The characters, scripts and performances are surprisingly smart--almost, dare I say, deep. And you still get the comic humiliations, nasty rivalries and teeny bikinis.

I like the old "Star Trek" better than the new. I also think the new show is somewhat boring and derivative. ... The new "Star Trek" tries to make the characters "realistic," and they turn out to be unbreakably plastic. [3 Jun 1988]

Platinum-plated nonsense--but also self-aware enough to know just how nonsensical. Deception is mostly just a lot of fun.

The good news is that "Brothers & Sisters" isn't even remotely a disaster. The bad news is that it isn't even remotely a success either.

In the pilot, some of the lines even find their mark--assuming the intended mark are sites like BuzzFeed, Digg, Cracked, Reddit, Upworthy and so on. But the millennial jokes quickly grow stale, along with their “what is it with these kids” setups.

Recycled theory with some fresh perspective--but it still smells recycled.

"Help Me" is a Gobi Desert of laughs... There's a strong odor of desperation on-screen, as if the competent and seasoned actors here know they're in this for a short ride. Indeed, they are.

Camping does have a good, energetic cast but they too never quite find their groove as fish-out-of-water in this would-be fish-out-of-water farce. Like Dunham and Konner, they all seem like they'd rather be someplace else--anyplace else would do.

The first half is tautly produced, before there's a dramatic--and dramatically dull--downshift that'll get you ready for beddy-bye.

There's nothing to relate to here, just to observe from afar, and only Tambor's as-always deft comic distraction gives us anything worth glancing at.

Turgid dialogue obscures intriguing ideas, amid uneven echoes of civil rights and supremacist crusades.

In the world of reality shows, this well-produced series is better than most. Betwixt and between all the emotional upheavals and drama, Coffey, only slightly witchy, dishes out sound advice.

The oldest trope in the TV kingdom dies hard, and in fact dies not at all on Chicago PD, the latest from "Law & Order" creator Dick Wolf, who sleepwalks through this show, or at least doesn't bother to wake up long enough to rewrite any of the rules he's established over the past 30 years.

From "The Mod Squad" to "Being Human," TV's young misfits find it [family] where they can, and Tomorrow is that next step, too. Scripter Phil Klemmer wrote for "Chuck" and "Veronica Mars," good arguments for promise here (and "Undercovers," a bad one).

The good news is that The Second One often is worse (in a good way) and does boast at least one viral YouTube clip, starring the head of the Statue of Liberty. (Poor Lady Liberty.) But The Second One is also more predictable, silly and self-conscious of the legacy.... For "Sharknado" fans: B- For viewers with highly refined tastes--or any taste--and sharks: F+

The comedy here can be broad, and is usually far from subtle, but there’s a buried message that promises better episodes ahead.

Uneven start, then improves and coasts. Appealing cast, zero calories.

The starter hour picks up steam whenever loose-cannon Amick bops around--although Ormond does a nice job of grounding its shenanigans in a semblance of reality.

Ultimately, viewers just have to work a lot harder to fathom John from Cincinnati than Tony from Jersey.

The material’s the problem. "The Mick" lumbers along instead of flies. Scenes grope for punchlines that — when or if they come — lack punch or just belly-flop. "The Mick" wants to be outrageous, but instead settles for excessive.

With material this thin, the actors can only do a competent job of mimicry. Mimicry is about all you'll get.

It's hard to believe that anybody could make such a ludicrous police drama after "Hill Street Blues." [30 Sep 1991]

The Millers shows what a thing of glory hear-the-laughs sitcomedy can be in the hands of masters.

Accidentally feels like a show that's nearly been focus-grouped into oblivion--with lines, beats and a cultural resonance that's so familiar you can almost see the baseball bat of predictability descending upon your head. So be it. Elfman's fine, as usual. This could be worse.

BFF is not bad--classify this as another Young Urban New York-based sitcom--but it's not great, either, or certainly not smart enough, or different enough, or flat-out funny enough to deserve anything other than the bleak future that now appears preordained.

A sober, intelligent, placidly paced drama as only the Canadians can make.

Amusing, dumb, silly--exactly what you'd expect.

Tonight's "Skating" debut glides onto the air in a weird sort of middle zone, not quite cheesy enough to skewer, yet too much a cheese-product to take seriously.

Lucky 7 might offer more to like than authentic texture of place, race, personality and workplace emotions.

Rule-breaking law enforcers! Wherever have we seen this before? But it sure works Friday, seasoned with devil-may-care brio from a cool cast.

