2009 is here, so attention turns to what televisual goodies the next 365 days will bring. Here's a quick run-down of TV shows you should be paying attention to in the next few months:4 Jan. GLADIATORS (Sky1): return of the newly-revived gameshow, with Caroline Flack replacing Kirsty Gallacher as co-host, and some new Gladiators to contend with. Silly, staged, panto-style entertainment that will never better the original, but it's a valiant effort that knows how to entertain. And just seeing Tempest dangling around on Hang Tough is enough for me.
7 Jan. DAMAGES (FX): second season of the legal thriller, starring Glen Close and Rose Byrne. After the riveting first year, I'm psyched to see if they can maintain that high quality. New co-stars include William Hurt and Timothy Olyphant.
8 Jan. DEXTER (ITV1): I'm sure the fans have seen it already, but Dexter's second season makes its belated terrestrial debut on ITV1, so if you don't have access to the US-paced episodes from Showtime, and don't subscribe to FX on your cable/satellite package, here's how you catch-up.
12 Jan. 24 (Sky1): finally, after 18 months spent watching the clock, 24's seventh season is here (airing a day after its US premiere, too.) The TVM "Redemption" was underwhelming filler, but here's hoping the genuine article delivers the mayhem, tension and surprises we expect. Or has 24 run its course? Did the show always thrive on a post-911 Bush government, as a Republican fantasy piece? Will it seem archaic and distasteful for the hopefully more enlightened Obama Democratic administration? Or does none of that matter, so long as Jack snaps some necks, dammit?
12 Jan. COUNTDOWN (Channel 4): not generally worth mentioning, but who doesn't want to see how new hosts Jeff Stelling and Rachel Riley cope as replacements? Can they replicate the Vorderman/Whiteley chemistry?
15 Jan. FLASHPOINT (ITV3): brand new Canadian drama about elite officers who deal with life-or-death situations.
16 Jan. BATTLESTAR GALACTICA (Sci-Fi): the fourth season continues and the sci-fi remake concludes in the summer. Lots of questions need answering: who is the Final Cylon? What happened to the Thirteenth Tribe? Will we ever get a Six, Athena, D'Anna and Gaius foursome?
18 Jan. FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS (HBO): second season of the comedy about two dimwit Kiwi folk-pop musicians trying to make it in New York. I liked the vibe of season 1, but felt the idea stretched itself too thin. Hopefully things will have been improved for season 2, but I don't think it's a good sign the Conchords have had to write fresh music on top of the basic scripts. Sounds like they might have bitten off more than they can chew?
19 Jan. THE MENTALIST (CBS): the year's most successful new US show returns for the second half of its ratings-winning first season, although I won't be watching until it arrives on Five in the UK. Has it improved much beyond episode 4? I loved the Pilot, but felt the writers weren't making the "psychological illusionist plays detective" series I was expecting after that.
20 Jan. FRINGE (Fox): the first season continues, heartened by a run of four genuinely good episodes that led us to the mid-season finale. I really want this show to succeed, as it has huge potential. It would also be nice to get a Darin Morgan script made (been waiting since 1998 for one of those babies.) Oh, and if Anna Torv could learn a new facial expression to go with "constipated confusion", that would be appreciated.
21 Jan. LOST (ABC): season 5 of the mystery drama, with half the characters still stuck on the island (but where or when or are they?), and the other half now living a lie off-island. Can Ben and Jack persuade the Oceanic Six to go back? Why must they return? As the Others' new leader, will Locke finally get all the answers? Will we see the four-toed statue again? And, seriously, what the hell is the smoke monster? This penultimate season will be shown on Sky1 four days afters its US premiere, starting on 25 Jan.
25 Jan. GENERATION KILL (FX): US drama series from the creators of The Wire, about an embedded reporter with the US Marine Corps during the Iraq war in 2003.
2 Feb. CHUCK (NBC): second-half of the second season, which should be about to start on Virgin1 here in the UK. More slapstick action, light-hearted comedy, geeky interludes, and plot manipulations to ensure Yvonne Strahovski gets half-naked during most missions. Bliss.
2 Feb. HEROES (NBC): Volume IV of the superhero drama, that's squandered its season 1 promise to a dangerous level. A lot of nerds-in-the-know will probably stick around for season 4 (where departed producer Bryan Fuller returns to steer the ship around), but for now let's just hope this "Fugitives" storyline (with the heroes all captured by the government, only for their prison plane to crash, leading to a big manhunt) is as cool as it sounds. Or will we again be asking "why doesn't Hiro just go back in time and stop all this from happening?" BBC Three will hopefully be showing episodes about a week later, as usual -- so, 11 Feb is my guess.
13 Feb. DOLLHOUSE (Fox): Joss Whedon's high-concept sci-fi action series arrives with the odds stacked against it (a Friday night graveyard slot, publicized problems in production). But, the premise still sounds awesome, with a team of "dolls" having their personalities engineered for specific missions, until one (Eliza Dushku) starts to remember her past. A call to US fans: come on, watch this, get others to watch this, or it will be cancelled.
13 Feb: TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES (Fox): another show dumped into the Friday night slot to die by Fox, so any fans should renew their efforts to watch it. This could be last batch of episodes for the much-maligned, but actually rather enjoyable Terminator spin-off. Hopefully they will answer their remaining questions and (if circumstances allow for it) tie-up the whole series in a fitting, big finale.
24 March. CUPID (ABC): revival of the late-'90s fantasy-comedy, about the God of Love's attempts to get back home by matchmaking 100 couples. This show is a cult favourite, and it's not every day a network remakes one of their own shows a decade later. Maybe more people will actually watch it this time?
