The TV Zone

Remember how this was going to be NBC's "pilot-free" fall? Where no one would have a clue what a show looked like until it got on the air, and - surprise! - "Knight Rider"! It was supposed to be one of those cost-cutting decisions, in part - that NBC would go straight to series and get the show on the air quickly and painlessly ... without the intercession of stupid annoying critics who compare everything they see to Shakespeare ...

As one pal told me, the NBC strategy was, "we don't need no stinkin' pilots ..." Or stinkin' critics either.

Well, suddenly the missing NBC pilots are everywhere - not quite locusts, but definitely grasshoppers. Check out tv.yahoo.com right now - it IS your lunch hour, after all - and watch that episode of "Sanctuary" that you forgot was on tonight (on Sci Fi), or spend 22 minutes with "Kath & Kim." It's there ... right now ... you just have to click this link ... yes, this one ... and one of the most anticipated pilots (which wasn't supposed to go to pilot) pops up before your very eyes.

Ah, the magic of the Internet.

Here's my insta-verdict on "Kath & Kim": I love it. One of my favorite new series. But don't take my word for it - go to tv.yahoo.com and draw you own opinions. Here's my own quickie caveat on the Yahoo screener: The quality's horrific. Really. That's a problem. At least you can make out the faces and hear the punchlines, though.

In any event, there's no need for TV critics anymore. We've been outsourced by Yahoo.

Thanks, NBC.