Monday

• Cycling (Vs, 5:30am and various) - The Tour de Lance continues, you can catch stage 3 and keep watching all week at almost all hours of the day with Phil, Paul, Bob and Craig taking us along for the ride. 
• The Great Debate (VH1, 10pm) – A week long look at things like J.Lo vs Beyonce.

Tuesday

• 10 Things I Hate About You (ABCFam, 8pm) Series Premiere – Based on the ‘99 movie, the wannabe popular sister and the wannabe serious sister deal with school and boys and dear old dad.
• The Great American Road Trip (NBC, 8pm) Series Premiere – Families in challenges across America.
• Warehouse 13 (SciFi, 9pm) Series Premiere – The latest collection of weird brings a new male female partner team, this time Secret Service, to a warehouse…
• That’s Impossible (Hist, 10pm) Series Premiere – Invisibility, yes or no?

Wednesday

• Ghost Hunters International (SciFi, 9pm) Season Premiere – It’s like Ghost Hunters but it’s International.

Thursday

• Big Brother (CBS, 8pm) Season Premiere – It’s back, season 11 of people trapped in a house.
• LA Ink (TLC, 10pm) Season Premiere - Returning from a book tour to a busy shop…

Friday

• Eureka (SciFi, 9pm) Season Premiere – Silly but fun, will the fired sheriff stay away from this isolated town of genius’s their inventions and their calamitous disasters.

Saturday

• Eli Stone (ABC, 10pm) Series Finale – I’ve been tivo’ing the return of this series but have yet to tune back in, as I recall I enjoyed it.

Sunday

• Drop Dead Diva (Life, 9pm) Series Premiere – A dead model gets dropped into a ‘plus-size’ lawyer’s body, and I’m sure she’ll grow as a person.
• I Survived… (Bio, 9pm) Season Premiere – I believe these are reenactments.
• Entourage (HBO, 10:30pm) Season Premiere – The boys are back, I think I watched season one through netflix and it was funny then, season six who knows.

Monday 

• 8pm: NBC – Chuck (CBS – The Big Bang Theory/How I Met Your Mother) (CW – Gossip Girl)
• 9pm: NBC – Heroes (CBS – 2 1/2 Men/ABC – Samantha Who?)

Tuesday

• 8pm: Fox – House
• 9pm: CBS – The Mentalist (CW – Privileged)
• 10pm: NBC – Eli Stone (NBC – L&O: SVU)

Wednesday 

• 8pm: Fox - Bones (ABC – Pushing Daisies) (CBS – The New Adventures of Old Christine/Gary Unmarried)
• 9pm: NBC – Life
• 10pm: ABC – Dirty Sexy Money (NBC – L&O)

Thursday

• 8pm: NBC - My Name is Earl
• 9pm: NBC – The Office/30 Rock (ABC - Grey’s Anatomy)
• 10pm: ABC – Life on Mars

Friday 

• 9pm: CBS – The Ex List (CW – ANTM encore)
• 10pm: CBS - Numb3rs

Saturday

• Nothing

Sunday

• 9pm: CW – Easy Money

But wait there’s more… known midseason and cable picks: Breaking Bad (AMC), Burn Notice (USA), Celebrity Rehab (VH1), The Closer (TNT), Dexter (Show), Eureka (SciFi), Flight of the Conchords (HBO), Greek (Fam), Lost (ABC), Project Runway (Bravo), Reaper (CW), Saving Grace (TNT), Scrubs (ABC), Sons of Anarchy (FX).

Monday

• Little People, Big World (TLC, 8pm) Season Premiere – I think we’re following a family.
• Samantha Who? (ABC, 9:30pm) Season Premiere – This Applegate amnesiac show amused me last year.
• My Own Worst Enemy (NBC, 10pm) Series Premiere – Christian Slater is a spy with an average guy split personality as his alter ego.

Tuesday

• The Cleaner (A&E, 10pm) Season Finale – I didn’t love this Benjamin Bratt gets druggies clean show.
• Eli Stone (ABC, 10pm) Season Premiere – I’m assuming Eli survives his brain surgery and still has those wacky visions.
• Iditarod (Disc, 10pm) Series Premiere – This reality show follows the ‘toughest race on earth’.
• The Rachel Zoe Project (Bravo, 10pm) Season Finale – Annoying people at work and some pretty clothes.

