What? Robert/Bob Allen is a charismatic and brilliant schemer who has meticulously constructed two lives in two different parts of Texas. He’s juggling two identities and two women in two very different worlds – all under one mountain of lies.   As “Bob,” he lives in Houston and is married to Cat, the beautiful daughter of Clint, the patriarch of an ultra-wealthy Texas oil family. More than 400 miles away in the suburban west Texas town of Midland, he’s “Robert,” living a second life with his sweet, naïve girlfriend, Lindsay.

In Midland, he plays the perfect boyfriend while secretly bilking local investors of their savings. In Houston, he’s a devoted husband, charming Cat and her family to cement his position in the rich family business he aims to clean out.  Bob has lived both lives successfully for years without arousing any suspicions…so far. While one brother-in-law, Drew, admires Bob, his other brother-in-law, Trammell, is growing suspicious of his motives. With the cons closing in on him, Bob begins to fear his secret lives may unravel as he becomes divided by his love for two women; his loyalty to his father and mentor, John; and his respect for his father-in-law, Clint.

Now as he tries to hold his two lives together, while fending off angry investors and the growing suspicions of those around him, Bob puts it all on the line hoping he can beat the odds, leave the schemes behind and keep two separate relationships afloat.

Who? Stars James Wolk as Robert/Bob, Adrianne Palicki as Cat, Jon Voight as Clint, Eloise Mumford as Lindsay, Bryce Johnson as Drew, Mark Delkin as Trammell, and David Keith as John.  From Chris Keyser and Amy Lippman, the creators of PARTY OF FIVE; Marc Webb, the director of “(500) Days of Summer”; and creator Kyle Killen.  LONE STAR is a production of 20^th Century Fox Television, Depth of Field Productions and Keyser/Lippman Productions. The series is written and executive-produced by Kyle Killen. Chris Keyser, Amy Lippman, Kerry Kohansky, Paul Weitz and Peter Horton also serve as executive producers. Marc Webb directed the pilot.

Where/When? FOX, 9/8c Mondays following all new episodes of HOUSE.

Why (Why Not)? LONE STAR was one of the smartest pilot scripts that I read last spring – I’m happy to say that the pilot has the best parts of what I read and everything in my original read that I didn’t like (when it was MIDLAND) has been trimmed from this first hour.  When the idea of this show was first tossed around, I couldn’t believe they’d be able to pull it off for a pilot, let alone a whole season or more, and I consider myself convinced (note: I said the same thing about PRISON BREAK, so I’m hesitant to commit).  James Wolk has charisma and I think with any other generic actor of his generation the Bob/Robert role would be completely unbelievable.  I would absolutely fall for whatever he was trying to sell or steal, and I find myself wanting to tune in because of him.  Adrianne Palicki is great, but then again, when has she not been in the past few years?  I absolutely buy her as the rich wife with the rich family who clearly loves her fake of a husband.  The rest of the family is perfectly okay, and Eloise Mumford is a great find as the sweet and adorable girlfriend.  In a show with a built in love triangle (typically the bane of my existence), I find myself enjoying the chance to root for Cat vs Lindsay.  This was one of the best pilots in a pretty stale crop of new shows, but it definitely has me biting my nails for an all new episode.

How? Watch live.  If you can’t, DVR it, and watch it as soon as possible.