Scamanda gets to the point of its story quickly, which is always appreciated during true crime docuseries.

The Gray House is surprisingly engaging for such a sprawling historical drama, aided mostly by a good mix of characters and a strong lead performance by Daisy Head.

Faraway Downs doesn't entirely fix the criticism of white saviorism that Australia received. That would’ve been an impossible feat given Lady Sarah's character. That said, the series spends more time with the Aboriginal characters and expands on their origin story and aspirations, rather than casting them to the wayside. Overall, the series transforms the lukewarm drama into the grand epic that Luhrmann originally set out to make.

The Republic of Sarah has its charms, but the premise is unsustainable and it’s larded down with too much “CW stuff” to give that premise a chance to make itself sustainable.

Pulse is one of the most generic medical dramas we’ve seen in some time, with characters who aren’t compelling and medical situations that are eye-rolling to watch.

Between Arnold’s funny lines, the fun supporting cast and the well-thought-out family dynamic, FUBAR delivers a fun first episode that moves quickly and keeps you on the edge of your seat.

STREAM IT if you’re an NCIS fan. NCIS: Hawai’i will give you more of the same stuff you love, with the Aloha state as a beautiful backdrop. If you’re expecting anything deeper than that, though, you should SKIP IT.

We’re recommending Depp V. Heard for the edited-together trial footage, especially the back-and-forth testimony from Depp and Heard themselves. The rest of it is just irritating, but not irritating enough to keep us from watching.

The Spiderwick Chronicles isn’t scary enough or wonderous enough to hold our interest, and we get the feeling that kids who watch the show will seek out other shows that are either scarier or more whimsical.

We’re not sold on The Walking Dead: World Beyond just yet, though we like Royale and the rest of the cast. We’re just not sure we care enough about the zombie apocalypse or these young characters to follow their journey.

Suits LA benefits from strong performances by Amell and Davis, but Korsh’s strong sense of banter and character, which made the original Suits such a sucess, is what really makes this spinoff worth watching.

All in all, Selena: The Series is pleasantly diverting, but it feels like a missed opportunity.

This is a really tentative recommendation. The performances in The Crowded Room should be compelling enough to hook you in, but we’re just not sure the story is going to progress fast enough for people to not throw their hands up in frustration by the second or third episode.

A Frankensteined pilot. ... While there’s a lot to like about Alert: Missing Persons Unit, the generic cases of the week plus the logic leaps of some of the show’s storytelling lead us to believe that the show is going to contain more bad than good.

Liaison is a show that leaves little to no impression on us after watching it, mainly because it feels like a cynical pastiche of espionage thrillers that came before it.

Sure, the new Punky Brewster is still a sitcom aimed at younger viewers. But it’s got a warmth and sweetness to it that feel genuine. And it’s smart enough to deal with Punky as she is now, not trying to make her into some grown-up version of her 8-year-old self.

Crossfire starts off giving its viewers some real-life anxiety and then starts to squander that tension almost immediately. To be honest, it’s bad enough we see stories like this on the news; we don’t need to see it as entertainment at this point.

The Endgame is by turns boring and by other turns generic and nonsensical. It’s story isn’t compelling enough to follow beyond the first episode, and we’re figuring that the interplay between its stars isn’t enough to keep people watching.

There’s something about Clickbait that seems a bit off, whether it’s the flat plot or the concentration on characters that are less than interesting. But Kazan puts in a magnetic performance, and that may be more than enough to keep viewers watching through a mystery that stumbles out of the gate, weighed down by technological nonsense.

Every character is operating on a different level of vulgarity. ... Skip it, unless you’re in 8th grade and somehow haven’t already heard these jokes before.

Not only is Sexy Beast a series that feels unnecessary, given its connections to a film that wasn’t a big hit a quarter century ago, but it doesn’t even rise to the level of being a good heist show on its own merits.

Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story takes a pretty familiar story and makes it compelling by shifting the narrative slightly and through some excellent performances.

All of the good things about Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop are betrayed by poor writing, uninspired action scenes, and a truly baffling obsession with the most annoying characters in the series.

Django will make for a good distraction if you’re into classic Westerns, but if you’re looking for complex morality plays, you’re probably out of luck.

If you’ve stuck with Emily in Paris for three seasons, you’re getting more of what you love (or love to hate watch) in Season 4, Part 1. And crucially, it will take you back to Paris and help fill the Olympics void in your heart.

