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.

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.

The last few days have not been kind to entertaining dramedies. First basic-cable network TNT canceled its sophomore original series Men of a Certain Age on July 15, and then NBC did the same to rookie series Love Bites on July 19.

The usual culprit in both cases was underwhelming ratings, of course. In fact, not even a prestigious Peabody Award and yet another Emmy nomination for star Andre Braugher could sway TNT to keep Men of a Certain Age around for another season, apparently. What a shame, too, because the series was all about quality, intelligent, fun, and realistic storytelling, as was Love Bites.

Although Men of a Certain Age‘s second and last season wrapped up on July 6, viewers can catch the final episode of Love Bites‘ lone season tomorrow, July 21, at 10pm ET. I will miss both shows.

Tonight, April 28, is the night many longtime fans of NBC sitcom The Office have been dreading. Day One series star Steve Carell departs the comedy during “Goodbye, Michael,” a very special extended 52-minute episode premiering at 9pm ET.

The swan song focuses on Michael Scott as he bids final farewells to his soon-to-be former colleagues before heading to Colorado for a new life with his future wife Holly (Amy Ryan). Saturday Night Live veteran Will Ferrell also reprises his role as Michael’s current replacement, equally quirky branch manager Deangelo Vickers, for what is sure to a touching and memorable installment.

Quick sneak peeks at the pivotal episode follow.

Comedian Paul Reiser officially returns to sitcom television tonight, April 14, when his new comedy The Paul Reiser Show joins NBC’s three-hour Thursday-night sitcom lineup in the 8:30pm ET time slot. The premiere doubles as a not-so-subtle “So long!” to the slot’s previous rookie inhabitant, Perfect Couples.

Reiser’s latest TV venture finds him playing himself as he attempts to move back into the entertainment spotlight years after his last popular television series ended. Cast members include Amy Landecker (Louie) as Paul’s wife Claire and Andrew Daly (Eastbound & Down), Omid Djalili (Whoopi), Duane Martin (Rita Rocks), and Ben Shenkman (Lights Out) as his friends-of-convenience Brad, Habib, Fernando, and Jonathan, respectively.

The series premiere, “The Father’s Occupation,” gets the plot rolling right along when his difficulty stating exactly what his job is on a school form for his son prompts Paul to schedule an audition with well-known reality-TV producer Mark Burnett (Survivor), who cameos. The audition is for hosting a new game show, and Paul’s main competition is fellow comedian and successful sitcom star Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm), who cameos, as well.

Get a feel for Paul Reiser’s new show in the following sneak peeks. We’ll know soon enough if it’s a good fit for NBC’s supersized comedy block.

After more than four long months of continual repeats, NBC crime procedural Law & Order: Los Angeles returns to the network tonight, April 11, at 9pm ET for a spring run of new episodes. Fans really need the breath of fresh installments by now.

Viewers should be prepared for things to become a bit different on the fourth American Law & Order spinoff, however. Not only does the series have a new time slot — Mondays at 10pm ET instead of the former Wednesdays at 10pm — but several cast changes are also in store.

The most prominent adjustments involve Los Angeles regular Skeet Ulrich and former Law & Order regular Alana de la Garza, who still appeared on the original series when NBC canceled it in May 2010. Ulrich’s character Detective Rex Winters experiences a life-changing event during “Zuma Canyon,” the first half of the spring premiere. The tragedy eventually leads his partner Tomas “TJ” Jaruszalski (Corey Stoll) to team up with former prosecutor Ricardo Morales (Alfred Molina), who returns to police work after he gets fed up with the legal system.

Meanwhile, de la Garza’s character Connie Rubirosa also arrives during the double episode to continue practicing law on behalf of the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office. The division will need her after Morales leaves. Her sick mother needs her as well, though, which is the main reason Rubirosa has moved to Los Angeles from New York.

Sad to lose Ulrich, but glad to have Connie back. These changes are designed to help the series get more viewers and higher ratings, of course, and we’ll see if they work soon. Can’t fault the showrunners for trying, even if they don’t.

Watch the ominous spring premiere promo, “A Law & Order First,” below before tuning in to the latest new episodes of Law & Order: Los Angeles. The trailer totally spoils what happens to Rex Winters (consider yourself forewarned), but seeing the entire scenes will probably be much more intense.

Television has been on the dull side for me this winter, so I’m more than thrilled that intriguing NBC sci-fi drama The Event — one of my favorite new fall series — will return to the tube in just a few short weeks on March 7. Yay!

To get fans amped up for the end of the show’s too-long hiatus, NBC has recently released a series of sneak peeks and promos for the upcoming action. Check out three tasty clips below and don’t forget to mark your calendar for the chiller’s two-hour, two-episode spring season premiere on Monday, March 7, from 8–10pm ET. Can’t wait.

And, yes, that’s talented Virginia Madsen (Monk, Smith) portraying Senator Catherine Lewis in the third video. Fabulous casting.

