Partners

CBS comedy Partners depicts the friendship between a gay man and a straight man who are architects and best friends, and like a few other Fall TV series, it's based on the lives of its creators. Showrunners Max Mutchnick and David Kohan came to the network TCA to talk about how their friendship inspired the show, and how much of themselves are in the characters. The actors playing the small-screen versions of them, Michael Urie and David Krumholtz, were also on hand to chat, along with their onscreen love interests, Brandon Routh and Sophia Bush, who both talked about how eager they were to do comedy.

• Routh, who plays Wyatt, the boyfriend of Urie's character Louis, talked about starring in his first sitcom, and said that he had been pushing to do comedy since he started acting. When a reporter said that his character seemed like the "dumb blond" of the show, Kohan corrected the reporter by saying that Wyatt's defining characteristic "[isn't] dumb — it's guileless" and that Wyatt is from a different background than Louis, but, "he's no dummy." Routh agreed, saying, "He's so trusting . . . When you're trusting, you don't think anyone has bad intentions."
• Bush stars as the girlfriend of Krumholtz's character Charlie, and like Routh, she ascertained that she'd been wanting to try comedy, but that One Tree Hill derailed her a little. "I got on the show, and it just . . . never ended!" She joked that nine years in Hollywood "is like 100 years," and she seemed excited to be trying out her comedy chops. "I've been gunning for this for a very long time."
• Mutchnick and Kohan met in high school at age 14, and after becoming writing partners, they cultivated the friendship that's the basis for the relationship of Louis and Charlie. Though Mutchnick joked that he was "absolutely" as self-obsessed as Louis is, the executive producers also stressed that the characters aren't exactly them, but it's the dynamic between them that's the foundation for the show. "The dynamic is almost vaudevillian in its lunacy," added Krumholtz, while his costar Urie said that it helps to have them around on set because "there's so much to draw on."

CBS is introducing a handful of news shows this Fall but just one sitcom: Partners. The show follows a pair of BFFs played by Michael Urie and David Krumholtz, one of whom is gay and one who is straight. The dynamic is an old hat to showrunners Max Mutchnick and David Kohan, who created the iconic NBC sitcom Will & Grace. Check out my thoughts on the pilot and find out if it sounds like something you'll want to watch.

• What it's about: Louis (Urie) and Charlie (Krumholtz) have turned their lifelong friendship into a successful architecture firm, but their relationship is tested as they make commitments to their love interests. For Charlie, it's girlfriend Ali (Sophia Bush) and for Louis, it's boyfriend Wyatt (Brandon Routh).
• Where it works: Urie is the MVP of this show and endlessly entertaining. While Louis's jokes verge a little on the stereotypical side, Urie has the right charisma to bring his character down to earth. His castmates are good too, but they're all outshined by Urie's ham.
• Where it doesn't: The show is shot in front of a live audience, so you know what that means: cheesy laugh track.
• When it's on: Mondays at 8:30 p.m. on CBS
• You might like this show if: You miss Will & Grace.

Watch a preview for Partners after the jump.

Though CBS cut some shows from its schedule, the network is lining up its new series to fill up its schedule. Check out the details below to get up to speed on the brand-new shows you'll be seeing on CBS this Fall.

COMEDIES

• Friend Me: This comedy stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Nicholas Braun as best friends who move to LA to work at Groupon and struggle to be social when one would rather stay at home.
• Partners: Michael Urie and David Krumholtz play a pair of architects whose friendship has outlasted all their romantic relationships. Sophia Bush and Brandon Routh also appear.

DRAMAS

• Elementary: This take on Sherlock Holmes is set in present-day Brooklyn and stars Jonny Lee Miller in the Sherlock role, with the added twist of Lucy Liu as his colleague Watson.
• Vegas: Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis star in this 1960s-era drama about a rodeo cowboy (Quaid) who becomes the sheriff of the city.
• Made in Jersey: A street-smart woman (Janet Montgomery) tries to prove herself to her colleagues at a New York law firm in this drama, which also costars Kyle MacLachlan.
• Golden Boy: This cop drama follows the rise of a man (Theo James) as he climbs the ranks from office to detective to police commissioner.