'Almost Human' review: Lively, but you've seen it

Meanwhile, he must select a new cyborg partner, an outdated model, Dorian (Michael Ealy), who seems more human than human. "I express most data colloquially, man," Dorian explains.

The people behind the camera -- Brad Anderson ("The Machinist"), who directs Sunday's pilot and creator J.H. Wyman ("Fringe") -- are too talented to think they can get away with larceny here. So these many touchstones, or more generously, grace notes, should probably be interpreted as homage.

But you may also start to wonder when the homage ends, and the original vision kicks in. That's not exactly clear Sunday night. Instead, "Human" relies on the usual tricks to get the hook in: Some nice special effects, cartoon violence and Minka Kelly. Urban, at his tight-jawed best, arrives with a big fan base from "Star Trek" and especially "Lord of the Rings." But Ealy ("Sleeper Cell") is the more pleasant surprise: Wryly amusing, he brings a swagger, sense of humor and ironic self-awareness -- one irony certainly being that he's supposed to be the one made of glue and silica.

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Despite the so-so pilot, should "Almost Human" get a pass, at least in the early going? Wyman ran one of the most provocative TV series of the last 10 years, and knows that loyal fan bases are built on original ideas, not warmed-over ones. So yes, "Human" does.