When it comes to evaluating the first episode of any series, it helps to maintain an open mind ... and low expectations. Often a pilot is merely a taste of a show's potential; the proof is in the second, third, fourth episodes, and beyond. Even so, we believe these ten pilots have enough going for them to make them particularly worth checking out.
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FX and series producers Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk have gone to great lengths to preserve the mystery surrounding "American Horror Story," only listing horror giants such as Rosemary's Baby and The Shining, as well as the less-celebrated Don't Look Now, as main influences.
Premieres October 5, 10pm on FX
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Those who have yet to fall under Patrick Wilson's spell just might once they glimpse him in the first episode of this genre-flavored medical procedural, powered by a premise that would be ludicrous if not for Wilson's steady portrayal...and if not for the show's placement in CBS's supernatural timeslot.
Premieres September 23, 8pm on CBS
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It's hard to say whether this is due to our happiness to see Gellar back on television, but this noir drama hits the right notes in its introductory hour.
Premieres September 13, 9pm on The CW
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"Suburgatory" captures the stranger-in-a-strange-land oddity that comes with being an urbanite transplanted to the bright, manicured hinterlands, but also throws in a healthy dose of affection for its residents.
Premieres September 28, 8:30pm on ABC
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Anyone who has fond memories of Jurassic Park will find something to marvel at with this series and, at least in the first half of the two-hour pilot, there don’t seem to be any bizarre puzzles and mysteries to unwind.
Premieres September 26, 8pm on Fox
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Similar to the balance Helen Mirren achieved with DCI Jane Tennison, Maria Bello makes her detective Jane Timoney gruff, unrelenting, but also allows us to see her vulnerability when the circumstances allow...meaning, outside of work and by herself.
Premieres September 22, 10pm on NBC
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Tempted as one may be to write off "Pan Am" as a "Mad Men" clone, the only thing the two series have in common is the decade. There's little subtext in "Pan Am", and its seduction plan is simple: It takes us back to a time when air travel was a luxury and a pleasure.
Premieres September 25, 10pm on ABC
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If there were ever a cast list that made us excited to see a show before even watching it, it's this one.
Premieres September 21, 8pm on NBC. Series preview: September 14 at 10pm
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"New Girl" shows Deschanel in a way we
haven't seen before, presenting an awkward, unapologetically weird front that masks an ebullient, sweet view of the world that can't be crushed by heartbreak.
Premieres September 20, 9pm on Fox
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company.