No Man’s Land presents an intriguing story of a man getting sucked into the fight against ISIS, joining forces with the little-known (at least in the West) YBJ.

Tiny Pretty Things will make you never want to enroll your kids in a ballet class, given how emotionally scarring the art is portrayed to be here. Between that, the cliched characters and the clunky dialogue, you’re better off watching Bunheads over and over instead.

The series version of Fatal Attraction lacks the danger and tension the film had, and there isn’t enough story to compensate for expanding the two hour movie into an eight-hour series.

Devin and Bobby are archetypes, and archetypes stop being funny after awhile, because, as we’ve said many times, the best comedy comes from character, not jokes. The more interesting characters are the people around Devin and Bobby that are immersed in sneaker culture as more of a business, like Nori or Stuey.

STREAM IT if you like FBI or are a big Tom Ellis fan; CIA should scratch the itch of both sets of viewers. If you’re looking for an interesting procedural, SKIP IT.

Subtlety isn’t really a strong suit of Unchosen, but what we hope is that the show’s rough edges in that category will be smoothed down as the psychological thriller at the core of the series develops.

There’s nothing that’s awful about Devils; it’s not eye-rollingly dumb and the performances are decent. It’s just that the first episode grinds along so slowly, you just wonder when the real story is going to kick in. It does, at the end, but by then you might be too bored to care.

On Call has a nice pace to it, and the performances of Bellisario and Larracuente are understated and effective. Sure, it’s a police procedural, but at least its format and subject matter are a little different than what we normally see.

Billy Crystal’s lead performance in Before is what is the big attraction to the series, but we also hope that the episodes’ relatively-short runtimes will keep the storytelling focused on Eli finding out why Noah knows about his past.

There is enough going on in Young Wallander, especially the immigration storyline, that will keep viewers watching. But we just wish Wallander himself was a more interesting character.

STREAM IT, but only because we like watching Adam Devine and Sarah Hyland in scenes together. Otherwise Pitch Perfect: Bumper In Berlin is too silly for its own good, especially because the silly isn’t even all that funny.

The Real Dirty Dancing is a mindless distraction if you’re in the mood for it. It’s got plenty of nostalgia for the film baked in, and it seems that celebs are game. But the show is about as memorable as what you had for breakfast.

Obliterated isn’t trying to be anything more than what it is, which is a fun show with a lot of action and sex. And it succeeds at that in spades.

Echoes is without question one of the most messy and confusing shows we’ve seen in awhile, and there really seems to be nothing for a viewer to grab onto that would tempt them to move to the second episode after the first is over.

This is a slow burn that assumes you’re somewhat familiar with this case. Most of the stress in “Episode One” worked for this critic because I knew what was coming. If I didn’t, there’s a chance this somber pacing drift into boring territory instead of being quietly terrifying.

While it’s a valiant try at starting a new superhero franchise, Jupiter’s Legacy can’t wrangle its sprawling mythology well enough to make a coherent and cohesive first episode.

We like the cast of Blockbuster, especially Park, Fumero and Smoove. And Ramos has done enough time on successful workplace comedies to know how to make them work. What we see so far is underwhelming, but promising.

Stellar characters, great performances, killer action, and — once again — some of the best costuming work on television can go a long way in covering up structural flaws. This year, I was promised a badass fantasy show, and I got one. It just wasn’t the one I expecting.

There’s nothing about this new version of The Time Traveler’s Wife that hooked us in so we could take this romantic ride with Henry and Claire. It doesn’t help that the show is cheekier than it really needs to be.

Sex/Life is a show that has no idea what kind of message it wants to send, besides maybe the fact that it would be awfully nice if people could boink like rabbits while having a busy family life.

We’re still not sure of God’s Favorite Idiot will right itself or just become a train wreck. The second episode definitely gave us signs that it will try to make McCarthy’s character more than an ad-lib machine.

Though we liked the experts that were interviewed for Queen Cleopatra, as well as Adele James’ performance as the famous queen, the dramatic sequences leave too much to be desired to keep us from just reading about Cleopatra online to get the information we want.

Q-Force feels like a missed opportunity to present LGBTQ characters in a light that doesn’t necessarily point to their queerness with such a big, 1990’s-style arrow. But we’re holding out hope that the show gets better during the first season.

