TV’s two most popular dramas — “Grey’s Anatomy” and “CSI” — returned with fresh episodes last night and both celebrated the preservation of life in their own way. On “Grey’s,” Izzie prevented a deer (Let’s call him Bambi) from becoming roadkill. And on “CSI,” Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) also avoided a gruesome death. And wouldn’t you know it, both plot lines involved a motor vehicle!

“CSI” brought a close to the Minature Killer storyline in gripping fashion. The episode was tense throughout with the team racing against time to save Sara, who was trapped under a car out in the desert as a a storm raged. And that was a beautifully shot scene in the rescue copter as Sara finally came to and locked eyes with Grissom.

But now what becomes of Sara — and Fox, who has had her contract squabbles with the show. She lives to see another day, but will she be around for the whole season?

The key question regarding “Grey’s” is can it right the ship after a rocky persormance over the second half of last season? Judging from the first episode, it still remains to be seen. There were some nice moments, as usual, but some cringe-worthy ones as well.

The new interns bring a fresh dynamic to the show. Now we get to see how our regular gang (except George) reacts to being in charge. (For some, it looks like it will go to their heads). It also looks like Chyler Leigh, as Meredith’s half-sister, Lexie, will be a solid addition. Loved the scene where she boosted George’s sagging spirits by playing up his abilities to the other interns.

My other favorite scene came when Derek defended Meredith to Sloan in a brief verbal outburst. Even though Derek knows Meredith is about to quit on him — and obviously isn’t happy about it — he demonstrated that he has genuine empathy for her and an understanding of where her life has taken her. Of course, their decision to engage in hot “breakup sex” probably didn’t help matters. but it’s in keeping with these characters.

The whole Izzie-and-the-deer sequence, however, was pretty ridiculous. Talk about an over-obvious metaphor. OK, we get it: She doesn’t want to leave George (or Bambi) behind. But this is yet another example of how “Grey’s” has an annoying tendency to overplay its hand.

Oh, and judging from the final scene of the night, it looks like we’re not finished with the “Gizzie” storyline that so many fans despise. So he loves her too? Now what?

Alex O’Loughlin: Already pondering new job prospects. (CBS photo).

Can a TV critic have a do-over? When we published our picks for the worst shows of the season with our fall preview section, I had yet to see “Moonlight,” the new vampire -detective series, because CBS was late in getting the preview screeners out (Great strategy, CBS). And so “Moonlight” was not on the list.

Now, if that list was being compiled today, “Moonlight” would certainly be on it. Heck, it might even top it. The show is that bad. How bad? Check out the review in “Now Playing.”

Speaking of do-overs, I’d love to have this whole column back. First, I would have given the show a lower grade than a “C+” and I would have written a little less about it and more about “Dexter,” the excellent Showtime series that returns on Sunday (along with “Brotherhood”).

I usually tend to write less about Showtime programs because I realize a very limited chunk of our readership actually has Showtime. But in this case, why waste so much ink on “Moonlight,” a series that appears to be DOA?

Michelle Ryan takes Round 1 in the ratings battle with Kate Walsh. (NBC photo).

Do we have our first hit of the season? After several new shows failed to build genuine ratings traction, NBC’s “Bionic Woman” delivered the goods Wednesday night.

“Bionic Woman” posted a 5.5 rating among adults 18-49, besting the “Grey’s Anatomy” spin-off, “Private Practice,” which earned a 5.1. That makes “Bionic” the highest-rated new series so far, with “Private” coming in second. “Bionic” also ranks as the highest-rated Wednesday-night NBC series premiere since “The West Wing” in 1999.

“Bionic” attracted 13.9 million viewers overall.

Of course, we’ll have to see if the show can build on that as “Heroes” did last season. Premiere-week numbers do not always translate into staying power as NBC knows full well. Last fall, ‘Studio 60″ opened big only to fade fast.

