OPEN SEASON

[6.56 - French Time] Tonight is THE night. Fall US Network season officially starts with five new shows: one on Fox (Lone Star), two on NBC (The Event and Chase) and two on CBS (Mike & Molly and Hawaii Five-O).

- Lone Star (Fox) is another attempt to bring back the supersoap genre on network television. In May, Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly described Lone Star as "a modern Dallas set against the Texas oil industry". We'll see if it ends with such luminaries like Titans (2000) or Dirty Sexy Money (2007), or if it worths the beginning of a comparison with Dallas. On cable, TNT has ordered a pilot for an update of the latter. Please someone tell Hollywoodland the 1980s are over.

- On NBC, the new conspiracy thriller The Event follows renewed Chuck. The pick-up of another "high concept show" after the predictable demise of ABC's FlashForward remains a mystery stronger than the pitch of this hyped new drama. Even those who celebrated FlashForward as the Second Coming (i.e. the new Lost) are cautious on this one but apparently Fox has a new high concept project, helmed by Ryan Murphy and Howard Gordon. Please someone tell Hollywood the 1990s are over.

The Event is followed by Jerry Bruckheimer's Chase, about US marshals chasing fugitives.

- But tonight The Event is not the event... On CBS, new sitcom Mike & Molly will be followed by the heavily promoted (no pun intended) modern version of Hawaii Five-O. Alex O'Loughlin (Moonlight, Three Rivers) plays Steve McGarrett, a decorated Naval officer who returns to Oahu to investigate his father’s murder. He stays in Hawaii as a cop with his own task force.

The trailers show us basically an action-packed buddy movie, or Hawaiian Heat (a forgotten 1984 cop drama) with explosions and VFX - can they emulate Jerry Bruckeimer's movies every week? Scott Caan seems to steal the show as the new Danny Williams, which is rather embarassing because McGarrett was the epitome of charisma as played by Jack Lord in the original (1968-1980). Please someone tell... oh, whatever.

http://www.deadline.com/2010/09/fall-season-launch-overnights-ageism-and-the-big-fours-standings-going-in/
http://www.deadline.com/2010/09/fyi-fall-tv-premiere-dates/