Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Sorry, Charlie, they should have thrown the idea of remaking “Charlie’s Angels” out to sea.
How bad is it?
The one featured actress that viewers are likely to know is Minka Kelly (seen right with co-star Annie Ilonzeh), the former “Friday Night Lights” star who until recently was romantically involved with New York Yankees great Derek Jeter.
However, Minka isn’t one of the original trio of Angels in tonight’s 8 o’clock  opener on Channel 7, the ABC affiliate.
So that pretty much telegraphs one of the early plot lines. If the writers were going to change an Angel, they would have been wise to do one of the other lesser-known beauties.
But that isn’t even the major flaw of “Angels,” which isn’t about to make you forget the Kate Jackson- Jaclyn Smith-Farrah Fawcett 1970s version about three former criminals who solved cases and triumphed despite – or because of — its sexism.

You’ll Like It If: Looking at pretty women in a pretty setting (Miami) is enough for you to ignore a routine plot and stilted dialogue. Rachael Taylor (“Grey’s Anatomy’), Ilonzeh and Kelly are the new Angels, with Ramon Rodriguez as the younger Bosley, who now is a computer hacker.
You’ll Hate It If: You had hoped that TV had changed dramatically since the late Fawcett sold all those iconic posters.
Outlook: These dull “Angels” should get a flying start tonight, but should quickly land with a thud.
Rating: 1 and a half stars out of 4
 “Whitney,” 9:30 tonight, Channel 2, is the other comedy from comedian Whitney Cummings, who co-created “Two Broke Girls” for CBS. Her philosophy is “getting married is so dumb” so she lives with her significant other, Alex (Chris D’Elia) without visions of the altar that hanging over their heads after five years together. Whitney does a lot of awkward, loud and annoying things, including eventually asking her boyfriend to marry her. His response: “I love you so much I’m not going to marry you.”
You’ll Like It If: They’re not married but they still behave like a married couple. They bicker a lot over what she should wear and how often they have sex. So your bickering tolerance will be tested, along with your taste test. It can get a little raunchy.
You’ll Hate It If: Your idea of humor doesn’t involve seeing the lead visit a Sex Shop with her girlfriends, discussing with them about how often she and her partner have sex weekly and delivering lines like: “I’m not Daniel Day-Lewis. I just want to get laid.”
Outlook:I’m not a prude so I laughed a few times, but not as loudly as a laugh track that is annoying as Whitney. Having said that, I can’t imagine watching this sex talk more than once a month at most.Rating: 2 stars.
I’ve already written about the two other new offerings premiering tonight.
Here is a recap:
There were plenty of reasons for “Person of Interest” to get extra buzz before it premiered at 9 tonight on Channel 4.
It stars Michael Emerson, who played Ben Linus, one of the most intriguing characters on ABC’s “Lost.”
The co-star is Jim Caviezel, best known for playing Jesus Christ in Mel Gibson’s “Passion of the Christ.”
It is produced by J.J. Abrams, who added the summer movie hit “Super 8” to a resume that includes TV’s “Lost,” “Alias” and “Fringe.”
Those are three great reasons for the series to get some interest.
But the biggest reason comes courtesy of Rupert Murdoch, whose media company News Corp is in serious jeopardy because of a hacking scandal.
You can’t help but think of the News Corp scandal while watching “Person of Interest” because the main characters hack into cell phones to get information in New York City..
They invade privacy in the post 9/11 world for good reason – to save someone. But the ease with what they do it with the help of red light cameras and hacking devices still is pretty scary stuff.
The pilot reminded me of a combination of the Francis Ford Coppola movie “The Conversation,” Clint Eastwood’s “Dirty Harry” and the old Edward Woodward CBS series “The Equalizer.”
Caviezel plays John Reese, a former CIA agent type who becomes a vigilante after being pressed into service by Emerson’s character, Mr. Finch. Except for a Ratso Rizzo limp when he walks, Mr. Finch isn’t much different than Ben Linus. He is mysterious, a bit of weasel and says things that are supposed to be profound. Caviezel’s Reese is the strong silent type of character that Eastwood can do in his sleep.
The opener is what is referred to as a premise pilot, which means Reese and Mr. Finch have several “walk and talks” in which they explain why Mr. Finch has enlisted the formerly homeless Reese to shoot anyone he needs to prevent (and solve) crimes in the name of justice.
The walk and talks also allow the viewer to understand the similar government experiences that made these two very different men eventually see eye to eye.
It is an incredibly violent show that requires a viewer to suspend disbelief often – especially when Reese is able to escape multiple armed villains and a female district attorney enters a violent criminal’s cell by herself without concern for her safety.
I didn’t exactly understand everything behind the technology because it is explained so fast, but at least it is more understandable than “Lost” ever was.
If it becomes a hit – and CBS moved “CSI” because it saw the possibilities – I’m thinking Abrams, Emerson and Caviezel will have Rupert and his scandal to thank. Rating: 2 and a half stars

