petty fighting, political intrigue, jealousy, selfishness and lots of other negative feelings as the last 50,000 or so human refugees board a few spaceships and travel toward a mythical planet called Earth.

Unlike the original series, "BSG" gives off a more realistic tone. The characters speak and dress like we might. They use guns that fire bullets, not lasers. There are no goofy looking aliens. It's about as un-sci fi as science fiction can get.

What makes the series so compelling is how well the main characters are portrayed. In my Emmy posting, I said Mary McDonnell should have won Best Actress for her portrayal of President Laura Roslin. It's one of the best characterizations I can ever recall as we see the overwhelmed Roslin, a glorified schoolteacher who is the Secretary of Education, take over the government as its last surviving member. Trying to protect humanities last survivors, she is constantly challenged by her personal beliefs versus what is best for the humans.

A proponent of being pro-choice, for example, Roslin outlaws abortion because she realizes humanity needs babies if it is to survive. She hides the hybrid human/Cylon baby of Galactica officers Helo and Boomer (a Cylon double agent, played by Grace Park), convincing the parents the baby died while secretly hiding it with a human mother.

Challenged by her vice president, Dr. Baltar (James Callis), a traitor who unwittingly helped the Cylons destroy Caprica and continues as their pawn, Roslin even tries to fix the election rather than see Baltar take power and lead humanity on a disastrous path toward a new home on desolate New Caprica.

The Cylons have a number of human-looking agents, most notably Boomer and Number Six (Tricia Helfer). Since Cylons download their memories into duplicate bodies after they die, we see various versions of the different humanoid Cylons running around. Number Six is my favorite; as portrayed by the ridiculously beautiful Helfer, she has had three notable versions: the unit that genuinely loves Baltar, the ruthless version that appears as a vision to manipulate Baltar, and a spiritually broken version that was captured and brutalized by the crew of the Battlestar Pegasus. Helfer brings subtle differences to each version of the character.

Season 3 (Sci-Fi, 9 p.m.) kicks off tonight with a two-hour episode that picks up from last season's cliffhanger. Baltar has assumed the presidency and relocated humanity to the desolate New Caprica. Chaos has ensued on the planet over the period of a year as the humans starve and exist in the most meager sense as Baltar has degenerated into a Nero-like ruler. With the Colonial fleet, led by Admiral Adama (Edward James Olmos) and his son, Lee "Apollo" Adama (Jamie Bamber), in a shambles after most of the crew has moved to the planet, humans can barely defend themselves. The two Battlestars are forced to flee after the Cylons appear because they are in no condition to fight.

The Cylons finally do find New Caprica and force Baltar to surrender. Most of the key Galactica crewmen, including Starbuck (Katee Sackoff), Chief Tyrol (Aaron Douglas) and Col. Tigh (Michael Hogan) living on the planet organize an underground resistance to fight the Cylons. You can catch the 10 Webisodes that follow the resistance on SciFi.com to bridge between last season and this one, though it isn't essential.

"BSG" has been called the best show on television by the likes of Time magazine and Rolling Stone. People turned off because they remember the cheesy original should take note that really, both shows are similar in name only.

Friday, Part I: News and Stuff

It was both a good week and bad week for TV.

The best news of the week comes from NBC, which announced Thursday that "Heroes" (Mondays, 9 p.m.) would get a full season run of 22 episodes, the first new show of the season to get that commitment. I plan on posting a bit more on "Heroes" in Monday's blog. "Heroes" has been kicking butt in the 18-49 demographic that advertisers so crave.

Fans of the Sci-Fi Channel show "Eureka" will be happy to learn the series was renewed this week for a second season. I tried the first few episodes of "Eureka" but didn't find it all that enjoyable. It tried a little too hard to be quirky.

The bad news is that other shows don't appear to be as lucky. "Kidnapped" will end after 13 episodes, and NBC is shifting the show from Wednesdays (where it had a terrible lead-in with "The Biggest Loser") to the TV Wasteland that is Saturday nights. The news isn't all bad, though. The producers will be able to at least wrap up "Kidnapped's" storyline.

Additionally, "The Nine" (ABC, Wednesdays, 10 p.m.) lost a big chunk of viewership from its "Lost" lead-in. It's a bit puzzling, since ABC did a good job of promoting the show and the pilot was A-plus. "The Nine" has enormous potential so long as the writers give out the right amount of information about the robbery each week, not too little and not too much. I'm hoping positive word-of-mouth reviews will help this show along.

DVD PICK OF THE WEEK: "Nowhere Man" was one of the coolest series ever to debut on network TV. As part of UPN's original lineup and running as a companion show to "Star Trek: Voyager," the series was about a photographer who has lost his memory and may or may not have shot a picture that could compromise a lot of secretive types.

Bruce Greenwood starred as the title character and Megan Gallagher was his wife (or was she?), at least until the memory loss. The spirit of "Nowhere Man" was very similar in tone to "The Prisoner." Unfortunately, like most UPN shows, "Nowhere Man" never found an audience and was canceled after the first season, leaving the viewers with a terrific puzzle of a cliffhanger that was never solved.

FRIDAY'S BEST BET: See Part II, in a separate posting.

WEEKEND'S BEST BET: Hopefully, we will see the Mets clinch their NLDS on Saturday, though for this area, Georgia's annual war with Tennessee (ESPN, 7:45 p.m.) is the big sporting event of the weekend. Georgia will be without kicker Brandon Coutu, who is injured for the rest of the year, another reason why I'm not optimistic about this game.

Non sports fans may want to give "Masterpiece Theatre" (PBS, Sunday, 9 p.m.) a look. Airing this week is the BBC miniseries "Casanova," starring Peter O'Toole and written by "Doctor Who" executive producer Russell T. Davies. The newest Doctor Who himself, David Tennant, plays the younger version of the title character.

A&E: The Ultimate Misnomer

Dear A&E:

You guys suck. Seriously.

First of all, have you seen your network lineup lately? Where is the "Art?" Where is the "Entertainment?" Between a glut of reality shows like "Dog, the incarcerated bounty hunter" and re-runs of "CSI: Miami," there is virtually nothing left worth watching on your network.

I say "virtually" because you had started to run "MI-5" once again. You put it in just about the worst time slot imaginable - Friday nights at 11 - to ensure the show would have no audience, then pull it after just two episodes for a rerun of, you guessed it, "CSI: Miami."

So, being both a loyal fan and watchful TV critic, I call your network. No live person seems to actually work there (perhaps they've become too embarrassed). After going through your voicemail system THREE TIMES, I finally give up and leave an emphatic message. (If a live person ever did show up to check the voicemail, that was me on the phone, pal.)

So I try to e-mail you to see what the deal was. I get a generic reply saying, "Thanks for e-mailing A&E. No live people with intelligence seem to work here anymore, so try not to grow old waiting for a response to your specific question." (I'm paraphrasing here.)

Desperate to find out what happened to TV's best spy show, I e-mailed TV Guide's Matt Roush, who, despite the mountains of e-mails he gets daily, found the time to respond more quickly than A&E's non-live person network. Roush told me that A&E plans to run a marathon of all the "MI-5s" for this season on Oct. 21. It's not that I don't believe Roush, but knowing A&E, I'm not going to hold my breath, since the network (I use that word in its loosest possible sense) tends to advertise one thing in the paper, then air something else.

