Fall shows show some promise

By Casey Gillis

Published: May 28, 2008

Every May, the major network’s upfront presentations always bring such a sense of hope and excitement.

The main purpose of the presentations is to introduce us to their new fall series, and it’s always fun to imagine how good — or bad — a show will turn out to be, sight unseen.

Last week, I weighed in on next fall’s new drama series. Now it’s the comedy and reality series’ turn, though they’re few and far between.

Several of them do sound promising, like CBS’s comedic drama The Ex List. Elizabeth Reaser, last seen as Alex’s doomed love Rebecca on “Grey’s Anatomy,” stars as a woman revisiting past loves after a psychic tells her she’s already dated her future hubby. I’m a sucker for a chick flick premise like this one, so I’ll probably be watching.

CBS has two more comedies on tap for the fall. Worst Week follows Sam, a successful magazine editor who always manages to embarrass himself or cause some kind of havoc in front of his girlfriend’s conservative parents. And their latest bit of news has him extra nervous: girlfriend Melanie is pregnant, and they’re planning a shotgun wedding. Adding insult to injury is that Kurtwood Smith, who perfected the disapproving parent-shtick as Red on “That ’70s Show,” plays Melanie’s pop. I’d be scared of him, too, Sam.

After going all dark on “Ghost Whisperer,” Jay Mohr gets back to his comedy roots in Project Gary, in which he plays a man trying to navigate life post-divorce. From the clip I saw, it just looks like your standard family sitcom. Nothing new here, folks.

The only other show that sounds appealing is NBC’s Kath & Kim, which is based on an Australian series of the same name. In what sounds like it could be “Gilmore Girls: The Later Years,” Molly Shannon and Selma Blair star as a dysfunctional mother/daughter duo who move in together when the daughter leaves her husband. Molly Shannon is such a gifted comedic actress, so this should be a good one.

The rest of the new series are Do Not Disturb, a workplace comedy about the management team behind one of New York’s hippest hotels; the ABC reality series Opportunity Knocks, in which a team travels around the country, randomly choosing families to play a game show on their front lawn; and Stylista, a Tyra Banks-produced reality show that follows 11 fashion-minded folks as they compete for a paid editorial position at Elle magazine, a paid lease on a Manhattan apartment and a one-year clothing allowance at H&M.

If that show makes it, I’m totally applying for season two.