Glenn Gordon Caron, creator of Now and Again, says it's merely a coincidence. Caron, who created Moonlighting, says he was well into production of his show's pilot when he heard that ABC had Once and Again in development. At that point, Caron went to CBS Entertainment President Leslie Moonves and asked him if he should change the title of his show. "He said, 'Oh, let them worry about us,' " Caron says. "So, I took Les' confidence in the show as a great sign."

While Once and Again is a romantic drama, Now and Again has been pegged as a sci-fi show. But Caron maintains that his series is also essentially a love story. "It's a sneaky romance," he says.

Now and Again centers on a man named Michael (played by Roseanne's John Goodman in the opener) who is killed in a train accident but is "resurrected" when the government transplants his brain into a perfect—and considerably younger—male specimen. That's where Eric Close, who recently starred on The Magnificent Seven, takes over the role.

Michael has a second chance at life and a hot new body, but there is a hitch: He is forced to work as a government agent and is not allowed to contact his beloved wife Lisa (Independence Day's Margaret Colin) or daughter (Welcome to the Dollhouse's Heather Mattarazzo). This proves to be torturous for him.

Caron says he decided to create the show after watching Dawson's Creek with his daughter.

What? How could watching Dawson (James Van Der Beek) cavort with Eve (Brittany Daniel) inspire Caron?

"It occurred to me, given what [my daughter] was seeing and hearing, that it was as if no one over the age of 26 experienced ardor or experienced passion or experienced romantic love—that that really existed for people between the ages of 15 and 25, and after that, you passed into this netherworld," Caron explains. "And I thought, 'Gee, it would be fun to do a show where people who are slightly older experience those feelings,' because I am actually older than 26, and I'm a hopeless romantic."

Initially, Caron planned to focus on a middle-aged couple, but then he thought of a clever twist—pairing a fortysomething woman with a twentysomething man who has the mind of her fortysomething husband.

Of course, everyone wants to know if ultimately Michael and Lisa will reunite. And, not surprisingly, Caron would rather keep us guessing. But it's hard to imagine that he won't get the two back together again somehow.

Another question on viewers' minds: Is it possible that John Goodman might pop up again? Yes, his body was crushed under the wheels of a subway train. But this is television. Surely there must be a way to bring him back.

"We'd love him to come back," Caron says. "He keeps calling and joking about his identical twin cousin Larry making an appearance."

Caron continues, "If he comes back, I think it should be for an important reason, though, and in some important context—which I haven't figured out yet."