I used to love watching A&E. They used to run all the shows PBS used to run, just with commercials. I didn't mind the commercials, I knew they paid the bills. But slowly, A&E started to get away from the quality stuff it used to air, and started to run network re-runs of "Crossing Jordan" and the like, and so-called reality shows about tattoo parlors and airlines. Fortunately, BBC America has come in to pick up the slack, so all is not lost. If A&E would give BBC America the rights to "MI-5," I would no longer even have to check the former on the schedule.

I'd wrap this up by saying that after Oct. 20, A&E will have permanently have one less viewer, but no living person at the network would seem to care anyway.

SCHEDULING CHANGES: CBS is flipping "The Class" with "How I Met Your Mother" since the former shows ratings haven't been great while the latter show is surpassing last year's numbers. Fine with me, "The Class" has been very uneven in its three airings.

Meanwhile, over on Fox, "Justice" will switch to the post "Prison Break" time slot of Mondays at 9 p.m. once the baseball playoffs end, while waste-of-airwaves "Vanished" is exiled to the Siberia of TV, Friday nights. (Thanks to the TV Guy's brother - http://community.tvguide.com/forum.jspa?forumID=700002898&start=0 - for that news).

I had this great posting all ready and waiting in anticipation of the debut of "Knights of Prosperity," which was set to come on next Thursday, but ABC has pushed the show back to January. Considering the run ABC has had between its new shows like "Ugly Betty" and "The Nine" and returning shows like "Grey's Anatomy" and "Lost," it's hard to bet against them right now even if they do leave me off their media list.

***EDIT: The CW also announced Thursday that it was flip-flopping its Sunday and Monday lineups. Monday nights will see "Everybody Hates Chris," "All of Us," "Girlfriends" and "The Game" run from 8-10 p.m. beginning Oct. 9. Oct. 15 will see the new Sunday lineup, beginning with an encore edition of "America's Next Top Model" and followed by episodes of "7th Heaven" and the new series "Runaway," running from 7-10 p.m.

THURSDAY'S BEST BET: I didn't catch the pilot for "Ugly Betty," (ABC, 8 p.m.) but my parents said it was great. (Talking about TV with us is a real family affair.) The ratings were through the roof, and no new show this season has generated more positive buzz from the critics.

Of course, the real drama tonight is whether the New York Mets can go up 2-0 on the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLDS (Fox, 8 p.m.) Wednesday's double play at home plate has to be the play of the year.

Nine Lives

In previous postings, I mentioned that there were three new shows that I was looking forward to more than any other.

Both "Heroes" and "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" have met, and in certain moments exceeded, my expectations, and make up perhaps my favorite two-hour block from a single network.

The third show, "The Nine" (ABC, 10 p.m.) makes its debut tonight. The show revolves around nine bank customers who were hostages in a 52-hour crisis when a bank robbery goes awry. The show mixes in the past lives of the characters, scenes from the robbery (we're not meant to see the whole crime at once; it unfolds during the season) and the post-crisis impact it has on the characters' lives.

The cast includes Tim Daly ("Wings"), Kim Raver ("24") and Scott Wolf ("Party of Five").

Of course, it would be nice to tell you whether or not the pilot lived up to the hype, but ABC refuses to include me on its screener list.

But, if "The Nine" does prove to be a hit, combined with its lead-in "Lost" (9 p.m.), it might knock off NBC's Monday night duo as my favorite network programming block.

WEDNESDAY'S BEST BET: Honestly, did you think this would be anything other than "Lost?" The third-season premiere opens with a ton of new questions: What will happen to Jack, Sawyer and Kate? What exactly happened when Desmond turned the key? Why does the statue have only four toes? And so forth...

"Lost" was one of those rare shows that didn't lose much momentum after its strong first season. With the glut of new characters joining the original survivors, viewers might have been overwhelmed by all of the various plotlines and mysteries to follow, but the writers did a good job of juggling it.

"Lost" will run for six episodes, then give way to Taye Diggs' new series, after which it will return for the rest of its run beginning in January.

If "The Nine" doesn't prove to be your cup of tea, I urge you to give "Kidnapped" (NBC, 10 p.m.) one more chance. Ratings haven't been strong, most likely because of Fox's awful "Vanished" that came out first and sapped viewers away. Also, if you missed the "Friday Night Lights" debut on Tuesday, NBC is re-running the pilot at 8 p.m.

For me, I will be catching the Mets as they face the Dodgers in Game 1 of the NLDS series (ESPN, 4 p.m.).

Tuesday Night Lights

As a former sports writer, this is a bit embarrassing for me to admit: I've never read "Friday Night Lights."

Because I've never read the book, I've also never seen the movie.

So it was pretty much with an open mind that I popped in the first two episodes of the new "Friday Night Lights" TV series (NBC, 8 p.m.)

To tell you the truth, it's a little odd to review it. On the one hand, I pretty much saw the direction every single plot point was heading in the pilot, not really a good sign for a TV series.

But at the same time, there was something oddly compelling about the show. Kyle Chandler ("Homefront," "Early Edition") is well-cast as a first-year high school football coach in a football-obsessedTexas town that offers little else. Equally strong is Connie Britton ("24," "Spin City") as his wife.

I found the high school kids to be drawn a little too two-dimensionally early on, the All-American quarterback, his head cheerleader girlfriend, the overly cocky tailback, etc., but the actors in those roles hit all the right notes.

Having covered high school football for the past dozen years or so, what rang most true was the portrayal of the townfolk, hundreds of Monday Morning Quarterbacks and would-be coaches themselves, opining on every single aspect of the team to the coach whether he asked their opinions or not. (Most of the time, he didn't). The pressure that the coach and the kids feel is very, very real.

Also, each episode is structured that the viewer wants to see what happens next - not really a cliffhanger, per se, but more of an open-ended story. I found myself eagerly wanting find out what's going to happen next.

The series could be one of the best NBC is debuting this fall, but the network isn't doing the show any favors by putting it in a timeslot that includes "NCIS," "House," "Dancing with the Stars" and "Gilmore Girls." In addition, the debut comes during the same night as baseball's postseason begins on Fox, which will likely draw away some viewers. However, NBC is re-airing the pilot on Wednesday at 8 p.m., pushing the debuts of "30 Rock" and "20 Good Years" back a week.

TV NEWS: Fans of the TV series "Blade" (me and three other people) are out of luck, as Spike has canceled the show after its only season, citing low ratings. It's a shame; the show was done much better than I thought it was going to be, taking the time to tell its story over a season and developing the supporting characters as much (or perhaps even better than) as the title hero.

Fans of Fox's struggling series "Justice" will get a brief stay of execution. The network has reportedly ordered three more episodes and the series will likely move to a new timeslot after the playoffs are over. I found "Justice" to be a bit repetitive early on, but there is enough interest there to stick with it for a little while at least.

TUESDAY'S BEST BET: "Veronica Mars" begins its third season tonight (CW, 9 p.m.) with the title heroine beginning her first year at college.

I enjoy this series, though not as much as others do. It's one of those things that's been called underrated so long that it's a bit overrated. The first-season mystery was too easy; I solved it with four or five episodes left. Last season's mystery was extremely contrived, with clues placed so irregularly that the big reveal was a bit of a disappointment.

"Mars" gets compared most often to "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer" because the shows are somewhat similarly structured around a supercool teenaged girl and her gang of friends.

