Web Therapy is far more entertaining [than Episodes], but, alas, wildly uneven, probably in part due to the need to weave new material around the Internet series of the same name that spawned it.

The ex-commander-in-chief sits down with National Geographic Channel to give a moment-by-moment account of the darkest days of his presidency--and the nation--in the utterly absorbing George W. Bush: The 9/11 Interview.

HBO's True Blood rises from the grave of last year's uneven season, smarter, spookier and sexier than before.

You think you know how this story will end, but trust DeKnight and his company of players to surprise us to the last bloody moment.

It's not often that a movie that's important also manages to be educational and entertaining. Five is all three.

Red Road’s depiction of mental illness is one of the most compelling on any scripted series, and Nicholson continues to amaze.

In Happily Divorced, TV Land, the cable channel for baby boomers, finally may have found the perfect companion to its smash "Hot in Cleveland."

Transparent returns for a second season with the Pfefferman family digging deeper into their pasts and struggling to make sense of their futures.... The dialogue can slash like a knife.

The tone bounces cannily from humor to pathos to suspense. The one knock against “Gently”? So much is going on here, the plot is so dense, this is a show that might be better off binged in a marathon. Just one more thing to look forward to, then.

Many young women, if they're being honest, will see themselves here. And many parents will see their daughters.

24 is as much a thrill ride as ever.

The mix of humor and horror is unparalleled, and the bonds of friendship between these supernatural denizens feel authentic.

In this true-life horror tale of a government refusing to acknowledge scientific fact and its ruthless demand for obedience, “Chernobyl” feels especially timely.

It’s a macabre dance that only promises to get more intense.

The pilot, directed by co--executive producer Jon Favreau ("Iron Man"), poses numerous questions, and to the credit of everyone involved, delivers some surprising payoffs that other shows would hold for weeks, if not seasons.

With Milch holding the reins, Luck seems a lock for the winner's circle.

Picnic at Hanging Rock is lush, gorgeous, Gothic and at times plotted tighter than a corset.

The production values are exceedingly high, and you could find worse excuses to stay up past your bedtime. [12 July 2006, p.038]

Cult is a condemnation of the truly “deplorable” among us as well as a witty skewering of liberal correctness run amok.

As the cliche goes, you may think you know the story, but this telling is ­utterly compelling, with some terrific performances and a balanced, compassionate look at not only President Reagan (Tim Matheson, “The West Wing”) and first lady Nancy (Cynthia Nixon, “Sex and the City”) but of the would-be killer, John Hinckley Jr. (Kyle More, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”) and his family.

Week is about as much a serious social experiment as "Survivor" or "Kid Nation," but the production qualities are strong for a cable reality show and its subjects are fascinating as they react to the new world order

You don’t have to be a comic book fan to enjoy The Flash, but if you are one, there are so many Easter eggs in the pilot--especially the one at the closing moment--that you just might go into nerdgasms. The Flash isn’t stopping for anyone.

The womanizing, booze-guzzling, chain-smoking ad exec (played brilliantly by Jon Hamm) at the heart of AMC's Emmy Award-winning drama Mad Men has found a curvy sliver of joy in his life.

Sunday's premiere episode is one of the most cleverly outrageous half-hours of TV I've seen in a while. [28 Jan 1999]

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. looks to be the most fun you’ll find in an hour of prime time this fall.

Whatever pacing issues the miniseries has fade away in the final, 90-minute installment as DuVernay proves to be a canny storyteller, saving the most harrowing, horrific, heartbreaking chapter for last.

If the script can at times seem slight, Douglas and Damon are 
superb.

How far can Frank accommodate her when his own power base is splintering? That will be the most tantalizing plot to follow this season.

Arnold's Beyond Scared Straight hews to the premise of the original and proves to be just as gripping.

Despite the often tense, even grisly moments, the show remains furiously funny — as when Oh as Eve reacts to a robocall from a roofing company or craves a hamburger during a visit to a makeshift morgue. As the object of a growing manhunt, Comer manages to constantly keep viewers off-balance with a performance that is perpetually off-kilter.

Kevin Smith's animated "Clerks" is pure looniness with a crunchy layer of sweetness at its heart. The stars of the original 1994 indie film are all here, including Smith as Silent Bob. The animation is crisp and the facial expressions alone can be hysterical. [31 May 2000]

Netflix’s energetic reboot of the cult sci-fi series adheres to the best spirit of creator Irwin Allen’s vision of a family in space fighting for their futures.

Her Patty knows how to spread the hurt. Get in on Damages' final round.

Ordinary is super at capturing a middle-class family suffering from self-imposed Kryptonite poisoning

Cross brings to this six-episode season all the intensity of “Luther” with some deeper questions about personal responsibility in the face of overwhelming disaster.

