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"As the upfronts approach, it’s hard to scope out pilot pickup buzz at the major broadcast nets this year because there are few clear heat-seekers.
The big bets of this year’s development crop were made early on in the cycle (last summer and fall) and for the most part have retained their front-runner status: ABC’s “Marvel’s Agents of Shield” with the Whedon clan; CBS’ redo of “Beverly Hills Cop”; NBC’s 22-episode throwdown for the Michael J. Fox domestic laffer; Andy Samberg and Andre Braugher in Fox’s cop comedy “Brooklyn 99″; and the union of David E. Kelley and Robin Williams in CBS’ “Crazy Ones.”
J.J. Abrams has his minimum allotment of two pilots: Fox’s robot-cops vehicle and “Believe” with Alfonso Cuaron at NBC. David Shore is said to be looking promising with ABC drama “Doubt.”
The fuzzy picture for next season’s series pickups will clear up a little this week as the broadcast nets begin their formal pilot screenings. Here’s hoping there is more sizzle on the screen than there seems to be at this stage. The nets need some flash after a ho-hum 2012-13 season.
There are notable in-demand thesps on the pilot roster this year — Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear, Josh Holloway, Debra Messing, Rainn Wilson among them — but not so much in the way of eye-popping, mold-breaking material. Procedural dramas abound, as do ensemble comedies about various combos of thirtysomething friends (“Friends” still casts a looonnng shadow).
Some of the most creative ideas have come in the form of nontraditional casting decisions.
“Office” alum Wilson is set for a dramatic turn as a misanthropic homicide detective in CBS’ “Backstrom” (it’s got a Swedish pedigree so ’nuff said), especially with Dennis Haysbert along for the ride. Christopher Meloni is leaving the serious law-and-order biz for a sitcom turn in Fox’s father-son laffer “I Suck at Girls,” which has good buzz. Wendell Pierce of “The Wire” and “Treme” is lending his mellifluous baritone to the Michael J. Fox sitcom (he’ll have to watch his language on broadcast TV).
CBS has put Beau Bridges, Margo Martindale, J.B. Smoove and Will Arnett under one roof for writer Greg Garcia’s untitled father-son comedy, which has momentum at the Eye. With that cast, who needs a script? Also gaining steam at CBS is comedy “Friends With Better Lives,” an ensembler featuring Kevin Connolly and James Van Der Beek. It is fortified by having been directed by James Burrows, who has a hell of a pilot-pickup track record.
At ABC, Adam Goldberg’s comedy with the colorful but soon-to-change title “How the Fuck Am I Normal” is hot enough to begin making staffing offers. At Fox there’s a lot of chatter about domestic laffer “The Gabriels” from Justin Hurwitz and Andrew Gurland.
NBC is said to be high on Jason Katims’ spin on “About a Boy.” A sleeper to watch at the Peacock is comedy “Welcome to the Family” from writer Mike Sikowitz, which revolves around a culture clash of white and Latino families brought together by an unplanned pregnancy. Writer DJ Nash’s comedy “Then Came Elvis,” featuring Harold Perrineau and Parker Posey, also has traction at the Peacock.
Drama-wise, ABC is said to be ready to roll on “Lucky 7,” a redo of a British drama about a group of supermarket employees who win the lottery. Fox likes the look of Kinnear as a charming rogue lawyer in “Rake” — a tonal successor to “House,” no doubt.
There are always a few no-brainers. ABC’s “Agents of Shield” drama is getting on the air unless we all wake up on May 14 (the day of ABC’s upfront presentation) in a parallel world where Disney doesn’t control the Marvel Universe. CBS wants Kim Raver in its stable of stars, which bodes well for the “NCIS: Red” spinoff that the network test-drove as a two-episode arc last month.
Chuck Lorre’s Mom, starring Anna Faris and Allison Janney, is pretty much bulletproof at CBS, aided by a great script and swell cast.
I’m not sure what the reviews are yet for CBS’ legal drama “The Advocate,” from “Mentalist” man Bruno Heller, but I’ll be hunting down a screener just to see Ben McKenzie (fresh off a career-making role on “Southland”) work with the always-awesome CCH Pounder.
McG’s ABC drama “Westside” is also a must-obtain, if only to see what haunts he and writer Byron Balasco chose to feature in the drama set among warring families in Venice (California, not Italia). Angelenos, of course, know the beachside hamlet is not actually a city unto itself, but we’ll let that slide for artistic license — just as long as the Warner Bros. TV production doesn’t have telltale traces of Burbank in its backdrops.
(Cynthia Littleton, 07.05.2013)

