This is the Tennessee Journalist's guide to ten of the new television shows premiering this year.

Kid Nation
Premiers September 19

Wednesdays at 8 p.m., CBS 

What happens when 40 kids are given the opportunity to live in their own town, set up their own government and enforce their own rules? Will they be civilized, or go all "Lord of the Flies" on each other? This show asks these questions and gives us yet another reality show. The children will compete for $20,000 each episode. A council made up of their peers will decide who gets the money.

Is this the exploitation of children for our entertainment, or a unique sociological experiment? CBS is definitely stepping out on the limb with this one.

Back to You
Premiers September 19

Wednesdays at 8 p.m., Fox

Fox gives a stab at the newsroom sitcom with "Back to You." Kelsey Grammer (of "Frasier" fame) and Patricia Heaton ("Everybody Loves Raymond") star as anchors for a news program in Pittsburgh.

Grammer's portrayal of radio personality Frasier was wonderfully egotistical and funny, and seems like a natural fit for a sitcom news anchor. "Anchorman" set the bar for stupid and irrelevant humor in the pop culture newsroom. Will "Back to You" give us that, or the humor that made "Frasier" a success?

Chuck
Premiers September 24

Mondays at 8 p.m., NBC

"Chuck" seems like a strange episode of the Mel Brooks' classic "Get Smart." Chuck (Zachary Levi), a electronics store employee, inadvertently intercepts a top secret government e-mail, and somehow downloads it to his brain. Super agent Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski) is assigned to protect Chuck.

This super secret agent action comedy might succeed simply because it is the lead-in to NBC's "Heroes." It has a unique premise that will surely prepare the public for the "Get Smart" movie that will premier in the summer of 2008.

Journeyman
Premiers September 24

Mondays at 10 p.m., NBC

NBC gives us another sci-fi series with "Journeyman." Kevin McKidd plays Dav Vasser. Vasser, for some unknown reason, is forced to travel through time, impacting peoples lives for the better.

This seems to be a rehash of "Quantum Leap," the successful time traveling show from the late 80s. Like Chuck, this show will benefit from its placement on the schedule. It airs right after "Heroes", but, will viewers appreciate this take on the themes explored in "Quantum Leap?"

Reaper
Premiers September 25

Tuesdays  at 9 p.m., The CW

The grim reaper concept, an individual who takes souls to the afterlife, isn't a new concept for television. Recently "Dead Like Me," a show many consider canceled before it's prime, is a great example of normal (although recently dead) people performing the job of the grim reaper.

"Reaper," the new show from The CW, is very much in the vein of "Dead Like Me." The premise of the show finds Sam (Bret Harrison) is taped to work as a bounty hunter for Satan. Turns out, his parents sold his soul to the devil before he was born.

Comic book fan boys were abuzz about this show when director Kevin Smith was tapped to direct the pilot. The casting of Missy Peregrym (recently seen in both "Stick It" and "Heroes") also has them drooling for this show. Will this new take on the grim reaper grab audiences? It is going up against Fox's popular show "House," and ABC's "Dancing with the Stars," so we'll see if the built in fan base of Smith and Peregrym will be enough to trump its competition.

Dirty Sexy Money
Premiers September 26

Wednesdays at 10 p.m., ABC

What do you get when a rich corrupt family hires their dead lawyer's do-gooder lawyer son? A show that is dirty, sexy (the producers hope at least) and money-making (again, the producers hope). This hour-long dramedy from playwright and television producer Craig Wilson (credits include "Six Feet Under" and "Lost") and staring Peter Krause ("Six Feet Under") and Donald Sutherland ("M*A*S*H*" and "JFK").

Peter Krause was one of the many elements that made "Six Feet Under" a success. In this, he seems to be playing the same role. He's an idealistic person who tries to do good in the world and fight corruption. The same can be said for his role in "Six Feet Under." Will that type of character prove again to be a successful element to a series?

Bionic Woman
Premiers September 26

Wednesdays at 9 p.m., NBC

Television series remakes have been successful recently. "Battlestar Galatica," a remake of the late 1970s sci-fi series, experienced resurgence of popularity when it premiered on the Sci-Fi channel a few years ago. NBC hopes to recreate that success with "Bionic Woman."

The original was a spin off of the "Six Million Dollar Man." A woman (Michelle Ryan) is nearly killed in an auto accident. The only way she survives is by a top secret operation that gives her bionic replacements and enhancements. These replacements and enhancements grant her super speed, increased strength and other improvements.

Science fiction is booming thanks to the surprise hit of last year, "Heroes." "Bionic Woman" will no doubt will be the surprise break out of the year.

Big Shots
Premiers September 27

Thursdays at 10 p.m., ABC

Dylan McDermott ("The Practice") stars in this new drama from Jon Harmon Feldman (credits include "Dawson's Creek"). McDermott plays a recently divorced CEO who's troubles are just beginning. Michael Vartan ("Alias"), Christopher Titus ("Titus") and Joshua Malina ("West Wing") also star as McDermott's inner-circle of friends, all CEOs with their own issues.

ABC's web site describes the concept for the show as "Jon Harmon Feldman's desire to explore, in comedic and dramatic terms, what it means to be a man in 2007."

A show where the core characters are all CEOs of corporations who have infidelity issues may or may not mesh well with viewers, but it'll be interesting to see what Feldman's view of "what it means to be a man in 2007."

Heroes: Origins

Premiers after "Heroes" breaks for mid-season

Mondays at 9 p.m., NBC

Last year, the break out series "Heroes" captivated audiences with its comic book-like story lines and super powered characters. Audiences were unhappy when the series took breaks at Christmas and then another month-long break after February sweeps. The producers of the show found a solution to appease fans, but also keep casual viewers interested.

"Heroes: Origins" will be a six-episode mini-series that will both bridge what producers are calling "Chapter 2" (the first half of season 2) and "Chapter 3" (the spring 2008 half of the season), and introduce six new characters. Each episode will feature a new character created by different writers who aren't working on Heroes. At Comi-Con earlier in the summer, it was announced that writer/director Kevin Smith will both script and direct the first episode.

If that doesn't settle the fan boys, nothing will.

Cavemen
Premiers October 10

Tuesdays at 8 p.m., ABC

If you've been watching television at all for the last 3 years, you've seen the GEICO commercials featuring cavemen crying discrimination. Executives at ABC must have really loved the commercials, because in early 2006 they put in a pilot script order for a sitcom based on the cavemen characters. "Cavemen" is the result. For unknown reasons, three cavemen (Bill English, Sam Huntington and John Heard) are alive and well in present day Atlanta. They deal with prejudice, dating, jobs and other typical sitcom plots.

Will the cavemen gimmick that worked for GEICO succeed with ABC? Or will it be a tired joke after the first episode? This may be one of the first causalities of the new shows this year.

There are 27 new shows premiering on network television this fall. The 10 listed here are but merely the tip of the iceberg. The upcoming season looks like it is full of promising new shows, inventive plots and some story elements we've seen before. Set those DVRs and enjoy.