Fallon, 39, made an energetic and charming debut Monday night as the Tonight Show host. But providing the real rocket fuel for this high-profile launch were the many stars dropping by to wish him luck.

Here's where you'll find the saccharine avoided by "About a Boy." You'll also find the occasional trite twist and labored comic turn. Still, Growing Up Fisher undeniably jumps to life when Simmons is on the screen, which is quite a lot. That's what gives this underdeveloped newcomer a fighting chance.

It's familiar enough territory, to be sure, yet it's covered in lively fashion, thanks mostly to Katims' breezy script and the delightful comic chemistry between Walton and young Stockham.

Matching last year's blistering pace is a dizzying challenge for Netflix, but this is the team that can get them off to a flying start.

Under the guise of fantasy, Roswell manages to be insightful, profound, romantic, eerie, mysterious and funny. It artfully uses the alien characters as engaging stand-ins for countless teenagers who, rebelling against pressures to conform, feel like beings from another planet. [6 Oct 1999, p.1E]

Murder One survived on appeal after approaching cancellation. It makes a great case for itself tonight. [10 Oct 1996, p.8E]

Murder One is shrewdly constructed, quickly absorbing and absolutely first-rate - the best new show of fall...Terrifically scripted and perfectly cast, the show gets its biggest lift from the shaven-headed Benzali, whose brilliant performance as the principled, supremely confident Hoffman could be the best advertisement for defense attorneys since Clarence Darrow. [19 Sept 1995, p.9E]

Many aspects of the 12-part Rome might leave you cold. While certainly impressive in scope and scale, HBO’s awkward stab at a series is being made with a programming weapon that’s often blunt, dull and unwieldy... Where Rome gets tripped up is in the uneven performances and lackluster writing. This is what truly causes the fall of this particular Roman empire. [28 Aug 2005, p.J1]

No drama mixes the profoundly painful with the profanely funny more expertly than Rescue Me, Denis Leary's FX series about New York City firefighters. As laughter wraps itself around anguish on this Manhattan landscape, you wonder if what's unfolding is an epic American tragedy or a raunchy workplace comedy. [12 June 2007, p.E1]

A four-alarm run of fiery performances laced with hurt and hilarity. It means writing that swerves brilliantly from racy humor to lacerating pain, from steamy encounters to brutal insights. And it means spending quality time with some of the most human, street-level, flesh-and-blood characters you're likely to encounter anywhere in the television realm. [30 May 2006, p.E1]

If you have a strong enough stomach to get through the yuck-and-yikes surgical procedures, the dramatic rewards are great. If you prefer shows with an edge and an attitude, make your appointment with Miami partners Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh) and Christian Troy (Julian McMahon)...And if you like your television served up with wit, intelligence and a bit of daring, you won't have much to say if someone asks, "Tell me what you don't like about Nip/Tuck. "[22 June 2004, p.E1]

A mixed-bag hour that, in the parlance of the cosmetic-surgery world, could use a little work. [22 July 2003, p.E1]

This trio of tales uses plot elements from the original stories in wonderfully inventive and deliciously brilliant ways. In other words, knock the dust off of 221B Baker Street.

As brilliant as many of the storytelling flourishes are, the narrative frequently suffers from awkward construction, clumsily bouncing among three time periods.... It's a brainy drama, to be sure, and it's a challenging one. The riveting lead performances are what keep you engaged when the going gets static--something more than engaged, actually.

If it's time for a new military comedy, this is a good one. It marches to the beat of its own dumb drum.

Still standing magnificently tall in its fifth season, Justified more than justifies its place as one of television's best dramas. That's a crowded field, of course, but, in this critic's opinion, it is not just one of the best. It is THE best.

If some plot elements in the third season seemed forced (and they did), then Fellowes seems to have completely regained his balance in the fourth season. And that balance means expertly bouncing between the upstairs and downstairs worlds of Downton, letting the plot turns flow naturally, carrying us along joyously for the posh ride.

There are, to be sure, many memorable moments along the way to Monday's second half, but this is one of those padded two-parters that easily could have been trimmed to three hours and aired one night instead of two. And most of the padding is in Sunday's first half.

The show has lost none of its expert knack for building suspense and tossing surprises.

Although technically listed as a drama, make no mistake, it's one of the funniest programs on TV this season.

