On the fringe of the new season

As we've discussed, this is a strange TV season.

Here it is September 8 and I still haven't seen many of the new shows that will be premiering in the coming weeks. Usually by this time not only have I seen the original pilots, I've seen the revised, rewritten and recast pilots.

Maybe My Own Worst Enemy is fantastic. Maybe it's awful. Maybe it's average. Maybe it has Christian Slater doing his best Jack Nicholson. Who knows? I sure don't because NBC still hasn't sent out any of its new shows. Ditto for ABC's Life on Mars and CBS's The Eleventh Hour. Everyday I go to get my mail with anticipation, only to be disappointed all over again. I'm all out of sorts. This isn't how the new TV season is supposed to go.

So I have no way of knowing if Fringe is the best new drama of the season. It's certainly the best new drama I've seen so far but that's like saying this is the best Monday we've had this week. I do think however it may have the best line of any pilot we'll see this season. I think you'll know it when you hear it and I'll definitely have it in this week's quotes. If you have a guess after you've watched the premiere (Tuesday at 8 p.m. on FOX), let me know.

In the series premiere, a plane lands in Boston Logan airport and all the passengers are very very dead. FBI agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) quickly discovers she'll need the help of Walter Bishop (John Noble), a scientist who has been in a mental institution for years. The only way to get to see Walter is through his son Peter (Joshua Jackson).

By the end of 95 minute premiere (set your DVRs accordingly), that mystery will be solved and Olivia and her cohorts will be off on a new mystery next week. I liked Fringe. There were good and surprising plots twists and it definitely held my interest. Although I found Jackson's facial hair distracting (not enough to be a beard but too much to be a sexy five o'clock shadow), it is fun to have him back on TV. He's got the toughest role on the series because he's taking on the skeptic, naysayer role. That means he's in danger of constantly whining. My guess is that this aspect of his character will be toned down by next week. Or at least I hope so.

Expectations are high for the series because Abrams is the man behind Lost and Alias. The pilot of Fringe did not grab my attention in the same arresting manner as Alias and Lost did. Those shows were breaking new ground in a way TV series tell their stories. Fringe seems a little more like a traditional sci-fi show.

And the feel of an Abrams' show is starting to become very familiar. The dramatic music before a commercial break, the embedded clues (in this case pay attention to the rotating butterfly, leaf, hand, apple, and frog motif) and massive conspiracies by massive organizations all have become somewhat of his trademarks. This really hit home because I spent the weekend watching the first three episodes of the second season of Chuck, which is from executive producer Josh Schwartz, who also is the man behind Gossip Girl. And I thought, you know Chuck and Gossip Girl couldn't be more different. If you didn't know they were from the same executive producer you wouldn't know they were from the same executive producer. While almost from the first few minutes of Fringe, you'll know you're dealing with a J.J. Abrams show. That's not necessarily a bad thing just something of note.

I'm giving the pilot of Fringe four stars, but I think the true test will come when we all get to see the show's second episode. After you've watched Fringe talk about it below or let me know what you think.

Highlights of the Week Ahead

All times listed are Eastern Standard Time for September 8-14

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles returns for a second season Monday at 8 p.m. on FOX. The opening minutes have a fairly shocking plot twist that I was glad to see resolved by the end of the hour. Shirley Manson joins the cast as Catherine Weaver, CEO of a mysterious corporation. Her final scene is a doozy. It certainly seems like John (Thomas Dekker) is growing up. My main concern is that I think the show needs to advance its overall plotline. This week's premiere felt somewhat repetitive. There's a lot of running. A lot. The good news is that Agent Ellison (Richard T. Jones) has a game changing epiphany which I think will start to shake up this season. This episode felt more like a transition between the first and second season. I'm looking forward to seeing how the season plays out. How about you?

Can I just say that I know One Tree Hill is a preposterous show but I really can't believe that they brought back Nanny Carrie again. Her psycho story line really doesn't do the show any favors. But I'm still curious to know what you guys think of Lucas and Peyton being together. I think I was always kind of rooting for Brooke. How about you? This week (Monday at 9 p.m. on the CW), Brooke recovers from her attack and has revenge on her mind.

We'll temporarily say goodbye to The Secret Life of the American Teenager this week (Tuesday, ABC Family, 8 p.m.). ABC Family is calling it the mid-season finale so expect a lot of cliff hangers.

JoAnna Garcia (Reba) stars in Privileged (premiering Tuesday at 9 p.m. on the CW). She's Megan, a Yale graduate who loses her job and finds herself tutoring two very spoiled twins (Lucy Hale and Ashley Newbrough) in Miami. The twins' parents died years ago and they are being raised by their extremely wealthy grandmother (Anne Archer), who happens to be a make-up mogul. The show is from Rina Mimoun, who was also an executive producer on Everwood. Garcia is an extremely likeable lead and there were some really good moments in the pilot. Particularly when Mimoun, who wrote the pilot, doesn't let the plot points play out predictably. Megan is spunkier than I expected and the twins less easily won over. And the show seems poised to be able to go in multiple directions from Megan's love life (at the end of the hour, two men are interested in her. Not bad odds), to her family drama (she's estranged from her sister and her father), to her burgeoning writing career to the twins behaving badly. Three stars.

Michael Phelps hosts the season premiere of Saturday Night Live at 11:35 p.m. on NBC. This kicks off the first of four live episodes in a row. And my fearless prediction is that the opening sketch will either feature the real Sarah Palin or at least a skit about Sarah Palin.

That's all for today. I'm back on Wednesday with a review of the new FOX comedy Do Not Disturb and this week's familiar faces (did you spot Sarah Drew?) Have a question? Seen a familiar face? Want to nominate a quote of the week? Write me at amytvgal@zap2it.com.

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