Fox just revealed its Fall and mid-season schedules [1], including the addition of big new sci-fi dramas, the return of 24 (complete with that two-our prequel airing in November) and a new comedy. Now that I've had a chance to think about the schedule and watch some clips, here are my thoughts:

• In the Fall, Tuesday night will be pretty darn cool with the return of House [2] followed by the new J.J. Abrams thriller Fringe [3]. I'm excited about this new Abrams series — based on the clips I've seen it looks like The X-Files [4] meets Lost [5] with a tiny bit of Alias sprinkled in. Plus a lot of needles. The mood is dark and tense but the oh-so-adorable Joshua Jackson is back to his wise-cracking ways.
• Joss Whedon's Dollhouse [6] will not arrive until mid-season and will be paired up with 24. Between that and their big Tuesday night, Fox is going to be dishing out a ton of sci-fi dramas. I'm OK with this since the sci-fi genre lends itself to great characters and gives us a bit of everything: romance, intrigue, mystery, action, even comedy. I think it's a smart type of show to stock up on, especially from the folks who do it best (Abrams, Whedon).
• One interesting thing to note for Dollhouse and Fringe is that they are both what Fox is calling "remote free TV." They promise to have significantly fewer commercials through the entire run of their seasons. Also, both dramas are introducing what they described as "ingénues" in Eliza Dushku (Dollhouse) and Anna Torv (Fringe). Who knows? Maybe these ladies will become the next Jennifer Garner or Gillian Anderson.
• I really love Niecy Nash and think the premise of the new comedy Do Not Disturb [7] is cute (as is Jerry O'Connell). I'm not totally sold on whether or not it's built to last, but I'll cross my fingers. I did see some clips of Mitchell Hurwitz's first animated comedy, Sit Down, Shut Up [8], and wiped away some tears from laughing. The cast of voices is great, though we've got a while before that one's on the air.

I've got some clips and photos from both new shows this fall, and you can check them out if you .

Fringe

Do Not Disturb

Dollhouse

Photos courtesy of Fox [9]