Wednesday

• Presidential Debate (Various, 6pm/pst 9pm/est) – They’re back.
• Time Warp (Disc, 8/8:30pm) Series Premiere - Looking at things like movement too fast for the human eye and juggling.
• Project Runway (Brav, 9pm) Season Finale – I am so behind on this I can expect to find out who won before I get caught up.
• Parking Wars (A&E, 10/10:30pm) Series Premiere – I think this is like your worst parking moments caught on tape.
• Prototype This (Disc, 10pm) Series Premiere – Can a car be designed that eliminates road rage?
• Chocolate News (Com, 10:30pm) Series Premiere – This sketch show has David Alan Grier giving his take on current events.

Thursday

• International X-Games (ESPN2, 8pm) – Do the boards flip the same way in mexico?

Friday

• Crusoe (NBC, 8pm) Series Premiere – Crusoe crashes on an island and faces danger… more Gilligan or Lost?
• Real Simple, Real Life (TLC, 8pm) Series Premiere – A team of experts help simplify a person’s life.
• Crash (Starz, 10pm) Series Premiere – The film comes to tv with Dennis Hopper as one of the ensemble.

Saturday

• Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling (CMT, 8pm) Series Premiere – Ten ‘celebrities’ like Danny Bonaduce compete to be the top celebrity wrestler.

Sunday

• Action Sports (NBC, Sat/Sun 1pm/pst, also on USA and Spike) The Playstation Pro in Orando will give you another chance to catch people doing the near impossible on boards, bikes, and more.

• America’s Next Top Model (CW, Wed 9/3 ) – Yes Tyra is annoying but it’s not really about her, it’s about the annoying wannabe models and this year they promise a transgender contestant.
• Big Bang Theory (CBS, Mon 9/22) – I don’t love this show but Sheldon makes me laugh enough, and Darlene is joining her Roseanne boyfriend as a regular this season.
• Brothers & Sisters (ABC, Sun, 9/28) – I almost don’t even like this show but I can’t help but tune in to see what mess the Walker family is getting into and this season we should see the real illegitimate half sibling.
• Criminal Minds (CBS, Wed 9/24) – I usually actually only catch this special FBi unit cathing the brutal serial killer of the week show in repeats.
• Eli Stone (ABC, Tues 10/14) – This quirky guy with visions that may be leading him along won me over, but did we really leave him in a coma after an operation?
• Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, Thurs 9/25) – Yes Grey herself is totally annoying but maybe as she theoretically sticks with McDreamy this season we can focus on the rest of the good supporting cast.
• House (Fox, Tues 9/16) – Last year’s shakeup to cranky House’s team gave him some new fodder, though they didn’t find a good balance yet of old and new, and what of best bro after his girlie’s death?
• How I Met Your Mother (CBS, Mon 9/22) – This show still has a lot of hilarity, though I don’t care how he met the mother, or whether it is or isn’t Sarah Chalke.
• Law & Order (NBC, midseason) – I dropped this for a few years but found myself tuning back in this last season as the current ensemble seems to be working.
• Law & Order: SVU (NBC, Tues 9/23) – I know this show is all about Stabler and Benson but I don’t love them, though I keep tuning in, this is the one with the sex crime slant.
• Life (NBC, Mon 9/29) – This detective back on the force after being falsely accused amused and interested with his oddball antics though not so much on the conspiracy of his conviction.
• Lost (ABC, midseason) – Well I loved the start of last season but at the end of the day was a little underwhelmed by the Oceanic 6 getting off and having to go back, this season starts a new chapter, I’m very curious and definitely still in.
• My Name is Earl (NBC, Thurs 9/25) – I am still amused enough by Earl and his trashy family getting his karma back in line, though bored by the coma version of Earl and the normally likable Alyssa Milano.
• The New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS, Wed 9/24) – I still think this is a great role for Dreyfus to do broad funny as an crazy and awkward single mom with her misfit family.
• Numbers (CBS, Fri 10/3) – This isn’t a great procedural but the interplay between FBI and math genius brothers solving cases works, though math brother just lost his credentials, whatever will they do.
• Reaper (CW, midseason) – This show started strong last season and almost lost me with its capture of the week but the devil’s bounty hunter and friends found a new rhythm by introducing some additional intrigue, and the devil is fantastic.
• Samantha Who? (ABC, Mon 10/6) – Applegate is winning as her post amnesia persona tries to marry her old bad ways with her new clean slate.
• Scrubs (ABC, midseason) – I was surprised by the network move though I think this show has a great cast and good balance of silly fun, though we’ll see how well they transition to the predicted new young cast additions.
• Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles (Fox, Mon 9/8) – This show grew on me as the cast and intrigue were better developed while Sarah and her son John try to change the future by jumping years with the help of hot chick terminator Summer Glau.
• Two and a Half Men (CBS, Mon 9/22) – This show’s lost its edge a bit for me as the brothers work their odd couple dynamic with lazy kid getting less cute as he grows up, but there are still some good laughs.

