It’s that time of year when the networks announce which delights they will be treating us to over the coming months. We’ve trawled through the good, the bad and the very ugly to present Dreamwatch Total Sci Fi’s guide to the new shows of 2007…Words: Paul Simpson

THE BIONIC WOMAN (US: NBC; UK: ITV1)

Another ‘reimagining’ from David Eick, one of the team responsible for the new Battlestar Galactica. San Francisco bartender Jaime Sommers (EastEnders’ Michelle Ryan) has a difficult life, looking after her 15-year-old deaf sister, discovering she’s pregnant and learning that her scientist boyfriend Will (Chris Bowers) is moving to Paris.

That’s before the car accident which leaves her without legs, one arm, an eye and an ear. Luckily her boyfriend works at Wolf Creek, and is able to get her state-of-the-art bionic replacements, complete with ‘superhealing’ enthrocytes. But there’s a price to pay for her new life and while she decides whether she’s willing to go along with it, her predecessor in the bionics program (Battlestar Galactica’s Katee Sackhoff) is out for her blood.

The new Jaime combines the old Steve Austin and Jaime Sommers’ abilities, and this pilot goes back to the serious roots of Martin Caidin’s 1972 novel Cyborg that set the whole bionic palaver off. Ryan’s a revelation, and Mark Sheppard (playing Will’s estranged loony father) and Katee Sackhoff are clearly enjoying themselves. There’s a bit too much crammed into the hour but unlike some pilots, you come away wanting to know more about the characters.

PUSHING DAISIES (US: ABC; UK: ITV1)

Bryan Fuller, riding high from Heroes, and Men in Black’s Barry Sonnenfeld team up for a very unusual take on resurrection. Described as ‘quirky heartwarming fun’, this follows pie-maker Ned (Lee Pace) who discovered as a child that he had the ability to bring things back to life with a touch. Unfortunately if he touches them a second time, they die.

His gift is helpful when making delicious apple desserts, but even more so in murder investigations, when the corpses can name their killer and then be returned to death. Ned even brings his childhood sweetheart Chuck (Anna Friel) back to life, but then they have to spend their lives never quite touching.

Shot in wonderful pastel colours, with the air of a lighter Tim Burton-esque world, Pushing Daisies will appeal to fans of Dead Like Me, another Fuller creation. ABC are promoting it as a forensic fairytale, so it’ll be interesting to see whether the show focuses more on the soap opera elements of Ned and Chuck’s relationship, or the potential CSI route. Like all fairytales, it could very easily become cloying, although the pilot demonstrates a strain of black humour that may well become Pushing Daisies’ saving grace.

REAPER (US: The CW; UK: Channel 4)

Kevin Smith’s the one behind this twist on the idea of a human agent for the devil collecting souls. “Sam, I’m not a carjacker – I’m the devil,” Old Nick explains, as slacker 21-year-old Sam (Brett Harrison) finally begins to understand why his parents have basically let him live a life of luxury and laziness for the whole of his life. They sold his soul to the devil… literally.

While some of his friends think it’s cool (“you lucky bastard!”), Sam isn’t so sure. Armed with an infernally-produced dustbuster, he attempts to collect the souls, but they don’t come easily…

Packed full of pop culture references, and a load of sardonic put-downs from the Devil, this is nothing new, but a lot of fun. Previous Devil series Brimstone was relentlessly depressing, despite John Glover’s presence, but by centering the series around a group of losers, we’re more in Ghostbusters territory this time around.

There’s an obvious influence from Buffy as well, but elements are closer to the movie version, with airheads battling demons, than the witty TV show. 24’s Ray Wise gets the best lines as the Devil, and this could be the hit of the season.

JOURNEYMAN (US: NBC; UK: Sky One)

The West Wing’s Kevin Falls and Alex Graves present a hybrid of Quantum Leap and Tru Calling in this new time travel series. “They say you can’t live in the past,” hype the network, “but Dan Vasser does that and more.”

Newspaperman Vasser (Kevin McKidd) attempts to understand what is happening when he finds himself catapulted back in time (before arriving back in 2007). Unsurprisingly his wife and friends don’t believe him, and suspect that he’s substance abusing; but Vasser is certain that he keeps being sent back for a purpose…

One major criticism of Quantum Leap was the seemingly random locations in which Sam Beckett appeared. By bringing Vasser back home regularly, Journeyman grounds its lead far more identifiably, much as new Doctor Who has consistently kept one foot on 21st Century Earth. Whether there’s someone playing the Jason Priestly role from Tru Calling, trying to prevent Vasser from succeeding in whatever his quest turns out to be, remains to be seen, but there’s enough mystery and intrigue in the premise to keep viewers watching.

MOONLIGHT (US: CBS; UK: TBC)

The Matrix and Lethal Weapon trilogies’ Joel Silver is the guiding force behind this resurrection of Forever Knight under a new name. “Being a vampire sucks,” Mick St. John says. “Bad joke, but it’s the truth.”

St. John (Alex O’Loughlin) is a vampire private investigator. Turned into a vampire by his bride 60 years ago, he’s denied himself the love of a good woman ever since because he’s frightened of seeing himself reflected as a monster in her eyes. But TV reporter Beth Shannon (Shannon Lucio) may change all that, as their paths cross during a murder investigation. Beth is kidnapped by the forces behind it, and St. John has to save her. However the only way to do so is to reveal his secret.

Oh dear, we really have seen all of this before. The bits that aren’t taken from Forever Knight are abducted bodily from Angel, and while O’Loughlin has the doleful look that all misunderstood vampires needs, he just hasn’t got the screen presence to pull this off.

