One of the season’s best new dramas debuts at 8 tonight on NBC. Set in 1980s Michigan, “Freaks and Geeks” succeeds in looking at the travails of high school much as “The Wonder Years” and “My So-Called Life” did before it.

Two members of the Weir family are the focus of “Freaks and Geeks.” Lindsay, believably played by Linda Cardellini (“The Lot”), is a former academic standout who has lost her way after her beloved grandmother died. She’s now wearing her dad’s old Army jacket and joining with the freaks: the substance abusers and headbangers. Her younger brother, Sam (John Daley), is a freshman geek, hanging out with his fellow “Star Wars” fans while trying to escape a menacing bully. He’s also got a crush on a seemingly unobtainable cheerleader.

The remarkable thing about “Freaks and Geeks” is that the dialogue by writer-creator Paul Feig comes off as actual conversation, not soliloquies or straight lines leading to a punch line. The viewer is often left hanging waiting for a polished retort, but those don’t often come in real life, especially among high-school youth.

“Freeks and Geeks” is horribly scheduled, in front of two action shows: “The Pretender” and “Profiler.” Also, a Saturday time slot will cost it some younger viewers, although many nostalgic boomers are likely to be home then. But if it can surmount these obstacles, it could well become a polished little gem for viewers.

At 9 p.m. Sunday on ABC, Waterville native David E. Kelley has struck again. TV’s uberproducer has followed up his double victory at the recent Emmys with an intriguing new show. (Now all he has to do is somehow revive “Chicago Hope.”) “Snoops” is something Kelley hasn’t tried before — an escapist caper show with very few issues.

The series focuses on an unconventional quartet of Los Angeles private eyes. Glenn Hall (Gina Gershon, “Showgirls”) is the rule-breaking head of the agency. Dana Plant (Paula Marshall, “Cupid”) is a by-the-book Santa Monica policewoman who secretly craves the freedom the PIs enjoy. Rounding out the group are break-in and technical expert Manny Lott (Danny Nucci) and Roberta Young (Paula Jai Parker), who takes radical steps to solve her cases. Exasperated by the foursome is Detective Greg McCormack (Edward Kerr), Dana’s former partner and lover.

On the Kelley scale, “Snoops” falls closer to the lightness of “Ally McBeal” than the intensity of “The Practice.” So far, the series runs far more on plot than characterization, unusual in a Kelley production. But that may be because that, while Kelley created the show, he placed the day-to-day production in the hands of co-executive producers Allan Arkush and Alice West.

Viewers will have a fun ride with “Snoops,” but the series needs to deepen, not just coast along the surface (but then, it is based in Los Angeles). In addition to the escapades, viewers will need to care more about its characters for “Snoops” to endure and develop.

Also premiering at 9 Sunday is “Jack & Jill” on WB. It’s a romance, by “Mrs. Doubtfire” screenwriter Randi Mayem Singer, about what happens when you meet the exact right person for you at the exact wrong time.

Jacqueline “Jack” Barrett (Amanda Peet, “She’s the One”) bolts from her wedding when she discovers that her groom had fooled around on their wedding eve. She lands in New York City, taking up residence with a high-school friend.

Upon moving in, she meets David “Jill” Jillefsky (Ivan Sergei, “The Opposite of Sex”). Sparks fly immediately, but there’s a problem. Jill’s girlfriend has just invited him to move in with her. The same girlfriend befriends budding newswriter Jack, although neither is aware of the connections. So “Jack & Jill” shows the slow, hesitant steps the pair take in their relationship. The series immediately establishes the premise that they’re meant to be together, but when will they get there?

The lightweight “Jack & Jill” is pleasant counterprogramming to the mystery of “The X-Files” and the action of “Snoops.” It’s drama in the “Felicity” vein of half-finished thoughts and meaningful stares. But the big questions are whether viewers will stay around for what promises to be a long buildup, and what happens when they become a couple, ending the sexual tension, as coupling has killed off too many shows (“Moonlighting,” “Cheers,” “The Nanny.”) It is hoped “Jack & Jill” won’t fall down that hill.