But I prefer "Buffy," not for its supernatural themes (although they were a big plus), but for the way it developed the supporting cast. You could have a Willow-centric or Giles-centric episode, and the show didn't lose anything. On "Mars," there are some good supporting characters, but with the exception of Veronica's dad Keith (Enrico Colatoni), none of them have been fleshed out enough to have warranted more screentime. You won't see that Logan-centric or Weevil-centric episode unless Veronica (Kristin Bell) herself is directly involved in their case.

Also premiering tonight is "The Street" (BBC-America, 9 p.m.), a show about the intertwining lives of Londoners. I don't know much about it, but it's written by Jimmy McGovern ("Cracker"), in my mind one of the best writers in the history of television, so it's worth a gander.

Also, viewers may want to check out the synopsis of "Battlestar Galactica," running several times on the Sci-Fi Channel before Friday night's 2-hour debut. This is one of TV's best shows, period, and the recap is a perfect opportunity for old fans to catch up and new fans to summarize the previous two seasons. If you've heard the buzz about "BSG" and haven't had the chance to catch up, now you have no excuse.

British, And Proud Of It

My colleague, Jon Heeter, who does the Bringing the Heet blog, points out that I review as many British-made shows as I do U.S.-made.

It's a fair point. But I just happen to enjoy them. And I think that quality is quality, no matter where it's produced.

Tonight is more examples of British quality. Viewers can meet the new "Doctor Who" (Sci-Fi, 8 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.) as David Tennant takes over the lead role from Chris Eccleston. Sci-Fi is showing two episodes, the special "Christmas Invasion" followed by the season premiere.

At 11 p.m., I will continue to pitch TV's best spy show in any country, "MI-5" (A&E, 11 p.m.)

Cheers!

Kneel Before Zod!

Tonight marks the sixth-season premiere of the adventures of young Clark Kent, "Smallville" (CW, 8 p.m.)

One thing I've always enjoyed about Superman, in any of his film or TV adventures, is that the current project usually tips its cap to one of the previous incarnations. For example, the 1978 movie had the scene where the young Lois was riding the train with her parents when she sees the teenaged Clark outrunning the train. Lois' parents were played by Kirk Alyn and Noel Neill, the original Superman and Lois from the 1940s movies.

"Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman" saw Phyllis Coates, TV's first Lois Lane, cast as Teri Hatcher's Lois' mom in an episode.

Neill, who later replaced Coates in the George Reeves' TV show, also played Lex's wife in "Superman Returns." Jack Larson, the original Jimmy Olson from that series, had a cameo as a bartender in the same film.

"Smallville" is full of actors out of Superman's past. Annette O'Toole, who plays Clark's mom, was Lana Lang in "Superman III." Terence Stamp, who played General Zod in "Superman II," provides the voice of Jor-El in the show. Superman himself, Christopher Reeve, had a memorable couple of guest appearances before his death on "Smallville" as a scientist mentor named Dr. Swann to Tom Welling's Clark. After Reeve's death, to continue that plot line, the producers cast Margot Kidder, the Lois to Reeve's Superman, as Swann's assistant Brigit. Michael Rosenbaum, "Smallville's" Lex Luthor, provided the voice of the Flash in the "Justice League" cartoons.

"Smallville" is a bit of a revisionist history of the character, combining both Golden and Silver Age mythos as well as changing some other elements from the comic book universe, but as a purist, I haven't minded much of the changes. The show started out a bit as "Buffy"-lite, but has evolved in interesting ways, especially once the character of Lois (the delightful Erica Durrance) was introduced two seasons ago.

Tonight's premiere picks up where last season ended, which General Zod back from the dead thanks to Brainiac (James Marsters) and inhabiting Lex Luthor's body. Clark has been imprisoned in the phantom zone and Metropolis lies in ruins.

The sixth season promises to have a lot of punch, with other DC heroes introduced in previous episodes such as Aquaman, Cyborg and the Flash joining with Clark. Green Arrow will also be introduced this season.

OTHER HEROES: If "Smallville" hasn't given you enough of a superhero fix, NBC's "Heroes" has gotten a lot of positive buzz and good ratings in its debut this week. If you heard about the show but missed it on Monday or Tuesday, fear not. NBC's sister stations Sci-Fi is re-running the pilot on Friday at 7 p.m., while USA will re-run it Monday night at 11 p.m. (so you will have to tape episode 2 that night on NBC and watch the pilot first).

For what it's worth, a lot of people around The Telegraph's office have been talking about it the past few days, with very positive comments, so it's not just me praising the show.

THURSDAY'S BEST BET: One of last season's best, if unheralded, new shows was "Supernatural" (CW, 9 p.m.) which survived the demise of the WB. The show, which stars Jensen Ackles and Jared Padelecki, involves two brothers who chase down demons for a living, sometimes with their dad (Jeffrey Dean Morgan of "Grey's Anatomy" fame).

Last season ended with the Big Bad demon they have chased all their life possessing the body of the dad. All three were traveling in a car when it was t-boned by an 18-wheeler. Who survived? Is the demon still in charge? Tonight's premiere will hopefully answer some of those questions.

You also can't go wrong with "My Name is Earl" and "The Office" (NBC, 8-9 p.m.), TV's best hour of comedy. On "Earl," Joy has to ask for Catalina's help. It's part two of a continuing storyline that revolves around Joy's arrest last week. On "The Office," newly hired Ryan goes on a sales trip with Dwight.

Also making it's debut tonight is "Ugly Betty" (ABC, 8 p.m.), which wasn't previewed because of ABC's policy of leaving me off its screener list. No new show over the summer got more advance positive buzz than "Betty" did. Based on a popular Spanish-language soap opera and produced by Salma Hayek, it stars America Ferrera in the title role.

Oh, and based on the ads, "Survivor" (CBS, 8 p.m.) is apparently ending its social experiment/race war and merging the tribes. Someone will have to tell me how that works out for them.

Recaps vs. Re-runs

It used to be that networks would run a full season of shows, then show re-runs over the summer. This was good if you ever missed an episode, or if there was a series that got a lot of buzz the first time around that you skipped but wanted to check out later.

With the rise of great cable programming on networks like FX, however, networks can't afford to give away viewers over the summer anymore. In addition, with series now coming on DVD, networks don't want to potentially choke off a source of potential income.

So, re-runs are fewer and fewer. This is both a good and bad thing. In order to catch people up and attract the occasional new viewer, networks are doing more and more recaps, in which they boil down an entire season, or even series, into an hour-long clip show.

Fans looking to refresh themselves on "Lost" (ABC, 9 p.m.) or new viewers can check out tonight's recap of the previous two seasons. ABC did similar recaps for "Grey's Anatomy" and "Desperate Housewives," and other networks are getting into the act.

On the one hand, it's a good way to refresh your memory about where the last season left off; at the same time, especially with a serialized arc like "Lost," new viewers can lose a lot of the subtlety (not to mention literally hundreds of clues and red herrings) that regular viewers saw by checking out the entire series.

Still, hopefully recaps will have a more positive effect on a show than a negative one. The producers of "Battlestar Galactica" will air a recap of the previous seasons of the show before the new seasons kicks off next Friday. Hopefully, it will bring in new viewers to one of TV's best, if ratings-challenged, shows because someone jumping into the new season cold will not be able to follow what is going on.

WEDNESDAY'S BEST BET: Fox has always seemed to have a history of knocking off good ideas by creating its own show with a similar theme, then airing it first. The Fox show tends to be not as good, and it kills momentum for the new series on the other network.

