Trust issues

Tom Cavanagh and Eric McCormack are two of TV’s best leading men.

Cavanagh, if you’ll recall, starred in NBC’s charming “Ed” from 2000 to 2004, and he’s also made memorable guest appearances on “Scrubs” and “Eli Stone.”

And McCormack, of course, graced our screens for eight seasons as Will to Debra Messing’s Grace.

Now both are starring in the new TNT series “Trust Me,” which premieres at 10 p.m. Monday, and, I’ve gotta tell you, they’re even better together.

As best friends and ad agency coworkers, they have an instant rapport and play off of each other brilliantly.

In the pilot’s opening moments, Cavanagh’s irresponsible copywriter Conner explains why they became ad men, when their peers dreamed of being fireman, doctors and astronauts.

“We always wanted to be hung over from expensive booze that someone else paid for, while everyone back in Chicago thinks we’re working,” he reminds McCormack’s Mason as the two lounge by a pool nursing those longed-for hangovers. “That was our dream.”

“In my version of the dream,” Mason counters, “I was less nauseous.”

Their friendship is tested when, upon returning to Chicago, art director Mason is promoted — making him Conner’s new boss. The impulsive, bratty Conner doesn’t take the news well, and the series shows how they navigate this new dynamic in their relationship.

Along for the ride are Griffin Dunne as their supervisor, Tony, and Monica Potter, as the agency’s neurotic new copywriter, Sarah.

The show is great, but I’m afraid it suffers from the “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” syndrome. That NBC drama, which was about the inner-workings of a late night sketch comedy show, was very well done. But the show-within-the-show’s sketches were never that funny.

Here, none of Conner and Mason’s ad campaigns struck me as being particularly clever or catchy.

Still, Cavanagh and McCormack’s charms will win you over.

You can trust me on that.

When not busy watching the tube, you can catch Gillis at