Must See TV

The fall upfronts are complete and the new schedules are out. Here are my top five buzz building shows.

“Six Degrees”

(one-hour, ABC Thursday, 10:00 p.m., ET) – Who will you touch? Who will touch you? They say that anyone on the planet can be connected to any other person through a chain of six people, which means that no one is a stranger… for long. In this hour-long drama from the producers of “Lost” and “Alias,” six very different New Yorkers go about their lives without realizing the impact they're having on one another – yet. A mysterious web of coincidences will gradually draw these strangers closer, changing the course of their lives forever. Is it happenstance? Fate? Is there a greater force at work in our world, guiding us along and connecting our lives? This intriguing tale of intertwined destinies reminds us that romance, success, peace or forgiveness might be right around the corner, but they can also be lost in an instant. It’s a story that underlines just how small the world really is, and how someone just five people away might be shaping our future right now. Jay Hernandez (“Friday Night Lights”), Erika Christensen (“Flightplan”), Bridget Moynahan (“Sex and the City”), Dorian Missick (“Lucky Number Slevin”), Hope Davis (“About Schmidt”) and Campbell Scott (“The Secret Lives of Dentists”) star.Cast:Jay Hernandez (“Friday Night Lights”): CarlosBridget Moynahan (“I, Robot”): WhitneyHope Davis (“Proof”): LauraCampbell Scott (“Loverboy”): Steven CasemenDorian Missick (“Lucky Number Slevin”): DamianErika Christensen (“Traffic”): Mae AndersonCredits:EP: J.J. Abrams (“Lost,” “Alias”)EP: Bryan Burk (“Lost,” “Alias”)EP/Writer: Stu Zicherman (“Elektra”)EP/Writer: Raven Metzner (“Elektra”)Director: Rodrigo Garcia (“Six Feet Under”)Production Company: Touchstone Television


“Traveler”

(one-hour, ABC mid-season) – Jay, Tyler and Will are friends who have spent the last two years in grad school. They are about to depart on a summer trip when a simple prank to rollerblade through one of New York City's most famous museums makes Jay and Tyler prime suspects in a terrorist bombing that destroys the museum seconds later. Hopeful that Will can help clear up this misunderstanding, they learn he's been missing since the explosion and think he may be dead. They’re unable to turn to authorities when they realize they can't prove Will even exists. In every photo from the past two years, he has managed to block his face. Who will believe them? Friends, family, lovers? The boys are pawns in a conspiracy that will take years to unravel, and the government may not have their best interests at heart. Their friendship will be tested like never before as they try to uncover the truth, while avoiding detection of not only the FBI, but everyone in America who has seen their faces on TV as suspects in the bombing.Director David Nutter, who has defined many series including “The X-Files,” “Without a Trace” and “Supernatural,” along with the writer of “Eight Below” and the Oscar®-winning producers of “American Beauty” combine “The Fugitive” with “Enemy of the State” in a taut, tense thriller of innocents on the run. Flashing back to the prior two years to illustrate the formation of this friendship and Will's insidious behavior, this action-packed drama taps into our paranoia with pure adrenaline-fueled entertainment. Matthew Bomer (“Tru Calling”) and Logan Marshall-Green (“The O.C.”) star.Cast:Matthew Bomer (“Tru Calling”): Jay BurchellLogan Marshall-Green (“The O.C.”): Tyler FogAaron Stanford (“X-Men 2”): Will TravelerViola Davis (“Law & Order: SVU”): Agent Jan “Naj” MarlowSteven Culp (“Desperate Housewives”): Agent Fred ChambersCredits:EP: Dan Jinks (“American Beauty”)EP: Bruce Cohen (“American Beauty”)Writer: David Digilio (“Eight Below”)Production Company: Warner Bros. Television, The Jinks/Cohen Company

"HEROES"

