SofaChip’s Advance Notes on Melrose Place, The Beautiful Life, The Vampire Diaries and Life UneXpected

The CW has four new series that have been added to their lineup this fall. I was lucky enough to get an advance view of these, and now I’m here to share my studious thoughts on what you can look forward to. I just hope you like glamor, drama, and super (I mean, just ridiculously) attractive people! Anywhere, here are my thoughts for you. I’ve listed the shows in opposite order of what I enjoyed the most (oooh, the anticipation!).

Katie Cassidy as Ella, Shaun Sipos as David, Stephanie Jacobsen as Lauren, Colin Egglesfield as Auggie, Ashlee Simpson-Wentz as Violet, Michael Rady as Jonah and Jessica Lucas as Riley in MELROSE PLACE on The CW. Photo Credit: Richard Phibbs/The CW ©2009 The CW Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

Katie Cassidy as Ella Photo Caption: Michael Desmond/The CW © 2009 The CW Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

Melrose Place (MP): Like many of you, I never watched an episode of the original Melrose Place. So I wasn’t sure what to expect other than a group of people who lived in the same apartment complex. Which they do. For the longtime fans, you won’t be disappointed as there is at least one familiar face for you. For me the standout characters are ‘power bitch’ Ella Simms played by Katie Cassidy (Supernatural, Harper’s Island) and ‘lovable geek’ Jonah Miller played by Michael Randy (Greek, Swingtown). It’s not entirely relevant but Randy looks a LOT like Zachary Levi (Chuck) to me, which is just weird. But good-weird. I mean, Levi is more than just passably attractive. The thing I really noticed about the pilot episode? It leaves you wanting more. No, it wasn’t my favorite of the pilot’s. But I think lots of you will like it. Like all of these shows, I will definitely watch the second episode. (Of course, that IS what I do – TV is everything! And sometimes water or air, those things are important too…I guess.)

Melrose Place premieres Tuesday, September 8 at 9:00 p.m.

The Beautiful Life "Pilot" Elle Macpherson as Claudia and Mischa Barton as Sonja in THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE on The CW. Photo: Takashi Seida /The CW ©2009 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved

Nico Tortorella as Kai, Benjamin Hollingsworth as Chris, Mischa Barton as Sonja, Sara Paxton as Raina, Corbin Bleu as Isaac Photo Credit: Richard Phibbs / The CW © 2009 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

The Beautiful Life (TBL): If you are a fan of America’s Next Top Model (ANTM) I would almost guarantee that you’ll like this show about the inside world of modeling. The fashion alone may be worth the watch. Mischa Barton (The O.C.) stars as Sonja Stone, and surprised me by looking really amazing as a brunette. Is it just me, or does Sara Paxton as Raina Marinelli look a lot like Barton? I suspect that may be on purpose. The show already has credible fashion links, as Zac Posen is in the first episode. Oh! I was so pleased to see feisty Ashley Madekwe from Secret Diary of a Call Girl in the first episode!

The Beautiful Life premieres Wednesday, September 16 at 9:00 p.m. ET.

Pictured Nina Dobrev as Elena in THE VAMPIRE DIARIES on The CW. Photo: Alan Markfield /The CW ©2009 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved

Paul Wesley as Stefan, Nina Dobrev as Elena, Ian Somerhalder as Damon Photo Credit: Andrew Eccles / The CW © 2009 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

The Vampire Diaries (VD): Be prepared for legions of fans to drudge up Twilight similarities, but ignore them. This is a more than decent show, and with Kevin Williamson (Dawson’s Creek) at the helm I feel pretty safe. I mean, we KNOW he can write awesome love triangles (Dawson/Joey/Pacey!). Seriously though, the writing does shine through with wit – and sounds like real teenagers. I like that this is a show based in a cool little town as opposed to a sunny beach one. Luckily, mysterious vampires and equally mysteriously-appearing fog (one of the cheesier elements the show used) don’t work so well in sunny L.A. I think that Nina Dobrev as Elena is a rising star in her own right, but I  can’t help but notice she reminds me of Amber Tamblyn with a dash of Sophia Bush and even some early Katie Holmes! Hopefully Dobrev has no plans to uh, go the Holmes Scientology route. Did Williamson have say in the casting? Paul Wesley as Stefan (the obvious love choice – the soul mate) looks like James Van Der Beek to me.  I guess that means we can skip right to the chase and assume that we’ll like Elena with Pacey – I mean, Ian Somerhalder’s character, Damon. That’s who I’d pick. Anyway, Kevin Williamson on The CW feels like a homecoming since he played such a huge role in making the WB amazing. (Read more about this show via The TV Chick, I love her thoughts on it.)

Vampire Diaries premieres Thursday, September 10 at 8:00 p.m. followed by the season premiere of Supernatural. Talk about a match made in heaven – I mean, hell?

Life UneXpected - The CW

Life UneXpected (LU, LX?): I expect this will be my favorite new series on The CW. Shiri Appleby has certainly done things since Roswell, but seeing her on the The CW just feels right (again, because it’s what the WB was)! Kerr Smith (a Dawson’s Creek alum) is also back with us. Kristoffer Polaha shares the spotlight on this show, and while I looked at all of the projects he’s done I noticed he was actually once on Roswell! There’s a real problem here, though. Because I really like both of the love interests for Appleby’s character! Normally I can gravitate towards one right away, why do they both have to be so great? This show is about love, although the most important dynamic/relationship is the one explored through young teen, Lux, and her birth parents (Appleby and Polaha). If you only have time to check out one new show this fall, I highly recommend this one. And it looks like I’m not the only one who likes Life UneXpected.

Extra: Let’s just all worship Zooey Deschanel, cool? You down with that? I am.

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