Basic-cable network AMC boldly bills its latest original series, the grungy Old West-set drama Hell on Wheels, as an “epic” event. Viewers will get to judge the accuracy of that ambitious description when the show premieres tonight, November 6, at 10pm ET. I, for one, see some merit in the assessment, based on the intriguing TV ads I’ve encountered.

The first season of Hell on Wheels contains ten episodes starring a very gruff-looking Anson Mount (Conviction) as Confederate military man Cullen Bohannon, rapper and actor Common (Wanted) as former slave Elam Ferguson, veteran Irish actor Colm Meaney (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) as slick businessman Thomas “Doc” Durant, and Irish import Dominique McElligott (The Philanthropist) as recently widowed independent woman Lily Bell.

The cast members portray characters from the post-Civil War era in American history, when times were hard but filled with the promise of new opportunities for those determined to seek and find them. However, soldier Cullen supplies a less grand and more basic underlying plot theme as he focuses on his desire to punish whoever bears responsibility for his wife’s death during the recent war. Heavy stuff.

Sneak a lengthy peek at the first episode of Hell on Wheels in the video below. If I had to call it right now, I would say AMC has another big hit about to join the network’s already impressive lineup. At least I certainly hope so.

Cast members from two popular long-running CBS crime procedurals combine their acting talent in the new USA Network original movie John Sandford’s Certain Prey, which premieres tonight, November 6, at 9pm ET.

The telefilm features NCIS lead Mark Harmon as Deputy Police Chief Lucas Davenport, a hard-living veteran of the Minneapolis police force. When the chief investigates a woman’s murder that led to the shooting of a cop, he stumbles upon a deadly collaboration between clever assassin Clara Rinker (Tatiana Maslany, Being Erica) and her shady lawyer accomplice Carmel Loan (Lola Glaudini, Criminal Minds).

The movie comes from the Prey series of crime novels by Pulitzer Prize-winning author John Roswell Camp, who occasionally writes under the pseudonym John Sandford (hence he gets his name in bright lights in the flick’s official title). I suppose if the presentation performs well enough, viewers can look forward to Certain Prey sequels à la the well-received Jesse Stone flicks on CBS featuring Blue Bloods star Tom Selleck. I wouldn’t mind that at all.

The best television news of the day has dropped: Friday-night Syfy staple Haven will return next year for a third season featuring 13 new episodes. Yes!

The welcome development means viewers will get a chance to learn why Duke’s supposedly dead (because you never really know on this show) daddy wants him to kill Audrey, who has an uncanny habit of showing up in town every few years looking exactly the same, but with another woman’s memories as her own. Can’t wait.

Season Two of Haven concluded on September 30 with the cliffhanger-filled episode “Sins of the Fathers.” However, the series has a special Christmas-ish installment called “Silent Night” scheduled to premiere on Tuesday, December 6, at 10pm ET. Mark your calendar now.

Set in July (because we all know that hot month just reeks Xmas cheer), the plot kicks off when Audrey unexpectedly starts seeing holiday decorations around Haven. Sadly, no one besides her cares… that is, until folks begin vanishing for no clear reason. The episode should tide fans over just fine while we wait for the paranormal adventures of Audrey, Nathan, and Duke to resume in 2012.

I am so psyched. Former Friday Night Lights star Connie Britton and The Practice star Dylan McDermott return to the small screen at 10pm ET tonight, October 5, in their brand-new paranormal FX series American Horror Story. This could be the beginning of a great TV relationship.

The series focuses on married couple Ben, a therapist, and Vivien Harmon (McDermott and Britton), who move to Los Angeles from Boston with their teen daughter Violet (newcomer Taissa Farmiga). Their goal is to leave their complicated past behind and start over fresh, but their chosen residence has a somewhat complicated past of its own, unfortunately.

Also starring are magnificent film actress Jessica Lange (Tootsie) and Six Feet Under veteran Frances Conroy. The show comes to us courtesy of the talents of Glee and Nip/Tuck executive producers Brad Falchuk and Ryan Murphy, so viewers have ample reason to expect another entertaining FX series. Fingers crossed.

Preview the latest interesting entry in FX’s programming schedule below.

The moment many Steven Spielberg fans have been waiting for is almost here: the two-hour premiere of his latest television show, Terra Nova at 8pm ET on Fox tonight, September 26.

The back-in-time adventure series stars Jason O’Mara (Life on Mars) as the head of the Shannon family. He decides to take the members on a trip to the prehistoric era (Yikes!) in order to save their fellow humans from doom. All together now: Good luck with that.

Also debuting on The CW tonight at 9pm is the new Rachel Bilson (The O.C.) medical drama Hart of Dixie. She portrays young doctor Zoe Hart, who winds up plying her trade in a small Alabama town after she loses out on a much-wanted fellowship.

Sneak peeks at both freshmen series follow. Although they’re very different thematically, the shows sound mildly interesting for now.

September 22 is a busy night when it comes to new Fall 2011 television shows. Three crime dramas premiere on ABC, CBS, and NBC — at 8pm, 9pm, and 10pm ET, respectively — and NBC also adds a new comedy to its popular Thursday-night sitcom block.

