Life Is Wild (Sundays, 7 p.m.) is a drama about a veterinarian (Brett Cullen) who drags his blended family — complete with a second wife and several teen and preteen children — from New York to a game reserve in South Africa.

Aliens In America (Mondays, 7:30 p.m.) is a sitcom about a nerdy 16-year-old (Justin Tolchuk) trying to navigate high school whose world is turned upside down when a Pakistani exchange student (Adhir Kalyan) moves in.

Reaper (Tuesdays, 8 p.m.) is a supernatural comedy/drama about a 21-year-old slacker (Bret Harrison) who discovers that his parents sold his soul to the devil (Ray Wise) before he was even born. As a consequence, he's forced to become a bounty hunter, tracking evil souls and sending them back to hell. Kevin Smith ("Clerks") is one of the executive producers and directed the pilot.

And The CW is trying to attract the crowd that used to watch "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

Gossip Girl (Wednesdays, 8 p.m.), based on the series of young-adult novels, is about a group of rich kids who struggle with wealth and popularity at a snooty prep school on Manhattan's Upper West Side. The large cast includes Penn Badgley, Chace Crawford, Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Taylor Mornsen, Matthew Settle and Kelly Rutherford. Josh Schwartz, creator of "The O.C.," is the executive producer. (And Schwartz also landed a series — titled "Chuck" —on NBC this fall.)

MIDSEASON SHOWS

The CW's midseason slate will feature the return of two of the worst shows on television — "The Search for the Next Pussycat Doll" and "One Tree Hill." (When "OTH" returns, the story will have advanced four years and the characters will have already graduated from college.)

New midseason series are:

Crowned: The Mother of All Pageants is a reality show that pits mother/daughter teams against each other "in a no-holds-barred beauty pageant."

Farmer Wants a Wifeis a reality show that's a cross between "Green Acres" and "The Bachelor" — 10 big-city women will compete for the affections of a handsome farmer.

CANCELED SHOWS

"All of Us," "Reba," "Runaway," "7th Heaven" and "Veronica Mars." "Gilmore Girls" retired after seven seasons.

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E-mail: pierce@desnews.com