And before you ask, current cable faves include: Battlestar Galactica (behind but catching on dvd), Breaking Bad, Burn Notice, The Closer, Dexter (dvd), Eureka, Flight of the Conchords, Greek, Project Runway, The Riches (yet to be renewed), and Saving Grace.

ABC

New:

• Life on Mars – David E Kelley’s version of BBC series where cop transports back to 1970s
• Opportunity Knocks – Game show where they knock on your door, or something

Returning: 20/20, America’s Funniest Home Videos, Boston Legal (final season), Brothers & Sisters, Eli Stone, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Dancing with the Stars, Desperate Housewives, Dirty Sexy Money, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Pushing Daisies, Samantha Who?, Supernanny, Ugly Betty, Wife Swap
Midseason returns: According to Jim, The Bachelor, Lost, Scrubs (New from NBC)
Noteworthy not returning: Men in Trees, Miss Guided, October Road, Women’s Murder Club

CBS

New:

• Eleventh Hour – Jerry Bruckheimer’s latest, adapting from the british 4 part sci fi series dealing with mysterious cases
• The Ex List – This one is based on an Israeli show where a psychic tells a woman she has already met her true love and so she revisits the exes
• The Mentalist – Simon Baker uses his powers of observation to solve crimes
• Project Gary – Comedy starring Jay Mohr as a recent divorce, and contractor which might explain the ‘project’ part
• Worst Week – This comedy of newly engaged couple is another BBC show made over american style

Returning: 48 Hours, 60 Minutes, Amazing Race, Big Bang Theory, Cold Case, Criminal Minds, CSI, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Ghost Whisperer, How I Met Your Mother, NCIS, New Adventures of Old Christine, Numb3rs, Survivor, Two and a Half Men, The Unit, Without a Trace
Midseason returns: Rules of Engagement
Noteworthy not returning: Moonlight, Shark

CW

New:

• 90210 – The next generation, as a new brother and sister move and start at West Beverly High, including pop bys by Jennie Garth as Guidance Counselor
• Surviving the Filthy Rich – With Reba’s JoAnna Garcia as nanny to rich kids, based on a book series
• Stylista – New reality from Tyra Banks where folks compete to work at Elle

Noteworthy note: Contracting out Sunday nights to production finance company Media Rights Capital who will be responsible for two dramas and two comedies and selling the ad time.

• FAT City, IM Valentine, Book of Murphy, Surviving Suburbia

Returning: ANTM, Everybody Hates Chris, The Game, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, Smallville, Supernatural
Midseason return: Reaper
Noteworthy not returning: Aliens in America, Girlfriends, New Amsterdam

Fox

New:

• Fringe – JJ Abrams latest starring Joshua Jackson teaming up to investigate unexplained phenomena, I wanna say like the x-files
• Do Not Disturb – Comedy starring Jerry O’Connell working at one of NY’s uber hip hotels

Returning: American Dad, America’s Most Wanted, Bones, Cops, Don’t Forget the Lyrics, Family Guy, House, King of the Hill, Kitchen Nightmares, Moment of Truth, Prison Break, Simpsons, Smarter than a 5th Grader, Terminator, Til Death
Midseason return: 24, American Idol, Hell’s Kitchen.
Noteworthy not returning: Back to You

NBC

New:

• Crusoe – As in Robinson…
• Kath & Kim – Molly Shannon and Selma Blair in remake of Australian sitcom about mother and daughter living together again
• Knight Rider – If you caught the ‘hit’ tv movie you’re familiar with this remake
• My Own Worst Enemy – Christian Slater as a gov agent/normal guy whose two lives start to blur
• Thursday Night Live – Special SNL shows leading up to the elections

Returning: The Biggest Loser, Chuck, Dateline, Deal or No Deal, Heroes, E.R. (final season), L&O:SVU, Life, Lipstick Jungle, My Name is Earl, The Office, 30 Rock
Midseason returning: Friday Night Lights, L&O, Medium
Noteworthy not returning: Bionic Woman, Journeyman, Las Vegas

Additional Notes:

Tons of new shows scheduled for after fall, but we’ll chime in later once those become more solid, other than the fact that I should note there’s an Office spinoff scheduled as well as the new Joss Whedon show Dollhouse with Eliza Dushku, scheduled for midseason. I miss the Grr Arg.

And if you want to see the current stab at the schedule you can check it out at TV Guide.

