HBO's deadpan comedy about a pair of folk musicians from New Zealand trying to make it in New York City (and failing miserably) begins its second (and reportedly final) season this weekend. Here's a look at the first few episodes.

Where We Left Off: Jemaine and Bret still hadn't achieved fame, but two of their former bandmates did team up to sell millions of records and briefly catapult inept manager Murray to the big time.

How the New Season Shapes Up: I may be in the minority, but I actually find the much-loved musical numbers the least amusing part of the show. Still, for fans of the Conchords' music, there's plenty here to enjoy. In between, there's more bone-dry humor and lots of awkwardness, and some really hilarious moments from the great Rhys Darby as Murray, easily the most entertaining character. The interplay between Jemaine and Bret can get a little repetitive, but at least the creator/stars seem smart enough to be getting out before the show loses its spark. For now, everything's still working wonderfully.

Airs: Sundays at 10 p.m. EST on HBO

Premieres: January 18

Photo courtesy of HBO

Some big news out of NBC today at the Television Critics Association press tour: Both The Office and 30 Rock have been picked up for the 2009-2010 season. This will be the sixth season for The Office and the fourth for 30 Rock. It's not exactly surprising that these two popular, critically acclaimed and award-winning shows would be renewed, but it's still good news and a strong vote of confidence from the network.

Also showing NBC's confidence in the Office crew is the network's announcement of the premiere of the new untitled Amy Poehler sitcom from Office executive producer Greg Daniels. The show was originally conceived as an Office spin-off, but it will now be an unrelated but clearly very similar series in the same mockumentary style. Poehler will play an Indiana Parks and Recreation employee who deals with the hassles of government bureaucracy in her efforts to help a local nurse (The Office's Rashida Jones) cut through red tape. The Poehler show will premiere April 9 at 8:30 p.m. EST, as part of the successful Thursday-night comedy block that also includes The Office and 30 Rock.

Photo courtesy of NBC

The Pitch: Talk about your star power: Showtime's new dramedy United States of Tara is executive-produced by Steven Spielberg, was created by Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody (based on an idea by Spielberg himself) and stars Oscar nominee Toni Collette. This much-hyped show is about suburban mom Tara (Collette), who struggles with raising two teenagers, keeping her marriage fresh, finding work as a painter and, oh yeah, having multiple personalities. The clinical condition known as dissociatve identity disorder is the show's hook, and Tara's "alters" (a bratty teen, an old-fashioned housewife and a manly trucker) show up whenever she's under stress.

The Verdict: Cody's Juno was very divisive, but I really embraced her quirky writing style, at least as it applied to the movie's unique world. Here, Cody's mannered writing only seems artificial and clunky, and ill-equipped to deal with such a complex subject. Collette overacts as Tara's alters, and the teen actors aren't quite up to the challenge of the overwrought dialogue. The show isn't broad enough to be satire, nor serious enough to be affecting. Instead it's just a bunch of awkward catch phrases that fall disappointingly flat.

Airs: Sundays at 10 p.m. EST on Showtime

Premieres: January 18

Photo courtesy of Showtime

In a sort of good news, bad news situation, Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly announced on Tuesday at the Television Critics Association press tour that Fox would be renewing its efforts to craft quality live-action comedies. At the moment, the network has no sitcoms on the air, and its sketch-comedy show Mad TV is ending after this season. Although animated comedies The Simpsons, King of the Hill, Family Guy and American Dad remain successful (and another, Sit Down, Shut Up, is set to premiere in April), Fox has struggled in recent years to launch a popular and well-made sitcom that matches up to its impressive legacy.

Reilly said that he would be ordering five sitcom pilots, and that he wouldn't put a show on the air without his full confidence, all good signs. Not such a good sign is that Fox has also renewed the atrocious sitcom 'Til Death, despite having pulled the show from its schedule after airing only seven episodes. Death still has no return date, and I was optimistic when it was put on hiatus that it would simply fade away. Instead, the network has ordered an additional 22-episode fourth season, even as the majority of the third-season episodes have yet to air. Reportedly, producers at Sony offered the network a cheap rate that made it worthwhile to keep the show in reserve. But if valuing thrift over quality is the strategy that Reilly is going to pursue, then I don't have much hope for the future of Fox sitcoms.

Photo courtesy of Fox