"Kidnapped" (NBC, 10 p.m.) is one of the best new dramas on TV, and tonight's second episode moves along at a steady pace as Knapp and the FBI look for Aubrey, Leopold's older sister who is away at college and apparently also missing. Is it part of the overall plot, or is it coincidental? That's the mystery.

"Kidnapped" had a rather lackluster debut in the ratings last week, and I attribute to the fact that Fox aired its own kidnapping show, the incredibly lame "Vanished" several weeks before "Kidnapped" premiered. I'm pretty sure people were turned off by the dense "Vanished," then saw the similar-themed-but-much-superior "Kidnapped" and decided against checking it out.

This is my main problem with serial shows. I'm intrigued to see how "Kidnapped" will work out, but I'm worried we won't get to see it finish out because of the ratings.

SPORTS ALERT: Fans of various Fox shows like "House" and "Standoff" will have to go cold turkey for the next month as my New York Mets and other teams battle in baseball's playoffs, beginning next week. On the one hand, I am eager to see my guys win their third world title; but if the unthinkable happens, it kind of sucks to have to watch the Yankees and not see any "House" until the end of October.

Accent on the Positive

Maybe it's because I'm half-English, but I've always had an ear for accents. For me, it can make or break a TV show or film if the actor can't pull off the accent he or she is trying to portray.

One of the reasons you have to love Meryl Streep is her ability to pull off accents. Gwyneth Paltrow did a great English accent in "Shakespeare in Love," but her Sloane accent in "Sliding Doors" was a bit grating. (She deserves part-credit, though, for knowing the difference.) Natalie Portman is a terrific actress, but her accent in "V for Vendetta" left a lot to be desired.

Don't even get me started on Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder in "Bram Stoker's Dracula." It makes me wonder -- couldn't Francis Coppola find English actors to fill those parts? For that matter, why is most of the principal cast of the new release "All the King's Men" -- Anthony Hopkins, Jude Law, Kate Winslet -- British?

TV has had its share of good and bad accents. James Marsters and Alexis Denisof of "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" fame, both had great accents. In fact, Marsters sounds a little weird to me in his natural accent on "Smallville." On the other hand, David Boreanaz and Juliet Landau fell well short in their accent attempts on those same series.

But the best accent of all is Cote de Pablo's Israeli accent on "NCIS." (CBS, 8 p.m.) I've seen other actors try Israeli accents before -- it's a bit hit and miss in the recent movie "Munich" -- so I assumed the first time I saw de Pablo's agent Ziva David as a guest star on the show, the producers had recruited an Israeli actress. Needless to say, I was a little surprised to see that she had been born in Santiago, Chile and raised in Miami.

Not only is her Hebrew perfect, her English with the accent is as well. Even my dad, who lived in Israel for 11 years, was fooled.

"NCIS" is one of CBS' better procedurals, having a certain charm and humor that most of the many, many procedurals on the network lack. They've also shifted the dynamics of the cast recently, having Mark Harmon's lead character apparently quit. So it will be interesting to see which direction the show will go in.

TUESDAY'S BET: Notice how I left the word "best" out. I missed the pilot for the CW's new show "Runaway" Monday night on its normal slot, but tonight (CW, 9 p.m.) is a second chance for everyone who missed it. I won't have many opportunities, since it will run opposite "Heroes" -- for me, required viewing -- but the premise of Donnie Wahlberg as a fugitive who takes his family on the lam sounds interesting.

Making it's debut tonight is "Help Me Help You" (ABC, 9:30 p.m.) starring TV favorite Ted Danson as a therapist who is as screwed up as most of his patients. I'd love to have a review to tell you whether or not it was worth 30 minutes of your life, but ABC is leaving the TV Guy off their critics list, so either watch it or don't watch it.

Still heroic

I gave a positive review to "Heroes" (NBC, 9 p.m.) a couple of weeks ago, so I wanted to post a reminder to people that the pilot airs tonight.

Some critics complained the pilot took too long to get into the main story, but I disagree. The pilot ends with a neat twist that you don't see coming.

Since the review, I've seen episodes 2 and 3, and I am happy to tell you the pace picks up dramatically. We are introduced to a cop with the ability to read minds while the other characters' storylines are advanced in interesting ways. Hiro, the Japanese accountant, helps end the second episode with an absolutely inspired plot twist, while episode 3 ends with one of the neatest visuals you will see on TV for a while.

If there is one show worth comparing it to, it's "Lost" in its ability to interwine the lives of seemingly regular people, yet have a bigger story playing out in the background that will affect everyone. What's also neat is that every one of the featured characters ends up with a sidekick, all of whom playing key roles in advancing the characters' stories.

While "Studio 60" (NBC, 10 p.m.) may be the best-acted and best-written new show of the season, I actually have higher hopes in the potential of "Heroes." With "Prison Break" (Fox, 8 p.m.) going through an excellent sophomore season, Monday's may be the best night of the week for TV.

MONDAY'S BEST BET: I'm not sure this is the "best" viewing option, but "The Class" (CBS, 8 p.m.) is an interesting leadoff hitter for CBS' Monday comedy lineup.

I watched the pilot last week, and considering it came from the same people who created "Friends," it was a little uneven. It did, however, show enough potential to give it a second chance. It's not nearly as good as "How I Met Your Mother," which follows it, but "Class" may end up as a solid companion show.

Numb3rs, please

Procedurals, thy name is CBS.

NCIS. Without a Trace. Criminal Minds. CSI times three.

There's nothing wrong with procedurals. Considering in this day and age that most networks pull the plugs on shows too quickly, it's a lot easier to watch a procedural, which focuses on the case of the week, rather than a story involving a season-long, multi-episode arc, a trend in which TV seems to be turning thanks to the success of shows like "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives."

Fans of shows like "Reunion" had a mystery that was supposed to be played out over a season, only to see the show cancelled midway through.

One of my favorite procedurals is "Numb3rs" (CBS, 10 p.m.), which kicks off its third season tonight. Rob Morrow stars as Don Epps, an FBI agent who often consults his genius brother, Charlie (David Krumholtz), a math professor at a Cal Tech-like university. We often see Don and his FBI team going through conventional methods to solve a case while Charlie and his math colleagues devise various formulas to help solve it.

I always worry for writers on TV shows about ideas eventually running thin. One does wonder how much math is out there that can be applied to FBI cases (or why the real FBI doesn't have its own math genius on payroll) but so far, the show has held up pretty well.

WEEKEND"S BEST BETS: "Grey's Anatomy" fans who somehow managed to miss last night's season premiere can catch it again tonight (ABC, 8 p.m.) followed by the new Anne Heche series, "Men in Trees," which I have not seen. Apparently, it's a "Northern Exposure"-style show.

CBS has the season premieres of "Ghost Whisperer" and "Close to Home" before "Numb3rs" comes on. Sci-Fi channel wraps up its two "Stargate" series tonight as well. The pick of the night, however, is "MI-5" (A&E, 11 p.m.) which concludes its two-part premiere.

Georgia fans can catch the Dogs play Colorado Saturday at 12:30 p.m. on WGXA.

"Desperate Housewives" (ABC, Sunday, 9 p.m.) kicks off season No. 3 on Sunday, picking up six months after the events of last year's finale, in which Mike (James Denton) was run over by Orson (Kyle Maclachlan), who has proposed to Bree (Marcia Cross). Rumor has it that series creator Marc Cherry has more of a hand in the writing this season, so hopefully the show won't suffer the creative funk it went through last year.

