• by Adam Buckman , Featured Columnist, Yesterday

The premiere episode of “Sheriff Country” packs so much psychological drama into the life of Sheriff Mickey Fox that it’s a wonder she’s not in a straitjacket by the time the show ends.

It is a common problem afflicting new network dramas -- too much backstory from everywhere all at once in an effort to bring viewers up to date with the main character as quickly as possible.

What we learn in Episode One about Sheriff Mickey (Morena Baccarin, above photo) includes revelations of childhood trauma, issues with two underling deputies that rock her world, an ex-husband dating someone close to her, a truculent, troubled teenage daughter and challenges related to local politics.

On top of all that, Episode One has her dealing with not one, but two violent crimes, which seems like a lot for a small, rural town where everybody knows each other and many -- including the sheriff -- share personal histories.

In TV shows such as this one, the complicated, intertwining stories are designed to whet appetites for subsequent episodes in which, hopefully, all will be revealed and sorted out in due time.

The title of “Sheriff Country” and its rural setting stem from the CBS forest-fire drama “Fire Country,” which returns for its fourth season this Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern leading into the debut of “Sheriff Country” at 9.

The arrival of “Sheriff Country” is ballyhooed in the CBS publicity material as an expansion of the “Country” universe, although it is reasonable to assume that no physicists were involved in the creation of either show.

The two shows are connected via the main character of “Fire Country” who just happens to be from this fictional small town known as Edgewater, and possibly located in California. 

Episode One of “Sheriff Country” ends with the opening of a new storyline that represents a cliffhanger of sorts. 

And in keeping with the entire episode that comes before it, the episode-ending incident hits close to home for Sheriff Mickey as sad music plays in the background -- an overused TV cliché if there ever was one.

While CBS can say all it wants to about the expanding “Country” universe, the TV Blog believes that a TV-show franchise in development is not yet a universe or a franchise until there are three such shows, and not just two.

But the sky’s the limit. Possibilities include titles such as “Swamp Country,” “Desert Country,” “North Country” and, my personal favorite, “Cracker Barrel Country.”

“Sheriff Country” premieres Friday, October 17, at 9 p.m. Eastern on CBS.