With its talking heads and backbiting style, reality programs - shunned by the networks for the most part come fall - will be a driving force all over the tube this summer.

The reason? They're cheap to make, bring in big returns when they are hits and are easily disposable.

Cable and networks have found in recent years that there is an audience for summer television. Summer is where mega-hits such as "Survivor" and "Fear Factor" emerged in the first place.

While quality is not always a trademark of summer TV, it is not unheard of. "Sex & The City" - this year's Best Comedy series winner at the Emmys - is a summer staple.

And HBO, which is finding critical and ratings success with more serious fare such as "The Sopranos," "Six Feet Under" and "Oz," is launching a new drama series in June.

Yes, reruns still abound, but so do a batch of new programs and returning favorites.

Among them:

- "The Wire" (10 p.m., June 2, HBO). The story follows a war on drugs through the eyes of Baltimore-based homicide and narcotics detectives.

- "The Hamptons" (9 p.m., June 2, ABC). This is close to a first: a reality show miniseries. The two-part series (concluding on June 3) follows singles looking for love in the posh setting of the Hamptons.

- "Crank Yankers" (10:30 p.m., June 2, Comedy Central). Real prank phone calls are made to the unsuspecting, but we get to see it all played out by puppets in this new Jimmy Kimmel series.

- "Looking for Love: Bachelorettes in Alaska" (8 p.m., June 2, Fox). Five women go to Alaska to look for a man, hoping at the end of five episodes that one of the men will propose.

- "Russian Roulette" (11 p.m., June 3, Game Show Network). Don't panic. This isn't what you think. It's a question-and-answer game, with losers having an "abrupt" exit when they lag.

- "Farscape" (returning 10 p.m., June 7, Sci-Fi Channel). Displaced astronaut John Crichton (Ben Browder) and his living ship have new adventures this summer.

- "American Idol: The Search for a Superstar" (debuting 8:30 p.m., June 11, Fox). Wannabe superstars audition for a recording contract in this talent search/ reality series. The home audience will vote on the winner.

- "The Dead Zone" (10 p.m., June 16, USA Network). Anthony Michael Hall stars in this adaptation of the Stephen King novel about a man who gains psychic powers after a near-fatal accident.

- "Crime & Punishment" (10 p.m., June 16, NBC). Edited to have the look and feel of a scripted series, this "drama-mentary" follows real-life prosecutors on the job.

- "Witchblade" (returning 8 p.m., June 16, TNT). Yancy Butler reprises her role as a New York detective coping with an ancient artifact that has attached itself to her arm, giving her mystical powers.

- "Dog Eat Dog" (10 p.m., June 17, NBC). Contestants pit their wits and muscles against each other in this new game show from the creators of "The Weakest Link" and "Fear Factor."

- "Sorority Life" (10:30 p.m., June 24, MTV). Pillow fight! The girls of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi interact with each other and other classmates on their quest to either "make it" or "break it" into the sisterhood.

- "Junkyard Wars" (returning 9 p.m., June 26, TLC). The robot-fighting contest is back with new episodes.

- "Big Brother 3" (early July, CBS). A third installment has the same basic drill: Contestants are holed up in a house filled with cameras and microphones to record their lives.

- "Harvey Birdman, Attorney-At-Law" (July, Cartoon Network). The "Adult Swim" series about an ex-superhero who defends cartoon characters in court will be back for 20 new episodes.

- "Sex & The City" (9 p.m., July 21, HBO). The girls are back but for only eight episodes this season.

- "Battlebots" (returning 10 p.m., Aug. 20, Comedy Central). Carman Electra is once again host of this robot-battling contest when new episodes roll out.

- "Celebrity Bootcamp" (no date yet, Fox). Last year's reality show flop has been reworked to include a different set of celebrities competing each week.

- "Meet My Folks" (no date set, NBC). Bachelors who find Ms. Right have to survive spending a weekend with her parents in this new "dating" game show.

- "The Rerun Show" (no date set, NBC). Classic shows - such as "The Patridge Family" and "Facts of Life" - are recycled with new dialogue.

(Terry Morrow is the TV critic for the Knoxville News-Sentinel in Tennessee. He can be reached at Morrow2@knews.com.)