Thursday nights are packed with excitement thanks to vampires, murder, and an assassin on the run. Buckle up!

Bones

Returning for its sixth season, Bones has some reconciling to do after everyone went their separate ways in the previous season’s finale. The team reunites to save one of their own (we scooped the details here), but will the dynamics ever been the same? And the question on most fans’ minds – will Booth and Brennan ever be on the same relationship page at the same time? Expect a big announcement from another couple, new love interests for Booth and Brennan, and possibly the exit of a Squintern when Bones returns September 23 on FOX. – Melissa

The Vampire Diaries

Returning this Fall for its second season, the show features the intersecting lives of 17 year old Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev) and the Salvatore brothers, Stefan (Paul Wesley) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder)- vampires haunted by the vampire who created them: Katherine (Nina Dobrev). Sharing in Elena’s world are her uncle John (David Anders), her aunt Jenna (Sara Canning), her brother Jeremy (Steve McQueen) and her protective circle of friends Matt (Zach Roerig), Caroline (Candice Accola), and the witch Bonnie (Katerina Graham). Rounding out the supernatural world of Mystic Falls are: tormented teen Taylor Lockwood (Michael Trevino), history teacher/rogue vampire hunter Alaric Salzman (Matt Davis), town sheriff Liz Forbes (Marguerite MacIntyre) and Elena’s mysterious birth mother, Isobel (Mia Kirshner) — who was revealed to be vampire too and who may or may not be aligned with Katherine. Be sure to watch and find out what wickedness has been unleashed in this seemingly sleepy little town. The Vampire Diaries returns on Thursday, September 9, 2010 at 8/7c on the CW. – Tiffany

Nikita

Nikita is one of two new shows on the CW, debuting on September 9 at 9/8, following the season premiere of The Vampire Diaries. Much like its predecessors (the foreign film and the USA Network series), this Nikita features a beautiful young woman who was trained to be an assassin; only this time she is on the outside, having escaped from Division (the secret US agency that removed her from prison and gave her a “new life”), and is using all she learned to stop them once and for all. Maggie Q is Nikita, the woman set on retribution for the murder of her lover and determined to save those still stuck inside the walls of Division.

Other members of the cast include Shane West, Xander Berkley, Lyndsy Fonseca, Aaron Stanford, and Melinda Clarke. Check out our pilot review for more on the series. – Rueben

The Mentalist

The CBS hit drama The Mentalist is premised on the idea that a former professional psychic was recruited by the California Bureau of Investigation in a mutually-beneficial symbiotic relationship: CBI gets the use of Patrick Jane’s (Simon Baker) unique skills and Jane is in turn given free reign to assist in tracking down his wife and daughter’s killer, the infamous Red John. At the end of the 2^nd season, Red John also kidnapped Jane’s latest lady friend, Kristina Frye (Leslie Hope). Aiding Jane’s quest are the CBI investigative team comprised of agents Teresa Lisbon (Robin Tunney), Kimball Cho (Tim Kang), Wayne Rigsby (Owain Yeoman), and Grace Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti) and their supervisor Madeline Hightower (Aunjanue Ellis). The Sherlockian storylines are entertaining as viewers are invited to solve the crimes and share in the ruses used to induce a criminal into confessing their sins while sprinkling in bits of comedy and heart-warming moments. The end result is a wonderful concoction of mystery and humor that makes Thursday nights a must-watch night of television. The Mentalist returns for its third season on September 23 and airs Thursday nights at 10/9c on CBS. – Tiffany