"Brothers & Sisters" follows "DH" at 10 p.m. This ensemble drama, starring Calista Flockhart, Rachel Griffiths and Ron Rifkin among others, has been one of the most written about during the offseason, because of various troubles the show has gone through. The pilot was completely re-shot, with Sally Field joining the cast as the show's matriarch. Marti Noxon ("Buffy"), a very talented writer and producer, was replaced and ABC has been reticent to show the revamped show to critics.

CBS airs the season debuts of "Cold Case" (9 p.m.) and "Without a Trace" (10 p.m.), following "The Amazing Race." (I'm pulling for the triathletes or the beauty queens, hate the Alabama moms and the male models).

Grey Area

I really tried to stick with "Grey's Anatomy." I really did.

But in the end, it was just too soap opera-y for me. In the end, I heard the phrase "McDreamy" one too many times.

But I do know that some people watch it, since it gets boffo ratings. "Grey's" fans will get a treat tonight, since ABC airs a recap of last season at 8 p.m., followed by the season premiere at 9 p.m., in which Izzy deals with the consequences of Denny's death from the end of last season.

I'll be watching "My Name is Earl," (NBC, 8 p.m.), followed by "The Office" (NBC, 8:30 p.m.). I've seen the first three episodes of "Earl," which actually follow a story arc. Joy buys a $3,000 TV unit, then tries to return it to the store. Earl, who never took Joy's side in an argument when they were married, has the opportunity to cross something off his list and take Joy's side, even though she is dead wrong.

Needless to say, Joy's scheme goes awry in a big way. Prominent guest stars in the first three episodes include Burt Reynolds, Marlee Matlin and Judy Greer.

NBC didn't send me a copy of "The Office," so I can't tell you if last season's cliffhanger between Jim and Pam is resolved. By the way, go to NBC.com and check Dwight's blog, written by actor Rainn Wilson in Dwight's voice.

DVD Picks of the Week: What the heck, I missed them when they came out last week, but the second seasons of both "Grey's Anatomy" and "The Office" hit the shelves last week. At this point, you either watch those shows or you don't, so it's up to you if you think they are worth the money. Dwight's Mussolini-inspired speech as salesman of the year in "The Office" alone makes that set worth the money.

TV News: For all of the hockey fans in the area, both of you can tune into TurnerSouth for 61 Thrashers games to be broadcast this season, beginning Oct. 5. JP Dellacamera returns for his third season to handle the play-by-play duties while Darren Eliot is the color man.

THURSDAY'S BEST BET: I'll be checking out "Shark" (CBS, 10 p.m.) tonight as it makes its debut. James Woods stars as a former hotshot defense lawyer now working as a district attorney for Jeri Ryan.

Plot wise, "Shark" has been compared to "House" except for its courtroom setting, in that Woods' character lacks social graces but makes up for it with professional skills.

It will be interesting to see how "Shark" stacks up against Fox's "Justice," which hasn't been bad, but is starting to come off as a bit formulaic.

How I Didn't Learn to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

I've never been much of a fan of post-Apocalyptic drama.

When all the other parents had to stop their kids from watching "The Day After" in 1983 because they were worried about the effect it might have on them, I already had no desire to watch anything about the world ending because of nuclear disaster. I guess being a child of the Cold War made me this way.

I've never seen any of the Mad Max movies all the way through; I've seen the original "Terminator" just once. Nightmares of futures in which the human race has nearly wiped itself out and the remaining few struggle just to survive has little appeal to me.

I had to read the book, "Alas, Babylon" in eighth grade (thanks a lot, Mr. Wong). Had a few nightmares because of that, too.

So, it was with great trepidation I tried to download the pilot of "Jericho" (CBS, 8 p.m.) off Yahoo! earlier today. A weekly drama about a midwestern coping after the rest of the world has apparently been wiped out via nuclear war was not very high on my to watch list.

What was on Yahoo! was a little misleading. I thought it was going to be the whole pilot; instead, it was selected scenes and half the time, my downloads didn't work (though the blame may lie with my work computer), so I can't really give you a positive or negative review.

Skeet Ullrich, Ashley Scott and Gerald McRaney are among the survivors in the town who now must band together after being cut off from the rest of the world. You may want to give "Jericho" a shot; me, I have enough trouble sleeping as it is.

WEDNESDAY'S BEST BET: I reviewed the pilot of "Kidnapped" a few weeks ago, and I highly recommend you catch the pilot (NBC, 10 p.m.).

Jeremy Sisto stars as a private detective who specializes in rescuing kidnapping victims. He is hired by a wealthy couple (Timothy Hutton, Dana Delaney) after their teenage son is abducted. Delroy Lindo also stars as a veteran FBI agent who ends up on the case.

The cast is first-rate and the story is well done. "Kidnapped" is much better than the similar-themed but badly done "Vanished" on Fox.

Capers

I always enjoy movies and TV shows about heists, cons and the like. Recently, the airwaves have been filled with them.

While some, like AMC's "Hustle," have really shined, others, such as FX's "Thief," have not. I had high hopes for "Thief," in part because it starred Andre Braugher, but it really fizzled thanks to its deliberate pace and irritating characters. "Heist," an NBC show that ran at the same time, had a little bit more charm to it (and I thought a more clever crime) but didn't find an audience and ended its six-episode run with an unresolved cliffhanger.

The latest entry in crime-on-TV is "Smith" (CBS, 10 p.m.) starring big-time actors Ray Liotta (Goodfellas) and Virginia Madsen (Sideways). Liotta plays a seemingly normal guy with a wife and family who is the leader of a gang of thieves in reality. Some of Liotta's gang includes Simon Baker and Amy Smart.

I have yet to see a pilot (thanks for the DVDs, CBS) so I can't say whether or not it's worthwhile, but I will be checking out tonight's episode at least.

TUESDAY'S BEST BET: So much TV, so little time. Oscar-winner Joel Grey guest stars on tonight's "House" (Fox, 8 p.m.), which is followed by "Standoff" at 9 p.m. If you want to watch "Smith" and don't want to change the dial, CBS airs the season premieres of "NCIS" at 8 p.m., followed by "The Unit." ABC kicks off its new run of "Dancing with Stars" (8 p.m.), which I might find myself missing. "Law & Order: SVU" makes its season debut tonight (NBC, 10 p.m.) as well.

Here's To Mothers

Last week, I called "My Name Is Earl" one of the two best new sitcoms from last season.

The other one, "How I Met Your Mother," airs its season premiere tonight (CBS, 8:30 p.m.) The show revolves around a guy (voiced by Bob Saget) telling his kids in the year 2030 how he met their mother. Of course, a season has passed and we have yet to meet the mom, but that's beside the point.

The series is essentially a flashback to the present, when we see the younger version of Ted (Josh Radnor), and his quest to end up with Robin (Cobie Smulders), with whom he apparently doesn't end up with in the future.

I find the Ted-Robin relationship a little dull, especially since we already know it's been destined to fail. What makes the show really worthwhile are the supporting cast, Ted's engaged roommates Marshall and Lily (Jason Segel, Alyson Hannigan) and his best bud Barney (Neil Patrick Harris, revitalizing his career). Much like "Cheers," where the Sam-Diane and Sam-Rebecca relationships fell to second fiddle with the emergence of the supporting cast, Ted's trio of pals are worth the half-hour of viewing each week.