He’s not helped by a woeful voiceover during the presentation (only 27 minutes of the full 41 were filmed to get a series order) that makes Kristanna Loken’s musings on Painkiller Jane seem insightful. Don’t expect this one to last.

THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES (US: Fox; UK: Virgin Cable)

T-2 and a half as we learn what happened to Linda Hamilton’s character from the first two movies as she trained her son John.

Set in 1999, two years after the events of the second movie, Sarah Connor (300’s Lena Headey) has settled in Nebraska with John (Heroes’ Thomas Dekker). However, terrible nightmares cause her to escape to New Mexico, with the FBI on her tail. At his new school, John meets Cameron (Firefly’s Summer Glau) who turns out to be a Terminator sent back to protect him, as he discovers when another Terminator, masquerading as supply teacher Cromartie, opens fire. John needs to be kept safe so that he can deal with Skynet at the proper time…

Pilot supremo David Nutter is at the helm for this action-oriented hour that sets up the missing chapter between the second and third films without messing too heavily with the continuity of either. As with any TV version of a film success, it’s initially difficult to put the original players’ performances out of your mind, but Headey and Dekker immediately capture the twisted nature of the central relationship. It probably helps to be up on your Terminator mythology before watching but this is far better than many people feared. Roll on January.

NEW AMSTERDAM (US: Fox; UK: TBA)

Chocolat director Lasse Hallström is behind this return to the Highlander myth exploring the curse of immortality.

When John Amsterdam (Dutch actor Nikolaj Coster Waldau) gives his life for a woman in 1642, he doesn’t expect her to make him immortal. Well, virtually immortal anyway - he will only die once he's met his true love, which he’ll know by a physical reaction. Eventually becoming bored with immortality, Amsterdam goes on to use his knowledge as a New York homicide detective, always hoping that at some point he will fall in love.

There’s something of the feel of the old Beauty and the Beast series here: the show is all about the healing power of love, and how there is one special person out there for everyone. The problem with the earlier show came when servicing that element overrode all others, and it could be the same with New Amsterdam. Waldau is charismatic enough, and displays the necessary ennui that 400 years of fruitless searching would bring, but it’s a bit hard to see where this is going to go.

CHUCK (US: NBC; UK: TBA)

Josh Schwartz and cult director McG team up for a series that’s very different from their earlier hit The O.C.

Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi) is a computer geek who becomes an unwitting and rather unwilling secret agent when loads of government secrets are accidentally downloaded into his brain. Pursued by representatives of all the acronymically named agencies who want to know what he knows, he has to try to puzzle out how he’s going to survive all the attention.

On the surface, it looks as if this might be a rerun of Jake 2.0, but with embedded data rather than nanobots whizzing around. However from the look of the pilot, this series has no intention of taking itself too seriously. McG’s take on Charlie’s Angels might be more of a guide, with action sequences that are over the top yet work within the context of the episode.

Add to that a likeable group of central characters (the same sorts of nerds as feature in Reaper, but with less annoying attributes), and this could be a crossover hit for O.C. fans missing their fix, as well as those wanting humorous ‘superhero’ hi-jinks. And don’t be surprised if Seth Cohen makes a crossover appearance from The O.C. – he’d fit right at home!

WAITING TO BE PICKED UP…


BABYLON FIELDS (CBS)

The dead of Babylon, Long Island, have come back from the grave, and they want their old lives back...

Rather than go the route of Day of the Dead, Babylon Fields is more like Jericho with zombies. There’s no explanation given as to why the dead are rising: the pilot concentrates more on the emotional toll of having the deceased turn up on the doorstep, whether they’ve been murdered, died of natural causes, or committed suicide.

Although there are action sequences, this is a more character than plot driven show, which will hopefully get a midseason order.

THEM (FOX)

It had the right pedigree with Galactica’s David Eick, T3’s Jonathan Mostow and Profit’s John McNamara teaming up, but this tale of an alien sleeper cell embedded in modern Los Angeles failed to find favour, despite being described by one reviewer as Fox’s best pilot since Prison Break.

Sent to save the Earth, the cell is in trouble because the emotions experienced by the human bodies they’re possessing can make them forget their mission. The terrorism parallels are clear and there’s good chemistry between the cast, which includes erstwhile Number Six, Tricia Helfer. Another prime candidate for midseason pick up.

AREA 57 (NBC)

The military are guarding an alien who’s a pain in the backside (Paul Reubens). Much hilarity ensues. Or not, as the case may be. Didn’t anyone learn anything from Project: ALF, the dire spin-off TV movie based on one of the great comedies of the 1980s? Don’t mix smart-ass, wise-cracking aliens with characters who, in order to maintain any credibility, should be punishing him for his behaviour!

ALF, and before him Mork and Mindy and My Favourite Martian, worked because the alien was in a domestic environment. Area 57 breaks the cardinal rule of comedy: it simply is not funny. Pray it never sees the light of day.

LIFE ON MARS (ABC)

A detective is involved in an accident and wakes up in the 1970s. Is he mad? In a coma? Or back in time? Er, well, we actually know the answer now because the BBC series wisely came to an end after two seasons, but for US audiences, Sam Tyler’s adventures are just beginning under the auspices of David E Kelley.

Jason O’Mara steps into John Simms’ shoes as the confused detective, and it’ll be interesting to see a Starsky and Hutch vibe compared with the original’s down and dirty Sweeney. The Office has managed to spin off as a US version for considerably more episodes than its British progenitor: let’s see if Sam Tyler follows suit.