TV Gal gives midseason a fresh start.

Byline: Amy Amatangelo

Ah, spring.

A time when networks apologize for drivel like "Run of the House," beg forgiveness for making viewers suffer through "The Brotherhood of Poland, N.H.," try to figure out what went wrong with "Skin," and continue to hope that everyone has forgotten about "Coupling." And they really, really promise to do better next time.

Well, next time has arrived. Get ready for a slew of midseason shows that replace the cancelled series that networks swore would be hits only six short months ago.

Here's what's up for this week:

_"Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital" (premiering Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET on ABC): Oh, where to begin with this debacle of a television series. This show is so awful I don't even want to waste valuable TV Gal space discussing it. When will producers learn that a show can't merely be weird for weirdness sake? The horror author, who wrote all the episodes, brings his trademark touches to the one-hour format. There are scary dolls, creepy children, ominous black crows and possessed dogs. And, oh my, is it annoying. The cast is actually great _ particularly Andrew McCarthy as a neurosurgeon who has trouble with authority. But all of the actors (including Bruce Davison, Ed Begley, Jr. and Diane Ladd) are let down by a murky script, incomprehensible plot and just a bunch of nonsense passing as drama. Despite the show's near frantic effort to be innovative, so much here is familiar and merely gussied up and masked under the aura of terror. ABC is the network desperately seeking a hit. Unfortunately for them, this isn't it.

_"The Help" (premiering Friday at 9:30 p.m. ET on the WB): OK, big time confession here _ "The Help" is a crude, bawdy sitcom with a grating laugh track and an unwieldy cast, ...