Tonight's episode picks up after last season's finale, in which Ted and Robin finally get together just as Lily breaks off her engagement to Marshall.

Also worth checking out is "The New Adventures of Old Christine" (CBS, 9:30 p.m.), the role that earned Julia Louis-Dreyfus a post-"Seinfeld" Emmy. Christine is a single mom trying to re-establish her life in her 40s while her ex-husband (Clark Gregg) is dating a younger woman, also named Christine (hence "new Christine).

The sitcom itself is a little pedestrian, but Louis-Dreyfus makes the most of her role and is surrounded by a good cast.

TV NEWS: USA has renewed "Psych" and "The Dead Zone" for new seasons. After a decent beginning, "Psych" dropped off each week as it tried to stretch its already thin premise. My brother is a big "Dead Zone" fan, but tells me the show has also dropped off in quality in recent years.

MONDAY'S BEST BET: The TV Gods have truly smiled on the TV Guy.

With the summer's best new show, "Life on Mars," ending last week, my Mondays at 10 p.m. were looking very open (except for the oodles of poker I play at that time).

But fall's best new show, "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" (NBC, 10 p.m.) makes its debut tonight. In case you didn't catch my earlier review, if you are going to watch one new show this season, make sure it's "Studio 60." Not only does it boast TV's best cast, it also has the best writing on the airwaves.

Passing the pilot DVD around the office, most of the rest of The Telegraph's staff agrees. As Webmaster Ryan Gilchrest pointed out, it's a shame that Judd Hirsch won't be back after he begins the show with 10 of the most electrifying minutes you will ever see on a TV tube. And Reel Fanatic Keith Demko pointed out that Amanda Peet stands out in this great cast as a network executive.

For me, Peet may be the true discovery of this show. I like her well enough in her movie roles, but she seems to get cast in the same parts as beautiful, somewhat icy women. In "Studio 60," Peet takes her game to another level and is likely the heart of the show to Matthew Perry and Brad Whitford's soul. Peet should be a virtual shoo-in for a Golden Globe (I'd say Emmy as well, but who the hell knows with the way they vote.)

With a huge wave of new and returning shows hitting the airwaves this week with new episodes, Mondays are a great way to start the new season.

TV's Best Spy Show

I used to love A&E when it ran shows made by the BBC. Then A&E switched over to a reality format, making series about airports and tattoo parlors and I stopped watching it.

Tonight marks the return of the best spy series on TV, "MI-5" (11 p.m., A&E) and the return of the network to quality television.

"MI-5" (named for the British intelligence service charged with domestic espionage, sort of like our NSA) is everything "24" isn't: gritty, realistic, well-acted and well-written. Whereas in "24" you have the superheroic Jack Bauer defying realism and logic as he singlehandedly defeats terrorists and L.A. traffic, "MI-5" follows a team of British agents who go deep undercover in order to root out problems facing Britain.

These agents don't shoot 100 people per episode. They don't face ridiculous plots that can't possibly happen in the real world. They don't have cell phones that can work while on a helicopter flight. Sometimes, these agents fail. Sometimes, they even die.

(I'm all for the escapist nature of TV and film, but writers have to follow the rules of willing suspension of disbelief. Characters have to stay true to a realistic nature. "24" falls well, well short of these themes.)

Tonight marks the start of Season 4, picking up with the events of the Season 3 finale, in which one of the agents sacrificed himself to save his partner. Incidentally, Season 5 of "MI-5" (or "Spooks as it's called across the pond) is starting up soon, so hopefully it will be here before too long.

"MI-5" was created by Tony Jordan, who also created "Hustle" and "Life on Mars," two of the best shows you can possibly watch, and "MI-5" is a worthy partner.

CASTING NEWS: The uber-talented Amber Benson ("Buffy, the Vampire Slayer") joins the cast of "Supernatural" in a recurring role as a vampire. (Joining her in recurring status is Linda Blair, as a cop). Benson is a multi-talented woman who is also a top-notch writer and a tremendous singer.

WEEKEND'S BEST BETS: Speaking of "Buffy," the WB bids farewell to its fans with a Sunday lineup full of the pilots of some of its best series.

The pilot for "Felicity" begins at 5 p.m., followed by "Angel," "Buffy" and "Dawson's Creek." The WB goes off the air the next day, and will be replaced Monday by the CW, a hybrid of the WB and UPN.

TV's best reality show, "The Amazing Race" kicks off its 10th edition with a 90-minute special (8:30 p.m., CBS - time approximate because of football). "Race" suffered two editions ago with the ill-fated family version that turned some people off, and struggled to regain its foothold in the ratings. Now back to the familiar two-person team format, here's hoping the new night will revitalize the show.

DVD Picks: My Name is Earl

I usually don't recommend buying sitcom DVDs. After all, how many times can you hear the same joke over and over?

But if you want to rent one, "My Name is Earl" was one of the two best freshman sitcoms from last season (the other being CBS' "How I Met Your Mother.")

Want a preview? NBC is re-running the pilot, followed by the season finale, tonight beginning at 8 p.m. The concept involves Earl (Jason Lee), a lifelong loser who suddenly buys a winning lotto ticket. But before he can claim the money, he is hit by a car and loses the ticket. While recovering, Earl watches Carson Daly on TV and learns about karma. He resolves to change his life by making up for past misdeeds, and suddenly regains the missing ticket.

Along with his dimwitted brother Randy (Ethan Suplee), Earl makes a list of all his past wrongs and resolves to fix them, one at a time. Sometimes he is aided, but more often opposed, by his scheming ex-wife Joy (Jaime Pressly, in a star-making role). Eddie Steeples and Nadine Velazquez round out a good cast.

Though the plotting of "Earl" can seem a little repetitve, and you wonder how much juice the writers can get out of the concept, the sheer charm of the actors makes "Earl" a worthwhile lead-in to TV's best sitcom, "The Office."

THURSDAY'S PICK: I admit, I haven't watched "Survivor" (8 p.m., CBS) since its second season, and I don't intend to watch it tonight. But the promise of setting race relations back a half-century in this country might make others tune it. This time around, the tribes are broken up into four different ethnic groups who compete against each other for the prize money.

Of all the clever ideas in the world, this isn't one of them.

A Neat Quiz

I found this in Wednesday's Telegraph and took it.

www.seabreezecomputers.com/startrek

You answer a survey of questions and the computer calculates your answers and tells you which "Star Trek" character you are most like.

Me? Sadly, I graded out at 95 percent at being a redshirt -- one of the no-name security guys who beams down to the planet with Capt. Kirk and gets killed in the opening teaser. I would point out that in second place, at 70 percent, I was Capt. Picard.

What are you? An android? A singing communications officer?

WEDNESDAY'S WORST BET: Notice I said WORST.

Lifetime is re-airing "The Fantasia Barrino Story: Life is not a fairy tale" (9 p.m.) Somehow, I managed to miss this gem the first time around, and I will be missing it tonight.

I'm going to take a wild guess and say that since Fantasia is producing and starring in her own life story, it likely won't be a dispassionate, even-handed look at her life. Just guessing here. I mean, seriously, you have to wonder about your own biopic with you as the star. (I'm sure the Phillip Ramati Story will star Brad Pitt.)

