Some might say this next week is filled with chick TV. I say it's full of great TV.
Tonight "Grey's Anatomy," which yanked the official "Water Cooler Show" button right off the front pocket of "Lost," returns at 8 on ABC. (And even though I officially dubbed this "awesome for XX chromosome" week, it can't be just women watching this show — 38 million people tuned in after the Super Bowl, for crying out loud. Plus, there was a herpes outbreak among the staff once. Not exactly tear-inducing, tissue-grabbing material.)
Creator Shonda Rhimes has crafted an excellent set of believable characters, and unlike say, "ER," their relationships are complicated enough she doesn't have to drop in a helicopter for drama. Her main character, Meredith Grey, whines, makes stupid boy decisions and hurts the people around her. She's also a successful doctor and an often excellent friend. This is why I never miss "Grey's Anatomy." Because even when I hate her, I still get her.
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If "Grey's" doesn't work up enough suds for you, hang on until Sunday when "Desperate Housewives" has its season premiere at 8 p.m. on ABC. Creator Marc Cherry promises Season 3 will return to the more complete plotlines and snappier dialogue of Season 1. He's shopped out some of the writing so he can focus on putting the show together, and he says our favorite foursome will spend more time together. I haven't seen the first episode of Season 3, but I have seen the now-removed YouTube video where Orson, ummm, expands Bree's horizontal horizons. And I promise you. It. Is. Hilarious.
After "Housewives," the will-it-ever-actually-air? drama "Brothers & Sisters" will finally see the light of day. The show's had some script and casting problems — but it has a great lineup of actors (Calista Flockhart, Rachel Griffiths, Sally Field, Matthew Rhys). And Greg Berlanti, the mastermind behind the terrific family drama "Everwood," recently signed on to help shape the series. I think this one has loads of potential — either to be touching and engaging or to crash and burn. I'll be watching to see which way this one falls.
As excited as I am to see Ally McBeal's return to TV and to once again peek inside the windows of Wisteria Lane, I am juiced about rolling back into Stars Hollow when my favorite mother-daughter team hits the CW at 7 p.m. Wednesday. That last season of "Gilmore Girls" left me angry and confused — and wondering why so little happened on a show that crams 90 minutes' worth of dialogue into 47 minutes. Still, I have to know what happens between Luke and Lorelai, and the writers have promised resolution.
If dramedys don't float your boat, say a little thank you prayer to NBC. Emmy-winning comedys "My Name is Earl" and "The Office" return today at 7 and 7:30 p.m., respectively. Both comedies, thankfully, stray far, far away from the canned-laugh scenarios of "Two and a Half Men."
Jaime Pressly's skanky, insult-slinging ex-wife on "Earl" is one of the funniest female characters on television. Her loss tops my list of "Reasons I'm Still Mad At the Emmys." "The Office" mercilessly squeezes laughs from the ugly truth about our jobs — we spend most of our waking hours with people we a) didn't choose to hang out with and b) are forced to pretend we like. It's one of those good-thing-we're-laughing-or-we'd-cry kind of things.
Sci-fi fans should check out "Heroes" at 8 p.m. Monday on NBC. In this "X-Men" meets "Lost" meets "The 4400" series, people across the world realize evolution has handed them superpowers — the ability to teleport, paint the future, hear others' thoughts. I'm a sucker for anything that even smells of comic books, so I'm going to give this one a slot on my DVR.