Can Sara survive this ordeal? Is Jora Fox’s career now a wreck? (CBS photo).

I’ve psyched myself up. I’ve put my remote-control finger through a series of calisthenics. I’ve got a big supply of No-Doze … and, yet, I still don’t know if I’m really ready for the onslught of Thursday-night TV.

The biggest, most crowded, most competitve night of television is back with nine premieres tonight. Among the treats on the menu: The Season 2 debut of “Ugly Betty.” The return of “CSI,” “Smallville,” “ER” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” An hour-long episode of “The Office.” And on and on it goes … (”30 Rock,” by the way, doesn’t return until Oct. 4). As for new fare, there’s ABC’s “Big Shots,” but, really, don’t bother. It’s awful.

About the major developments: On “CSI,” we’ll find out what becomes of Sara, who last we saw was pinned under a wrecked car, courtesy of the miniature killer. A very striking Supergirl (Laura Vandervoort) makes her debut in “Smallville.” Cristina and Meredith return from a 17-day “honeymoon” on “Grey’s.”

Of course, I’m mostly looking foward to reuniting with the lovable dweebs from “The Office.” Damn, I missed them! To whet your appetite, here’s a videoclip in which the “Office” gang explains what they did over the summer:

Get out the white chalk. Just three days into the new season and we’ve already got our first program casualty. Fox has canceled “Nashville,” the docu-soap from the makers of “Laguna Beach.” Wow, that was fast.

So you have no idea what “Nashville” is/was? That’s OK, you’re obviously not alone. Only 2.18 million people watched the last episode. Maybe that would be adequate for MTV, but not Fox, which plans to fill the slot with reruns of “K-Ville” for the next couple of weeks before the baseball playoffs get rolling.

Chyler Leigh (center) joins the cast as Meredith’s sister, Lexie. (ABC photo).

In today’s column I point out how, over the second half of last season, “Grey’s Anatomy” went from being the “TV pal with whom every get-together feels like a giddy first date, to the grating houseguest that constantly gets on your nerves.”

Yes, it was a tumultuous season for one of television’s most popular shows — with off-screen rancor dominating the headlines and on-screen creative decisions (death, destruction, George and Izzy) irking a lot of fans.

As the show gets set to return Thursday night, one has to wonder if it can get back to being the frothy guilty pleasure it once was. At least creator Shonda Rhimes is saying all the right things. She’s telling anyone who will listen that the mandate this season is to lighten up, be sexy and have lots of fun. And, if you can believe what the cast is saying, there is more of a carefree attitude on the set so far. It’s as if a cloud has been lifted — a cloud named Isaiah Washington.

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The new network TV season starts in earnest this week. How can you tell? Nearly 2 billion shows are debuting, that’s how. In today’s Times, I’ve got reviews of two of the best, “Reaper” and “Chuck.” But more importantly, right here on the TV Freak blog, I’ve got resolutions.

Yes, resolutions. The dawn of a new TV season, just like the dawn of a new year, is a time for fresh starts. A time to alter your routine. A time to better yourself. With that in mind, I offer my New-Season Resolutions. Check back with me in May to see if I’ve lived up to them:

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Time to get to more questions from our readers. Remember, if you have a question, either post it via the “Comments” prompt, or e-mail me at cbarney@bayareanewsgroup.com.

Q: Denny Hollenbeck says, “Hi Chuck we read your column all the time, but we never saw anything in regards to what happened to Samantha Moore, the meteoroligist on Channel 5. Do you have any knowledge of the situation?
A: Samantha left the station shortly after Roberta Gonzales was appointed to be Channel 5’s evening weather person. Samantha was reassigned to the mornings. But apparently wanted no part of that gig. Last we heard, she had moved to Atlanta.

