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Judging this year's new shows is a lot harder than in past years.  Usually networks have finished pilots to screen for critics well in advance of their premieres, but because the writers' strike threw everything off balance, many shows are retooling their pilots until the last minute, leaving critics with little more than five-minute trailers and general descriptions to make our judgments.

While this year's crop is nowhere near as brilliant as last year (with Chuck, Gossip Girl, Pushing Daisies and countless other successes), the sense this time is that the networks are looking to find established fan bases.  Many new shows are remakes of either British shows or classic American ones.

5. Knight Rider

I'm not sure this would've made this list were it not for the fact that I recently visited the impressive set of Knight Rider and got to talk to the cast and watch them film the opening of episode 5.  The cast is charming, particularly the very cool Paul Campbell (Billy from Battlestar Galactica and one of the stars of the super-awesome web series Nobody's Watching).  Showrunner Gary Scott Thompson (Las Vegas) also seems to have the right idea: kick-ass action with plenty of comic relief.


4. My Own Worst Enemy

The chance to see Christian Slater star on a TV series alone should be reason enough to tune in.  What makes the show even more compelling is the Jekyll and Hyde-type spy concept.  Anyone who watched the BBC miniseries Jekyll knows that this material is capable of not only being modernized, but of creating some extremely compelling stories.  My hope is that it follows this route, and adding the brilliant Alfre Woodard to the cast only increases my excitement.


3. Life on Mars

The premise is so fascinating that it's hard to resist: a modern detective gets hit by a car and mysteriously wakes up in the 1970s.  If you can accept that premise and the fact that it will probably be a while until the “how” is explained, you'll be able to enjoy a great cop drama with the oh-so-funny Lenny Clarke and Jason O'Mara, who is almost certainly bound to be a big star, with this as his launch pad.


2. Valentine

I know almost nothing about this show airing on the CW Sundays at 8pm, but I know two people involved that make me really look forward to it.  The first is creator Kevin Murphy, who graduated from Drew University in New Jersey (coincidentally, the same college I graduated from) and who co-wrote the high-larious musical Reefer Madness before moving on to write for Desperate Housewives and Reaper.  The second reason is star Autumn Reeser, best known as the inimitable Taylor Townsend on The O.C.  Taylor is easily one of my favorite TV characters ever, and almost all the credit goes to Reeser's refreshing performance. With Murphy and Reeser on board, I will definitely be tuning in.


1. The Ex List

Yes, this is the TV equivalent of a chick flick, but I don't care.  The premise of a woman going through all her past relationships to find her soul mate is clever, Elizabeth Reaser is very sweet when she's not playing a crash victim with post-traumatic stress disorder, and the pilot is a hoot and a half.  I'm not delusional enough to think it will succeed in the Moonlight death time slot between Ghost Whisperer and Numb3rs on Friday nights, but I hope enough people tune in, if only to watch guest star Eric Balfour singing.  Trust me when I say it's a lot better than it sounds.


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-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of CBS)