The best television news of the day on October 6, hands down, was Fox’s announcement that the network has picked up nine additional episodes of freshman comedy Raising Hope, which means the series now has a full 22-episode season on its plate.

Raising Hope comes to us courtesy of Greg Garcia, the man responsible for the equally quirky sitcom My Name Is Earl, which ran for four seasons on NBC. Garcia’s latest show stars Lucas Neff (The Beast) as Jimmy Chance, a sweet and sincere guy in his early twenties. Jimmy unexpectedly becomes the father of the title baby girl Hope after he has a one-time fling with a serial killer who eventually ends up on death row.

Martha Plimpton (ER) and Garret Dillahunt (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) play Jimmy’s working-class parents Virginia and Burt Chance; Shannon Woodward (The Riches) portrays supermarket cashier Sabrina, the current object of Jimmy’s affections; and Cloris Leachman (Malcolm in the Middle) nearly steals the show whenever she’s in a scene as Jimmy’s frequently delusional grandmother Maw Maw.

Fox’s official announcement of the pickup notes Raising Hope‘s impressive ratings achievements for the three episodes aired since the comedy’s September 21 premiere. The sitcom is presently the top new comedy among both teens and young women, the second most popular new comedy among people ages 18 to 34, and in the top five new comedies among people ages 18 to 49. Nice.

It’s always great when a truly funny sitcom gets the respect and audience it deserves. I’ve watched every episode aired thus far of every new fall comedy, and Raising Hope truly is one of the best, along with Monday-night CBS rookie Mike & Molly.

Today is a great TV day indeed. Multiple reports indicate Fox action drama Human Target, one of the most consistently entertaining yet inexplicably under-watched new shows of the 2009–2010 season, is expected to receive a very deserved Season Two pickup, and I couldn’t be more thrilled.

Fox will likely order 13 more episodes of the Mark Valley, Jackie Earle Haley, and Chi McBride series to go along with the 13-episode first season, predicts The Hollywood Reporter. So, now fans can rest easy and stop worrying about whether we’ll ever see Team Chance again. More good and exciting times are (almost) definitely ahead.

For the record, Fox procedural Lie to Me is also expected to receive a 13-episode third-season renewal, and the network has picked up the four new series Keep Hope Alive, Traffic Light, Midland, and RideAlong, as well. The first two newbies are single-camera comedies and the last two crime dramas.

Struggling broadcast network NBC picked up its first new scripted series of the coming 2010–2011 season today, May 3, and many observers aren’t surprised in the least that the lucky show is the J.J. Abrams (Alias, Lost, Fringe) and Josh Reims (Brothers & Sisters) spy project Undercovers, which various sources alternatively identify as a drama or a dramedy.

Whether its humorous or not, the series is already poised to become a ratings success for NBC due to its esteemed and popular co-creator and co-executive producer Abrams. Needless to say, the network can use every bit of success it can get these days.

Undercovers stars Soul Food alum Boris Kodjoe and onetime Doctor Who actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw (pictured above) as married couple Steven and Samantha Bloom. Top CIA spooks before they fell in love five years ago, the couple left that dangerous world behind to wed and manage a Los Angeles-based catering company.

Homey as that relatively quiet life sounds, the pair soon realizes it’s the excitement of espionage they really crave when they return to their old profession to help investigate the disappearance of a friend who is also a fellow spy.

Other Undercovers cast members include veteran actor Gerald McRaney (Jericho, Deadwood, Simon & Simon) as the Blooms’ boss Carlton Shaw, Jessica Parker Kennedy (Smallville) as Samantha’s younger sister Lizzy, and previous Parks and Recreation guest star Ben Schwartz as your guess is as good as mine.

Says NBC Universal Television Entertainment Chairman Jeff Gaspin in the official press release: “We have tremendous confidence in this promising series and feel this is a great way to kick off our upcoming Upfront development announcements. J.J. has delivered another signature series, along with our partners at Warner Bros., and we couldn’t be happier.”

I have just two words in response: Can’t wait. Or maybe three more: Bring it on.

CBS made it official on October 15: the network’s excellent new crime drama The Mentalist will stick around for a full freshman season of 22 episodes. Couldn’t have happened to a better show.

Nielsen ratings indicate that not only has the entertaining Simon Baker drama been pulling in audiences averaging just upward of 16 million viewers each week, but the rookie has also ranked first among viewers aged 25–54 in its Tuesday, 9pm-10pm EST time slot.

How good it is to see a new show getting the attention it deserves. Here’s to a few more seasons after the first.

If you haven’t been watching Baker portray keenly observant California Bureau of Investigation consultant Patrick Jane, check The Mentalist out next Tuesday at 10pm for a fresh episode. I highly recommend it.

Teen Soap’s Immediate Future Secured

The Futon Critic broke the unofficial news this morning and Variety officially confirmed it this afternoon—The CW has awarded this fall’s first full-season pickup to the deserving teen sudser Gossip Girl.

Yes, as always, I’m behind on my reviews, but I have been checking out all of the new fall series. Although I’ve already decided that Gossip Girl will not make my must-see list, what I’ve watched, I’ve enjoyed for the most part.

Three More Years and 48 Episodes Sealed in a Deal

It’s more or less official: According to published reports, ABC’s breakout island thriller Lost will end in three years, its sixth season, following three truncated seasons of 16 episodes each. This development comes after rampant speculation and rumors last week and prior regarding the fate of the series, which many thought was set to end this year or next, until news spread that production would cease in two years instead.