Key for any great sci-fi show, Incorporated’s creators, brothers Alex and David Pastor (“Carriers”), excel at filling in the details of their world.

Preacher is a black comedy, a horror funhouse, a mild meditation on belief and a wicked good time. There’s nothing left to say but: Amen.

If The Lottery can keep up the promise of its premiere, it will punch a winning ticket.

Time’s biggest takeaway is that cases like this--indigent defendants being abused by the judicial and then the corrections system--are more the norm than the exception.

As a man struggling to find where he misplaced his heart, Perry makes angst seem easy. His sense of timing isn't rusty. The sitcom has a few clouds: Alonzo needs an edge and the show should make Jorge Garcia's ("Lost") facilities manager a permanent regular. But Mr. Sunshine could be midseason's brightest ray of mirth.

The show's repetitive voice-overs are annoying. But you'll be sucked into this dangerous venture.

Dead is always at its most unsettling--and poignant--when its characters have a moment to breathe and to address their dark, nightmarish world.

Finally there’s something fun to binge and share with friends.

King, Cudlitz and McKenzie carry this drama, in note-perfect peformances. They make Southland a worthy part of your Tuesday night stakeout.

In true Bluth fashion, what you think you know about the Bluths you don’t know at all.

The film is mostly a dance between Dinklage (also an executive producer here) and Dornan, who rises to the occasion and gives the best performance of his career as a man struggling to hang on to his sobriety even as he’s dragged through a hell of Los Angeles.

Unlike most movie-inspired TV series - in which the TV version is usually a soggier incarnation of its movie original - this Buffy, created by Joss Whedon, an Oscar nominee for his "Toy Story" script, fulfills some of the promise sorely lacking in the 1992 big-screen version. [10 Mar 1997, p.32]

Trust at times seems about as factually accurate as the “B.C.” comic strip, and Boyle’s visual affectations and his over-reliance on split-screens do not always serve the story well. (He directed the first three episodes.) .. Whatever Trust’s hold on the facts, it more than makes up for in its performances.

A star arose during NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar: Live in Concert last night. No, not singer John Legend, though he did grow into his part as the son of God in this adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber rock opera, and not pop star Sara Bareilles, who was technically sound as Mary Magdalene but never seemed to find her heart. Broadway veteran Brandon Victor Dixon stole the show as Judas.

The staging was clever and fun and the performances ranged from good to fantastic.

The three-hour production got off to a shaky start with camera work in the 1959-set Rydell High seemingly ready to trigger mass vertigo. But by the time the cast got to “Greased Lightnin’,” a frenetic dance number that kept building and growing so much, it threatened to spill out onto your floor, the show was rocking.

When Jackie snaps over one patient's plight, she could be speaking for impatient viewers: "People gotta stop trying to save people who don't want to be saved." Same goes for TV characters stuck in the same shtick.

Mr. Robot is like a computer virus that will worm its way into your consciousness if you’re not careful.

Penny Dreadful’s set work is unparalleled, and this season the bright oranges and yellows of the Old West make for a welcome contrast to the washed-out blues and grays of Old London. Oh, there is action here.

The sets and costuming are top-notch. The musical score is brash, if redundant. The personal dramas range from silly to 
diverting.

Face Off hews so much to the Runway formula, it practically falls over and busts a lip, but at least the pacing is fast.

Primeval (which has already been renewed for a fifth season) doesn't ask you to think, just to enjoy the mayhem that follows when a rampaging behemoth is set loose anywhere in the United Kingdom. It's hard to find fault with a formula like that.

With its frantic pacing, ­vicious masterminds and ­valiant law enforcement agents, Crisis might remind you of Fox’s “24.” Not the best seasons of “24,” but still. There’s a lot to be said for a show that works up a sweat trying to surprise you.

As an actress, Lady Gaga wears clothes very well. That’s not the dis it seems. The extended 90-minute premiere doesn’t give her much chance to act, or speak, for that matter.... As Dr. Alex Lowe, John’s estranged wife, returning player Chloe Sevigny provides a welcome balance to the over-the-top bloodletting, but as good as she is, the bad soap opera dialogue just proves Murphy and Falchuk have no interest in writing “normal,” whatever that is. They’re here to deliver spectacle.

The castmates aren't polished performers, but they know how to work a joke fast and move on. [4 Aug 2005]

The show runs rampant with rapid-fire dialogue and sly pop-culture references. The cast is strong.

The dark tone might be the greatest barrier at first to viewers, but the cast rolls with the wisecracks.

Boardwalk shows no signs of losing its identity. All signs point to a bloody proper finish.

While often touching, it's a lightweight addition to HBO's schedule.