First Kill could have been a fun teen supernatural series. But its storytelling is so clumsy it’s just very hard to watch.

Barrera sells the idea that she can absolutely survive, making her resourcefulness in the situation almost plausible. Now we just need to see where the plot goes, which will play out in those flashbacks. ... One of the things we like about the six-episode limited series is that the episodes are all around 30 minutes, so you’re not seeing Liv wandering around the wilderness for hours on end.

While there’s something undeniably charming about the world of After Life, its final season is bland and forgettable, weighed down by cliché dialogue and a muddled tone.

The performances in Solos would have really worked well on stage. But on TV, even the sharp performances can’t make up for lack of action or story propulsion. There’s a reason why monologuing rarely translates well to film or TV, and Solos shows why.

United We Fall has all the right pieces. ... But those pieces just don’t coalesce into a show that rises above its tired premise.

While we think there is room for Tires to grow into a decent and moderately funny workplace comedy, we don’t think there will be much of that growth during a six-episode first season. We may see a

We don’t expect The Pentaverate to get much funnier as the season goes along. And the longer we watch, we think the more painfully unfunny most of the gags are going to get.

There’s enough to like about La Brea that will keep viewers watching, despite the show’s more silly and cheesy elements, especially the mystery of where the “lost” Angelenos are and why they’re there.

The Come Up doesn’t look like it’s going to be a particularly deep show, and anyone who’s older than the cast members have seen this kind of show many times. But it’s fun to see how the “youngs” in 2022 see the big city.

Victoria is a woman to be respected, and her story is interesting enough, but only her most devoted fans and fashionistas will probably care about watching the whole thing through. Try out episode one for some good retro gossip, and then SKIP IT.

Countdown pretty much uses every action procedural cliche to piece together a plot and cast of characters that are neither exciting or interesting.

Brews Brothers is funny and is easy going down, like a smooth pilsner. But we’d rather it be a little deeper, like a good ale.

Celebrity Bear Hunt‘s gameplay is a bit confusing, and it would be just fine as a celebrity survival competition without the presence of Bear Grylls, who just seems to slow things down.

Given the cast and the potential for a series with some good laughs, we’ll tentatively recommend The Z-Suite. But the writers really need to take their feet off the gas when it comes to cliches about both Gen X and Gen Z.

There are some sitcoms that have first episodes that are so bad, there isn’t even a glimmer that you can identify that will make you think the show can find itself. Call Your Mother is one of those shows.

Monarch is a soap that’s all suds and no substance, and its most compelling character might possibly have the least screen time going forward.

Fiona Nolan and her family are the more interesting of the two, if only because how they came together. .... When Anderson and Headey are in scenes together, it’s hard to look away.

If the focus was just on Bloom and how she figures out if she’s a changeling or not, that might have worked. But the “Scooby gang” approach to this story seems all too familiar, and not at all interesting.

Those of you out there who relish the escapism of sleazy junk like this may appreciate it for its too-hot-for-network-TV moments, and possibly for its scintillating iguana content.

Your enjoyment of this series depends as much upon how well you know and follow the Whitehalls (as it does upon your enjoyment of reality TV projects in general). If you’ve loved watching the exploits of Jack and his dad in the past, or already love binging lite reality, then you’re obviously going to want to STREAM IT. But if you haven’t experienced Jack Whitehall and his dad before now, this might not be the best first introduction to them.

We’re really just recommending Sexy Beasts for Rob Delaney’s narration. The rest of the show is just weird at times, creepy at others.

If you’re expecting another outlandish chapter of Tiger King, you’re going to be disappointed with The Doc Antle Story. In fact, the more we watched, the more we wanted to take a shower for a good half-hour just because we turned it on.

With Kelley writing and Levinson directing, there’s no chance that The Calling is going to look or feel like the average network police procedural. ... We’re just not sure what to make of how Avi is characterized on the show, if any of his fellow cops are anything but one-dimensional characters. ... Completely short circuits a deeper sketch of Avi himself but makes religion and faith into a tool instead of a way of life.

It gives no personal insight into Mark Wahlberg’s life, and it’s not like he’s the most dynamic camera presence when he’s just being himself. That said, there is a part of us that’s itching to see how someone who was riding high — and already stretched super thin — deals with the massive ramifications of a worldwide pandemic, one that affected every business he invested his time and money in.

