Although not anywhere near as epic in scale as Fox's Batman prequel, "Gotham," The Flash does have a better sense of what it has set out to be: a sturdy superhero drama with an engaging lead character played by likable young star.

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]

Loco is the right word for this amiably goofy and endearingly dumb comedy. [8 Nov 2001, p.E11]

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

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]

Eventually, though, the series will need to get past some growing pains and mature into a drama that fully embraces the comic-book elements. You may have doubts about Heller reaching that destination, but, with this blazing a start, you'll want to be along for the thrill ride as he sets out to solve that riddle.

Why does this murky version of Christie’s 1936 novel occasionally hit wearisome and plodding stretches? It’s never because of Malkovich’s portrayal. It’s the directing and writing that comes up short. ... Despite the erratic nature of the direction, “The ABC Murders” often is gripping fare, with each installment serving up more than its share of fiercely memorable moments.

The first hour of FX's The Bastard Executioner is a bit of a slog.... Just when you're thinking the battle is lost, Sutter goes all medieval on us and pulls everything together in a fiercely compelling manner. Patience is rewarded, and The Bastard Executioner suddenly becomes every bit as addictive as it is intriguing.

Thornton is sensational as the shattered Billy McBride, a one-time star litigator who took the ruins of his life and crawled into a whiskey bottle. When he's not on screen, you grow impatient for his return.

Comrade Detective does is not overstay its welcome. There's just enough here to sustain six episodes. That works. Anything more would have been a crime.

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

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

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

American Dreams will need to change and develop if it has any hope of mimicking the success of American Bandstand. But tonight's opener has a nice beat and is easy to dance to. [29 Sep 2002, p.2]

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

The Strain continues to rely too much on action and not enough on compelling character development. The uneven results are entertaining but hardly infectious.

A terrific vehicle for commenting on the state of the world? It should be. God, the Devil and Bob, however, is rarely as funny or as insightful as it should be. [9 March 2000, p.4E]

The closer The Bomb gets to the present, the more frenetic and less effective it becomes. You can't expect a two-hour study to be in any way comprehensive, but some surprisingly big swaths of the historical territory get little or no mention.

It is revealing in its accidental way and, like the boy bands, rates as harmless diversion. [23 March 2000]

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]

While tonight's pilot episode is uneven, it does provide the building blocks for a solid foundation. There is promise here, and there is the potential for quick disintegration. Which way will it go? How do I know? What do you think I am? Psychic? [5 Feb 2000, p.1E]

Viewers shouldn't be fooled into expecting more than a conventional lawyer show. [16 Sept 1995, p.8E]

There is no shortage of chuckles along the way, but the hit-and-miss nature of the writing keeps the series from staying on track as it heads for moments both humorous and poignant.

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.

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 pilot episode for CBS' Supergirl does manage to get off the ground, yet it never really soars to the heights of the supercharged "Gotham" and "The Flash." Nor is it as immediately intriguing as those two DC-inspired shows.

Fueled by these performances, it frequently and undeniably rises to great heights. But add up everything that When We Rise has going for it, which is considerable, and, well, the whole is somewhat less than the sum of its parts.

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]