What's new on a few old favorites

Beginning this week, many of your favorite shows return with new episodes and, in many cases, new cast members and new story lines. Others will attempt to sew up old story lines - those nasty "cliffhangers" designed to keep fans guessing all summer long. Some of the most anticipated ones are listed below. "The West Wing" (Wednesday): Remember when this show seemed so much more exciting than the real White House? Remember grieving for Mrs. Landingham? It will be interesting to see if the Bartlet administration gets thrown into a war soon, or if "West Wing" creator Aaron Sorkin decides a less ripped-from-the-headlines approach is what stressed-out viewers want. "ER" (Thursday): Sherry Stringfield is back, but Anthony Edwards and Eriq La Salle will soon be leaving for good (of course, that's what Stringfield said when she left). Expect plenty of interpersonal intrigues. If it's all medical action you want, watch TLC. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (Oct. 2): In a leap of faith that stunned fans of the cult favorite, Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) leaped to what certainly looked like her death. The planet-saving sacrifice brought the curtain down resoundingly on the season - and, it seemed, the career of Buffy. The show took another leap over the summer, from the WB network to UPN, where series creator Joss Whedon promises that Buffy will return, "with great difficulty, of course, and with pain and confusion." "Dark Angel" (Sept. 28): This futuristic action show from "Titanic" producer James Cameron is moving to Friday nights, and word is we'll learn more about the creepy lab where Max (Jessica Alba) was raised. Apparently, some weird lizardlike creature also was bred there, possibly from the remains of 20th-century TV executives. "Charmed" (Oct. 4): Prue died violently in the season finale, but unlike Buffy, this is one slayer who's not coming back (Shannen Doherty stormed off the set). In her place comes long-lost sister Paige (Rose McGowan). "The X-Files" (Nov. 11): Scully had her baby, and judging by the fact it didn't have green skin and beady red eyes, the father must have been Mulder. That's interesting, since David Duchovny will not be with the show for season nine. And this will be Gillian Anderson's last season, so Scully won't be in the picture long either. That leaves Doggett (Robert Patrick) and Reyes (Annabeth Gish) to wrestle the zombies. Look for Lucy Lawless ("Xena") in the first two episodes. "NYPD Blue" (Nov. 7): Kim Delaney hopped the Metroliner for the City of Brotherly Love and "Philly." But the big news is that after eight seasons on Tuesday nights, ABC has moved the show to 9 p.m. Wednesdays (currently home to "20/20").