• NCAA Men’s Championship (CBS, 9pm) – Didn’t we already talk about this, I think this is really it, if not I won’t talk about it again anyhow.
• Samantha Who? (ABC, 9:30pm) - Post strike premiere as Samantha has to move back in with her ex, and his new gal, to keep her apartment.

Tuesday

• NCIS (CBS, 8pm) – Post season strike premiere as they show, secrets, and stakeouts, and murder.
• Just for Laugh (ABC, 8/8:30pm) Season Finale – I don’t think I’ve ever watched this real world prank/gag show.
• The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo (HBO, 10pm) – Rape survivor makes a documentary on victims and rapists.
• Secret Talents of the Stars (CBS, 10pm) – Sixteen ‘celebrities’ compete with secret talents.
• Boston Legal (ABC, 10pm) – Post strike premiere as they continue to mix crazies and the law.

Wednesday

• Idol Gives Back (Fox, 7:30pm) – The celebrities and the idol gang gives back by making you want to give money.

Thursday

• American Idol (Fox, 8pm) – Special Night as another one of the gang gets the boot, Kristy Lee Cook anyone?
• 30 Rock/The Office/Scrubs/ER (NBC, 8:30-11pm) Post strike premieres, what are you looking forward to most, I’d say 30 Rock.

Friday

• The Sarah Jane Adventures (SciFi, 7:30pm) - This is a Dr Who spin-off reportedly for kids as our title character is a social worker for aliens.
• Miss USA (NBC, 9pm) – Donny and Marie host so it’s gotta be good.

Saturday

• The Memory Keeper’s Daughter (Life, 9pm) – This adaptation of the bestseller is fleshed out with Dermot Mulroney, Gretchen Mol, and Emily Watson.

Sunday

• Desperate Housewives (ABC, 9pm) – Post strike premiere as the women of Wisteria Lane continue being desperate.
• Rock of Love (VH1, 9pm) Season Finale – Brett chooses his lady from the latest stripperesque bunch.
• Dirt (FX, 10pm) Season Finale – Courtney continues to deal with tabloids and personal drama.
• Eli Stone (ABC, 10pm) – Special night as Eli continues with visions of the earthquake.

• State of the Union (6/9pm est/pst, Check Your Local Listings) – We don’t have to listen to him for much longer.
• In Treatment (HBO, 9:30pm) Series Premiere – Gabriel Byrne is a therapist with of course a ton of issues of his own in this 5 night a week show, man, 5 nights a week?
• Gossip Girl (CW, 8pm) – A special presentation of the pilot with additional behind the scenes and interview footage.
• Making the Band (MTV, 10pm) Season Premiere – Hmm, so I read that this is the 11th season, then I read that this was Making the Band 4, maybe they stopped making new bands? I remember watching the first season on network tv with the making of OTown but haven’t watched since.

Tuesday

• Baghdad Hospital: Inside the Red Zone (HBO, 8:30pm) – A close look at life in Baghdad by an Iraqi doctor who has since fled the country.
• House (Fox, 9pm) – It’s new, they try to diagnose someone… should still be two more after this.

Wednesday

• Lost (ABC, 9pm) - Last season’s finale with extra facts and tidbits to get you caught up.
• Crowned: The Mother of All Pageants (CW, 8pm) Season Finale – I don’t know what they win, but one team will win.
• American Ballroom Challenge (PBS, 8pm) – And they dance….

Thursday

• Lost (ABC, 8/9pm) Season Premiere – It’s baaack, and they really want you to know what’s going on so the recap espisode at 8 should tell us all we need to know to get sucked in yet again… they better settle this strike.
• Eli Stone (ABC, 10pm) Series Premiere – Is this lawyer a prophet, a sick man, or a nut job? No matter what his life is going to change.

Friday

• 1 vs. 100, Friday Night Lights, Las Vegas (NBC, 8/9/10) – They’re new…
• Dinner for Five (IFC, 10:30) – Jon Favreau welcomes guests Vince Vaughn, Peter Billingsley, Justin Long and Keir O’Donnell.

Saturday

• Trading Spaces (TLC, 9pm) - This episode is the first in its regular timeslot, we had the first ep of the season last week, and we were all excited to have Paige back holding the reigns again.

Sunday

• Suberbowl XLII (Fox, 3pm/pst ) – This might be the only occasion that we use roman numerals.
• House (Fox, 7:15?) – In the coveted after superbowl spot Mira Sorvino gets some remote diagnosis.
• Life is Wild (CW, 8pm) Season Finale – I guess you could find out how the wild is treating this family.