This funny fellow is trapped in a series that isn't even remotely funny. [27 Mar 2002, p.E1]

A wild joyride of cultural and generational dissonance, Dharma & Greg captures lightning in a bottle and looks like a hit. [24 Sept 1997, p.6F]

There are lots of reasons to like visiting Smallville. Welling scores high on the hunk-o-meter, and he and the rest of the young cast are fine actors. Schneider and O'Toole are hipper, younger Kents, and they ooze the love for Clark that's needed from their characters. The writing and production values are first-rate...But, just as Clark runs really, really fast but doesn't yet know how to fly, Smallville never soars up, up and away. [16 Oct 2001, p.E5]

The writing and direction are uneven as ever, lurching clumsily from intriguing to annoying. [8 Jan 2005]

At this point, "Carnivale" is a frustrating blend of intriguing and annoying elements. The writers are taking chances, and you have to give them credit for that, but they haven't quite perfected this mystical mixture of metaphor and metaphysics, mystery and magic. [13 Sep 2003]

Fresher and more intelligent than most youth-oriented comedies. [24 Sept 1993, p.12C]

A low-key, deadpan program that is very amusing and unusually engaging. [27 May 1995]

Both different and diverting, when the self-conscious style doesn't intrude on the storytelling. [8 Sep 1997]

"Just Shoot Me" has some heart and smartness, and it shows a solid sense of how to build a series. [4 Mar 1997]

An engaging and promising debut, despite some overcooked acting and the fact that legal complexities sometimes take a back seat to emotional stand-offs. [4 Mar 1997]

HBO made four of the 13 new episodes available for review. Taken as a whole, they stand as compelling proof that the series' creator and executive producer, David Chase, still is in complete control of the brilliantly constructed crime saga. [4 Mar 2001]

Anyone who doesn't think this is the best drama on television should have his head examined. [16 Jan 2000]

A rich, risky and satisfying adult drama that could be the next "Wiseguy" - and there isn't much higher praise. [26 Oct 1996]

America doesn’t exactly need another urban crime drama, but this one demands and deserves attention. [22 Sep 2004]

The problem is not the simple lack of an original idea. It's that the material is so staggeringly lame. [21 Mar 1995]

So funny that you might not notice it doesn't have a laugh track. [8 Jan 2000]

The comedy simply doesn't come as fast, as funny or as fresh. [28 Mar 1999]

Might be the fall's funniest and most satisfying show. ... Smartly written and well cast, it sparkles with characters, situations and dialogue that owe more to real life than TV contrivances. [12 Sep 1996]

[Carey is] a fresh and winning presence, but so strong that the show will have to work to see that the other characters hold their own. [13 Sep 1995]

Clever, slightly twisted and occasionally very funny. [30 Jan 1999]

Every bit as intriguing as it is intelligent. [13 Jun 2005]

Sharply scripted, well acted and crisply directed by James Burrows, it makes comedy its main agenda, and reaches it with an authentic, matter-of-fact tone. [21 Sep 1998]

It's an auspicious start for the fifth live-action "Trek" series, with less moralizing, less preaching and more action than past incarnations. [23 Sep 2001]

Comedy isn't the idea behind the "Voyager," the newest spinoff in the Federation franchise, but tonight's debut delivers campy laughs galore... That said, it's also evident that "Voyager" offers more energy and action than either of the previous spinoffs, "The Next Generation" and "Deep Space Nine," with an adventurous and distinctly less solemn spirit that more recalls the original "Star Trek." [16 Jan 1995]

It may not be the Second Coming, which is how hard-core fans have awaited it, but it's a lavish and inventive spectacle that lives up to "Star Trek" tradition and shows why the franchise has flourished. [7 Jan 1993]

Amber Tamblyn (yes, she's the daughter of "Twin Peaks" star Russ Tamblyn) shines in the title role. Her Joan is a delightful adolescent mix of hope, doubt, joy, anger, anxiety, yearning and skepticism...Viewers searching for a promising new drama will do no better this season than Joan of Arcadia, which walks that tricky line of being spiritual without becoming preachy, touching without turning treacly, humorous without going for the cheap jokes. [26 Sept 2003, p.E1]

James has some huggy-bear appeal as a latter-day Ralph Kramden, but "King" - like most new comedies and unlike "The Honeymooners" - too often tries for belly laughs by going for the groin. [21 Sept 1998, p.1E]

