Murder mystery obsessives will want to check out "Scarpetta," but it's a waste of time for the rest of us.

Stone humanizes the boogeyman of the 2016 U.S. election in this fascinating, rambling, and sporadically invaluable exercise. Best not come looking for balance or journalism, though.

Wan, worn, predictable, "Mr. Mayor" feels like a misfire in the early episodes.

Not that I think The CW has any grasp of the mental mojo that made its WB network predecessor such a pop-culture kick. Really? This twaddle? Every single week?

Successfully cross-breeding "Three's Company" and "Full House" may be achievement enough to earn the show's creators a Nobel Prize in genetics, but the audience for a family sex farce may be limited. ... Misgivings about the sexual content aside, "8 Simple Rules" is, indeed, one of the better sitcom prospects of the 2002-03 season. The writing is uneven, but Ritter is a rarity, an actor who doesn't need funny things to say because he can say things funny. [17 Sep 2002]

Syfy knows we come to this only for the sharks, cameos, chain saws, acting--the worse, the better--and dialogue so sublimely inept that even the sharks wince when they hear it..... For discerning viewers and shark lovers everywhere: F+. For Sharknado fans: B+

The show doesn't demand to be binged, but sampled. It could air on USA just as easily. Danza, who doesn't break from type, is another steady reminder of TV past, specifically his own. Why this is on Netflix is a mystery bigger than any the Carusos will tackle this season.

It’s emotion that moves the story forward. Highmore’s face and attitude. Schiff’s faith and moral weight. Thomas’ curiosity-generosity. That sets it apart from “House.”

A little bit of "Dallas," a little bit of "Empire," "Our Kind of People'' is a whole lot of what you expect it to be. ... Silly, fun, frothy, watchable.

Thought I was going to hate "Total Blackout." Then couldn't help laughing out loud.

Who'da thunk this one'd be so adorable? Cox gets to cook comedically in this smart souffli, with great support from von Esmarch and company. Big bonus: elaborate weekly production numbers spoofing Godzilla, the penitentiary and, of course, the French Revolution. Love those decapitated dancers! [6 Oct 2000, p.B51]

The "quarterlife" series, too, offers an especially hopeful kind of exuberance, even a glowing warmth to the friendships, that shines brighter than previous Herskovitz-Zwick shows.

Call Girl is a dreary London day. A pass.

A quick summary makes it sound schlocky, but William & Catherine is pretty slick schlock.

"Alien Nation" as a series has been a remarkable achievement in the dullest fall season in history. It is both entertaining, socially responsible, and significant. [7 May 1990]

King didn't actually write Haven but "developed" it for the small screen, which is a form of plausible deniability if things go wrong. With Haven--as somnolent as a summer afternoon--they most likely will.

Not for the squeamish, but a well-done new medical drama.

It all floats along, watchable enough as far as it goes. It unfolds in that middle ground somewhere between utter boredom and compelling entertainment. But you can do better than that.

A pretty nifty, if completely insane, suspense/conspiracy/ chase/road adventure.

The McCarthys--good-natured, old-fashioned, unchallenging--isn't a bad sitcom, just an obvious one.

It's slow. It's dull. It's listless.

The "Melissa & Joey" pilot is no great shakes. But Melissa and Joey could be.

Messy pilot that doesn't offer enough backstory, or reason to care all that much about Constantine.

Murdered innocents, a gory sword fight in slow motion and dry, witty, dialogue. Yes, it's all here, but what's missing is ... excitement.

There is some pleasure in reconnecting with the old gang, but that eventually wears off. This revival feels so last century.

Gossip Girl actually isn't bad by the standards of the medium--with "The Hills" pretty much being the standard--and it's even surprisingly competent.

Watching Charlie stare into space and compute somehow isn't as persuasive as watching Gil Grissom or one of his "CSI" cohorts peer into a microscope. [23 Jan 2005]

By-the-numbers procedural with a pair of appealing leads. Otherwise, by-the-book bland.

At first glance in the two-hour pilot, none of the actors comes close to the robust presence of "SG-1" star Richard Dean Anderson, while the show relies on the technology and special effects that can send noncultists fleeing. (Good luck trying to fathom the setup, too, if you're not already "Stargate"-versed.) [11 Jul 2004]

If you expect the worst, your expectations will probably be met.

