New shows blossoming

From Renaissance courts to the streets of Chicago to a beloved address in London, television ranges far this spring - even if many of the plot lines and franchises sound overly familiar. The new entries join a passel of old favorities that will have to see whether they can find the right kinds of addition to compensate for some cruel subtraction - from Dancing with the Stars (without Bristol Palin) to American Idol (without Simon Cowell). In addition, Survivor will offer redemption and The Amazing Race will settle unfinished business.

Here are a dozen shows (with channel and season premiere date) that you may find worth your viewing time. All but one of the shows listed here are new.

Spring Arts - Television: Debuts and returning shows

Glee, Fox29 (returning, Feb. 6) The music nerds get a bounce into their new season from television's most powerful springboard, the Super Bowl, following it with an extra-special installment that remakes Michael Jackson's Thriller video.

The Chicago Code, Fox29 (new, Feb. 7) Jennifer Beals, of Flashdance fame, plays Chicago's top cop, Teresa Colvin, in a muscular new drama from producer Shawn Ryan (The Shield), shot on location in the Windy City. Jason Clarke (Showtime's Brotherhood) plays her ex-partner, Jarek Wysocki, toughest of all detectives. Teresa handles the politics; Jarek handles the streets. Chicago is the winner.

Mr. Sunshine, 6ABC (new, Feb. 9) Sitcom vet Matthew Perry stars as Ben Donovan, manager of the Sunshine Center sports arena. At age 40, Ben is questioning his self-centered ways and trying to make human connections, which is pretty challenging with a pill-popping boss (Allison Janney) and a pretty assistant who once set her boyfriend on fire.

Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior, CBS3 (new, Feb. 16) CBS has enjoyed considerable success spinning off series such as CSI and NCIS. Oscar winner Forest Whitaker stars as the head of another elite FBI profiling team, which includes Beau Garrett, Michael Kelly, Janeane Garofalo, and Matt Ryan. The only holdover from the original Criminal Minds is Kirsten Vangsness as the colorful computer whiz Penelope. So where's our Mentalist spin-off?