9-10PM · THE CW · Debuts Oct. 5

CONCEPT
The middle son (Jeff Hephner) of a family who runs a high-interest ''payday loan'' firm realizes why he never quite felt like he belonged.

THE SCOOP
Set in a fictional Sun Belt town and filmed on location in Albuquerque, N.M., Easy Money will mix ongoing stories of the firm's hapless clients with the mystery of son Morgan's biological background. And lots of zany family crises. ''I'm having a ball piecing this character's look together,'' says Laurie Metcalf, who stars as matriarch Bobette. ''I have red hair now, acrylic nails, and I wear tight-fitting outfits.''

BOTTOM LINE
We're happy to see Roseanne's Metcalf back on TV, but we're even more psyched about the return of the guy who plays a detective — Fast Times at Ridgemont High's Judge Reinhold: Brad Hamilton lives!