Fall TV Preview: Reality Competitions Back at the Starting Line

Debuted: Sunday, Sept. 7, at 8 p.m. on Fox
What it's about: Fox's new reality experiment features 15 strangers and the drama that ensues when they try to build an ideal society from the ground up. ''It's a human soap opera about real people and the victories, failures, and successes they experience in creating a new culture,'' says Executive Producer Conrad Green of the eclectic cast, which includes a gun-toting security programmer, a handyman-slash-moonshiner, and a behavior specialist with a baby on the way. Like show creator John de Mol's other reality series Big Brother, there will be eliminations and a 24/7 live feed for viewers to observe the action on the ground. (Though there won't there be any producer-concocted games or challenges.) Says de Mol, ''The most interesting part of Utopia is that it's 100 percent real. There is nothing constructed or behind the scenes.'' —Nina Terrero

Premiered: Wednesday, Sept. 10, at 8 p.m. on Fox
Stars: Gordon Ramsay
What to expect: Gordon Ramsay has become a staple on Fox's TV lineup and now returns to Hell's Kitchen only six weeks after the last season ended. But the show is nowhere near stale. ''It's the most theatrical and the most intense season we've ever had,'' Executive Producer Arthur Smith says. —Jake Perlman

Premiered: Thursday, Sept. 11, at 8 p.m. on NBC
Stars: Bob Harper, Dolvett Quince, Jessie Pavelka, Jennifer Widerstrom
What to expect: Co-Creator Dave Broome promises season 16 of the life-changing show is full of ''the biggest changes, switches, twists, and turns since season 1.'' This year's contestants are all former athletes ranging from former NFL-ers to Olympic medalists to high-school standouts, newcomers Pavelka and Widerstrom replace Jillian Michaels, and trainer Bob Harper takes on a new role giving recently eliminated contestants a surprise second chance to stay during a week-long, one-on-one challenge at ''Comeback Canyon.'' —Madison Vain

Premieres: Monday, Sept. 15, at 8 p.m. on ABC
Stars: Antonio Sabato Jr., Lea Thompson, Janel Parrish, Tommy Chong
What to expect: In a change new showrunner Rob Wade is making to add a little polish to the mirrorball, former pro Julianne Hough joins the judging panel. ''I want to put more emphasis on the competitive performances and be far more creative with our ideas with these dances,'' he says. —Jake Perlman

Premieres: Monday, Sept. 22, at 8 p.m. on NBC
Stars: Adam Levine, Gwen Stefani, Pharrell Williams, Blake Shelton
What to expect: Stefani and Williams join veteran bromancing coaches Shelton and Levine for the Emmy-winning competition's seventh season. Will Levine find his way to a third victory? Might Stefani be the first female coach to win? Does Shelton remember any of the dance moves Usher taught him? While we can't possibly know, we can expect another season of laughs as Levine promises, ''We're having the time of our lives, even just during the blinds.'' —Madison Vain

Premieres: Wednesday, Sept. 24, at 8 p.m. on CBS
Stars: Jeff Probst
What to expect: Survivor returns to the Blood vs. Water format of pitting loved ones against each other, but the bigger surprise is the return of the Exile Island twist. ''I love Exile Island,'' says Probst. ''You got to go up against your loved one, and here are the stakes: Winner gets reward. Loser goes to Exile Island where it's gonna really suck. And it's gonna suck because you put 'em there.'' What remains to be seen is how the other players will react to controversial former baseball player John Rocker being in the cast. ''He has massive obstacles to overcome,'' says Probst in perhaps the understatement of the year. —Dalton Ross

Premieres: Friday, Sept. 26, at 8 p.m. on CBS
Stars: Phil Keoghan
What to expect: Always about the twists and turns, the game show will no longer be keeping secrets. ''I was getting a little tired of hiding what we were doing, where we were going, etc.,'' says creator Bertram van Muster. So they started in a little place called Times Square—from there contestants traveled to new locations such as St. Thomas, Malta, and the Shetland Islands. —Dalene Rovenstine

Premieres: Friday, Sept. 26, at 8 p.m. on ABC
Stars: Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, Daymond John, Kevin O'Leary
What to expect: Bigger deals (multi-millions!), bigger fights between the sharks, and bigger entertainment—especially on the entrepreneurs' side. ''I will tell you this,'' says Herjavec, ''whenever you think you've seen it all, the next crazy one walks in the door.'' —Melissa Maerz

Premieres: Friday, Nov. 7, at 8 p.m. on Fox
Stars: Gordon Ramsay, Joe Bastianich, Graham Elliot
What to expect: Cooking show ennui goes out the door with Fox's sleeper hit, which pits 8- to 12-year-old chefs in a kitchen competition that's as delightful as it is dramatic. This season, expect harder challenges, more diverse cooking backgrounds for each contestant (thanks to an expanded casting search), and two sticky situations for head judge Gordon Ramsay—one involving maple syrup, and the other, a cameo featuring his no-nonsense mother. Both situations unrelated, of course. —Marc Snetiker