Part prime-time soap opera, part wicked social satire, this unpredictable newcomer has a blast poking around at the dark edges of a sunny and seemingly perfect suburban neighborhood. [3 Oct 2004]

Like "Freaks and Geeks," however, Undeclared is considerably smarter, sharper and slicker than your average network series. If at times the comedy strays below the belt, it justifies these moments by appealing to our hearts and minds. [25 Sept 2001, p.E1]

More insipid than insightful, Popular fails to fill the bill. Emotionally overwrought and intellectually underdeveloped, the fledgling series is everything you've come to expect from a Hollywood examination of high school - and less. [29 Sept 1999, p.4E]

The show at least moves at a fast clip and blazes past some impressive scenery ... Despite the higher production values, "The Amazing Race" offers little more than a blur of people shouting, "Which way do we go?" [5 Sep 2001]

Once it gets past a fixation on breast jokes (I counted nine in the premiere but only five in next week's episode) its talented cast and clever writing could make it a diverting, screwball sitcom. [9 Jan 1996]

'24' seems to have smartly reinvented the intriguing formula, getting itself back on track for what could be the best season to date. [9 Jan 2005]

'24' is back in top storytelling form, spinning an intricate new web of mystery and suspense. [29 Oct 2002]

The show wins points for innovation, intelligence and solid production values. [6 Nov 2001]

Loaded with bogus-pokus, Charmed is less witty and diverting than "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Its soap and fantasy elements ought to attract some of the same audience, but it's not likely to put many under a spell. [7 Oct 1998, p.1E]

If issues don't get in the way, CBS' The District is a good show - may be one of the TV season's most watchable new dramas. [7 Oct 2000, p.1E]

despite some clunky moments, Daly's The Fugitive sprints well past the vast majority of this fall's freshman series. [6 Oct 2000, p.5E]

The setting and crimes are interesting, and Petersen in particular is terrific, but C.S.I. tries to show the thoughtful nature of its characters by underplaying them - and it relies for liveliness on stomach-turning lab work. Slick but plodding, C.S.I. could be DOA. [6 Oct 2000, p.5E]

Byrne doesn't register as a comic lead in a show that plays at the level of an Irish Spring commercial. [6 Oct 2000, p.5E]

It's like watching "Big Brother" with a less nutty and less interesting cast, or the old "Bob Newhart Show" without Bob - or laughs. [6 Oct 2000, p.5E]

It's energetic, good-looking and kind of scary - just don't try to make sense of it. [6 Oct 2000, p.5E]

It's where quirky meets quixotic, and the mix is enchanting - equal parts wit and whimsy. [8 Oct 2000, p.11]

Generous with the laughs. A wonderfully quirky and stylish series from a creative team headed by director-producer Ron Howard, this isn't merely the best new comedy of the season. It's the best new show of any kind.[2 Nov 2003, p.J1]

Stark and disturbing, The Wire, like HBO's "Oz" and "The Sopranos," is not for those of tender sensibilities. It is often violent and vulgar. But, make no mistake, it is often brilliant. [1 June 2002, p.E6]

Meticulously detailed and seamlessly crafted, it has the look of a feature film and a sense of behind-the-scenes authenticity, and it could be the season's best new drama. [22 Sept 1999, p.6E]

Six Feet Under is as artificial as the AstroTurf funeral directors place around a grave site. [3 June 2001, p.91]

Sarcastic yet engaging, edgy yet heartfelt. [2 Oct 2001, p.E1]

With a cast led by Michael Chiklis and CCH Pounder, The Shield isn't just pushing boundaries. It's bashing through them like police officers wielding those door-destroying battering rams. The results are often quite arresting... Chiklis and Pounder are terrific. Their co-stars aren't even close to being in their league. [12 Mar 2002, p.e5]

Weighed down by an uncertain design, the rookie series certainly is off to a rocky start. [5 Oct 1999, p.2E]

Stylish and briskly paced, Boomtown clearly shows the impact of "Pulp Fiction" in its quirky dialogue. The impact of "Rashomon," Kurosawa's film about a murder recounted in different ways, is most obviously seen in the program's structure. [29 Sept 2002, p.J1]

The bigger question will be whether viewers accept the new character - and whether the writing, so far uneven, can match Fox's exertions. [17 Sept 1996, p.9E]