I never watch "American Idol," so I can't say honestly if Fantasia deserved to win, though everyone seemed to jump on her bandwagon. I did, however, very unfortunately, catch her rendition of the National Anthem at baseball's all-star game that year. Now, being a professional sports writer for 12 years, I have heard more than my fair share of anthems.

Fantasia was the worst. Bar none. No one was even close. (Yes, I've heard the Roseanne Barr and Carl Lewis renditions, but the difference is, they weren't professional singers and they weren't even trying). Fantasia approached it like a performance, and my ears bled. For a brief moment, I actually envied the deaf.

So, please, watch something else tonight.

9/11 TV

By now, if you saw the first half of ABC's "Path to 9/11" on Sunday, you'll know more about the documentary than I do. You'll know whether or not the controversy surrounding this show, whether facts have been distorted, has any merit.

The problem with any historical event that has been dramatized is inevitably the need for the writers and directors to make it "more dramatic." This often leads to a distortion of events. Of course, if the producers of these movies wanted it to be a documentary of what happened, not a drama, then they would make a documentary.

ABC has already made several cuts and changes to the film over the weekend after former Clinton administration officials protested how certain events were portrayed. The fact that ABC seems to be defending the film by calling it a dramatization doesn't say a lot for the film's content, at least for me.

Part 2 of "Path" will actually be interrupted by Pres. Bush's speech at 9 p.m., then continue, according to TV Guide. Other programs dealing with 9/11 themes include "Dateline" (8 p.m., NBC), which deals with Flight 93; "Primetime" (10 p.m., ABC - time may vary because of the Bush speech), which reports on where we are five years later; "America Rebuilds II" (9 p.m., PBS), a return to Ground Zero; and "Countdown to Ground Zero," (10 p.m., The History Channel).

MONDAY'S BEST BET: If you haven't taken my advice and watched the coolest show of the summer, "Life on Mars" (10 p.m., BBC-America), then you really shouldn't even be reading this blog. Tonight is the season finale, in which time-lost (or insane, or comatose) detective Sam Tyler investigates his father's link to crimes in 1973.

SUPERMAN LIVES: I try to leave the movie stuff to my Reel Fanatic colleague, Keith Demko, but I'm going to cheat a little bit and recommend "Hollywoodland," about the death of TV Superman actor George Reeves. A terrific cast (Adrien Brody, Bob Hoskins, the always wonderful Diane Lane — God, I love her — and Ben Affleck in his finest role in years) examines the many theories behind Reeves' supposed suicide. The movie has drawn criticism for not doing more than offering theories to the crime, but really, since the case has never been solved to anyone's satisfaction, what conclusions can really be drawn?

A Worthless Plea

Since this plea will fall on deaf ears anyway, I'm not sure the point of writing it, but here it goes:

Please, ESPN, stop the multi-shot screens you debuted Monday night in the Florida State-Miami game. It's bad enough hearing Colin Cowherd on a TV broadcast, but watching nine different frames on one screen was just irritating.

Is it too much to ask that Saturday's Georgia-South Carolina broadcast (7:45 p.m., ESPN) have relatively normal camera angles to go with your mediocre broadcasters?

The "entertainment" comes before the "sports" in the ESPN letters, but the worldwide leader seems to fall short in both areas in most of its aspects over recent years.

WEEKEND'S BEST BET: Sunday marks the debut of the 18th season of "The Simpsons," one of TV's all-time great comedies. In the opener, Lisa befriends mobster Fat Tony's son. When Fat Tony is shot, Homer assumes control of the crime family.

To give you an idea of how old I am, I remember the minute-long Simpsons cartoons from "The Tracy Ullman Show" when they were first broadcast.

Though in recent years the show hasn't been nearly as sharp as it was during its first decade or so, 70 percent of the Simpsons is usually better than most shows at 100 percent.

My favorite episode? When Homer joins the company softball team, only to have the team replaced by a bunch of Major League all-stars for the big game.

My favorite bit of dialogue? From the monorail episode:

Marge: I've brought someone to help.
Homer: Is it Batman?
Marge: No, it's a scientist.
Homer: Batman's a scientist.
Marge: It's not Batman!

Feel free to respond with your favorite "Simpsons" episodes and scenes.

DVD Picks: Finding "Lost"

This week's pick was pretty easy.

I've never been a fan of the phrase "post-modern." To me, it's always been one of those non-sensical, pseudo-intellectual phrases that one usually drops into conversations at parties to make one sound cool.

But if there was an example of a post-modern TV show, "Lost" would be it. It's a series that can't be appreciated with just its weekly viewing Wednesday nights. The Internet sites — both those produced by ABC in relation to the show and those created by fans — and multiple viewings either through reruns, downloads, and now DVD, is practically essential to appreciate fully what the writers pack into each episode.

One can view "Lost" once a week and enjoy the series, but odds are a lot of key clues and visual moments are missed. This isn't an episode of something like "CSI," in which what you see is what you get during the initial viewing.

So for "Lost" fans or those trying to catch up with one of TV's best series, Tuesday's DVD release of Season 2 comes at a perfect time with the Season 3 premiere rapidly approaching. The DVD set contains seven discs, with the final one being mostly extras.

Season 2 was full of hits and misses. You have to admire the way the show's producers took chances, introducing new characters and continuing to extend the show's mythology. My lone concern is that "Lost" will go the route of the "X-Files" in which the mythology collapsed under its own weight because the writers tried to continue to raise questions and throw in twists without ever solving the show's initial questions.

It's possible "Lost" may go that route, but right now it remains pretty flexible in terms of what it is doing. The producers introduced new characters, some of whom were terrific and stuck (Mr. Eko, Desmond) and some of whom didn't (Ana Lucia, Libby). Characters that had outlived their usefulness (Boone, Shannon, Michael) found their way off the island one way or another. What's left are some of the deepest-drawn characters on TV.

FRAK-TASTIC: If you can't wait a month for the season premiere of "Battlestar Galactica" (and I sure can't), you can tide your appetite with "webisodes" of the series produced specifically for SciFi.com. Series regulars appear in these 4-minute installments that bridge the gap between last season's cliffhanger finale and this season's opener.

Like the "Lost" DVD, it isn't essential viewing in terms of keeping pace with what is going on, but it certainly enhances the experience.

Heroic Effort

There were three new series I was really looking forward to this season: ABC's "The Nine" and NBC's "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" and "Heroes."

I've already reviewed "Studio 60," which is TV's best new show, and ABC has neglected to send me any press materials whatsoever despite the very nice e-mail I sent them (beware, I have a long memory, ABC).

That leaves "Heroes," which I viewed over the weekend. The result? Not quite as good as I expected, but not bad, either.

"Heroes" follows several people around the planet, all of whom seem to be developing unique powers and abilities. A high school cheerleader in Texas (Hayden Panettiere) is seemingly invulnerable to all forms of harm, a fact which she documents on video camera with repeated suicide attempts; a Vegas stripper (Ali Larter) talks to herself in reflective surfaces and seems to possess telekinetic abilities; a nurse (Milo Ventimiglia) has visions that he can fly, and tries to convince his politician brother (Adrian Padsar); a drug-addicted artist (Santiago Cabrera) paints visions of the future; a Tokyo programmer (Masi Oka) can bend the space-time continuum to his will and teleport himself anywhere.

Meanwhile, an Indian professor (Sendhil Ramamurthy) is tracking the phenomenon of people with super abilities when he learns his father may have been murdered for similar work.