DeGeneres still has the chops as a shrewd observational comedian, but can she effectively chop away at her own mystique? Yes and no. .... While she gets sizable laughs making fun of men for getting away with making ridiculous public scenes by playing air guitar or imagining their golf swings, DeGeneres gets far less mileage with more shallow thoughts about somehow not knowing what it means to be in charge.

Cruel Intentions tries to be edgy but only ends up being eye-rollingly bad, with characters that are very easily hateable and stakes that are so low, you wonder why everyone is expending all this energy in the first place.

Skip it, unless you have a serious itch for some foliage-porn.

Gotham Knights just left no impression on us, which is deadly for any show, but especially one that’s trying to be a Batman series without Batman.

We hate to give Call Me Kat a thumbs down, given all the talent in front of and behind the camera. But the show sacrifices character for gimmicks, and the parts that aren’t gimmicky are mostly hacky and unfunny.

Simply put: Universal Basic Guys is a deeply unfunny show. And when it’s not funny, then all of the other problems the show has are amplified.

The cast is game — in addition to Milioti and Kudrow, Leslie Jones and Samson Kayo also seem to be invested in their characters — but there’s just not enough funny material for their performances to overcome the special’s structural problems. 2020 has been bad enough; there’s no need to relive it via an unfunny special like Death To 2020.

The personality of The Terminal List can best be described as “grim,” as are the performances of Pratt and the rest of the cast. Life right now is pretty grim as it is; we don’t need this much monotonous darkness in our entertainment, too.

The Goop Lab isn’t even worth hate-watching, it’s so anger inducing.

Despite the sloppiness by the show’s producers, and some of its repetitiveness, we still appreciate Underwood’s coming out journey enough to make Coming Out Colton a worthwhile watch.

While Berlin doesn’t bring anything new to the heist genre, the charm of Alonzo as Berlin makes the prequel worth watching for both fans of Money Heist and newcomers to the franchise.

Despite the fact that Buying London feels very familiar, the new personalities and the unique homes serve up everything we want in a show like this.

Polo is a mostly boring look at a sport that very few people outside of elite circles have any particular interest in.

It’s more creepy than scary and the first episode does nothing to make us want to watch and find more of those scares. ... Helstrom was slow-moving and dull, and is more interested in brooding dialogue than actual scares.

Nothing about Wolf Pack works for us, and there’s not nearly enough of Sarah Michelle Gellar to redeem everything else that’s wrong.

A disappointment for those of us hoping for something more authentic.

We’re not sure if Utopia Falls is going to get better than the first episode, which we found hokey at times. But we’ll keep watching just to hear more Snoop Dogg, and if the show improves, all the better.

While we like Beckinsale’s performance in Guilty Party, the show doesn’t seem to have enough story elements to really make us latch onto Beth or her quest to get her career back.

We’re just not sure that this is anything but a money grab by them and Netflix. ... We still recommend it to anyone who watched the first season and wants to find out more. But, it certainly isn’t essential watching to anyone, whether they liked the first season or were repulsed by it.

We’re tempted to say SKIP IT, mainly because we hate that Beast Games takes advantage of people’s greed and/or desperation for drama. But the second episode shows that the game will start getting really fun as we get down to a manageable group of contestants, and a lot of that is thanks to the enthusiasm of MrBeast and his hoodie-wearing buddies.

While not quite as intense as its first season, the second season of Suspect is still very watchable because of the well-paced half-hour episodes and a cast that can handle its tell-don’t-show storytelling.

We saw glimmers of a good show in the pilot, thanks to showrunners Alex Herschlag and Jennie Snyder Urman’s insistence on taking time to build the characters instead of going for cheap gags.

Between the tired format and the idea that Tate is playing most of the featured characters, Hard Cell becomes a lot to take, even after the first 30 minutes. We can’t imagine it getting much better during its first season.

If he says you shouldn’t trust what he says out of context while drunk and high in a three-hour long podcast, then perhaps you can get everything you need to know about him and decide for yourself by seeing and listening to what he says here while presumably stone cold sober but slightly sweaty for just over an hour.

A ghastly failure. The glossy adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name flattens morally ambiguous characters into two-dimensional avatars of pure good and absolute evil.

Obsession wants to give viewers all the sexy with no story.