New
TV Season Preview!
By
Elizabeth Hanes
The summer doldrums are almost over.
Soon, the kids will be back in school and the new television
viewing season will be upon us. You can expect to see new
programs debuting as early as September, while the season-openers
of our favorites will follow soon after --in February, 2002.
With
so much new drama, comedy, dramedy, and suspense about to
take over the airwaves, you can't possibly know which shows
will be worthwhile viewing. That's why we've done the hard
part for you! Here are reviews of the major new offerings
for the upcoming season.
NBC
They took us inside the emergency room with E.R.They
took us inside the White House with West Wing. Now,
NBC takes us inside the seedy, action-packed world of the
grocery store with: Aisle 4. Meet Jake Murdoch,
hunky manager and heir to the Pumpernickel FoodWay chain
of grocery stores. Feel the gut-churning tension as he calls
for a "wet clean-up on Aisle 4." See the bagger Billy, Jake's
nephew, make courtesy "deliveries" to certain female customers.
Shake your head at the off-color antics of Dolly, the delicatessen
manager, who routinely undercharges good-looking men. Hold
your breath when Jake's wife, Sarah, announces over the
store intercom that a customer needs assistance in the personal
healthcare aisle. This gripping drama surely is "must-see
TV" at its best!
ABC
Searching
desperately for a hit, and anxious to cash in on the reality
TV craze, Disney-owned ABC has developed a surefire winner:
The World of Diamond Slim. In this wild, Seussian
program, a tiny video camera is attached to the collar of
Michael Eisner's painfully thin (but avowedly not anorexic)
cat, Diamond Slim. Where she goes, you go! And, as it turns
out, Mr. Eisner's neighbors were right: his cat goes constantly
in their flowerbed. William Shatner narrates the program,
reading his own Dr. Seuss-inspired verse. One scene, for
example, presents Slim peering up at a bird in Eisner's
oak tree, while Shatner intones: "What's this I see, what
can it be / Soon I'll scoot right up your tree / Then a
featherless bird you'll be!" You'll thrill to such family-oriented
entertainment as Diamond Slim sleeping the day away under
Mr. Eisner's desk. Slim upchucking a hairball on Mr. Eisner's
plush bathroom carpeting. Slim getting vaccinated at the
vet. Slim getting frisky with the tomcat next door. Yes,
ABC finally has a major hit on its hands. Don't miss this
one!
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CBS
PBS
©
2001 Elizabeth Hanes
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