It could easily be mean and cynical, but manages to avoid both fatal pitfalls because the finalists are so genuinely enthusiastic and so blissfully uncomprehending of their shortcomings.

Not quite on the level of last season's best, like "Woods," "FUBU" or "Teddy Perkins," these openers are nonetheless pure, unfiltered "Atlanta." Take that as the praise intended.

Falco and her curls steal the show. They’re both are fascinating. The “true crime” part is much less so.

Good-hearted, a little too cloying, and the story flow needs polish. Of the three new CBS comedies this fall, this is the most promising.

The first five episodes are best, with their show-within-a-show structure, specifically those San-Ti virtual reality headsets that Mark Zuckerberg would give half his kingdom for. They're a portal into a whole other world, with its own set of narrative rules, and even the occasional flash of humor. Mostly they're just fun. “3 Body” noticeably sags when the San-Ti no longer deploy them (although one does reappear in a closing scene of this first season).

Whitaker and the rest of the cast are first-rate, but what's most compelling about "Godfather" are its apparent ambitions.

Manifest wants to be "This Is Us" with a taste of "Lost." Over the first episode, it manages the feat with considerable skill. A good cast sells the improbable hook by at least making it emotionally probable.

Yes, this is all very familiar--Sundance's "The Returned" was better, by the way--but there are still solid hints of an engaging series.

There's plenty of heart here--and some very sharp writing and acting, too.

The mythology arc is absolute rubbish. Fortunately, this new season appears to suspect that and, after that rocky opener, gets down to business. Soon enough, Scully and Mulder are puzzling over a simulated world where great brains like Steve Jobs “live” for eternity. A strange doppelgänger is stalking people. That sounds like a job for the X-Files team. The best of the five offered for review is very good indeed, and it too is a curtain call from an old friend: Darin Morgan.

The problem with Jackie is that split personality--drama or comedy. What's funny here is funny, like last season's final seconds. There aren't enough moments that remind you when to laugh.

As what you'd expect from the mind of Fred Armisen — quirky, strange, at times off-putting, at other times, engaging, and full of puckish charm.

New stories, new perspectives and new vistas might just do wonders for The Affair. At least they beat the alternative. Still entertaining, The Affair makes an attempt to get better by adding some diversity to the mix.

The show can be messy and confusing--a headlong rush to who-knows- where-or-why at times. But those clones keep it grounded.

Good, cleanly told newcomer that can be a bit pokey.

Often profane and occasionally offensive, Louie won't be to every viewer's taste, but it's a more interesting show than many with a definitive point of view.

The horror is what counts in any American Horror Story, and judging from the opening three episodes, it’s more than adequate in Cult. It’s also relentless, grisly and deeply warped.

What makes this series effective is that not-too-distant horizon. It doesn't play out 50 years from now, but next year, then a few years after that, and then a few beyond that. Viewers can see the roadmap, and by always keeping them within the realm of the plausible, the ambient anger and confusion feels plausible, or familiar. ... A compelling — and timely — new series.

This "Party" does what the original did well because it knows all of this. Feelings are universal but circumstances are not. ... The rare reboot with a purpose — and a heart.

Intelligent adaptation absent the dark humor, satire--or horror--of the original.

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.

This Tick moves like a movie, each episode more a chapter in an extended tale than a half-hour payoff.

Solid opener, compelling premise, good cast and one major hole.

The Girl is getting older, but there's still pleasure to be had on the final lap.

All dark shadows and gloom, there's a comic-book vigor to the series, and the narrative contortion of a soap.

Bloody pirate battles? Check. Graphic sex scenes? Check. Shoreside conniving/intrigue? Intense.

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.

Insanely violent, but, yup, often beautiful and intoxicating. A mind-bender that can be worth the bender.