NEWS - I 10 pilot prossimi venturi da non perdere secondo la bibbia "Tv Guide" (qual è il vostro preferito?)

About a Boy (NBC)
Starring: David Walton, Minnie Driver
Summary: Based on the Nick Hornsby novel and Hugh Grant film, a loutish bachelor (Walton) finds his priorities in life shifting after he befriends the awkward son (Benjamin Stockham) of his neighbor (Driver).
Pedigree: Parenthood's Jason Katims will write and executive-produce the comedy with originalBoy producers Robert DeNiro, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner and Jane Rosenthal. Jon Favreau will helm the pilot.
Why we like it: Walton (Perfect Couples, Bent) is perfectly cast as a man-child in this heartwarming comedy that makes us want to be a kid again.
Why it has a shot: It already has a built-in fan base, which will make NBC's job easier. Plus: The network is hot on Katims, after giving Parenthood a full 22-episode season.
Check out the complete list of ABC's pilots

Believe (NBC)
Starring: Jake McLaughlin, Kyle MacLachlan
Summary: An unlikely relationship develops between a young girl (Johnny Sequoyah) with a gift and a man (Jake McLaughlin) sprung from prison who has been tasked with protecting her from the evildoers who covet her power, among them Skouras (McLachlan), a mysterious billionaire.
Pedigree: Harry Potter's Alfonso Cuaron and The Forgotten's Mark Friedman will write and executive-produce the drama with Lost's J.J. Abrams and Bryan Burk.
Why we like it: The script was bursting with what will likely turn into visually stunning shots and effects at the hands of Cuaron.
Why it has a shot: The pedigree alone should be enough to land this drama a spot on the network's schedule, especially since Abrams' Bad Robot gave NBC its only bona fide hit last season with Revolution.

Beverly Hills Cop (CBS)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Brandon T. Jackson, Christine Lahti
Summary: In a sorta-sequel to the movie franchise, the police officer son (Jackson) of Axel Foley (Murphy) patrols the rich and famous of Beverly Hills under the leadership of Lahti's Captain Chernick.
Pedigree: The Shield's Shawn Ryan will write and executive-produce the drama with Murphy.
Why we like it: Axel Foley's young son is just as hilarious — if not more so — than his legendary pops!
Why it has a shot: Even those who never saw the original films will be attracted to the lavish, gritty world of California's sunshine-noir. Plus: CBS isn't likely to pass up the opportunity to bring Murphy back to TV.

Check out the complete list of CBS' pilots

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox)
Starring:, Andy Samberg, Andre Braugher, Terry Crews
Summary: A group of detectives — including Samberg, Braugher and Crews — form an odd family in a police precinct in an outermost neighborhood of New York City.
Pedigree: Parks and Recreation's Mike Schur and Dan Goor will write and executive-produce the comedy with 30 Rock's David Miner.
Why we like it: Samberg, the former SNL goofball, has a chance to prove he can navigate both comedy and tragedy, bringing to mind Hill Street Blues and M*A*S*H.
Why it has a shot: Schur, Goor and Samberg all know comedy cold.

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (ABC)
Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na
Summary: It's based on Marvel Universe's fictional and secret law-enforcement agency, Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistic Directorate.
Pedigree: The Avengers' Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen will write and executive-produce the drama.
Why we like it: An action-packed thrill ride that resurrects Agent Coulson (Gregg) and introduces Ming-Na as a steely new agent? Count us in!
Why it has a shot: The Avengers has grossed $1.5 billion worldwide. Need we say more? Fine, Whedon also brought Buffy, Angel and Firefly to our TV screens!

