2009: The Season Ahead

Breath a sigh of relief. The "second season" is almost upon us.

With the help of Rick Kushman at the Sacramento Bee, here's a look ahead to the 2009 TV season as best we could dig up ...

Shows that have already received the ax, either officially or unofficially:

“My Own Worst Enemy,” “Knight Rider,” “Crusoe” and “America’s Toughest Jobs” from NBC; “The Ex List” on CBS; “Do Not Disturb” on Fox, and “Easy Money,” “In Harm’s Way,” “Valentine,” and “Stylista” on CW.

Plus, there are the second-year shows that are doomed. They are ABC’s “Pushing Daisies,” “Eli Stone” and “Dirty Sexy Money” and NBC’s “Lipstick Jungle.”

What's coming back early in the year:

“Scrubs” (ABC): Jan. 6. Remember, NBC canceled it and ABC quickly picked it up.

“Nip/Tuck” (FX): Jan. 6. One of TV’s seriously out-there series comes back after a strike-shortened season.

“Damages” (FX): Jan. 7. There’s a new case and more legal tricks ahead for this slick and terrific show.

“Flashpoint” (CBS): Jan. 9. The Canadian import was a surprising summer success for CBS.

“Monk” and “Psych” (USA): Jan. 9. They both return for short seasons, then “Monk’s” final season will begin sometime in summer 2009.

“24” (Fox): Jan. 11. It premieres with a two-hour episode, then follows with another two hours Jan. 12.

"American Idol” (Fox): Jan. 13 and 14. Show producers added songwriter and music producer Kara DioGuardi as a fourth judge. Other changes include just three weeks of auditions instead of four, more time spent on the Hollywood round, and this season the judges will pick a few “wild card” finalists.

“Battlestar Galactica” (Sci Fi): Jan. 16. This starts the final 10 weeks of one of TV’s most intriguing series.

“Friday Night Lights” (NBC): Jan. 16. It’s the broadcast premiere for episodes that ran this fall on DirecTV.

“Flight of the Conchords” and “Big Love” (HBO): Jan. 18. Both shows lost start dates because of the writers strike.

“Secret Diary of a Call Girl” and “The L Word” (Showtime): Jan. 18. This will be the sixth and final season for “L Word.”

“Lost” (ABC): Jan. 21. After last season’s dazzling run to the finish, fans have been burning up the blogs with rumors and hearsay.

“Burn Notice” (USA): Jan. 22. Like USA’s other shows, this witty spy/caper series is back for a short season, then starts a new run in the summer.

“The Closer” and “Trust Me” (TNT): Jan. 26. “The Closer” will air five episodes, mostly to give a boost to the new “Trust Me,” a light hour starring Eric McCormack and Tom Cavanagh.

“Life on Mars” (ABC): Jan. 28. ABC is hoping that airing it after “Lost” will get this smart series noticed by viewers.

“Medium” and “Heroes” (NBC): Feb. 2. NBC is trying and trying to bring the magic back to “Heroes.” “Medium” has kept its solid, if mid-sized, fan base.

“Life” (NBC): Feb. 4. NBC gets credit for not giving up on one of the most charming and original cop shows on TV.

“Reaper” (CW): March 17. Yeah, we have to wait until St. Patrick’s Day to see this crew again.

Among returnees that are still unscheduled: “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” and “In Plain Sight” (USA), “Breaking Bad” (AMC), “Rescue Me” (FX), “Saving Grace” (TNT) and “Eureka” (Sci Fi).