CW Pilots 2011 (Buffy!)

Oh, sweet, adorable CW. I give you a hard time, but when it comes to pilot season, you bring me nothing but joy. Is that because the shows you select are invariably kickass? Goodness no. I think we all remember Hellcats. But in terms of managing the volume of new shows, I can always count on you to have hardly any at all. Most seasons it's only two. This season, I see you've branched out to three. One small step forward to real networkdom.

Here's the fall schedule (newbs in all caps, Eastern Time):

MONDAY
8 pm Gossip Girl [new time slot]
9 pm HART OF DIXIE

TUESDAY
8 pm 90210 [new time slot]
9 pm RINGER

WEDNESDAY
8 pm H8R
9 pm America’s Next Top Model

THURSDAY
8 pm The Vampire Diaries
9 pm THE SECRET CIRCLE

FRIDAY
8 pm Nikita [new time slot]
9 pm Supernatural

Just look at that. No Sunday. No third hour of primetime. Easy breezy. I could ramble on about what the network needs to do to be a real threat in the industry, but it ain't gonna happen, so I'll save my breath... or typing. Long story short, they're getting their asses handed to them by ABC Family. Why, you ask? Is it because the shows are better? Hell no. I think it boils down to the fact that ABC Family can advertise on all of ABC's other networks, whereas the CW has a more limited pool. You'd think Warner Brothers would have more pull and exposure, but honestly, I see ads for ABC Family all over the place and the CW almost nowhere. Anyway, here's the latest in the CW's desperate attempt to keep their heads above water.

RINGER

Description: Stars Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Kristoffer Polaha (Life Unexpected), Ioan Gruffudd (Fantastic Four), Nestor Carbonell (Lost), and others. Eric Carmelo and Nicole Snyder (Supernatural) will executive-produce the project.



First Impressions: Buffy! That's right, folks. Sarah Michelle Gellar is finally returning to television. Probably not on the network she had in mind ("I've been behhrnt by you before!"), but a return nonetheless. Word is, CBS was considering picking up the show, but opted out. This is far and away the most mature, off-brand show the CW has ever had. Rather than a teeny-bopper fantasy or a supernatural genre piece, this looks to be a surprisingly adult drama. The promo above doesn't really do it justice methinks. I've seen a couple of clips of the show and the trailer doesn't do much to explain the premise. From what I've seen, I'm very excited and intrigued. Buffy plays identical twins, which always leads to certain problems, but it looks like they'll be pulling it off well. Hopefully it'll be as astounding as Nina Dobrev's turn as Elena and Katherine. Honestly, when Katherine first appeared on the scene, I was a bit worried that it would feel like The Parent Trap or something, but Dobrev does a wonderful job. I never have to wonder who I'm looking at, unless of course that's part of the plan. Anyway, this looks to break out of the CW's mold which is wonderful, but also problematic. Are junior high schoolers who drool over 90210 really going to stick around for a serious psychological drama? I have my doubts. The real saving grace will be if the Whedonverse turns out in droves. That legion may be tiny, but it's dedicated. Plus, what meager numbers they put up would be cancel-worthy on another network, but on the CW? They'll probably fit right in. This looks like an interesting concept with a great cast. If they can pull off the ins and outs of twins, it should be a winner. "Numfar do the dance of joy!"


THE SECRET CIRCLE

Description: Stars Britt Robertson (Life Unexpected), Thomas Dekker (Heroes), Gale Harold (Queer as Folk), Phoebe Tonkin as Fay Chamberlain, Jessica Parker Kennedy as Melissa, Shelley Hennig as Diana Meade, Louis Hunter as Nick, Ashley Crow as Jane Blake and Natasha Henstridge as Dawn Chamberlain. From executive producers Kevin Williamson (“The Vampire Diaries,” “Scream,” “Dawson’s Creek”), Andrew Miller (“Imaginary Bitches”), Leslie Morgenstein (“The Vampire Diaries,” “Gossip Girl”) and Gina Girolamo.



First Impressions: Okay, peeps, seriously mixed feelings about this one. One the one hand, it's from Vampire Diaries genius Kevin Williamson. On the other hand, it's from Vampire Diaries genius Kevin Williamson. You see, it's always lovely when you come across a show from someone you love, but when that someone is currently working on something else, it's bittersweet. More often than not, the showrunner in question gets spread a little thin and one or both of the projects suffer as a result. I'm hoping to hell that's not the case here, but I'm cautious. Another bone of contention is that this stars that obnoxious brat from Life Unexpected. Ugh. Not a good sign. The cast in general leads to some concerns, but along with the wild cards are some solid players. Um, Brian Kinney? Yes, please. In terms of concept, the whole, "person discovers he or she (usually she) has powers" is entirely overdone, but if anyone could pull it off, it's Williamson. The book series that this show is based on is from the same author as TVD. From what I've heard from readers, the series is rather divergent than the books. As Secret Circle starts off, I'm guessing it'll be pretty true to the source, but as with TVD, I'm guessing it blazes its own path. This show has a definite The Craft vibe to it that I'm not sure does it any favors, but it also has a rather Harry Potter-ish generational storyline that I'm intrigued by. I like that the parents all have a history together at the same time that their kids are building their own history. I can't say it'll be a home run, but I'll definitely be tuning in. Be forewarned, if it's anything like TVD (and it should be), it may start of slow and vaguely juvenile, but that's probably not where it'll end up.


HART OF DIXIE

Description: Stars Rachel Bilson (The OC), Scott Porter (FNL, The Good Wife), Jaime King, Wilson Bethel, and Cress Williams. From executive producers Leila Gerstein (“Gossip Girl,” “Eli Stone”), Josh Schwartz (“Gossip Girl,” “Chuck,” “The O.C.”), Stephanie Savage (“Gossip Girl,” “The O.C.”), Len Goldstein and Jason Ensler (“Gossip Girl,” “Chuck”).







First Impressions: Well, first off, we have the major problem of believing for even one iddy biddy second that Rachel Bilson is a surgeon. I like Bilson a lot, but no. Then there's the problem of the voice-over. Hopefully that's short-lived. Beyond all that, we have the concept. Sigh. Look, I'm a huge fan of the Schwartz/Savage pairing, but this just feels incredibly old hat. And not even a very good hat. The whole fish out of water, city slicker moves to a small town has been done way too many times to seem fresh. That said, I loved Everwood... I'm doubting Hart of Dixie will rise to that level, but I'm trying to keep an open mind. It'll be nice to see Jason Street back in action (what with his recent stint on The Good Wife making me want to beat him to death with Kalinda's bat), but I can't say he's my favorite actor. Jaime King actually seems to be the most at home with the show so far, but will predictably bring the evil harpy dressed in chiffon to fruition. In case I'm being too subtle, of the CW's offerings, this one has me the least excited. I'm holding onto hope that the creative team is one that I love and that even if this doesn't look great on the surface, it will likely have a quirky humor to it that I can appreciate. I'll certainly give it a shot, but on paper, it's just not my cup of tea. Here's hoping it's better in execution than conception.