Light as air, not much more substance, "Take Two" is a genial "Castle" redo.

Despite the storylines' incessant emotional and psychological delvings, the result is an inert if not annoying muddle among unpleasantly profane people whose prospective salvation isn't worth wading toward.

Robbins means business, calmly prodding family members--and not just the apparent aggressors--to truly comprehend where others are coming from. She calls people on their bull, eliciting not just tears from stress but tears of realization.

Surprise! Crusoe's good, and by "good" I mean competently produced and acted.

The thing that's really creepy about Harsh Realm is how predictable, superfluous, and gratuitously murky and convoluted all this intrigue seems. [8 Oct 1999, p.B55]

My pregnant friends polish up the hand-me-downs, shop for the rest of their gear at Target and worry to death about how to make ends meet when it comes to child care. They know what to name their offspring. That's what makes this new Bravo show exploiting the rich all the more fascinating.

It's an odd concept, but it works pretty well.

Underwood, in the role of Maria, didn't entirely succeed--acting is part of the bargain, after all. But NBC's live version of Richard Rodgers' and Oscar Hammerstein's beloved musical, staged at Grumman Studios in Bethpage, largely did.

While not the most stupid thing on the air, it borders on stupidity. [8 Jan 1996]

Been here/seen this--a lot--but familiarity could work in favor of Deception.

Pulp hooey with a comic book vitality and earnestness that manages to keep it (usually) on track.

A thorough whitewashing.

A not-bad spinoff that feels older than "The Vampire Diaries" and even more convoluted.

Even with endless talk about genitalia and the things people can do to them, The League is surprisingly dull and slack - without snap or payoff.

Here's a fundamental truth: Family genealogies are fascinating--to the family in question.

Some excellent special effects are in Monday night's episode, but nothing particularly shocking because it's become abundantly clear by now that The Dome can do any damn thing The Dome--or the writers--want.

It's summer, expectations are low, and you could do a lot worse than this genial, softhearted import.

Sweetbitter has some sensory pleasures, a good cast and better wine (or so we're told). Otherwise occasionally pretentious and ultimately superficial.

Perception is both clever and ridiculous.

Its heart's in the right place, it's the comedy part that's not.

Flesh and Bone is so grim, so devoid of pleasure, so moldering that you're left to wonder why this significant collection of talent didn't actually have something fun or exciting to say about the New York ballet world.

The filmmakers' assurance makes this miniseries play more like bang-up drama than fact-filled documentary. Yet their facts pass informative muster, and emotional validity, too.

Silly, but let's take the glass half-full approach. There's nowhere to go but up.

The Brink is a grim would-be comedy grindhouse full of half-baked one-liners propping up an overbaked plot.

Married, in particular, is one-note with character tone: clueless people acting heedlessly.

The show's an enjoyable diversion.

Oh, sure, they can pierce necks and drink blood: Big deal! Any ol' vampire can do that. With a limited repertoire of vampire moves, the Radcliffs shoulda moved to Bon Temps instead of the Gates to learn some new tricks.

After Spartacus blows most of its special-effects budget on the pilot, it settles into a not-bad sword-and-sandal genre series, a la "Xena" or "Hercules."

Noisy, silly, occasionally obnoxious, sporadically funny and ultimately sweet.

Interesting idea, otherwise deadly dull.

"Drive" is less the sort of textured character study we've come to expect than an action-packed joy ride. That's not to say you won't wanna hop in. But it's hardly a journey you've gotta take.

A weightless and occasionally airless trip down memory lane.

"L&O" is back, but it doesn't make a strong case for why it should be.

The target viewer wouldn't watch all this predictable--I mean, impulsive--bickering and button-pushing while thinking: I wonder why all the paintings and posters on the walls in the background are blurred out? And then think: Geez, why am I even wondering about that? The audience for Joan Knows Best? will be loving Joan's visits to three plastic surgeons Tuesday, not fretting.