[Rhimes] may still be up to her old tricks, but here they seem fresh and energetic. Best of all, she has a solid young cast that pulls them off well.

Great cast, and Hawkins is a worthy Jack Bauer successor. But Legacy can be lethargic and loquacious. More action, less talk, will hopefully close out this day.

It's an attempt to do a 1970s comedy like "Barney Miller" - but without the laughs. [22 March 2000]

It's a monumental bore. ... Meanwhile, in absence of plot, the cast (sad to say, a fine one) is left to chew the scenery. And chew away they do.

Chicago Fire definitely has familiarity going for it and familiarity going against it as well.

Sarah Palin's Alaska is part-travelogue, part-"Todd and Sarah Plus Eight," part-slick political infomercial, and part Mark Burnett hokum - and oddly fascinating for all those reasons.

The worst new show of 2014 can take solace that there are still 358 days left for another one to exceed it.

Families can watch this together nightly. The pace isn't exactly taxing. And it's summer.

Thwarted by same-old sitcom scripting, full of adults’ childish bickering and laden with “irony” setups. ... The saving grace for the show, as for Alex, becomes his family. Through the first three episodes, they’re a nicely knit group with real chemistry and real concerns vs. the podcasts-for-dummies approach to his workplace.

It's a familiar sitcom with familiar beats, and stars a particularly familiar lead who brings a nostalgic vibe to an essentially wistful enterprise. "How I Met Your Father" is for anyone who grew up on Duff's "Lizzie McGuire" or "Drake and Josh" (Josh Peck joins in a later episode) and may be wondering right now why romance is so tragically out of reach circa 2022.

Swingtown can't decide whether the '70s were transformative or deformative; there's a distinct ironic edge, applied mostly through the use of music.... But that edge isn't nearly sharp or funny enough (unlike "Weeds"), which tends to muddle the point of view.

This is a shame and a waste of three gorgeous actresses, a wonderful actor (Gross) and an idea that--with a little more wit, smarter writing and less soap--could have yielded a winner.

This louche Lucifer is mostly a cop procedural snooze.

[Shalom Auslande's] worldview is one part Christopher Hitchens, one part Samuel Beckett, one part Louis CK.... If all that makes his funny-ish new show sound bitter, angry, provocative and even compelling, then (well) that's because it is. But Happyish can also be wildly uneven and a little too smug in its certitude.

Familiar doesn't mean bad, and there's some likable charm here.

It's all about the writing, in this case, and the utter lack of depth, or inner life, or suggestion that anything of particular interest might be happening here.

Impastor weakens its good work by trying a bit too hard.

A fossilized sitcom that time-travelled all the way from the 1990s, with one calcified gag after the next, punctuated by the occasional (fortuitously rare) discordant off-color joke. ... With its trusty old-school TV verities, hug-it-out moments, beats as familiar as any from "Father Knows Best," and a laugh track that's probably turned up a notch too loud — plus bonus points for a solid supporting cast — it'll probably be a hit.

13 takes the heat off itself with an over-packed second season that doesn't quite walk back the controversies of the first, but attempts to talk them back.

The opposite of greatness. Specifically, "Space Force" is a five-hour bloat full of temporizing dialogue, a few-too-many gags relating to gastrointestinal malfunctions, and a CGI chimp and dog who deserved better. ... Yeah, bad. Long bad too.

James fans will love this overstuffed commercial for NASCAR and its many sponsors.

Despite the predictable conclusion, "Stargate SG-1," leaves many character threads dangling tantalizingly. If you aren't careful, this series could definitely hook you. [27 Jul 1997]

Finding original humor in this tired old horse of a format may not only be difficult, but close to impossible.

There's not a whiff of actual life here, no grounding character like "Arrested Development's" Jason Bateman . There's just frantic, false and tiresome.

The show's core relationship is appealingly relaxed. It dares to suggest successful coupledom lies less in heated passion than in being able to dress down and screw up and know you're still loved.

A great historical story gets wasted in this endurance test for viewers.

It's bland, tired, listless, and if the show isn't having much fun, how can it expect viewers to?

Hap and Carla are certainly a great-looking couple, standing in the shadow of the North Dakota Rockies. What they're not is a heightened version of Blake and Alexis Colby Carrington, the sort of heights I was really hoping for here.

Pathos may make for a more positive reality TV experience than a parade of lying, backstabbing and physical torture. But the basic appeal remains pathetic. Perhaps in more ways than one.

Bland, harmless, forgettable.

