Upfronts: CBS

As has been the case the last couple of years, CBS is dealing from a position of strength, and isn't afraid to try things to make themselves stronger.

Returning Shows - no major surprises for cancellations, unless you consider keeping all three CSI shows a surprise.

The surprises come with a couple of show moves. CSI leaves its long-time Thursday time slot and moves to Wednesday, echoing the move Survivor made last year. It's a smart move, as it takes on the equally venerable Law & Order: SVU and new drama Revenge, which seems like a fight it can win.

The bigger move, I think, is The Good Wife shifting over to Sunday at 9, a clear challenge to Desperate Housewives, which may not be up to the fight. Neither will compete with football - assuming it returns - but this move puts CBS in the better position as the alternative choice to football and as to the prime network to watch in the spring.

Finally, Rules of Engagement will kick of Saturday nights, which is kind of astounding given the dearth of original scripted programming on Saturdays (it will, in fact, be the only scripted show with original programming on Saturdays). This does not bode well for them.

New Shows -

Monday - 2 Broke Girls is the new filler between How I Met Your Mother and the now Kutcherfied Two and a Half Men. It follows two young women who work at a Brooklyn diner as a means to fund their planned cupcake shop. Sounds innocuous enough, and I'm glad it's not another relationship comedy. Points for casting Garrett Morris as the diner's cashier, too.

Tuesday - While I was hoping for NCIS: Omaha to complete the trifecta, the two existing shows get Unforgettable as their 10 pm partner. It stars Poppy Montgomery as a former cop with hyperthymesia - she literally remembers everything that has happened in her life. Except for the details around her sister's still-unsolved murder, which seems like a bad place to be fuzzy. Not sure if this will be better than the usual homicide cop drama, but I do pray that they cast Marilu Henner as Montgomery's mom.

Wednesday - no new shows

Thursday - How to Be A Gentleman get the post-Big Bang Theory slot. It's about a newspaper etiquette columnist who, when pressed by his editor to make his column more relevant, hires a recent reacquaintance to be his coach in all things current (there's a "gentle man/manly man" quip in the press release that makes me wonder how this didn't wind up on ABC). I'd probably watch this more the supporting cast, which includes Dave Foley as the editor and Mary Lynn Rajskub as the main character's sister.

The coveted 9 pm slot goes to Person of Interest, which is intriguing. Jim Caviezel plays a CIA agent (presumed dead) who is hired by a computer billionaire (Michael Emerson) to stop crimes before they happen, pairing the CIA agent's covert skills with the billionaire's pattern recognition software that can identify someone about to commit a crime. So I guess this is kind of like Minority Report: The Series?

Recent Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson rounds out the cast a NYPD detective who crosses paths with the crime fighters. Throw in production credits for JJ Abrams, Bryan Burk and Memento story writer Jonathan Nolan, and you'd think that this show has the pedigree to be the breakout show of the season. Let's just hope it doesn't go all Six Degrees on us.

Friday - A Gifted Man now starts the night. A surgeon, the "gifted man" of the title, is jolted out of his high-powered (and highly lucrative) lifestyle when he starts seeing the apparent ghost of his dead ex-wife. She gets him to start helping out the free clinic where she worked, with the expected results. Jennifer Ehle plays the ghost, while Julie Benz shows up as the surgeon's sister. A little to Touched by a Doctor for my taste.

Saturday and Sunday - no new shows

Not Yet Scheduled - The 2-2 follows a half-dozen NYPD rookies as they learn on the job. Leelee Sobieski and Adam Goldberg are the most notable names in this show that counts Robert De Niro as an executive producer.