Which are the top five new ...

Question: Which are the top five new shows you would recommend this fall? From the previews I have read, I am most looking forward to The Nine, Heroes, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, Jericho and Ugly Betty. Six Degrees sounded intriguing to me when I read the premise, but critics have bashed it, so I'm uncertain. Although it does have J.J. Abrams involved, so I'm hoping.
Answer: I'll give you a top six: my three favorite new dramas and my three favorite new comedies (the latter is almost by default because there are so few of merit). Dramas, in no particular order: The Nine, Studio 60, Friday Night Lights. Comedies, in no particular order: 30 Rock, The Class, Ugly Betty. There are a handful of shows I'll be tracking that fall on a second tier, but I can tell you that Heroes and Jericho will not likely be among them. (I know that because I write this particular column on the Internet, I'm supposed to gush on and on about any show with an element of fantasy — call it the Comic-Con factor — but from what I've seen of Heroes, it strikes me as pretentious and fatally unfocused, while Jericho is such a preachy downer of a show, I can't imagine the audience for that one. It certainly isn't me.) As for Six Degrees: I was seriously underwhelmed by the pilot, and will be curious if J.J. has some tricks up his sleeve to bring these ponderous characters to life. The whole thing seemed awfully New York-is-the-center-of-the-universe for my taste. I live there, and even I was put off by it.
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