TV Watch: Pilot Season (I)

The new TV season is upon us at long last (whoo-hoooo!)!!! Here are some of the pilot episodes of new telly shows I've seen so far!

Based on the book and the movie (and also a musical), Eastwick is the story of three women who become witches in their charming little town.. and then get seduced by a mysterious stranger into using their powers for good — or evil. Charmed-like and whimsical, this show has received mixed reviews, but I like it, and I think I'll follow it as long as it lasts.

Courtney Cox is back into comedy and is in top (albeit more mature) form in Cougar Town. She takes on the risque role of a mother in her 40s who is trying to get back into the world of relationships and sex as she takes on a younger lover and tries not to embarrass her teenage son. I quite liked the pilot and will see where the next few episodes take us.

A smart-ass but likeable lawyer finds out his law degree is a fake and has to go to Community college, where he sets up a fake study group to meet a girl he fancies. However, a ragtag bunch of misfits — including comedy vet Chevy Chase — decide to join the study group, too... and hilarity ensues. It's quirky, sharp and smartly written, so I'm liking it!

Jenna Elfman and Ashley Jensen are two of the stars of this half-hour laugh-track sitcom, Accidentally On Purpose, about a film critic who's involved with her boss, and then gets knocked up by a younger man who decides to remain part of her life. Critically panned, I was surprised that I actually liked the pilot, enough for me to at least watch, even if not faithfully, the remaining episodes that would make it to air.

The story of three families — an old man with a hot young wife and young child; a regular family with three kids; and a gay couple with an adopted Vietnamese baby — Modern Family is a sitcom that has been hailed as the best of the new TV shows launching this season. Yet I didn't think it was that great, and wasn't nearly entertained enough to decide if I like it. I guess a few more episodes will tell. But maybe it's the mockumentary style, used increasingly in tv shows these days, that's putting me off. Still, ten thousand tv critics can't be wrong, right? Right...?