"Heroes" carried a rather darker tone to it than I thought it would, with the exception of Hiro, the Japanese programmer. He's sort of the ultimate comic book geek and is a lot of fun.

The pacing of "Heroes" is a little slower than I would have liked, but the producers are taking their time in building up the background of the characters. The pilot does contain two clever twists at the end, and we slowly see the connections between the characters.

"Heroes" has been compared to both "X-Men" and "The 4400" in terms of theme. It's similar in the sense that everyone has a different power and struggles to use it correctly. But "X-Men" was about using powers correctly and working within a group. "The 4400" is a little closer comparison, in that both shows talk of an impending disaster that only the super-people can stop. "The 4400," however, is told mostly from the point of view of the Federal agents assigned to police these beings. "Heroes" is only from perspective of the people directly involved with having powers.

The pilot of "Heroes" was a bit underwhelming, but the series shows tremendous potential and is worth a second look.

House Calls

Sorry about the lag in posts, but between the holiday, a sick dog and many, many hands of poker, I was a little bit occupied.

Tonight marks the third season premiere of one of the best shows on TV, "House" (8 p.m., Fox). Viewers who watched last season's finale may remember that our anti-hero, Dr. Greg House (Hugh Laurie) was shot by the disgruntled husband of a former patient. Most of the episode takes place as an illusion in House's head, and it ends with him being wheeled into an operating room.

Tonight's opener takes place about two months later, with a very different House undergoing both physical and emotional changes. Or has he? Not only has House been saved from the bullets, but his chronic leg problems and the constant pain that goes with it seems to be cured. A healthy, pain-free House also seems to mean a less grouchy, possibly kinder House. But are these changes permanent? House's colleagues struggle with the answer as House tackles two cases revolving around the use of a patient's legs.

I've watched Laurie for years, from his appearances as a twit in "Blackadder" to his unbelievably accurate portrayal of Bertie Wooster in the BBC adaptation of the P.G. Wodehouse "Jeeves" books years ago. He shifts gears really well to drama in "House," yet still manages to maintain a comic twinkle in his eye. Laurie's omission from this year's Emmys was among the biggest crimes on that farce of an awards show, and the supporting cast on "House" complements him perfectly.

TUESDAY'S BEST BET: I admit up front, I've never been a fan of "Nip/Tuck" but I know it has its own devoted following. Tonight is the season opener (10 p.m., FX) and I feel obligated to promote "Rescue Me's" former timeslot.

Viewers may also want to check out "Standoff" (9 p.m., Fox), a series I reviewed earlier but makes its debut tonight. The plot of the pilot wasn't especially realistic, but the chemistry between the two leads (Ron Livingston, Rosemarie DeWitt) is outstanding. It's very similar to another Fox show, "Bones," in that respect, where you watch more for the interaction between the leads than the case of the week.

TIME TO TUNE IN: Tonight marks the single-most important broadcast in the history of network television news, possibly the most important broadcast in the history of television itself. It's possibly the most important event in the history of the world.

I speak, of course, of Katie Couric's debut as anchor of the CBS Evening News (6:30 p.m.) If I seem to be over-hyping this, well, I can't be doing any worse job than EVERY SINGLE OTHER MEDIA OUTLET IN THE FREE WORLD, which has done nothing but promote this ever since Couric signed on the dotted line for her $15 million payday.

My question is, who cares? And I don't mean to single Couric out, because when was the last time network TV news was significant? People keep harping about the death of newspapers, but as a print journalist, I can point out that we still the most accurate and detailed account of things. Yet pundits and Wall Street keep telling the world newspapers are dying.

Yet, in the age of the Internet and 24-hour news networks (the things supposedly killing newspapers), how useful is it to have a half-hour news broadcast that no one watches for content any more? Surely that $15 million for Couric (and the millions given to anchors on the other networks) to sit and read headlines off prompters to news that most people have already heard could be better spent.

So, good luck and good night, Katie and CBS. Much like the rest of America, I could really care less.

Miscellanea

"The Apprentice," which has already been taking hits in the ratings over its past few installments, lost one of its best elements Thursday.

Carolyn Kepcher, my favorite of Donald Trump's right-hand people, was fired from his company this week. Carolyn was sharp and witty, and it was usually priceless to see her reaction to some of the more misguided attempts of various candidates.

Carolyn's best moment came when she dressed down one female candidate a few seasons ago after the woman tried to augment her street-corner promotion by -- I don't kid here -- flashing her g-string to customers by lifting her miniskirt. After Carolyn, who probably has encountered her fair share of glass ceilings along the way, demolished the contestant in the boardroom, there wasn't much left for Trump to fire.

I'm not sure what office politics led to her departure, though one tabloid reported that she was self-promoting too much based on her success from "The Apprentice." Personally, I just don't think Trump likes anyone being more popular than him. What it means is Trump's kids, Donald Jr. and Ivanka, will now get more air time as his right-hand men. Neither offspring adds much to the boardroom sessions.

Carolyn, you will be missed.

RETRO-EFFECTS: CBS announced this week that it will digitally remaster "Star Trek" in honor of the series' 40th anniversary. Included in this is new CGI effects and sharper images and sound.

Please, please, please, Hollywood, stop doing this crap. We didn't want colorized movies from Ted Turner in which Humphrey Bogart's skin tones came out orange, we didn't want 17 versions of "Star Wars" so George Lucas could add that one extra shot of a stormtrooper dying in some scene, and we don't want this.

Part of "Star Trek's" charm is the cheesy effects from the 1960s. The special effects were much better in all of the "Star Trek" spinoffs, which is how it should be. CGI technology was developed in the 1990s and lousy effects wouldn't have been tolerated on one of the spinoffs.

By the way, "Star Trek" debuts on TVLand next Friday with a mini-marathon of four episodes: ‘‘The Man Trap,’’ ‘‘City on the Edge of Forever,’’ ‘‘The Trouble With Tribbles’’ and ‘‘Plato’s Stepchildren.’’

ONE MORE DVD: Something that should have been added to Thursday's post for DVD picks is season one of "Hustle," one of the best shows airing on TV. Co-produced by the BBC and AMC, it follows the adventures of a team of five con artists and the various heists they pull.

Much like the remake of "Ocean's 11," the series has charm, wit and excitement, without suffering the lameness of "Ocean's 12."

WEEKEND'S BEST BETS: Sean Bean ("Lord of the Rings") reprises his role of British soldier Richard Sharpe in "Sharpe's Challenge" (Saturday and Sunday, 9 p.m., BBC-America), the first new TV movie involving the character in nine years.

Sharpe is based on the books by historical novelist Bernard Cornwell, and BBC-America has been re-airing the previous installments periodically. This time around, Sharpe, a British officer during the Napoleanic wars, is stationed in India.

Fans of the excellent A&E series based on the Horatio Hornblower novels (back when A&E was actually airing quality TV, not the reality junk it shows now) should enjoy this.

If British historical dramas aren't your thing (and why not?!?) college football has kicked off this week and the most anticipated game on the slate is Notre Dame at Georgia Tech (Sat., 8 p.m., ABC). For Tech fans, it will be an opportunity to see the No. 2 ranked Irish and their Heisman candidate quarterback Brady Quinn. Georgia fans can watch the Dogs battle Western Kentucky (Sat., 12:30, Fox-24) and will have the opportunity to see Tech stomped by the Irish and their Heisman candidate quarterback Brady Quinn.