Every year we get treated to a new batch of shows to distract us from the cancellation of our old favorites. For every The Secret Circle that gets dropped, there must be something new to fill that time slot. It is remarkable how many new TV shows are released every season. And even more remarkable is how quickly they get cancelled. But we picked our favorite five for this season, and we’re hoping they’ll make it past the first few episodes.

5) Animal Practice – NBC

With Weeds showing its final episode this September, the main cast members are going to be looking for some new gigs. Justin Kirk, who plays Andy on Weeds, has already been chosen to star in Animal Practice on NBC. The premiere episode already aired after the closing ceremonies for the Olympics, and it looks like Justin Kirk is playing Andy in a vet hospital. A little more goofy than Scrubs, it looks like it’ll be a fun show anyway.

4) Last Resort – ABC

Last Resort is about a submarine crew that’s been shot on and left for dead by their own government. Instead of just laying down and dying, they set up as their own sovereign nation and threaten nuclear war. Way to stick it to the man! The trailer makes it look like a pretty intense series, and the nature of the show makes it sound pretty intriguing.

3) Elementary – CBS

With House ending, now is the perfect time to introduce another show that’s based on Sherlock Holmes. Set in modern day New York, the show follows former addict and NYPD consultant, Sherlock Holmes. Lucy Liu is also set to star in the series in an interesting break from cannon as Joan Watson.

2) The Following – Fox

In this compelling series from Fox, Kevin Bacon plays an ex-FBI agent called back to duty when a serial killer he helped capture escapes. It seems the escaped killer also started a Facebook for killers, because there’s a network of serial killers all working in together, and it’s up to Bacon to stop them.

1) Vegas – CBS

This show had better be awesome. It stars Dennis Quaid as rancher bringing order to Las Vegas in the 60’s, based on a true story. More importantly, it’s being written by Nicholas Pileggi. Pileggi wrote the books Casino and Wiseguy, both based on true stories and made into movies. If you haven’t seen Casino or Goodfellas, you’re missing out on two of the three best movies about organized crime ever made. Pileggi knows more about the mob than most FBI agents, so I expect this to be an excellent take on the mafia.

These seem to be the 5 most interesting shows coming out this fall. Whether they will live up to the hype has yet to be seen. Plus, there are a ton of other shows coming out this fall that aren’t in this list, as well as excellent returning series, like Once Upon a Time, and… I don’t know, M.A.S.H. is still on, right? Oh, wait, Psych! That’s a pretty good show. Oh, and let’s not forget the animated hit, Seth McFarlane Makes Bestiality Funny Again…

An idea he totally stole from Betty Boop. No, really.