Russell brings great subtlety and appeal to the role, in an engaging show that captures the exhilarating and sometimes scary possibilities of a time of life when everything feels new. [29 Sept 1998, p.1E]

Great fun. Leave your brain in neutral and enjoy the zany ride. When the twisting and turning are over, the briskly paced and visually intriguing Alias glides home as solid escapist fare. Don't ask questions. If logic gets in the way, this material will start unraveling like the proverbial cheap suit. Yet, while comic-bookish and derivative, Alias emerges as a winner because it shrewdly assembles bits and pieces of "La Femme Nikita" and other espionage thrillers. There's even a little "X-Files" trust-no-one paranoia thrown in for good measure. [29 Sept 2001, p.6]

Although the promising drama has its self-conscious moments when the offbeat stuff seems a trifle forced, Laurie delivers a consistently fascinating performance as the abrasive diagnostician. Even with the labored interludes, the series stands as, to borrow an old rock lyric, “a very, very, very fine” House. [16 Nov 2004, p.E4]

Frasier is also that rare supporting character who appears able to support his own series. Tonight's pilot gets Frasier off to a smartly written and deftly acted start that is especially lifted by the effortless pairing of Grammer and Pierce, who was a standout from the short-lived political sitcom "The Powers That Be." [16 Sept 1993, p.1F]

Amiable but not memorable, Friends becomes an overcrowded "Ellen," which remains a junior-varsity "Seinfeld" wannabe. [22 Sept 1994, p.7E]

An intense, intriguing and exciting mix of action and horror. [22 Sept 2004, p.E1]

While often great fun, the series' premiere occasionally shows the strain of trying to blend all of those genres into one sleek package. On the plus side of the Firefly universe, the show is expertly paced and is full of those wickedly humorous asides that fans of "Buffy" and its ever-improving spinoff, "Angel," expect from the mischievous Whedon. [20 Sept 2002, p.E1]

The cast is first rate, delivering sympathetic and believable performances. The writing is intelligent, providing intellectual grist to the grisly moments. And the direction is as crisp as it is clever. [20 Sept 1999, p.1E]

Has little to offer but formula storytelling and conventional crime-drama techniques.

Halfway through tonight's clunky and cartoonish debut, it dawns on you that we're stuck in the middle of Operation Letdown.

The odd thing about "Conviction" is the awkward way it lurches between the legal maneuverings and the personal issues of the central characters. While the courtroom scenes are entertaining, if frequently obvious, the up-close-and-personal stuff is what proves to be a real trial.

Even if you're bothered by the "oh-come-on" moments, you're more than compensated with the sheer number of "oh-wow" moments. They are in huge supply over the course of this opening four-hour run.

The best aspect of "Freddie" is that it makes an earnest attempt to depict a loving, supportive Latino family. You want to spend time with them, but only if the writers put as much sizzle into the scripts as Freddie does in his beloved recipes.

This is a leading contender for the title of worst new show of the season.

Give it some style points, no doubt, because there are several very cool moments. But you get the feeling that Spotnitz knows where the problems are, and he's trying to fix them.

The writing on "Commander in Chief" often is so distressingly thin and pale, this West Wing drama will suffer in comparison to the robust early years of, well, NBC's "The West Wing."

The problem with "Ghost Whisperer" is its lack of focus.

It easily lives up to its advance billing as the best new show of the fall season.

Drenched in whom-do-you-trust paranoia and dripping with suspense, "Invasion" grabs you by the throat in the opening seconds and never lets go.

"My Name Is Earl" is a good show that doesn't quite have the feel of being the next "Seinfeld" or "Cheers." But like Lee's Earl, Garcia's feel-good concept is strangely effective. If not brilliant, it is ambitious, and it is definitely funny.

What truly makes the Bays-Thomas collaboration smarter than your average sitcom is the storytelling chances taken by the script.

Like "The X-Files," a series it resembles in both look and tone, "Threshold" is as much a horror show as it is a science-fiction program.

There's a fine line between clever and labored, and "Bones" sometimes strays over that line with one-liners about skull fragments, blood samples, X-rays and microbes. That's where "see how cleverly we can banter" writing creeps into the otherwise crisp proceedings.

The creep factor runs high, and it had better in a series called "Supernatural." But the series also has its overly familiar and just-plain-silly moments.

Although "Reunion" has its labored and lackluster moments, it is an admirable attempt to try something a little different with traditional prime-time formats. Give this one major innovation points.