CBS Unveils New Shows: Sherlock Holmes and Lucy Liu as (a Female!) Watson, a New Show from the 'Will & Grace' Creators, and Dennis Quaid on a Horse

Joining NBC, FOX and ABC, CBS announced its fall lineup on Wedneday. While the biggest news from CBS's upfront presentation was the move of Two and Half Men from Mondays to Thursday (where it will most likely bring death to NBC's comedy lineup), the network also introduced a few new shows. Three shows stood out to me: Elementary, a modern-day retelling of Sherlock Holmes with Angelina Jolie's ex as Holmes and Lucy Liu as (a female!) Watson; Partners, the story of a bromance threatened by Superman and Sophia Bush; and Vegas, starring Dennis Quaid as a 1960s Las Vegas sheriff.

Elementary will air on Thursdays, Partners will air on Monday and Vegas will air on Tuesdays.

Elementary

This one has the potential to be fun. It's a crime procedural (which CBS knows how to do), but it stars two actors who are best known for doing movies. Jonny Lee Miller (who actually might be best known as Angelina Jolie's first husband) plays Sherlock Holmes while Lucy Liu (a two-time Charlie's Angel) plays Joan Watson. When Lui's casting was first announcing, a lot of Sherlock Holmes fanboys ran to their messageboards to protest the change in character. You know what? Who cares if Watson is now a woman. If you want the male Watson, you always have Jude Law's Watson in Robert Downey Jr.'s Sherlock Holmes series to fall back on.

Partners

Partners is from the same duo that created Will & Grace, so it's obvious that they've had just a little bit of success at the whole TV show thing. Unfortunately, Partners already carries the classic CBS sitcom tone, which is apparent from the trailer alone. Characters are loud, they have personalities that are dialed to the extreme — look at 2 Broke Girls or The Big Bang Theory. Nothing is subtle about a CBS sitcom. Partners isn't going to break that mold.

Vegas

Over the past three seasons, Justified has established itself as one of the finest dramas on television. It has an amazing cast, with Timothy Olyphant delivering a fantastic performance as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens episode after episode. I'm shocked to see that CBS managed to pull the show away from CBS — wait ... what's that? This isn't Justified? It stars Dennis Quaid instead of Olyphant? Michael Chiklis plays a stereotypical mob moss instead of Neal McDonough and his big, fat baby head playing the psychotic Quarles? And it airs on a network best know for Charlie Sheen? Oh. Oh, I see ... nevermind, then.