The six-episode series mixes this type of sharp -humor and dialogue with gory scenes and tense horror.

The original “Roots” exposed and drew on the power of truth for millions of Americans. This Roots is an echo of that. It stands small in the great shadow of the original.

Give Lost Girl a try. You might be seduced.

Longmire isn't a conventional show. The mystery tonight might be slight, but the pilot is a dusty little gem.

Serves up spine-tingling chills with its moody, noirish visuals and grimly efficient leads. [22 Sep 2004]

The subtleties in [Kristin Kreuk's] performance help fill in the gaps in scripts that at times range from flat to merely functional. Burden of Truth, which has already been renewed in Canada, is a show by and for adults looking for something a little challenging.

Sutherland is impressive as a nice guy exercising his backbone for perhaps the first time in his life. He works hard to get past one of the most iconic roles in television. The idealism is palpable, even if the show seems a bit too idealistic. The supporting cast seems stuck taking predictable positions.

Hardy rocks the period clothing, strutting around in an open overcoat practically down to his ankles and a commanding stovepipe hat. With anyone else, this show would not be half as engrossing.

Under the Dome is the TV equivalent [of a ham sandwich], with all the fixings: a goofy, sometimes creepy, thriller from horror maestro Stephen King about a town trapped under a large invisible barrier.

Driver’s manic spirit has never been displayed to such great effect. Yarbrough and Bowie bring warmth and depth to their roles beyond the script. At a moment when CBS has regurgitated “King of Queens” into “Kevin Can Wait” and its Matt LeBlanc series “Man With a Plan” looks embalmed on arri­val, Speechless is a fresh addi­tion to prime-time family comedy.

Push is a David Lynchian view of good and evil, avarice and honor. But it's also a game show. [16 Sept 2002, p.32]

Ed is swell, as Ed might say. Not quite a strike but a satisfying spare. [5 Oct 2000, p.48]

Night’s pacing can be frustrating — this mini would be a lot more effective if it were cut to four hours--but the surprises and twists in the final two episodes make it more than worthy of your investment.

A delectable documentary. [29 Nov 2001, p.55]

Schooled at its goofiest recognizes the value of teachers.

Some comedies lull you to sleep; The Carmichael Show gives you a slap, pushes your head out the door and still gives you something to laugh about.

There are several hearty laughs in "Home Improvement" - the best you can ask of any TV comedy. [12 Sep 1991]

Dandridge is a standout as the sister rediscovering her love of faith even as her doubts about her family grow.

No, Project Greenlight doesn’t promise art, but it does deliver drama.

For shows that play to our longing for America's lost days of glory, the sky's the limit.

While the production values may be loose, Impulse’s entertainment value runs strong.

It's impossible to tell by the uneven debut episode if the tone of the writing will be consistent. ... The dramatic portions of the show flow easily... But the writers seem unsure how they want to portray the violence in "Platinum," of which there is plenty in the first episode. [11 Apr 2003]

Things are about to get a lot worse on Penny Dreadful, and for viewers, that is a very good thing indeed.

This bleak depiction of hospital work locates the show about two degrees south of “St. Elsewhere.” And yet, after I finished the first three episodes, I realized I was hooked; I wanted more.

In its casting, Trial & Error gets every­thing right.

GLOW just bubbles with scene-stealers.

The soul of the show is 30-something daughter Lydia (Heather Paige Kent), who dumps her loutish, lay-about fiance and decides to go to college. Written by waitress-turned-screenwriter Diane Ruggiero and based on her own life. The supporting cast, which includes Paul Sorvino, Kevin Dillon, Debi Mazar and Ellen Burstyn, is a standout. [1 Oct 2000, p.6]

Who knew the dumbed-down domestic sitcom could be fun again? ... OK. It's not "Seinfeld." But "Eight Simple Rules" does just what it's supposed to - amuse, entertain, disperse a few laughs and warm fuzzies. [17 Sep 2002]

Confirmation, like those hearings, settles nothing. The film’s coda suggests the country has come a long way. That, along with everything else here, will give viewers plenty to talk about.

The story of an intriguing woman who can shoot a gun but can't hit the target is a premise steeped with promise. Let's hope Karen Sisco does not find happiness anytime soon. [1 Oct 2003, p.55]

If their melodrama isn't always gripping, Nip/Tuck rushes in an array of guest stars as distractions. [5 Sept 2006, p.36]

Moore's impersonation of Sarah Palin is the hook to reel you into HBO'S latest truelife political thriller.

The pacing shouldn’t work, yet it does. The private stories pull you in. This is a great cast playing.

Holloway looks leaner than his Sawyer days and cleans up nice. Ory, such a spitfire on ABC’s “Once Upon a Time” as both Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf, seems tamed here, and unfortunately, a little dull.