TV Guide's Ari Karpel: What's new in fall TV shows

Ari Karpel is a senior associate editor for TV Guide. Previously a publicity director, he has been with TV Guide for five years. Prior to his work with TV Guide, Karpel was the producer of Entertainment Weekly magazine's radio show. He joined the CNN.com chat room from New York.

CNN: Thank you for joining us today Ari Karpel and welcome.

ARI KARPEL: Hi!

CNN: What is your favorite new show this season?

KARPEL: My favorite new show is definitely "24" on Fox. It stars Kiefer Sutherland as a CIA anti-terrorist operative, who, at least initially, is trying to thwart an assassination attempt on a presidential candidate.

CNN: The show "24" takes place over one day. Can the concept hold out?

KARPEL: Its definitely a new concept. and it is well done. We have only seen the first episode, which follows the first hour that day that the season will cover. And they seem to really be able to carry it out with a lot of suspense and action for the 24 episodes, and hence the name "24"

RESOURCES CNN Special: Emmys 2001   Transcript: Matt Roush: Fall television preview

CNN: What’s the latest on “Bob Patterson”? Rumors were it underwent an extensive reworking. Will it go the way of “The Michael Richards Show”?

KARPEL: We're always complaining that the networks don't give the shows enough of a chance to find their own audience or their own voice so I'm a little hesitant to condemn a show based on the one episode because I think the press should give shows a chance as well. That said, I think the "Bob Patterson" pilot is not funny. And likely won't survive.

CHAT PARTICIPANT: How do the networks find out what we want to see?

KARPEL: They find out primarily based on ratings. Obviously the networks are driven by advertiser dollars. It is sad to say, but they don't care as much when it comes down to it about the viewers as they do about the advertisers. For the networks, ratings translate into advertising dollars. So you could say that if people were watching in large numbers, certainly they care what the audience thinks, but it comes down to how much money they can make off a show.

CHAT PARTICIPANT: Has a TV show ever starred two Oscar winners like "The Education of Max Bickford"? How does that rate?

KARPEL: I'm not sure, I'll have to look into that. I don't believe a show has starred 2 Oscar winners before. But maybe, since TV has been around 50 years. Personally I love this show. It's on after "60 Minutes" on CBS on Sunday Nights. So that means a lot of people should check it out, which is a good sign. But this may be a show that has problem building an audience. because it is a real character drama that takes its time revealing dramatic elements. But I think its worth the wait.

CHAT PARTICIPANT: Why have the major networks gone downhill? Why are there so few series like "West Wing", "ER" , "NYPD" on TV these days ?

KARPEL: If you think about it, they actually produce a fair amount of really good shows but when you compare say NBC, which has to program new shows all night every night of the week, to HBO, which programs only a couple of new series at a time, naturally HBO is going to come out ahead. Their success rate is higher, largely because they have less product to create.

CNN: What could be the sleeper hit of the year?

KARPEL: That's a good question It could be "Alias" on ABC Sunday nights at 9 p.m. It's from the creator of "Felicity," J. J. Abrams, and it's about a graduate student played by Jennifer Garner, who works for the CIA. As you'll notice, the CIA is hot, hot, hot this season. But this is a really juicy show that has suspense, romance, and action. And since it is on opposite the "X-Files," which isn't as good as it used to be, former "X-Files" fans may find something new to enjoy.

CHAT PARTICIPANT: Have you seen the new show "Ponderosa"? What do you think of this show and the concept of a prequel to an older show?

KARPEL: There are a lot of prequels this season. There is "Smallville," the "Superman" prequel, and "Enterprise," the "Star Trek" prequel. I haven't gotten to see "Ponderosa" yet. But "Bonanza" certainly had a strong following, and it could be a really interesting way to approach these characters again.

CHAT PARTICIPANT: I hear that Reba McEntire is quite funny in her new sitcom, "Reba." Have you seen it yet?

KARPEL: Reba is so likeable in her new show. I think people in general like this woman to begin with. And I really enjoyed watching her. But I was confused as to why anyone would create a comedy series with this premise. Reba plays a woman whose husband has cheated on her and is leaving her because the mistress is pregnant. Plus Reba's teenage daughter is getting married to her high school boyfriend because she is pregnant. You've gotta wonder how funny that all really is. Nonetheless, she's really sweet and charming and seems like she can make it work.

CNN: Are there too many reality shows on - and do the networks care, since they're so cheap to produce?

KARPEL: There's always a hot genre of shows that sort of saturates the TV schedule for a period of time. Once upon a time it was westerns. In the early 70s, it was sitcoms. More recently we have had a glut of news magazine shows, then game shows, and now, of course, reality shows. There are a lot, but this will balance out eventually and reality shows will just become another one of many kinds of shows available to us. Certainly since they are cheap to produce, that is part of why the networks are creating so many. And some of them are really good, like "The Amazing Race" on CBS. It premiered last week, and it sort of takes reality to the next level, by pairing people who know each other like mother/daughter or husband/wife to compete against other couples in a race around the world. Instead of just watching strangers run together in stressful situations, we got to watch people who know each other in stressful situations and it actually lends credence to the world "reality

CHAT PARTICIPANT: Do you think "Pasadena" will succeed in re-igniting prime time soap opera dramas?

KARPEL: It could if the show finds a way to really give a new twist to the night time drama. The people who created it promised that it will get dark and twisted, and I certainly hope it does. Last season, "Titans" failed because it felt like another night time drama from the 80s These shows have to find a way to do something new.

CHAT PARTICIPANT: Is the need for partially nudity and cussing in prime time going stick, or can we hope for something better?

KARPEL: It looks like partial nudity and cussing are here to stay. TV in many ways reflects the society we are in, and these have become more successful so network programmers feel that if they are a part of our everyday life, that should be reflected in the shows they create.

CNN: Do you have any final thoughts to share with us?

KARPEL: There are 35 new fall shows. And for those who are keeping count, from last year only 10 series have survived. We at TV Guide have picked 11 as this year's fall favorites. but I think half the fun every fall is in catching the shows that are going to disappear after 2 or 3 episodes. So check out "According to Jim" on ABC starring Jim Belushi.

CNN: Thank you for joining us today.

KARPEL: Thank you!

Ari Karpel joined the CNN.com chat room by telephone and CNN provided a typist. This is an edited transcript of the interview which took place on Monday, September 10, 2001.