**New Shows**
“Two Broke Girls,” CBS: Oh, look, another CBS comedy with a laugh-track, oh great… But what’s that? You said it’s co-created by Whitney Cummings? And stars Kat Dennings? Oh, man, am I actually going to end up watching this show? I have to, right? Right? Well, that’s about what my brain did once I read the synopsis of “Two Broke Girls.” It’s a pretty typical comedy premise: Witty, everyday girl suddenly has to work and live with a-used-to-be rich brat, but the fact that Whitney Cummings and Kat Dennings are working together might actually give the show a bit of a bite, at least enough for me to check out the premiere.
_Premieres: Sept. 19_
“American Horror Story,” FX: I have a strong, general distaste for “Glee,” but I’ve got to give the show credit for carving out an old-failed niche of musical T.V. shows (“Cop Rock”) and actually making it a complete smash-hit. So when the show’s creator Ryan Murphy announced that he’s returning to his FX roots to co-create a continuing horror series that ISN’T an anthology, he had me genuinely hopeful he might actually be able to pull off a horror series that works. And when the show released its creepily bizarre teaser and described the show as psychosexual thriller, I was sold (because that sounds like an actual horror story that could work, not that the word psychosexual makes me want to watch a show). Also, “American Horror Story” is a pretty cool title.
_Premieres: Oct. 5_
“Person of Interest,” CBS: In an intensely monitored, post-9/11 world, you can know everything about everyone, well, as long as you’ve got a genius to monitor crazy tech (Michael Emerson from “Lost”) and a former CIA agent (James Caviezl aka Jesus Christ in “The Passion of the Christ”) to back up its findings to prevent crime. So brings the latest concept from T.V. wunderkind J.J. Abrams (“Lost,” “Fringe”) and “Dark Knight” co-scribe Jonathon Nolan (Christopher Nolan’s brother). With all the star power lurking in this show —- even though the show just looks okay right now —- it’s got the potential to really turn into something special. At least CBS finally got a whack at a J.J Abrams show!
_Premieres: Sept. 22_
**Returning Shows (which goes completely dominated by NBC’s Comedy Block)**
“Community,” NBC: Really, the only thing you need to know about this season is Omar Little (Michael K. Williams) from “The Wire” has joined as a biology professor. But in case that means nothing, consider this: “Community,” the NBC comedy-block underdog that so desperately deserves your attention, has something for everyone: Romance! Movie references! Joel McHale! More (good) jokes per second than any show ever! T.V. references! Troy and Abed in the morning! Paintball episodes! Christmas claymation special! Basically, it’s the most innovative and original comedy show on TV right now. So watch it already, damn it!
_Premieres: Sept. 19_
“Parks and Recreation,” NBC: “Parks and Recreation” is like that nerd in high school that blossoms into some one-in-million woman who ends up marrying the state senator, and it’s been a wonderful ride seeing “Parks and Rec” transform from what looked like an “Office” knock-off into TV’s greatest workplace comedy. And with Leslie Knope’s political career, her relationship with Ben and Tammy 1 (Patricia Clarkson!) all up in the air, it looks like one of the strongest returns of any show this season.
_Premieres: Sept. 19_
“The Office,” NBC: I stopped watching “The Office” around season 3, and while that’s pretty much blasphemy to everyone everywhere, NBC has managed to re-peak my interest in the middle class classic by ways of being on the tightest of tight ropes: What the hell are they going to do without show-maker Michael Scott? Well, they’ve got James Spader showing up as the new CEO of Dunder Mifflin and the still unanswered question of which series regular will take over as the big boss. But will that be enough to maintain the show? Well, they’ve got me planning on watching it again, so I guess for now it is.
_Premieres: Sept. 19_
**Bonus Section! Best Summer Show**
“Louie,” FX: Oh man, just watch the reruns online.