NBC’s latest primetime project, The Cape, premieres tonight, January 9, at 9pm ET in a special two-hour, Sunday time slot.

The series stars Australian actor David Lyons (ER) as the titular character Cape, who’s also known as former cop Vince Faraday in his non-superhero life. The police officer decides to take on a new identity and fight crime with a team of carnival hooligans in order to bring his family back together again after he’s framed for being dirty.

Also starring with Lyons are Keith David (ER) as mentor and circus crook Max Malini, Summer Glau (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) as crime-scene blogger Orwell, and James Frain (True Blood) and Vinnie Jones (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) as Cape’s archenemies Chess and Scales, respectively.

Sneak a peek at TV’s latest action show below and tune in at 9pm ET. I’ll definitely be there, although the “Pilot“/”Tarot” double feature repeats at the same time Monday night, January 10, as well.

New crime drama Law & Order: Los Angeles officially joins the venerable Law & Order family when it premieres on NBC tonight, September 29, at 10pm ET.

The series stars Corey Stoll (NCIS), Rachel Ticotin (Lost), and Skeet Ulrich (Jericho) on the cop side, and Megan Boone (Cold Case), Regina Hall (Ally McBeal), Terrence Howard (Iron Man), and Alfred Molina (Spider-Man 2) on the legal side. Wanda De Jesus (CSI: Miami) was the original police boss, Lieutenant Arleen Gonzales, but she left the show after filming only two episodes, unfortunately. Her departure is definitely a loss for viewers, although Ticotin is a talented replacement.

The “Hollywood” premiere of Law & Order: Los Angeles presents the first case on the blotter. The investigation focuses on a string of robberies in Hollywood, which eventually escalates, leading to an unexpected crime at the home of a young celebrity (Danielle Panabaker, Shark) after the identity of the crooks is discovered.

I’ve been watching Law & Order since the gritty earliest days in 1990, when Chris Noth and George Dzundza were partners, there were no female regulars yet, and the show’s cinematography was so bleak it almost seemed the series was shot on black-and-white film. Considering the show’s gloomy yet effective origins, I’m not sure I’ll be able to get into the action when it occurs in sunny La La Land. We’ll see, but I don’t have my hopes up too high right now, despite the nice cast.

Sneak a peek at NBC’s newest crime drama below. The preview features Stoll and Ulrich’s detective partners Tomas “TJ” Jaruszalski and Rex Winters, respectively, at the scene of a very violent and bloody crime.

Wednesday, September 22, marks the first official day of fall and the 8pm ET premiere of the highly anticipated new J.J. Abrams (Fringe, Lost) spy series Undercovers.

The action dramedy stars English actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Doctor Who, MI-5) and Austria-born actor Boris Kodjoe (Soul Food, Boston Public) as married spies Samantha and Steven Bloom. Both quit the spook business to run a California catering company together after tying the knot, but they become active again when an old friend, also a spy, ups and disappears.

The pilot episode, which I’ve seen already, introduces viewers to the Blooms and shows how effectively they collaborate with one another as a couple and while on dangerous assignments abroad. Think dramedy Chuck instead of the earlier Abrams spy drama Alias and you’ll probably enjoy the lighthearted, humorous series a whole lot more.

Simon & Simon veteran Gerald McRaney also stars as Samantha and Steven’s weary boss Carlton Shaw, as does Mekia Cox (90210), who plays Samantha’s younger sister Lizzy Gilliam. Cox replaces Jessica Parker Kennedy (Smallville), the actress who portrayed Lizzy in the show’s original pilot.

Sneak an extended peek at NBC and J.J. Abrams’ latest new series in the preview trailer below, then continue after the video to learn what other rookie and returning shows air on September 22.

Other New Shows on September 22

New sitcom Better with You debuts at 8:30pm on ABC. The comedy focuses on romantic relationships at various ages and stars Joanna Garcia (Reba) and Jennifer Finnigan (Close to Home).

Maura Tierney (ER) and Rob Morrow (Numb3rs) headline the new ABC legal drama The Whole Truth, which premieres at 10pm. The series follows the behind-the-scenes and courtroom action that unfolds during an individual felony case, from the perspective of both the defense and the prosecution, represented by Morrow and Tierney’s lawyer characters.

Jim Belushi (According to Jim) and Jerry O’Connell (Crossing Jordan) play Las Vegas-based defense attorneys on the new CBS legal series The Defenders, premiering at 10pm.

Returning Shows on September 22

Excellent Wednesday-night ABC comedies The Middle, Modern Family, and Cougar Town return for their second seasons, starting at 8pm, with newcomer Better with You filling the 8:30pm time slot in the lineup.

Frequently gory CBS crime procedural Criminal Minds opens its sixth season at 9pm.

Fox culinary reality series Hell’s Kitchen kicks off its eighth season with a two-hour premiere at 8pm.

Veteran NBC procedural Law & Order: Special Victims Unit launches Season 12 with a two-hour premiere from 9–11pm.