Fox’s new comedy dangles the promise of outrageous high jinks just around the corner, but at its heart, it’s a conventional story, the misfit forced to become the parent to three wayward kids and, of course, become a better person.

Even the cotton-candy fantasy “Glee” had more depth and reality to it than this show.

The production budget is almost up to the challenge. Some of the costumes--especially of the French court--look cheap. But there’s such a delight in seeing such a gifted ensemble deliver lines that still resonate.

The real reason why “Mariah’s World” seems stale is that it comes off as a TV remake of “Madonna: Truth or Dare,” and Madge did it better in 1991.

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.

The show, like so many unscripted series, can be repetitive. ... But in taking a light to an alley few dare to tread, Remini may have given some viewers out there more than a hope and a prayer.

Bishop is just so authentic as a widow finding her way that she deserves an Emmy. Some things, of course, will never change, and fans wouldn’t have it any other way. Sherman-Palladino’s dialogue still races, stuffed with pop culture references.

A superb, bracing look at the terrorist attack on Boston and its aftermath.

Ice doesn’t have pretensions of high art or maybe even good drama--but as a crime show that constantly keeps moving, Ice pops.

The problem with building an action drama around a sniper is that the work by its nature requires people to be several yards away from each other. A climactic gunfight in the season finale goes as far as to show the math--the mental calculations the shooters have to do to make their shot--to juice up the action. It doesn’t work. Shooter excels in one area--grotesque head shots.

The talking-head portion plays like a video Kickstarter pitch for Elon Musk’s SpaceX, his private rocket company determined to get man to Mars and keep him there in a sustainable community. The drama plays like a low-budget Ron Howard film, which it is, sort of.

In its final season, with but eight episodes total, Rectify continues to take risks.

Netflix’s The Crown is a sumptuous treat, a lavish costume drama with subtle performances and an astonishing attention to detail.

Stan Against Evil toys with horror cliches and assures you that whatever you fear, something worse--or funnier--is right around the corner.

A few jokes from the BBC-produced series won’t translate to this side of the pond, unless you’re familiar with British pop culture. ... Don’t like a skit? Another one will be along in a minute or two, and Ullman just might sing and dance, two more of her talents.

Nobody registers much of a connection. What’s missing from this show is heart.

McHale, as he proved on “Community,” has great timing, and he’s aided by his office colleagues, especially the delightfully deadpan Ko and Fry, who combines sweet and weird. With its office-as-asylum atmosphere, Great Indoors echoes “NewsRadio,” not a bad influence.

This is one of the least authentic family sitcoms on TV, right down to the horrible home set, which looks like it was cribbed from the scraps of canceled shows.

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.

Fox’s creaky re-imagining of the cult classic “Rocky Horror Picture Show” misses the point about what makes the original so beloved.

There’s much about Chance that makes no sense, but the perfor­mances are terrific.

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.

Thornton seems to be playing against script. His Billy seems to be thoroughly enjoying himself, despite the dire circumstances he finds himself in. It’s about the only surprise in Goliath. By the end of the second episode, it becomes obvious there are forces in play that will stop at nothing to thwart Billy’s quest for answers.

Hopefully the pilot will move beyond weight and get to what really is intriguing about this show. Not since “Roseanne” has there been a prime-time comedy so poised to poke fun at economic class.

This show details the death of a marriage by a thousand cuts, a few hundred insults and a bag of clothes thrown in the trash. Maybe that’s your appointment TV. I’d rather binge watch root canal videos on YouTube.

Those familiar with the source material will recognize the pilot is essentially the first two-thirds of the film. Some convincing performances from Smith and List get Frequency humming. But that’s just not enough buzz.

Anderson is charming and sells her sweet character. Sasse’s Xavier comes across as an amalgam of Russell Crowe, Jake Gyllenhaal and the sort I’ve always figured to be an urban­ cannibal.