Princesses is not nearly as offensive as "Jersey Shore." The bad: It's still pretty dumb.

What is missing here is heart, drama, and - most inexcusably - horror.

Sure, it all looks and sounds achingly familiar and blandly dumb, and maybe some of it is. But check the brain at the door. You could do much worse.

Not terrible--really--but not yet remotely the winner NBC so badly needs either.

Marta as Mob Mom is not fully believable or recognizable or (for that matter) relatable on any level. Without empathy, this "red widow" is just plain dull.

At least "Men in Trees" doesn't tax your brain. Just your patience, taste and intelligence.

There's enough human drama here to keep us occupied without having the walls fall down, too.

Good show with fine cast, but it all still feels a little too familiar and old-fashioned.

Neither great, nor horrible, nor propitious nor preposterous. It was just a start, and in the late-night TV game, sometimes that's good enough.

What this show isn't: fresh, witty or even well constructed.

American Woman's timing may be the only thing right here. All else is wan, muddled, tired and bland.

When you start doodling on the Internet instead of watching the show you are supposed to review, then either you, or the show, has a problem. I'm going with the latter.

The pilot was so uneven that the whole affair nearly veers into "Reefer Madness" territory--the kind of over-the-top cautionary fable that subverts honorable intentions through hysteria or cliche. Despite its pedigree, Teenager doesn't appear to have ever stepped inside a high school, either.

The plot is slight, the resolution a laugher and the characters basically stick figures. Scorpion has its fun moments, but not enough of them.

It feels observed, rather than lived in. Enacted, rather than unfolding.

It's hard to imagine a worse show.

The herky-jerky camera work whenever it appears to shake barns or gobble up an off-road vehicle only calls attention to the fact that this is a cheaper production. And the human cast gathered around Gross is sorely lacking in the quirkiness that made the original ensemble so much fun. The new gang wouldn't be out of place in a Gap commercial. And yet ... there is something about the kitschy graboid and the hydra-like cluster of smaller worms that erupt from its mouth that's both laughably ludicrous and primordially unnerving. [27 Mar 2003, p.B35]

The pilot has some funny moments, but after that, Kirstie starts to flatline.

[The Canadian comedy all-stars] give it good vibes. But the scripts, despite mad moments of whimsy, can't keep pace with the cast's comic timing and tone.

Good-looking--also lethargic, languid, listless and a little bit lifeless--at least in the early going.

Three Rivers is a masterful send-up of old medical TV show conventions, dating back to the '50s, with a parade of cliches so obviously and hilariously inane that you will laugh until your side aches.

Hernandez is good in what's otherwise a pallid, uninspired facsimile of the original.

The trash meter soars when [Elizabeth Hurley's] on-screen, then sags when she's off. And there's just too much sag here.

That's a lot of pressure, even for Iron Jay, and maybe why Night One felt like a work in progress--terribly rough in spots, not bad in others.

Linc’s still tough and impulsive. Michael still has that lonely middle-distance stare. Tuesday’s opener suggests there’s plenty of action ahead, some real-world parallels, and a shaggy dog that could lead us to an interesting place. Hopefully that place will finally be closure.

If only it were more interesting.

Bracing and tasty.

The show seems to have no point, rendering it agony how hard the proceedings work at making one.

The pilot's accumulation of cute - oh, for the straightforward simplicity of bowling alley lawyer "Ed" - feels overbearing long before Kelley's courtroom summation turns societal sermon.

This show lurches along, all its sitcom puzzle pieces laid out without being assembled into even a Hollywood picture of life.

Sure, there are some fun moments. Sure Brosnan looks mah-velous. He always does. But a little less plodding plot and a lot more action, please.

There's no drama, no trumped-up conflict, no insights, no revelations and absolutely no discreet view of a once-notorious Dorchester clan that ran wild in the streets but now drives them, coolly surveying their kingdom for another restaurant location.

Some twisty situations, some unexpected heart, some nuanced acting. Some serious single-camera potential.

Initial impression: It fits. Fans of Chalke will remain fans, and everyone who long ago realized that Elizabeth Perkins was the best thing about "Weeds" will as well.

There's certainly comedy to be found in these basic situations, but not in "Lucky Louie's" confounding approach or stilted presentation.

This isn't "Friends," after all. At its hour length, "Related" asks us to take the Sorelli saga somewhat more seriously. Yet it provides sitcom incidents that can't stand the significance test.

I liked it. But not enough to watch it again. [9 Jul 1992]