Robert J. Sawyer

The February 20, 2009, edition of Entertainment Weekly -- the #1 best-selling magazine about entertainment in the United States -- begins this week's "The Hollywood Insider: News and Notes" thus:

Despite the fact that they are weathering stagnant -- or downright dreary -- ratings for dense shows like Heroes and Lost, the networks are still planning on ambitious series with complex mythologies for next fall.

As the drama development season winds up this month, some of the most notable projects include ABC's Flash Forward (an adaptation of the sci-fi novel by Robert J. Sawyer) and Eastwick (based on John Updike's The Witches of Eastwick), NBC's Day One (lots of aliens from Heroes' Jesse Alexander), and Fox's Masterwork (a National Treasure-like tale from Prison Break's Paul Scheuring).

"These are all huge shows," says Endeavor agent Ari Greenburg. "Writers are obsessed with Damages and Lost. They all want to write complex dramas."