Co-created by Conan O’Brien, the silly new comedy “Andy Barker, PI” (8:30 p.m., NBC) stars O’Brien’s old sidekick, Andy Richter, as an accountant who opens his own firm in a rather unpopular strip mall, only to find that his clients still think he operates the private-eye firm formerly located in his office. That outfit, run by Lew Staziak (Harve Presnell, “Fargo”), attracts cases right out of 1970s cop shows, complete with a whactita-whachita soundtrack.

“Andy” is ridiculous in ways that recall “Get Smart” and “The Simpsons” (where O’Brien cut his teeth as a writer/producer). The paper-thin detective story never gets in the way of the comedy, and the comedy is enhanced by an absurd whodunit that wraps itself up in 22 minutes.

The real fun here is the contrast between Staziak’s dialogue – a staccato mixture of tough-cop talk and decades-old commie-hating lingo – and Andy’s mild-mannered attempts at “profanity.” The harshest oath he can muster are “Mother Hubbard!” and “Cheese and crackers!”

Clea Lewis (“Ellen”) is nicely cast as Andy’s wife, who shares his ideals of uncomplicated domesticity. She sees him off for work with a bag lunch and a peck on the cheek and a reminder that “Those episodes of ‘Judging Amy’ on our Tivo aren’t going to watch themselves!”

Chances are, a show this silly won’t survive the network ratings jungle. It seems more in tune with the USA network’s whimsical mysteries “Monk” and “Psych.”

¢ “October Road” (9 p.m., ABC) concerns Nick (Bryan Greenberg), a wildly successful young novelist who left his blue-collar New England town of Knights Ridge a decade before without so much as a goodbye. To make matters worse, he used many of his old pals, and most notably his old girlfriend Hannah (Laura Prepon), as material for his book and cast them all in an unflattering light.

Knee-deep in writer’s block, Nick returns to the neighborhood for a weekend. Nick’s book could not possibly have been more smug and condescending toward Knights Ridge than the makers of “October Road.” Almost to a dude, the friends Nick left behind are stuck in Ruttsville, playing in the same air-guitar band. His father and brother seem pathologically stunted, and one of his pals won’t even leave the house or get off his couch. Imagine “It’s a Wonderful Life” if George Bailey had gotten his chance to leave Bedford Falls and come back to find that it had become a Pottersville full of bores.

Nick decides to stick around when it seems that Hannah’s precocious 10-year-old son, Sam (Slade Pearce), may be his. His impulses seem more about curiosity than responsibility. For Nick, it’s all about me. Or, in this case, mini-me.

Tonight’s other highlights

¢ NCAA College Basketball Tournament (6 p.m., CBS).

¢ Betty braces for a big date on “Ugly Betty” (7 p.m., ABC).

¢ Actress Shohreh Aghdashloo (“House of Sand and Fog”) will guest star on “Grey’s Anatomy” (8 p.m., ABC).

¢ David Spade hosts “The Showbiz Show with David Spade” (9:30 p.m., Comedy Central).