Greetings From Tucson tries the high-wire act of both avoiding and exploiting Mexican-American stereotypes, and falls flat on its back in the desert sand next to the tire swing and the El Camino. [20 Sept 2002]

An interesting, compelling idea for a TV series. Too bad a boilerplate cop procedural had to be the series they got instead.

Updated, sharply written, socially conscious, this new version wants to improve on the original and often does. But what’s missing is a compelling reason for a reboot in the first place.

Cannavale's Cupid is at least funny and charming. He's good here and so is Paulson. The weak link--the "B" story, like tonight's tepid one with the Postie, which was as appetizing as week-old cod.

Tales From the Crypt scared the living bejesus out of me...We are talking major league fright time here, folks. [9 June 1989, p.5]

The pilot still is often clever and engaging, but confusing too.

A grim, macabre march through a terrible crime, deploying a bad twist--the voice of the deceased.

The women's friendship radiates authentic undertones, beneath all the gooed-up personal drivel, although it's way too convenient how they always show up simultaneously at the same crime scenes.

Arthur and Agatha flit through the pilot, barely registering. In fact, no one registers. They're all line drawings in service to some very nice special effects and a pilot that's already tangled up in way too many plot tangents.

A little long-winded in some stretches, not detailed enough in others but Holmes fans--and fans of cop procedurals--should like this.

A weepy wannabe from the "This Is Us" playbook that doesn't build much of a case for caring about the characters, much less weeping over them.

Like the original, this "GG" can be pithy and clever (that Forster line tells you as much) but unlike the original, at times glum and muddled too. It's a sibling-rivalry drama set in the age of Instagram and COVID, where social media is the true villain. That part may be accurate — just not quite as much fun.

As expected, the transition from big screen to small doesn't exactly work. What this Bad Teacher really needed to do was outsmart the source material--make this version more clever, or sharper, or funnier, or (above all) make it for adults.

A breath of cold, bracing and - bless it - fresh air. Eisner's fable is dark, almost impenetrably so, though skillfully rendered. Best of all, nothing here has ever been performed on reality TV, the best I can tell.

It does well what standard sitcoms do.

Walk out on academic underemployment, say goodbye to nosy neighbors and move to a better series. [24 Sept 1993, p.95]

Lehman is good, most everything's OK, but nothing is especially fresh or compelling.

Far and away the best new pilot on NBC this season.

Narration clunkily tries to fill the narrative void. But it's blandly delivered.

But what makes this show different is Jerry Stiller. George Costanza's father is now Doug Heffernan's father-in-law. And what a riot he is. [21 Sept 1998, p.B23]

After a rough start, Backstrom settles into an obvious, and comfortable, procedural rhythm.

It's pretty much impossible to describe The Beast without getting tangled in the underbrush of potboiler cliche....The good news, in fact, the wonderful news, is that Swayze really is good.

It's a $300 million TV series for no one. ... This is a very, very bad show.

There’s a fascinating sideshow here--Carey’s tough manager--otherwise this is a by-the-book celebrity reality series that just happens to star one of the world’s biggest celebrities.

Wonderful. ... It is a realistic drama, the sort of thing you might see occasionally on experimental "American Playhouses" on public TV. But nobody does realistic drama on commercial TV today. [1 May 1990]

The formula's a little too familiar, the pilot a tad dull. But Michalka's a big talent and for that reason, Hellcats has potential.

Nice to look at, good performances, but ultimately a snooze.

It's all weirdly engrossing.

NCIS is going to succeed first and foremost because of Harmon. His character is more or less the same quietly confident, genial guy he played when he was Allison Janney's ill-fated love interest on "The West Wing." He's essentially playing himself, and he's very good at it. [23 Sept 2003, p.B02]

This is a show that can't escape the shackles of that old mismatched-buddy-cop formula, even if one of them does happen to drive a cab.

The filming is urgent! The dialogue is obvious! The actors get choked up! It's as if a film school class put together a thriller following all the rules precisely.

What's missing here, besides laughs? Chemistry.

Nice, also determinedly dull.

The pilot is itself uneven, with the go-for-bonkers impudence of a live-action "Family Guy." But without it, Mystery Girls might be just another ABC Family-com for viewers who have aged out of Disney Channel and silly situations with sentimental topping for studio audience uproar.