Somebody call 911. We’ve got a medical emergency. Three of them, actually.
Medical shows are breaking out all over this fall TV season, and it’s a pox on the screen.
Start with NBC’s “Mercy,” a noisy drama about a know-it-all nurse working through her Iraq duty post-traumatic stress by showing everyone how smart she is. She’s also trying to repair her battered marriage while working alongside her McDreamy-like love doc from the desert. It’s set in Newark, where no one talks like they’re from Jersey (an affliction it shares with the venerable “House”). Give it a quick scan and you’ll agree — this one takes a tag that says “Do Not Resuscitate.”
Then there’s CBS’ “Three Rivers,” about a crack organ transplant team in the Steel City, where no one talks like they’re from Pittsburgh. Katherine Moennig is the mouthy, succeed-at-all-costs surgeon who would benefit from a Thorazine drip. It lasts an hour, but you’ll pull the plug long before that.
Speaking of dead on arrival, there’s NBC’s “Trauma,” an aptly-named disaster series about life on the other side of the emergency room doors. San Francisco, which serves as the backdrop, is patrolled by a cadre of super paramedics who whoosh about in copters or dangle from tall buildings while things go boom all around.
Somebody save us. Please!
There are a few strokes of brilliance in the fall scene, however. Jenna Elfman (“Dharma & Greg”) charms her way through the unlikely CBS sitcom “Accidentally on Purpose,” in which she’s a preggo single who lets the preppyish baby daddy move in.
ABC unleashes “Fast Forward,” an arresting sci-fi serial in which the world blanks out for two minutes and wakes up in chaos. Those who call it the new “Lost” are sadly mistaken. It’s a cut above in all categories.
And an ABC remake of the old alien series “V” is another treat for the sci-fi crowd. These media-savvy visitors arrive looking hot as a solar flare. Their intentions, of course, are strictly dishonorable.
This is the week the bulk of the new schedule hits the screen. Here’s your guide to what’s worth connecting with.
———
MONDAY
“Accidentally on Purpose”
Where: 8:30 p.m., CBS.
Debuted Monday.
About: Jenna Elfman, as a driven career woman, finds herself unexpectedly pregnant after a random hookup. And decides to have the baby.
Gimmick: Baby daddy, an immature player, moves in.
Washburn’s Take: Elfman (“Dharma & Greg”) carries this often-witty sitcom, as well as the child.
“Trauma”
Where: 9 p.m., NBC.
Debuts Sept. 28.
About: Hot-blooded San Francisco paramedics save the day, day after day.
Gimmick: Lots of pyrotechnics.
Washburn’s Take: OK for action, but nothing can rescue the predictable drama.
“Jay Leno”
Where: 10 p.m., NBC.
Debuted Sept. 14.
About: Leno takes over an hour of prime-time weeknightly.
Gimmick: Monologue at 10!
Washburn’s Take: It’s an experiment. But Leno’s a hard worker. Give it time.
———
TUESDAY
“V”
Where: 8 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Oct. 3.
About: Aliens arrive to serve man. And, boy, are they hot.
Gimmick: They’ll kill us with kindness.
Washburn’s Take: This remake of the ‘80s reptile miniseries will abduct you in the very first hour.
“NCIS: Los Angeles”
Where: 9 p.m., CBS.
Debuts Tuesday.
About: NCIS gumshoes in L.A.
Gimmick: Chris O’Donnell, LL Cool J are the two main sleuths and make it work without a big ensemble.
Washburn’s Take: “NCIS” fans will applaud expansion of the franchise.
“Melrose Place”
Where: 9 p.m., CW.
Debuted Sept. 8.
About: Next generation moves in at the Hollywood address.
Gimmick: Some of the old generation is still around. Until murdered, anyway.
Washburn’s Take: Darker, dumber than the original, but still has a high eye-candy factor.
“The Forgotten”
Unpreviewed
Where: 10 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Tuesday.
About: Amateur detectives try to put names on murdered John and Jane Does.
Gimmick: Our sleuths are warped by crime themselves.
Washburn’s Take: Lots of network tinkering with this one and the outcome is a mystery.
“The Good Wife”
Where: 10 p.m., CBS.
