ALCATRAZ Pilot and Ernest Cobb Promo Images

Out of all the new series expected to start in 2012, I am most excited for J.J. Abrams’ latest sci-fi series, Alcatraz. On Monday, January 16 will be the two-hour premiere for this (hopefully, fingers crossed) awesome series. The premiere will feature two separate episodes, the “Pilot” and “Ernest Cobb.” Down below this wall of text are a few promo images for the episodes we have via Criminal Complex (which also called it one of the top 5 midseason shows to watch) and it looks like there will be a good variety of locations in the episode, including a bar and a boat, which I always see as a positive.

The pictures show off the main characters of Alcatraz, Sarah Jones, Jeffrey Pierce, Robert Forster, Jorge Garcia, Parminder Nagra, Jonny Coyne and Jason Butler Harner. Notably, Sam Neill is missing from this batch of images, which is a bummer for me. Aside from Garcia, Neill is the main draw to Alcatraz in my opinion, at least in terms of the talent involved. The real big draw is the mystery surrounding Alcatraz and the missing inmates who are now reappearing despite their disappearance 60 years ago.

Each episode features a new prisoner surfacing in the present day; hence the episode titles being called things like “Ernest Cobb,” being named after the inmate being hunted in the episode. I’m jazzed as can be at this point. I just want this series to start so bad. Even more than that, I want it to be good. It doesn’t need to be above and beyond expectations, but it needs to be engaging and legitimately mysterious.

Photo Credit: Liane Hentscher/FOX