Reunion

A show so unusual in its format and plot that it will rival both "Lost" and "24" in creativity and "The O.C." in its character development.

Although it will be hard to match "The O.C.'s" ratings, particularly against the blockbuster competition of the time period ("The Apprentice" and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation"), the "Reunion" pilot offers a more intriguing and creative form of entertainment.

Most of the time, Reunion traffics in pained glances, portentous dialogue and life-altering lies. That approach can be addictive, if done with flair. Reunion comes through on that score only sporadically.

"Reunion" has more dishonest heartstring tugs than a John Hughes movie sliced up on AMC and filled with Hallmark ads. And the emotional heavy lifting makes people forget that the actual writing -- in this case, an overdose of voice-over narration -- is sleight, cloying and transparent.

There's nothing particularly fresh about the visual approach, the writing is only serviceable and the plotlines -- a pregnancy, a drunken-driving accident, love found and lost -- are straight out of TV Writing 101.

The problem with "Reunion" is that beyond the show's gimmick, there's not much to draw viewers in. The characters lack depth and personality and the situations are -- yawn -- overly familiar.

[It] isn't very good at all, even for a frothy nighttime serial.