The first of the three crime newcomers is Charlie’s Angels on ABC at 8pm. An update of the classic 1976–1981 show, the reimagination stars Minka Kelly (Parenthood), Annie Ilonzeh (General Hospital), and Rachael Taylor (Grey’s Anatomy) as the latest trio of attractive bad guy catchers guided by intermediary Bosley (Ramon Rodriguez, The Wire). My hopes are not up, sadly, since one Charlie’s Angels was enough, and that includes the unnecessary movies starring Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz, and Lucy Liu.

However, I am very much looking forward to the second new crime drama of the night, Person of Interest on CBS at 9pm. Not only does the series have three fantastic stars in Jim Caviezel (The Prisoner), Michael Emerson (Lost), and Taraji P. Henson (Boston Legal), but the premise isn’t too shabby or derivative, either. Caviezel and Emerson play a pair of uniquely talented men who use their distinct resources to prevent crimes before they occur, and Henson portrays a New York Police Department detective who works the same beat they do.

I’m also excited to check out the last new Thursday crime drama, Prime Suspect on NBC at 10pm. If the Americanized version is even half as good as the Helen Mirren-led British original, it will rock. Maria Bello (ER) tops the cast as tough New York homicide detective Jane Timoney. When she’s not busy hunting down crooks, Jane spends much of her time getting into it with her coworkers, including her boss Lieutenant Kevin Sweeney (Aidan Quinn, Weeds).

The remaining September 22 scripted series premiere is the sitcom Whitney on NBC at 9:30pm. Whitney Cummings (Chelsea Lately) stars as the title character, who spends too much time obsessing about her three-year relationship with Alex (Chris D’Elia, Glory Daze) and not getting married prematurely. My cable TV provider had the pilot episode on demand before the premiere for whatever reason, so I checked it out earlier today. The comedy doesn’t work for me, primarily because the characters, plotlines, and jokes are all too tired, annoying, and uninteresting. Others may feel differently, of course.

Two new series starring popular actresses help their respective network kick off the Fall 2011 season properly tonight, September 20. First up is the Fox sitcom New Girl at 9pm ET, and the CBS crime drama Unforgettable follows at 10pm.

Zooey Deschanel (Tin Man), younger sister of Bones star Emily Deschanel, headlines the comedy as Jess Day. After Jess learns her no-good boyfriend has been stepping out on her, she moves in with three other dudes to get on with her life. Max Greenfield (Raising the Bar), Jake Johnson (FlashForward), and Lamorne Morris (The Middle) play her trio of roommates.

Over on the CBS drama, former Without a Trace star Poppy Montgomery portrays lead character Carrie Wells. The seasoned police detective happens to possess nearly perfect recall of past events, an awesome trait she uses to help solve difficult homicide cases. If only it would help her figure out who murdered her sister, though.

Sneak peeks at the two new shows in the videos below. Based on preliminary information, I think I’ll be watching both this fall.

Fans of USA Network’s most recent crop of summer original series have absolutely nothing to worry about at the moment. Every single one of the shows will return for another season, now that the network has just renewed rookie Necessary Roughness, along with more seasoned Covert Affairs and Royal Pains.

The trio join Burn Notice, In Plain Sight, Suits, and White Collar, which received the good pickup news earlier. All but two of the shows have 16-episode orders for their next run. The notable exceptions are Burn Notice, which will include 16 to 18 episodes in its upcoming sixth season, and In Plain Sight, which will come to an end with an 8-episode fifth and final season.

2012 is looking great on USA Network!

Actress Britt Robertson makes a swift rebound from her most recent canceled series, Life Unexpected, tonight, September 15. That’s when her new CW drama The Secret Circle debuts at 9pm ET, right after the third-season premiere of established hit The Vampire Diaries.

Once again occupying the lead role, Robertson portrays Cassie Blake. The teenager moves in with her grandmother in a Washington town called Chance Harbor after her mother dies under extremely suspicious circumstances.

Although she needs to recover from that tragedy, Cassie encounters only more weirdness when she begins hanging out with local teens. Her family and the entire town have a complicated, related past it seems, and Cassie is central to all of the drama, even if she doesn’t know why or how yet.

Also starring are former fellow Heroes cast members Ashley Crow and Thomas Dekker, Species star Natasha Henstridge, and Desperate Housewives alum Gale Harold. Sneak a peek at the show in the following extended clip, which provides a good overview of what to expect.

Familiar television faces Christina Applegate (Samantha Who?), Will Arnett (Arrested Development), Hank Azaria (Huff), and Kathryn Hahn (Crossing Jordan) all open their brand-spanking-new sitcoms tonight, September 14, on NBC at the special times of 10pm and 10:30pm ET, respectively.

Applegate and Arnett star in Up All Night as husband and wife — and new parents — Reagan and Chris Brinkley. Public relations professional Reagan returns to work, while Chris is the home-based parent. The comedy focuses on how the pair cope with the trials and tribulations of parenthood and basic relationships in their lives. Saturday Night Live vet Maya Rudolph costars as Reagan’s demanding boss and BFF Ava.

Azaria and Hahn headline Free Agents as public relations (here we go again — must be a popular profession in some circles) coworkers Alex and Helen. An American adaptation of the popular U.K. comedy of the same name, the sitcom follows what happens after an unexpected hookup between two people who have experienced recent relationships that went wrong.

Sneak a peek at each new series in the videos below. The shows move to their regular 8pm and 8:30pm time slots on September 21.