(one hour NBC— The epic drama "Heroes" chronicles the lives of ordinary people who discover they possess extraordinary abilities. As a total eclipse casts it shadow across the globe, viewers follow a genetics professor (Sendhil Ramamurthy, "Blind Guy Driving") in India whose father's disappearance leads him to uncover a secret theory -- there are people with super powers living among us. A young dreamer (Milo Ventimiglia, "The Bedford Diaries") tries to convince his politician brother (Adrian Pasdar, "Judging Amy") that he can fly. A high school cheerleader (Hayden Panettiere, "Ice Princess") learns that she is totally indestructible. A Las Vegas stripper (Ali Larter, "Final Destination"), struggling to make ends meet to support her young son (Noah Gray-Cabey, "My Wife & Kids"), uncovers that her mirror image has a secret. A prison inmate (Leonard Roberts, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer") mysteriously finds himself waking up outside of his cell. A gifted artist (Santiago Cabrera, "Empire"), whose drug addiction is destroying his life and the relationship with his girlfriend (Tawny Cypress, "Third Watch"), can paint the future. A down-on-his-luck beat cop (Greg Grunberg, "Alias") can hear people's thoughts, including the secrets of a captured terrorist. In Japan, a young man (Masi Oka, "Scrubs") develops a way to stop time through sheer will power. Their ultimate destiny is nothing less than saving the world. "Heroes" is executive produced by creator/writer Tim Kring ("Crossing Jordan), Dennis Hammer ("Crossing Jordan") and David Semel ("House"), who also directed the pilot. The drama is from NBC Universal Television Studio.

"STUDIO 60 ON THE SUNSET STRIP"

( one hour, NBC)— Emmy Award-winning executive producer-writer Aaron Sorkin ("The West Wing") and Emmy Award-winning executive producer-director Thomas Schlamme ("The West Wing") return to television with this crackling take on the drama behind the humor of producing a popular, late-night comedy sketch show, "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip." Sorkin lays bare the backstage politics, romances and delicate balance between creative talent, on-air personalities and network executives in an instant text-messaging world. Prominent are Jordan McDeere (Amanda Peet, "Syriana"), a savvy new network entertainment chief who inherits a massive public relations disaster on the series — even before she starts her first day — and Matt Albie (Matthew Perry, "Friends") and Danny Tripp (Bradley Whitford, "The West Wing"), a brilliant creative team that she wants to resurrect the program. Also playing crucial roles are the sketch comedy series stars Harriet Hayes (Sarah Paulson, "Down with Love"), Simon Stiles (D.L. Hughley, "The Hughleys") and Tom Jeter (Nathan Corddry, "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"), their normally cool-headed director, Cal Shanley (Timothy Busfield, "thirtysomething") as well as supreme network honcho Jack Rudolph (Steven Weber, "Wings"). Evan Handler ("Sex and the City") and Carlos Jacott ("Being John Malkovich") also star. The series is a production of Warner Bros. Television.


‘TIL DEATH

(Thursdays, 8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT on FOX): ‘TIL DEATH is a comedy about middle-aged EDDIE (Brad Garrett, “Everybody Loves Raymond”) and JOY STAMM (Joely Fisher, “Desperate Housewives”), who are on day 8,743 of their marriage and have the battle scars to prove it. Their new next-door neighbors are young newlyweds STEPH (Kat Foster, “Law & Order”) and JEFF WOODCOCK (Eddie Kaye Thomas, “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle”) – idealistic, passionate, adorable and married for all of 12 days. It’s a show about new marriage versus old marriage, about keeping the romance alive – or at least staying together so you have someone to drive you to the hospital for your operations. Eddie is a cynical realist who considers himself an expert on most topics. A high school history teacher, he’s learned well the lessons of history and applies the basic principles to his marriage: all fights are about power, land and resources – and women love to kill fun. A veteran of the marriage wars, Eddie freely gives his advice to the younger, idealistic Jeff, who’s the new Vice Principal at Eddie’s school. Of course, Eddie’s little secret all along is that he loves Joy more than anything. And however brash and sardonic Joy herself appears, she loves Eddie right back.

CAST: Brad Garrett as Eddie, Joely Fisher as Joy, Eddie Kaye Thomas as Jeff, Kat Foster as Steph


It sucks that Traveler will not be on until later in the season. A few other promising shows are "Kidnapped" on NBC which is part 24 and part Da Vinci Code.
"Friday Night Lights" which is from the football movie starring Billy Bob.
"Vanished" on fox about a missing Senator's son. Conspiracy follows.