By ERIC GRIFFITH / Was there ever a better tumultuous romance on television than Dave and Maddie on "Moonlighting"? Arguably, no. At least until they slept together and ruined it.

Glenn Gordon Caron, who created "Moonlighting," moved on to make movies such as "Clean and Sober" and "Picture Perfect." But CBS has convinced Caron to return to TV. The result, "Now and Again," is a show Caron describes as an "action/drama/comedy/romance," and is based in part on the musical "Damn Yankees" (where an old man gets to be young again but isn't able to "fix" things the way he wanted).

At its heart, " Now and Again" is also a show about a superhero. And it’s the best new show of the season.

"Now and Again's" Michael Wiseman isn’t your average superhero in cape and underoos. He is a middle-aged, overweight insurance salesman (played with dignity by John Goodman in the pilot) who has his brain transplanted into a government-manufactured body after he’s hit by a speeding subway car. On the outside, the body (Eric Close of "Dark Skies") is buff, fast, athletic and good-looking.

Yet, on the inside, he’s still a middle-aged man in love with his wife. Therein lies the problem: As part of a government experiment, Michael’s not allowed to contact his family (Margaret Colin and Heather Matarazzo as his wife and daughter respectively) or friend (hilariously played by Gerritt Graham) who think he’s dead. Of course, contacting them is exactly what he does the first chance he gets.

Close, as Michael, does a convincing job of pining for a woman several years his senior, and combines this with a smart-ass attitude directed at his government "saviors." Colin, who has always been a quality actress frequently saddled with mediocre material, is a joy to watch as she goes from grieving widow on bad dates with shifty lawyers to buying shoes for a man she thinks is homeless, not realizing that it's her husband "reincarnated."

For all his bravado, Michael doesn’t have it easy. He has physical powers beyond any other single man, but he’s forced to conform to the wishes of the man in charge of the experiment, Dr. Theodore Morris. Played by Dennis Haysbert, Morris steals every scene he’s in with a moody voice that can just as easily break into song as it can convey a scolding or menacing tone.

Caron, who produces the show and who wrote the first three episodes, makes sure music plays a strong part, whether it’s a rap song or using a show tune (like "Something’s Coming" from "West Side Story") to underscore the strangeness of the situations. The program has one of the best title sequences and theme songs I’ve seen and heard in a long time.

Possibly the worst thing about "Now and Again" is its title, which is easy to confuse with ABC’s "Once and Again." Much like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," the new series attempts to break free of conventions. The biggest compliment I can give the show is that I have no idea where it’s going and what will happen next.

I hope that Caron continues to have a hand in "Now and Again's" overall direction -- as long as it can surprise, this show (already a ratings winner for CBS) should continue to impress.