Q: Judy Craft, a longtime Pleasant Hill resident, now living in Oak Harbor, Wa. and still reading the Times, asks, “Can you tell me what night “Law and Order” (the original series) will be on in the fall? Has it been cancelled or is this something to do with Fred Thompson running for President?
A: “Law & Order” is scheduled to return to the NBC lineup on Sunday nights after the NFL football season ends. And, no, it doesn’t have to do anything with Thompson. It was scheduled that way long before he decided to run.

Q: Ryan Franco wants to know, “When does Season 3 of “Battlestar Galactica” come out on DVD? And when does the new season start?
A: No DVD release date, as far as I know, has been set for Season 3. Much of the immediate focus in the “BSG” world is on a new film called “Razor” (about the legacy of the Pegasus), which will air on Sci-Fi Nov. 24 and then debut on DVD on Dec. 4. As far as the season goes, again, no specific dates. All the Sci-Fi people have said is “early 2008” (possibly February). Meanwhile, they have given some thought to breaking up the final 20-episode season into two parts like HBO did with “The Sopranos.” This has stirred a great furor among the fans.

Q: The Great Carrie K. wants to know, “How is “Damages” doing in the ratings? Any chance FX will renew it?”
A: “Damages” started off very impressively and has waned just a bit. Still, it is a prestige show for FX and its cumlative ratings appear to fall in the network’s average parameters. So there is reason for optimism. FX probably won’t make a renewal decision until after the show concludes its Season 1 run on Oct. 23.

Q: TV Fan wonders, “I had thought I heard that ABC was working on an American version of “Footballers’ Wives.” But I see no sign of it on the fall schedule. Did I hear wrong?
A: No, you heard right. ABC did develop a pilot of “FW,” but decided not to order a series. The project appears dead now.

Raise your hand if you loved the first episode of “Kid Nation.” (CBS photo).

So that “evil” new reality show, “Kid Nation,” finally made its debut tonight and I decided to turn my critics’ duties over to my two sons — David, 17, and Sam, 12. Their verdict? After taking a little while to warm up to it, they both gave the show a solid thumb’s up.

Maybe it’s not so evil, after all.

Sam was definitely a cynic early on. When he heard one of the new young residents of the Bonanza City “ghost town” say, “I think I’m going to die out here without my parents,” he scoffed. “This is SO scripted,” Sam roared. “No kid would ever say that!” He also later expressed suspicion over the lack of swearing going on. (Hmmm.)

David immediately pointed out, quite correctly, that the 40-kid cast (age 8-15) was full of “drama queens” — and/or wannabe actors sent there by their stage parents. And 15 minutes into the show, Sam was ready to give up. “This is too overdramatic to be interesting and/or funny,” he griped.

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Ken Burns and his crew spent six years making “The War.” (Karl Mondon photo).

Some people challenge themselves by climbing mountains or running marathons. TV critics? We take on a Ken Burns documentary.

Yes, for the past couple of weeks and or so, my wife and I have been hunkering down after dinner every night to watch “The War.” All 15 hours of it. Yes, I said 15 hours.

It’s a huge time commitment — especially right in the middle of the period when you’re reviewing and writing about all the network premieres and covering the Emmys, etc. etc. (Thanks for that, PBS). But it has been time very well-spent. “The War” is an incredible piece of television — one that whisks you through a full spectrum of emotions: It’s heartwrenching and harrowing, uplifting and inspiring, repulsive and shocking, moving and mournful. I’m not ashamed to say that tears were shed every night in our living room.

Anyway, we wanted to make sure you knew all about this amazing work. I talked to Burns and his filmmaking partner Lynn Novick in July at the critics press tour. And last week I conducted another short interview with Burns in San Francisco, where he previewed the documentary at George Lucas’ facility on the Presidio.

You can read our story and listen to audio from the SF interview by clicking here. And while you’re on the page, please take time to watch the multimedia presentation by photographer Karl Mondon, which delves into the making of “The War.” Then, on Friday, we’ll have our full review of “The War,” which kicks off on PBS Sunday night.