As usual, the early part of the new year presents a
gluttonous feast for television fans who have been eagerly anticipating
the return of old favorites such as “American Idol,” “Lost,” “24” and
others.
But it’s also time to look ahead to several new
programs streaming down the pipeline. Here are a few that have piqued
our interest:
—”The Pacific” (
So far, we’ve only glimpsed a couple of short trailers and an online
slide show, but it has been enough to boost our excitement for this
long-awaited 10-part follow-up to “
the budget is enormous, and the battle scenes spectacular, but, as
usual, we’re counting on the intimate personal stories to draw us in.
(Debuts
—”Justified” (FX, March):
series, formerly titled “Lawman.” We’ve got some good blood lines here:
The character,
—”The 39 Steps” (
German spies on the eve of World War I. We’re curious to see how it
stacks up against the thrilling page-turner by
—”Life Unexpected” (The CW): Critics have been
chirping about the charming pilot of this offbeat family drama since
last summer. It’s about a teenager (
—”Rubicon” (AMC): First came “Mad Men” and then
“Breaking Bad.” Now, AMC goes for the quality hat trick with this
political mystery drama. The show is pegged to a brilliant analyst
(James Badge Dale) at a national think tank whose work leads him to
uncover a clue that points to an unfolding global conspiracy.
Also on our radar: In May, “Lost” (
will air its highly-anticipated series finale (TBA). We’re expecting it
to be the subject of college dissertations … With “The Wire,”
series that tries to wrap its arms around 400 years of U.S. history.
(TBA) … The 11-part “Life” (Discovery Channel) might be even more
ambitious, spanning every continent to provide a “definitive
exploration of our planet’s living things.” (March).
—
(c) 2010, Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, Calif.).
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