It's always tempting at this time of year to look for patterns where perhaps none exist. With four confirmed cancellations ('Charlie's Angels,' 'The Playboy Club,' 'How to be a Gentleman' and 'Free Agents') and several on-the-bubble new shows ('Pan Am,' 'Prime Suspect,' 'Body of Proof'), the only real theme (besides being awful) is a tendency to take themselves too seriously. I do take some satisfaction from seeing all the nostalgia shows die an early death. Apparently the one thing 'The Playboy Club' team didn't look up about 'Mad Men' were the ratings -- a couple million viewers. It was also the only thing they were able to duplicate.

Never underestimate the power of David Spade.

CBS's 'Rules of Engagement' debuted in the former timeslot of 'How to Be a Gentleman' to almost 3 million more viewers than the now-canceled freshman comedy.

The Thurs., Oct. 20 Season 6 premiere of 'Rules' was watched by 11.5 million viewers. The series premiere of 'How to Be a Gentleman' brought in about 9 million viewers. 'Gentleman' had a 2.7 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 'Rules' got a 3.7.

It's time to really say goodbye to 'How to Be a Gentleman.' CBS has pulled the fledgling comedy from its Saturday schedule after only one airing.

Originally airing on Thursdays after ratings hit 'The Big Bang Theory,' the freshman comedy was shuffled off to Saturdays and production was shut down. Now after one Saturday show, it looks like this is truly the end for 'How to Be a Gentleman.'

'How to Be a Gentleman' is the first new CBS show to get the axe.

On Oct. 7, CBS announced it was moving the show to Saturdays -- yep, basically a death timeslot -- but now EW confirms production on the sitcom is shutting down.

'Rules of Engagement' will now air Thursdays at 8:30PM.

'How to Be a Gentleman' is on the move. CBS is shuffling its line-up, moving the freshman comedy to Saturday. 'Rules of Engagement' will now air on Thursdays at 8:30PM.

The network made the move after airing 2 episodes of 'Gentleman.' 'Rules of Engagement' joins the Thursday programming block starting Oct. 20. 'Gentleman' begins airing Saturdays on Oct. 15.

Created, written by and starring David Hornsby, 'How to Be a Gentleman' is based on the book of the same name by John Bridges. 'Entourage' veteran Kevin Dillon and '24' scene-stealer Mary Lynn Rajskub also star.

We're well into the new 2011-2012 TV season and there are a few hits (ABC's 'Pan Am,' CBS's '2 Broke Girls') and a number of flops (The CW's 'H8R,' NBC's 'The Playboy Club'), and the cancellation axe will start swinging very soon.

In terms of ratings, many of NBC's new shows are sinking. Coupled with critical appeal, it looks like the network is having the least luck this season. 'Free Agents' and 'The Playboy Club' are on death watch, yet NBC boss Bob Greenblatt seems to be content on watching, not canceling.

CBS has had some luck in finding an audience for its new dramas like 'Person of Interest,' as well as comedy '2 Broke Girls,' but the premiere of 'How to Be a Gentleman' did nowhere near 'Girls' numbers ... nor anywhere near the now-canceled '$#*! My Dad Says' that lived ever-so-briefly in that timeslot last season.

Will 'How To Be a Gentleman' teach its fellow new fall shows how to be the first one canceled? The new CBS comedy debuted to roughly 9 million viewers. It easily beat NBC's comedies, but lost a good chunk of its 'Big Bang Theory' audience. With a 2.7 ratings in the 18-49 demographic, it debuted more than 30 percent lower than the axed '$#*! My Dad Says,' which had a 4.0. Yikes.

Elsewhere on CBS, 'The Big Bang Theory' was down 2 percent, but still had 14.5 million viewers, 'Person of Interest was steady' at 12.4 million and 'The Mentalist' had 12.7 million viewers.

If it seems like we just saw Kevin Dillon on 'Entourage,' that's because we did. But he's back already, and he's playing pretty much the same guy on 'How to Be a Gentleman' (Thu., 8:30PM ET on CBS). That said, he's not the titular gentleman ... or is he?

The name is based on a column written by Andrew (David Hornsby), while Bert (Dillon) is a guy who used to bully him in high school. But when Andrew's magazine forces a new direction on him, suddenly a guy like Bert is exactly who he needs to be trying to understand.

Suburgatory - Wednesday September 28, 8:30PM ET/PT, Citytv/ABC

A little bit 'Mean Girls,' a little bit 'Easy A,' this new sitcom goes for the fish-out-of-water gambit, when a single dad (Jeremy Sisto) pulls his precocious teen daughter out of Manhattan and settles them both in a suburban town where the social scene is even more broken. The father-daughter relationship is as warm and lovely as anything on 'Modern Family' and many of the jokes are just as funny. Plus Cheryl Hines is hilarious as a woman trying very hard to be Barbie.

