Tryout Time
Mid-season highs, lows and so-sos
March Madness isn't confined to the NCAA's countdown to the Final Four. Nearly every night this month, we've seen the premiere of some new show getting a mid-season test run on network or cable. (Some are shorter than others: ABC's
The Evidence is only scheduled for four episodes until
Invasion thankfully returns April 19.) Here's a quick look at some of the more notable newcomers and a gauge of their long-term potential. It's worth remembering that ABC didn't introduce
Grey's Anatomy until the last week of March a year ago, and we all know how well that turned out.
The Loop
Thursdays, 8:30 pm/ET, Fox
Why to watch: To see if Fox can launch a new noncartoon hit comedy.
The lowdown: Not quite. The Loop is half funny — not the half where junior-exec hero Sam (Bret Harrison) parties with his pals. But at his airline job, his irascible boss (Philip Baker Hall) and lecherous coworker (Mimi Rogers) are a hoot, playing off Sam’s post-Graduate angst.
A keeper? Hard to say. Beats The War at Home.
My score: 5 (out of 10)
The Evidence
Wednesdays, 10 pm/ET, ABC
Why to watch: Because it’s not like there’s a glut of crime dramas on TV.
The lowdown: The very definition of generic, this show opens with a visual gimmick: displaying the evidence we’ll be sifting through, as two buddy cops (Rob Estes, a grieving widower, and boisterous Orlando Jones) banter their way through routine investigations. Been there, solved that.
A keeper? Hardly.
My score: 4
The New Adventures of Old Christine
Mondays, 9:30 pm/ET CBS
Why to watch: To see if a Seinfeld star can finally break the jinx.
The lowdown: So far, so good. Julia Louis-Dreyfus is likably loony as “old” Christine, a divorced mom thrown into a tizzy when her genial ex (the terrific Clark Gregg) starts dating a younger woman also named Christine. Her life is a collision course with social embarrassment, which is often very funny.
A keeper? Absolutely.
My score: 8
Heist
Wednesdays, 10 pm/ET, NBC
Why to watch: Because we’re hooked on 24-style serialized thrillers.
The lowdown: Could use a little substance. Heist is all cartoonish, smugly hyperkinetic, thinks-it’s-funny style, a Tarantino rip-off about glib jewel thieves plotting a multiple score on Oscars week. You want charming crooks? See AMC’s Hustle. From cops to robbers, Heist is a tiresome mess.
A keeper? Let’s hope not.
My score: 3
Doctor Who
Fridays, 9 pm/ET, SCI FI
Why to watch: To get that Friday-night cult fix.
The lowdown: In earlier versions, I never clicked with this Brit import about the time-tripping, alien-fighting mystery doc (a chipper yet intense Christopher Eccleston). But this remake achieves an Avengers-like balance of cheeky wit amid the cheesiness. As Who’s shopgirl sidekick, Billie Piper is a delight.
A keeper? Who’d say no?
My score: 7
