TVSquad

NBC has been leaking like a sieve for weeks, so other than a few on-the-bubble cancellations, there aren't any huge surprises in their official upfront announcement. The big change is that they're doing two official seasons. A lot of the networks have been doing this unofficially, but NBC seems to be one of the few that is putting a label on it.

Returning: Heroes, The Biggest Loser, Law & Order: SVU, Saturday Night Live, SNL: Weekend Update Thursday, Parks and Recreation, The Office, Law & Order, Southland, Dateline NBC

Returning mid-season: Chuck, 30 Rock, The Celebrity Apprentice

Gone: Life, Medium, My Name is Earl, Kath & Kim, Kings, Knight Rider

New: Trauma, The Jay Leno Show, Parenthood, Community.

New for mid-season: Day One, 100 Questions, Mercy, The Marriage Ref

Not reflected on the schedule, but will be returning in the summer: America's Got Talent, Friday Night Lights (which will once again be aired first on Direct TV).

Watch this space for more details on the new shows...

More on the schedule and comments after the jump.

The deal with My Name is Earl and Medium: Don't count these shows out just yet. There have been rumors that both shows may be jumping to other networks. According to Michael Ausiello, Since Medium is owned by CBS studios, CBS is expected to announce that it will be moving over to their network, while Earl could possibly move to either FOX or ABC. (Edit: CBS has, in fact picked up Medium).

Shortened seasons for returning shows: If you notice, Heroes is not on the mid-season schedule, which leads me to believe that like Chuck, it will have a 13 episode season. As someone with a love/hate relationship with the show, I firmly believe this is a very good thing. What worries me is the fact that 30 Rock doesn't show up until mid-season. Surely that has to have a full order, right? Let's just assume that the reason it doesn't show up at the beginning is because it's starting in October or something similar.

New Comedies:

Even though I've recently been burned by Arrested Development alums, Community looks good. Produced and directed by two AD directors and starring The Soup's Joel McHale, Community takes place at a community college that is is "made up of high-school losers, newly- divorced housewives, and old people who want to keep their minds active as they circle the drain of eternity." I have to admit, that description kind of made me laugh. Plus, Chevy Chase is also on it, and he was great on the last few episodes of Chuck. This may actually be worth checking out.

Parenthood isn't one I have super-high hopes for, but I'm rooting for it to surprise me. Described as a show about, "the colorful and imperfect Braverman family - four grown siblings sharing the headaches, heartaches, and joy of being parents," it is based on the Steve Martin movie of the same name. It seems to be attempting to be a less-melodramatic Brothers and Sisters, but it does have a great cast, including Peter Krause and ER's Maura Tierney. I'm even looking forward to Monica Potter, whom I never really liked until her performance on the short-lived Trust Me made me come around. Points off for Dax Shepard, though.

New Dramas:

Basically, the only thing the new medical drama Trauma has going for it is that it comes from Peter Berg, who is also the executive producer of Friday Night Lights. Berg does have prior medical experience, however, having starred on Chicago Hope. Trauma follows first responder paramedics in San Francisco. It doesn't have any huge names attached, just people you've seen around TV, so it really needs to be different and exciting if it doesn't want to get lost in the shuffle.

Mercy is yet another medical drama. Of course, it's not the same as all of the other medical dramas, because it has a, sigh, "unique perspective." Mercy is the story of a busy hospital as seen through the eyes of the nurses instead of the doctors. Michelle Tracthenberg goes from high fashion of The Upper East Side as Georgina on Gossip Girl to Hello Kitty scrubs. Now that's a unique perspective.

Day One, as far as I can tell, is the cross between Melrose Place and Jericho that everyone has been clamoring for (everyone has been clamoring for that, right?). After a global catastrophe, residents of the same apartment building embark "on a quest for survival and discovers that hope is found in small victories -- and heroes are born every day." There are no big names attached, but it could fill the gaping hole that all Jericho fans still have in their hearts.

New Reality Shows:

I don't know about you, but I can't count the number of times I've been in a fight with my significant other and just yelled out, "well if Jerry Seinfeld were here, he would tell you I'm right!" So for those of you who really feel like what your arguments need is celebrity intervention, then The Marriage Ref is for you. On the Jerry Seinfeld-produced show, "celebrities, comedians and sports stars candidly comment, judge and decide who's right and who's wrong in real-life disputes between real-life spouses." Personally, I'm excited for when the arguments inevitably shift from the banal toothpaste cap-related to the much more awkward secret love child territory.

Other schedule items of note: NBC has the Winter Olympics this year, so expect that to throw off your TV watching from Feb. 12-28.

The schedule:

* indicates new shows

MONDAY
8-9 p.m. – Heroes
9-10 p.m. - Trauma*
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

TUESDAY
8-10 p.m. – The Biggest Loser (two-hour edition)
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – Parenthood*
9-10 p.m. – Law & Order: SVU
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

THURSDAY
8- 8:30 p.m. – SNL: Weekend Update Thursday
8:30-9 p.m. – Parks and Recreation
9- 9:30 p.m. – The Office
9:30-10 p.m. – Community* (moves to 8:00 after 30 Rock returns)
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – Law & Order
9-10 p.m. – Southland
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

SATURDAY
8-9 p.m. – Dateline NBC
9-10 p.m. – Trauma* (encore broadcast)
10-11 p.m. – Law & Order: SVU (encore broadcast)

SUNDAY
7- 8:20 p.m. Football Night in America
8:20-11 p.m. NBC Sunday Night Football

NBC MID-SEASON SCHEDULE

MONDAY
8-9 p.m. – Chuck
9-10 p.m. - Day One*
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

TUESDAY
8-9:30 p.m. – The Biggest Loser
9:30-10 p.m. – 100 Questions*
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. – Mercy*
9-10 p.m. – Law & Order: SVU
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show

THURSDAY
8- 8:30 p.m. – Community*
8:30-9 p.m. – Parks and Recreation
9- 9:30 p.m. – The Office
9:30-10 p.m. – 30 Rock
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. – Law & Order
9-10 p.m. – Southland
10-11 p.m. – The Jay Leno Show*

SATURDAY
8-9 p.m. – Dateline NBC
9-10 p.m. – Southland (encore broadcast)
10-11 p.m. – Law & Order: SVU (encore broadcast)

SUNDAY
7-8 p.m. – Dateline NBC
8-9 p.m. – The Marriage Ref*
9-11 p.m. –The Celebrity Apprentice