Marry Me is the rarest of commercial TV sitcoms in that it's actually funny, has two standout leads and a superb supporting cast (especially Meadows and Bucatinsky).

That the whole pilot doesn't collapse into a pile of rubble is due to Rodriguez--or maybe because Jane is so confoundedly odd you want to see what happens next.

The Affair might be an exercise in literary gamesmanship if the acting and writing weren't so strong, or the setting so evocative.... Engrossing.

Despite the slightest everything's-up-to-date vibe, Cristela is really just another old-fashioned sitcom with roots that reach all the way back to the dawn of television, where shows neither offended nor scandalized.

Whom to vote for--Dot or Bette? Or will Paulson end up splitting the vote? The special effects are so seamless and Paulson's performance so memorable that it's not a completely incidental question. Then, of course, there's Lange.

A very good-looking pilot. That leaves Gustin, which is where nagging doubts crop up.... Gustin's Allen is blue of eye and clear of conscience. Sweet and gentle, he's immensely likable but not particularly intriguing, unlike Stephen Amell's Oliver Queen or even Tom Welling's Clark Kent.

So the show seems either a subversive deconstruction of the laugh-track sitcom blueprint or a stupefying misfire built around the blandest star ever.

Homeland's fourth season feels as fresh, important and relevant as yesterday's news--or tomorrow's news. A bracing, intelligent start.

With [Mike O'Malley's] fluid scripts, these sharp actors hit not just three-pointers but also free throws.

There's no sense of spontaneity, no sharp thrill of discovery (or fear). Gracepoint just plods along, right straight into the surging Pacific tide.

As with "HIMYM," guessing where that will be could be part of the fun--or frustration, if A to Z loses control of the story. Thursday's opener is so sharply executed, however, that doesn't look to be much of a concern.

The "Funny or Die" duo makes this zesty, single-camera comedy speak to adults by letting their lead be one.

It's all about the women-in-terror kick of frying them alive. (Oct. 15's episode promises a bride who's shot during her wedding.) Reprehensible.

This indisputably is Amazon Prime's “Orange Is the New Black.” That--believe me--is praise enough.

There might be something smartly contemporary buried deep inside Manhattan Love Story, but the pilot is too busy demonstrating its cognizance of connected devices and social media.

There's some charm here, but it's as fleeting as a tweet.

The pilot is ingenious but at moments maybe a little too smart for its own good.

Yes, "black-ish" can be fiercely funny, sharply observed, and unfailingly good-humored about the racial divide. But just beyond that glossy surface is a serious and even compelling undercurrent.

[Bakula and Pounder] should make the process of watching--or chore of watching, depending on your appetite for more of this formula--just a little more agreeable.

The Gotham opener probably makes the most compelling case of any newcomer this fall that at least one promise will be kept.

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

Forever isn't betting the future on plot mechanics, however, but on chemistry and that obscure object of desire called "sex appeal." These leads have it--in spades.

No one wants this show to channel "24," but C-SPAN won't do either. For the most part, however, Madam Secretary charts a steady--and intelligent--middle course.

Good, crackling start that--as the old saying goes--changes everything and may even point to the end.

A flawed if promising start for a tough old veteran that proved it's still got some fight--and talk--left.

Messy, discordant opener with potential.

This is an extremely tough balancing act or--back to the musical analogy--this is a show where the notes have to play exactly right. They don't here.

Burns and Ward pile on so much detail, alongside so much stunning footage, that by watching this whole spread--to borrow that famous and also well-rubbed line -- will be like arriving "where we started and know the place for the first time." Magnificent. Of course.