theTVaddict.com is thrilled to welcome a new contributing editor onboard, Richard Michaels. Richard is theTVaddict’s newest TV Insider, a man so ‘in-the-know’ that he’s already seen most of the Fall 2006 TV pilots. That said, here’s the first of his Fall TV Previews for 2006.
You’ve seen the ads. You’ve heard the hype. Now there’s only one thing you want to know: Which of the new fall shows are worth watching and which should be avoided at all costs? In this continuing series, we’re going to give you the scoop on some of the most highly anticipated shows coming down the pike. Which will be the next Gilmore Girls or Lost? And just as importantly, which will be the new Joey? This week, we sneak a peek at the new NBC drama, KIDNAPPED.
When it’s on: Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on NBC, Premieres September 20, 2006
What’s it about: Um… a kidnapping (duh!)
Who’s in it: Jeremy Sisto (Six Feet Under), Dana Delaney (Pasadena)
The twist: The 15-year-old victim must may be smarter than his kidnappers
Hit or miss: This serialized drama is incredibly similar to FOX’s Vanished, at least on the surface. But while that show tends to throw too much at audiences in the pilot episode, Kidnapped does just the opposite by not delivering enough suspense. In fact, there’s a surprising lack of tension in the wake of the central kidnapping. While dramas such as 24 and Without A Trace have taught viewers that every second counts when lives are on the line, it is not only the final moments of the pilot that this drama seems to really kick in. Worse, the episode seems to end without a discernable cliffhanger (other, of course, than “can they get the boy back?” which hardly counts, as that’s the singular theme of the season). Dana Delaney shines bright as the ‘napped kid’s mom, as does young Will Denton as the teen at the center of the drama. Sisto – playing basically the same character that Gale Harold takes on in Vanished – is appealing and plays brooding rule-breaker Knapp with a certain world-weary quality that works. But will an audience that has grown accustomed to edge-of-the-seat suspense in this format wait to see what develops?
The competition: The time-slot is crime-drama heavy, with CSI:NY likely to maintain it’s top-dog spot. That leaves Kidnapped to duke it out with ABC’s life-after-a-bank-robbery drama, The Nine, for second place. Perhaps the most interesting question is this: Will viewers be willing to invest in a long-term investigation and risk having it be cut short should by premature cancellation, or will they get their procedural fix by tuning into the more self-contained CSI? 