Check out the complete list of The CW's pilots

Mom (CBS)
Starring: Anna Faris, Allison Janney
Summary: A newly sober single mom (Faris) — who blames her own mother (Janney) for her issues — tries to pull her life together in Napa Valley.
Pedigree: Two and a Half Men's Chuck Lorre will write and executive-produce the comedy withMen's Eddie Gorodetsky.
Why we like it: True to form, Lorre doesn't skimp on the schadenfreude as Faris' hot mess Christy enables our own feelings of superiority.
Why it has a shot: It's doubtful CBS will say no to Lorre, who has given the network three hit series (Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory and Mike & Molly). Plus: The chemistry between Faris and Janney is sure to be undeniable.

Oxygen (The CW)
Starring: Aimee Teegarden, Matt Lanter
Summary: An epic romance ignites between a human girl (Teegarden) and an alien boy (Lanter) when he and eight others of his kind start attending high school in the suburbs.
Pedigree: The Good Wife's Meredith Averill will write and executive-produce the drama withMission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol producer Josh Appelbaum.
Why we like it: It feels like District 9-meets-Romeo and Juliet.
Why it has a shot: Sure, it's a Roswell-esque drama about aliens, but at its core, it's a high school love story — something at which The CW excels. Plus: 90210's Lanter and Friday Night Lights' Teegarden have valuable name recognition.

Check out the complete list of Fox's pilots

Rake (Fox)
Starring: Greg Kinnear, Miranda Otto
Summary: Kinnear stars as a brilliant, charming defense attorney whose biggest challenges existoutside the courtroom — he owes money to the IRS and a bookie, he's juggling overlapping affairs, and he has a cranky kid and an exhausted ex-wife (Otto).
Pedigree: Peter Duncan, creator of the original Australian series, and Rescue Me's Peter Tolan will write and executive-produce the drama.
Why we like it: It's not your typical legal series: Kinnear's character is at times more depraved than his clients, and watching his constant recalibration of his moral compass is intriguing.
Why it has a shot: Fox will likely want to repeat the success it had with bringing Kevin Bacon to TV in The Following by locking down Oscar nominee Kinnear. 

Super Fun Night (ABC)
Starring: Rebel Wilson
Summary: Kimmie (Wilson) and her two best friends (Lauren Ash and Liza Lapira) worry that their Friday-night tradition of staying home in their pajamas will be threatened when Kimmie gets a big promotion at her law firm and is invited to a party by the cute transfer from the London office (Kevin Bishop). It's time to take Super Fun Night on the road!
Pedigree: Wilson will write and executive-produce the comedy with Conan O'Brien and Conan'sJeff Ross.
Why we like it: As in all her roles, Wilson (Bridesmaids, Pitch Perfect) dives head-first into Kimmie, who is both pathetic and endearing -- but mostly pathetic. And let's be honest, we all want to spend Friday night in our PJs. This way, we can do it vicariously with a sympathetic, hilarious heroine.
Why it has a shot: Fat Amy Wilson is among the hottest names in comedy right now; of courseABC wants to be in business with her.

Check out the complete list of NBC's pilots

Tomorrow People (The CW)
Starring: Peyton List, Robbie Amell (Arrow star Stephen Amell's cousin), Mark Pellegrino
Summary: Based on the U.K. series of the same name, it's the story of a group of young people from around the globe — List and Amell among them — who represent the next stage in human evolution and possess special powers like teleportation and telepathy. They work together to defeat the forces of evil. Genre stable Pellegrino (Lost, Revolution, Supernatural) plays the villain.
Pedigree: Chuck's Phil Klemmer will write and executive-produce with The Vampire Diaries' Julie Plec and Arrow's Greg Berlanti.
Why we like it: It's the promise that Heroes never quite fulfilled, combined with the CW's special talent for eye candy. Plus: What a great companion show for Arrow.
Why it has a shot: Ordering People to series would expand the network's relationship with Plec and Berlanti, two of the network's most valuable players.

Which of these pilots sounds the most promising to you?