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]

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

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

Weaving the lives of these three towering Roosevelts into one triumphant 14-hour film, Burns has found another ideal prism for examining the American character and the American story.

Bouncing between bloody good and bloody brilliant. [12 July 2006, p.D1]

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.

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]

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]

Jauntily paced and cleverly written, the wonderfully engaging Mrs. Maisel is packed with winning regulars (none more so than Brosnahan's Midge), witty banter (a Sherman-Palladino specialty), sensational supporting players (including Kevin Pollak and David Paymer) and an exuberant sense of optimism (despite the obvious and incredibly daunting obstacles a female comedian faced in the late '50s).

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.

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

Travolta's cartoonish Shapiro is the exception, after all, and even most of the peripheral performances court favorable verdicts.

'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]

The marvelously textured performances and addictive narrative remain the most compelling reasons to watch Outlander.

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.

Like its characters, Sharp Objects is not without obvious flaws, it's also not without impressive strengths. The cast, led by five-time Oscar nominee Amy Adams, is exceptional, making the deep pain and overwhelming angst of these characters both vividly real and incredibly fascinating.

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]

A lovingly crafted tribute offering many laughs, a few tears, some intriguing insights and just a constant swarm of warm memories.

It's grittily atmospheric, sharply scripted and acted with a depth that becomes more apparent as the series goes on. It will leave you on the edge of your seat. [4 Apr 2000]

Checking in means checking out what's in store for the second season, and the tantalizing possibilities are gleaming like the surface of a highly-polished knife blade.

Mr. Selfridge has some enticing items to tempt those shopping for a quality viewing experience. At the top of this list is the gift that keeps on giving: Jeremy Piven's wonderfully textured portrayal of Harry Gordon Selfridge.

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

An extremely smart, wildly eccentric and very adult comedy. And if Bacon is bringing the heat, then Hahn is the aching, searching heart of this series.

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.

Murder in the First is an immediately engaging crime drama boasting a deep cast and crisp direction.

A darker shade of "Green"? Yes, at times, grim realities are made a trifle more real. Does that work? Yes, often wonderfully well.

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.

While Pugh, Skarsgard and Shannon hit vastly different emotional notes, each finds the shadings and conflicts that make these characters more and more compelling as the plot gets thicker, the players dig deeper and the stakes get higher. It is, Pugh, however, who makes the grandest impression in what is both a star and star-making turn. You might find yourself quibbling with some of Park’s direction, but never with Pugh’s performance.