TV Eye

Fat Actress

Lots of midseason premieres in March. So, without much fuss, here's what's coming up:

New seasons of The Amazing Race (CBS), America's Next Top Model (UPN), and Making the Band (MTV) premiered this week. Deadwood (HBO) returns for a new season on Sunday. The much-anticipated "dramality" series Fat Actress (Showtime) premieres Monday at 9pm. Kirstie Alley stars as a parody of herself, a plump actress trying to work in appearance-obsessed Hollywood. If anyone is capable of deep self-deprecation for a laugh, it's Alley. Haven't received the screener yet, but I have high hopes for this one.

I have less than high hopes for Blind Justice, the heavily promoted new cop drama that premieres Tuesday at 9pm on ABC. The very fine Ron Eldard stars as Jim Dunbar, a New York detective who is blinded in a shoot-out, the events of which are spectacularly shown in the pilot episode's opening sequence. He can see shapes and sometimes colors, but essentially, Dunbar is blind. His trusty dog Hank is there to help him find his way, but he's not interested in listening to books on tape. He wants to go back to work and prove that he still has what it takes to be one of New York's finest.

I saw a screener of this series months ago, apparently before the network decided to premiere it midseason. Then, as now, I find the whole premise hard to swallow. Though Blind Justice is a Steven Bochco Production (Bochco being someone who knows a thing or two about cop dramas), and Eldard gives an earnest performance, I just could not buy the premise.

Later in March: Jake in Progress starring John Stamos. "Same sex, different city"? I don't think so. More on that next week.

A new season of Project Greenlight (Bravo) premieres March 15, as does the fourth season of The Shield (FX), with Glenn Close joining the cast. The U.S. spin-off of The Office premieres March 23 on NBC. The very funny Steve Carell (The Daily Show) stars in the role that Ricky Gervais indelibly forged in the original BBC version. The pilot episode mimics the original series, but thereafter it's all original work. Good plan. When the knockoff of the BBC hit Coupling came to this side of the pond, scripted word for word, the series bombed. Some things just don't translate well, even in the same language.

What I'm waiting for in my mailbox: screeners of the aforementioned The Office, Kojak (USA) starring Ving Rhames, and Eyes (ABC), a new detective drama focusing on white-collar crime, starring Tim Daly, all scheduled for late March premieres.

As always, stay tuned.

TV on DVD Watch

Something old, something new characterizes the upcoming TV-on-DVD releases in the next few months. Scouring the back of the TV vault brings treasures like the original The French Chef series from WGBH Boston and Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, while the release of current series like Joan of Arcadia and Entourage do double duty in pleasing fans and enticing new viewers into the fold.

Here's a rundown of new releases due in the next three months:

March 1: The Brady Bunch: The Complete First Season (Paramount Home Video; four discs, 25 episodes)

March 8: Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids: Volume 1 (Ventura Distribution; two discs, 12 episodes)

March 15: Hogan's Heroes: The Complete First Season (Paramount Home Video; five discs, 32 episodes)

March 22: Doogie Howser, MD: Season 1 (Anchor Bay Entertainment; four discs, 26 episodes); The French Chef With Julia Child (WGBH Boston; three discs, includes 18 episodes from the original 1960 series); Kojak: Season One (Universal Studios; three discs, 22 episodes)

March 29: The Lone Gunmen: The Complete Series (Fox Home Entertainment; three discs, 14 episodes)

April 12: The Bob Newhart Show: The Complete First Season (Fox Home Entertainment; three discs, 24 episodes) Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law: Volume 1 (Warner Home Video; two discs, 13 episodes)

April 19: The Jacques Cousteau Odyssey: The Complete Series (Warner Home Video; six discs, 12 episodes); Dynasty: The Complete First Season (Fox Home Entertainment; four discs, 15 episodes)

April 26: Highway to Heaven: Season One (A&E Home Video; seven discs, 24 episodes)

May 3: Star Trek: Enterprise: The Complete First Season (Paramount Home Video; seven discs, 25 episodes); The Partridge Family: Season 1 (Columbia Tristar Home Video; three discs, 25 episodes)

May 10: Entourage: The Complete First Season (HBO Home Video; two discs, eight episodes); Joan of Arcadia: First Season (Paramount Home Video; six discs, 23 episodes)

May 17: Scrubs: The Complete First Season (Buena Vista Home Video; four discs, 24 episodes)

May 24: NewsRadio: The Complete First and Second Seasons (Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment; three discs, 28 episodes)