Promising pilots of the fall 2012 TV season

Each September brings an exciting time of fresh faces to see, lessons to be learned and new concepts to encounter. I’m referring, of course, to the start of the fall television season – you didn’t think I meant school, did you?

After watching some networks’ fall trailers and viewing the pilots of “The Mindy Project” and “The New Normal,” I’ve selected the five shows that have garnered the most buzz and interested me the most for the upcoming TV season:

This new comedy centers on a gay couple’s pursuit to have a baby with surrogate mother, Goldie. Goldie gets involved with the couple as a means to change her eight-year-old daughter’s life for the better. The hysterical Ellen Barkin, who plays Goldie’s grandmother, watches with horror as she utters incredibly witty one-liners.

Set in a post-apocalyptic world, “Revolution” focuses on the aftermath of a mass power outage that happened 15 years before. At the core of the show is a strong family that may have the ability to turn the electricity back on. With the world in the hand of militias and warlords, it is up to them to restore the lights and the peace.

Mindy Kaling of “The Office” fame stars in this self-titled comedy. The show follows her character’s quest to go from a hot mess to a put-together 31-year-old woman with a healthy romantic relationship. The hospital she works in is filled with interesting characters including her colleague Danny, who seems to be the guy she is looking for, even if she doesn’t know it yet.

Perhaps the most exciting procedural drama to grace CBS in years, “Elementary” is a modern interpretation of “Sherlock Holmes.” It follows the life of Holmes as he becomes a crime consultant in New York City. There’s a twist, however: Hired by Holmes’ father to help him transition from rehab to everyday life, Watson is now a sober companion there to keep Holmes clean.

The show follows a young couple that moves into one of Manhattan’s most prestigious buildings where, as the trailer teases, “Your desires can come true.” Packed with a promising cast, this supernatural soap opera has set high expectations for a premise resembling that of the Eagles’ 1976 song “Hotel California”: “You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave.”