Debuts Tuesday.
About: Julianna Margulies as the stunned wife of the sex-scandalized politico (Chris Noth). She has to go back to lawyering when he goes to prison.
Gimmick: Life in the law firm is the pits.
Washburn’s Take: Dramatically appealing. Christine Baranski is strong as an office menace.
———
WEDNESDAY
“Hank”
Where: 8 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Sept. 30.
About: Kelsey Grammer as a downsized exec who must move back to his hometown.
Gimmick: He has to get right with his neglected family.
Washburn’s Take: “Frasier” fans need not apply.
“Mercy”
Where: 8 p.m., NBC.
Debuts Wednesday.
About: Know-it-all nurse takes out her post-Iraq angst on co-workers and family.
Gimmick: She’s trying to revive her marriage, but her wartime lover is still in the picture.
Washburn’s Take: A faint pulse.
“The Middle”
Where: 8:30 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Sept. 30.
About: Patricia Heaton as a supermom who can’t quite get off the ground.
Gimmick: Her clan is infused with Midwestern values.
Washburn’s Take: A family comedy that clicks from the get-go.
“Modern Family”
Where: 9 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Wednesday.
About: Gay dads, a trophy wife and text-happy kids. Welcome to the 21st century family.
Gimmick: Three families, three takes on modern life.
Washburn’s Take: Warm like “Cosby,” clever like “Malcolm.” Move in.
“Glee”
Where: 9 p.m., Fox.
Debuted Sept. 9.
About: High school glee club gets some respect.
Gimmick: The faculty’s crazier than the kids.
Washburn’s Take: Far more irreverent than “High School Musical,” it hits the right notes.
“The Beautiful Life”
Where: 9 p.m., CW.
Debuted Sept. 16.
About: Heartland model lands in New York, learns big-city ways.
Gimmick: Catwalks, cat fights.
Washburn’s Take: This ain’t so pretty.
“Cougar Town”
Where: 9:30 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Wednesday.
About: Courteney Cox as a 40-something preying on younger beaus.
Gimmick: She’s got a teenager to complicate the dating scene.
Washburn’s Take: Difficult to see a long-term relationship in this uneven comedy.
“Eastwick”
Where: 10 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Wednesday.
About: Small-town witches come under the spell of Mr. Devilish.
Gimmick: Based on “The Witches of Eastwick.”
Washburn’s Take: Soapishly sexy, but really there’s not much brewing here.
———
THURSDAY
“Flash Forward”
Where: 8 p.m., ABC.
Debuts Thursday.
About: Earthlings go to sleep for 2 minutes, 17 seconds, wake in a world of ruin.
Gimmick: They’ve all glimpsed their futures during the blackout.
Washburn’s Take: Epic effects, smart plot and “Lost”-like pace.
“Community”
Where: 8 p.m., NBC.
Debuted Sept. 17.
About: “Animal House,” community-college style.
Gimmick: Chevy Chase leads the cast in a struggle for lower education.
Washburn’s Take: Smart, funny, worth an A-plus.
“Vampire Diaries”
Where: 8 p.m., CW.
Debuted Sept. 10.
About: Sexy teen vampires romp in twisted town.
Gimmick: Lots of competition for new blood.
Washburn’s Take: “Buffy” meets “True Blood,” but nothing quite satisfies.
———
FRIDAY
“Brothers”
Where: 8 p.m., Fox.
Debuts Sept. 25.
About: Ex-NFL star Michael Strahan goes broke, moves in with his family.
Gimmick: His paraplegic brother likes to bicker with him.
Washburn’s Take: Strahan pulls it off nicely, but overall it’s a punt situation.
———
SUNDAY
“The Cleveland Show”
Where: 8:30 p.m., Fox.
Debuts Sept. 27.
About: “Family Guy” neighbor Cleveland moves back to his Virginia hometown.
Gimmick: Marries high-school dream girl, lives next to a family of bears.
Washburn’s Take: For Cleveland-lovers only.
“Three Rivers”
Where: 9 p.m., CBS.
Debuts Oct. 4.
About: Over-earnest transplant doctors work miracles.
Gimmick: Always obstacles.
Washburn’s Take: DOA.
Comments