The new detective series “The Glades” (9 p.m., Sunday, A&E) seems familiar in a dozen different ways. But that doesn’t ruin its charm. As the pilot opens, viewers may believe they’ve tuned in “True Blood” by mistake. A high school couple wakes up in an SUV from an apparent swamp-side tryst. But when our young lothario leaves the vehicle to light up a cigarette, he discovers a floating, headless body and he immediately begins to vomit. The lesson is obvious: don’t smoke, kids!

The city of Palm Glade, Fla.’s lead homicide detective is found on the golf course. Jim Longworth (Matt Passmore, “McLeod’s Daughters”) is about to break 80 and does not want to be disturbed. But when duty calls, he has his ball cordoned off as a crime scene so he can pick up the game right where he left off.

Acts of brazen insouciance are standard for Jim, who insists on never wearing a uniform, teasing his partners and superiors and hitting on pretty nurses as they bind up his wounded, alligator-bitten fingers. Kiele Sanchez (“Lost”) stars as one such caregiver, Callie, a nurse and medical school student with a precocious 12-year-old and an estranged husband in prison.

Like the lead detective on “The Gates,” Jim is a refugee from Chicago, and a job he had to leave. Like every detective or spy on the USA network, Jim also talks too much and is a little too clever. But his obvious anti-authoritarian attitude help him insinuate himself with suspects. Unlike many TV detectives, he talks to potential perps as if they were innocent and even explains his theories and doubts with them and tells them why he’s doing what he’s doing.

Having been shot by his former Chicago police partner, he appears to be as suspicious of the men in blue as anybody. Maybe that’s why he won’t wear blue. This affectation and attitude keeps everyone from the suspects to the audience guessing, and the pilot wraps up with an arrest and a satisfying resolution you probably won’t expect.

As Longworth, Passmore becomes the latest in a series of Australian actors to adapt effortlessly to an American accent and attitude. And if the rest of the “The Glades’s” first season is as entertaining as the pilot, his long trip will have been worth it.

• Looks like the new drama “The Bridge” (7 p.m., and 8 p.m., today, CBS) is a tad unusual. For starters, it’s a show about a union. Frank Leo (Aaron Douglas) heads his police local union of 8,000 officers while battling crime on the streets, corruption in the ranks and crossing the “Bridge” of the show’s title between the haves and have-nots of his city.

“The Bridge” was not made available for review and debuts in the dog days of July, which pretty much tells us how much faith CBS had in it.

• Paige Turco and Barry Bostwick star in the repeat of the made-for-TV movie “Secrets of the Mountain” (7 p.m., today, NBC) about a single mom’s inheritance. Like “The Bridge,” this was also originally broadcast without much network fanfare. “Mountain” was produced in conjunction with America’s largest retailer and one of the country’s biggest advertisers, so be on the lookout for product placements.

• Speaking of corporate sponsorship, Spike broadcasts “The Hooters 2010 International Swimsuit Pageant” (8 p.m., today, Spike).

• “Masterpiece Mystery” (8 p.m., PBS, check local listings) returns to one of Agatha Christie’s best known tales on “Poirot: Murder on the Orient Express” starring David Suchet in his signature role as the glum Belgian sleuth. Look for Barbara Hershey as a passenger and suspect.

• TLC has become the go-to network for tales of yeast and multiple births. “The Bakery Bunch” (9 p.m., Sunday, TLC) documents the chaos and joys of raising four-year-old triplets while managing the family bakery in Fullerton, Calif.

Today’s highlights

• The kids put on a show in the 2008 sequel “High School Musical 3: Senior Year” (6 p.m., Disney).

• “How Do I Look?” (7 p.m., Style) enters its eleventh season of fashion advice and makeovers. Jeannie Mai hosts.

• A ruthless casino operator (Alec Baldwin) hires a sad sack (William H. Macy) to spoil gamblers’ luck in the 2003 drama “The Cooler” (7 p.m., IFC).

• A staircase leads in only one direction on “Doctor Who” (8 p.m., BBC America).

• Scheduled on “48 Hours Mystery” (9 p.m., CBS): a killer uses Craigslist to find targets.

• Katy Perry and Jason Manford appear on “Graham Norton Show” (9 p.m., BBC America).

Sunday’s highlights

• Scheduled on “60 Minutes” (6 p.m., CBS): Haiti’s vulnerable children; profiles of Shaun White and Kathryn Bigelow.

• Would-be dates put their backfields in motion as a wide receiver plays the field on “Ochocinco: The Ultimate Catch” (8 p.m., VH1).

• Sooki and Alcide attend Debbie’s wild engagement party on “True Blood” (8 p.m., HBO)

• A spate of robberies puts Frank to work on “The Gates” (9 p.m., ABC).

• The judges hope a flower theme helps talent bloom on “Design Star” (9 p.m., HGTV).

• Tanya steps up after Ray irks Lenore on “Hung” (9 p.m., HBO)

• Ari’s meeting with NFL honchos does not go smoothly on “Entourage” (9:30 p.m., HBO)