Welcome to Part 3 of our critics roundtable debate, all about the worst new shows of the upcoming 2011-2012 TV season. Yes, up until now these debates been a lot of sparkles and rainbows tied up in hope, but not this one -- the claws are out.

Here's a little backstory: during the recent Television Critics Association (TCA) press tour, I gathered a group of my fellow critics and turned on the cameras while we talked all about the best and worst of fall TV.


I've split our chat into five insightful videos, and we'll be posting a new one here on AOL TV everyday this week -- best new comedy, best new drama and worst new show (watch all three below), then star we're happiest to see on TV (Thursday) and returning show we're most excited for (Friday) -- so keep checking back for more.

Right now, join me and HitFix.com's Alan Sepinwall, Melanie McFarland from IMDb TV, Damian Holbrook of TV Guide Magazine and AOL TV's own Mo Ryan to get our brutally honest take on today's topic: Worst new show.

Are TV viewers too dumb to decide which shows they're supposed to be watching? Apparently the broadcast TV networks think so.

With lineups that include an astounding number of gender-specific titles for the 2011-2012 season, it's starting to feel like the battle of the sexes is waging a new war on primetime TV.



It's as if the networks are sending out a loud and clear message to their audiences on both sides of the gender pool. Men: You should only be watching shows with the word "man" or some variation of that word in the title! And women: Don't mind the number of shows that had the word b*tch in the title (two: 'G.C.B.' and 'Apartment 23') -- we've changed them to be more female-friendly so you'll feel comfortable tuning in!

Curious how cross-gender, multi-sexual and downright all-inclusive these new un-sexily sex-titled shows are? We've judged and ranked them on a Sexist-o-Meter scale of 1-10, 1 being pretty inoffensive, and 10 being circa-1985 levels of shocking close-mindedness.

Let's take a look ...

We've seen the network's new fall pilots, and while they're not for review (things often change drastically before the shows are set to premiere), we do want to share our first reactions with you.

This is designed to get you excited for some new shows ... and to warn you to curb your enthusiasm for others. Just keep in mind that we'll have full reviews of the final pilots closer to airdate in the fall. For now, here are our snap judgments of all of CBS's new shows for the 2011-2012 TV season.

There are five shows total (read up and watch previews here) and plenty of varying opinions -- none of us agreed 100% on any of them -- from Mo Ryan, Maggie Furlong, Jean Bentley, Chris Harnick, Alex Moaba, Kim Potts and Laura Prudom.

Here's how we're breaking these down:
Watch It - awesome show, can't wait for more
Skip It - it's either horrible or just totally not their thing
DVR It - there's potential, will give it a second chance

What do Michael Emerson and Kat Dennings have in common? They have two of highest-testing new shows, according to CBS.

Yep, CBS is predicting Emerson's 'Person of Interest' and Dennings' '2 Broke Girls' are going to be hot next season. But, that's up to you, dear viewers!

During midseason, look for new rookie cop drama 'The 2-2' from producer Robert De Niro.

Check out previews of of '2 Broke Girls,' 'Person of Interest,' Poppy Montgomery's new police drama 'Unforgettable,' Patrick Wilson and Julie Benz in supernatural medical drama 'A Gifted Man' and David Hornsby and Kevin Dillon in 'How to Be a Gentleman' below.

It's CBS's turn to shake things up with its fall schedule, which the network just announced this morning.

'CSI' is finally getting the boot from its longtime Thursday night time slot in favor of the J.J. Abrams-produced 'Person of Interest,' while 'The Good Wife' is getting transferred from Tuesdays at 10PM to the highly competitive Sundays at 9PM slot.

The network's two new comedies will both get their shots after established shows, with '2 Broke Girls' airing after 'How I Met Your Mother' on Mondays and 'How to Be a Gentleman' landing post-'Big Bang Theory' on Thursdays. Interestingly, 'Rules of Engagement' is being pushed to Saturday nights.

CBS is saving the Robert De Niro-produced cop drama 'The 2-2' for mid-season (hopefully with a better name).

The full fall schedule is after the jump.

Update: Patrick Wilson's 'A Gifted Man' has also received a series order. The medical drama tells the story of a doctor who gets guidance from his ex-wife who has died.

Deadline reports former 'Law & Order: SVU' showrunner Neal Baer will serve as executive producer and showrunner on the new series.

CBS has given the greenlight to three new series, including Robert De Niro's cop drama 'The 2-2' (previously titled 'Rookies'), 'Unforgettable,' and 'How to Be a Gentleman.'

'The 2-2' stars Leelee Sobieski, Adam Goldberg, Tom Reed, Terry Kinney and Stark Sands as rookie cops.

According to Entertainment Weekly, 'Unforgettable' stars Poppy Montgomery as an NYPD detective who has the ability to remember everything. 'How to be a Gentleman' is based on the book of the same name and follows the friendship between an uptight columnist and his friend/trainer.