* I’ve watched “Prime Suspect,” the Americanized version of the career-defining British series starring Helen Mirren that premiered 20 years ago and still plays on WNED-TV, twice.  I figured the adaptation of Lynda LaPlante’s British series deserved a second look.
It didn’t get any better the second time. ”Prime Suspect” stars Maria Bello as a tough female homicide detective, Jane Timoney, trying to gain respect from the all- boys club in the Homicide Squad of the NYPD York Police Department run by a guy trying to be open-minded (played by Aidan Quinn).
Now I’ve been a fan of Bello for some time. She first got my attention joining the cast of “ER,” then bolting to become a movie star. She got some good movie roles, but stardom never came so she is back on TV wearing a variety of stylish hats in a series that seems to have forgotten how much women have gained since Mirren’s version (she was called Jane Tennison) of “Prime Suspect.”
The NBC pilot would have looked out-dated in 1996, when LaPlante and Buffalo writer-producer Tom Fontana combined on a failed pilot, “The Prosecutors,” about two tough women starring Michelle Forbes and Stockard Channing.
The men in the homicide squad in the Americanized version of “PS” should all be sentenced to watching Fontana’s Homicide,” “The Wire,” “NYPD Blue,” “The Closer,” “Hill Street Blues,” all the “CSIs,” “NCISs” and “Law & Orders” to see how much female cops and prosecutors have gained in 25 years.
The writers have told TV critics that they realize they have overdone the sexist angle in the pilot and promise it will be toned down. Additionally, it was announced that Broadway actress Elizabeth Rodriguez has joined the cast to play another detective. Hopefully, that will give Jane someone to bond with or at least complain to about the jerks she is working with.
Starting with an opening scene in which Jane pulls a gun on a New York cabbie who initially refuses to stop smoking, the writers have made Timoney a bit too tough and not vulnerable enough to be sympathetic until one brief scene near the end.
She is ambitious to an irritating degree even when she proves to be the smartest person in the male-dominated room, which is all the time.
She is mad at the world, provoking fights with her boss, her boyfriend, his ex-wife and the condescending Neanderthals she works with that belittle her and speak to her through conversations with each other.
Her support group includes her father (Peter Gerety of “Homicide”), her boyfriend and the only male NYPD detective who doesn’t need to be immediately sent off to a gender equality class.
Clearly, the series is relying on the idea that Bello deserves to be a TV star and the way of making her one is to make her less glamorous and make her character the smartest in a room full of criminals and fellow detectives who are criminally sexist.
This formula of having women characters stronger and smarter than men has worked best on cable, which is where “Prime Suspect” probably belongs. I wish HBO, Showtime or even FX had commissioned it.
In short, NBC’s “Prime Suspect” needs some work to be worthy of its cast. To succeed, its writers should enter the 21st Century and worry less in future episodes about making Jane tough and more about making her sympathetic and vulnerable. Rating: 2 stars

* Finally, I must say I enjoyed the opener of Simon Cowell’s “The X-Factor” more than I expected, even with all the obvious similarities to “American Idol.” Cowell seemed happier to be there working for himself and the show smartly concentrated early on the talented more than the silly and offensive people looking for attention.

Notably, one of the early contestants who passed to Boot Camp was a former Buffalonian named Terrence Carter. He’s 36. We didn’t see or hear much from him but I imagine that means we’ll hear plenty from him later. If you know anything about him, I’d like to hear from you.
pergament@msn.com

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