Of the couples comedies to debut so far this midseason--NBC's "Perfect Couples" in January, Fox's "Traffic Light" last week--CBS's "Mad Love" (8:30 tonight, KDKA-TV) is probably the best. That's not to say it's a great show, but it is the least groan-inducing.

Ailes’ now-infamous skulduggery may have irrevocably damaged political discourse, but recounting it all makes for a wildly entertaining, occasionally painful, deep dive into the history of Fox News Channel and an excavation of one of the ways the current polarized American political climate came to exist.

It’s all fluffy, sexy, mindless fun, the TV equivalent of a summer beach read.

Much of the humor is of the predictable, fish out of water variety ... but “Bless This Mess” is at its funniest when it gets weird with characters like Rudy (Ed Begley Jr.), who lives in the couple’s barn, and Jacob (JT Neal), the dim-witted son of the neighbors.

The easily offended should steer clear, but viewers with an appreciation for outrageous humor are likely to have a good laugh watching Little Britain USA.

Fans of legal dramas should be intrigued by Phil Spector, a well-paced 90-minute character-driven film.

"Shark"... is clearly a "House" imitator, but a pretty crisp copy.

For the People is OK but not great, too all over the place for any of the legal cases to make much of a dramatic impression.

The seemingly unsustainable plot cries out to be a one-shot movie rather than an ongoing series. It’s too bad, too, because the show’s themes resonate in this #MeToo moment, but a “no good can come from this” plot gets in the way.

Although I'm wise enough not to cross Jordan, I don't really want to watch more of this formula-driven show. [24 Sep 2001]

Fans of zombies and the absurd may want to tune in but there's nothing funny or interesting enough in Ugly Americans to keep me coming back.

Against all odds, this week's premiere turns out to be a competent, highly watchable hour of television, the most promising broadcast network premiere since "Southland."

"Day Break" is both dark and frustrating.

Essentially a prime-time soap, Bomb Girls is a well-plotted, smartly written soap that doesn't shy away from, shocking, even gruesome, plot turns in showing the dangers of working in a bomb-making factory.

Mockingbird Lane is funny, fanciful, a visual treat and, perhaps surprisingly, full of heart.

An animated series with an odd mix of historical figures and parodies of teen-appeal TV, advertising and music. It's a bizarre combination, to be sure, but it works. [12 Jan 2003, p.D-3]

It is indeed sinfully bad.... The plot is predictable and the acting generally hammy.

Fresh, funny and fearless, Alone Together introduces two new voices whose exploits are far more relatable than some recent past series about young people (cough, cough, “Girls,” cough, cough).

At best, the show is an average prime-time soap rooted in history that improves somewhat in successive episodes.

For fans of the original, which is only a few years old, this Americanization may be a bit like going to see a road company version of a Broadway show: It's pretty good but definitely less morose (for some viewers that will be an improvement, for others it will be a betrayal).

What distinguishes 'Grain' from many Hollywood efforts is its feel for the rhythms of small town life. ... If many of the plot points seem familiar, ''Grain'' also has a nice way of exceeding expectations, calling characters up short or twisting the plot in ways you may not see coming. [1 Oct 1993]

Unlike some seasons of “AHS,” Hotel lacks dark humor, at least in tonight’s initial outing.... Visually, the premiere episode is a stunner, from the hotel set to the use of a fish-eye lens on the camera that squeezes so much into the frame.... Heavy on atmosphere in its early going and light on plot, a storyline starts to kick in around the premiere’s halfway point.

While scenes with a crime crew drag, in part because it's not always clear what's going on with them, anytime the focus shifts to crooked cops Frank Agnew (Mark Strong) and Joe Geddes (Lennie James), Low Winter Sun proves to be a gripping drama with a vibe most reminiscent of "The Wire."

Whisker Wars gives a few glimpses into the care regimen of these mens' beards but fails to ask or answer an essential question: Why do they bother?

It no longer feels like you're watching a dozen different TV shows now that the main characters actually interact with one another. And the show's pace seems more brisk, less stodgy.

By episode two, Mulder and Scully are, jarringly, back on the job and once again investigating an X-Files case that may or may not involve alien-human hybrids.... [The third episode is] the best of the first three episodes but also the weirdest.

The first 20 minutes of Resurrection are terrifically emotional and engrossing. When the focus is on Jacob and his parents, the show is a real heart-tugger. But then it gets into family soap opera territory (what big secrets have family members kept from one another!) and the mystery returns when another dead person is found to be alive.

When Amazon’s Lore allows Mr. Mahnke to just tell a story, it’s pretty compelling. But when the show dives into dramatic re-creations of stories, Lore generally falters.

It’s hard to see what Frances saw in Robert that made her love him at some point, which, along with some crazy incidents, gives Divorce the sheen of absurd, heightened reality as opposed to a show that feels real.

American Housewife isn’t this fall’s best new comedy but it’s certainly one of the better offerings.

It's a clever, funny hour that's written in rhyme with imaginative songs threaded throughout.

American Odyssey too often lacks the gritty realism of cable series that attempt similar, convoluted plots. It doesn’t catch viewers in a plot that feels real; rather, it feels like a planned, plotted, manufactured-for-your-enjoyment TV show.

Alex, who has tried to live a by-the-book life as a businessman, gets pulled into a family crisis in a believable way that doesn’t feel like a ridiculous TV plot twist.

TNT’s Proof is not a terrible show, but it is a terribly ordinary TNT drama.

But like so many other shows in recent years, this concept would work better as a one-shot movie than as a weekly series.

Rise is likable enough, but through its first five episodes the show doesn’t rise above a pale analogue to shows in the family drama/football/drama club genres that came before.

You can't shake the feeling that "Watching Ellie" is the most vain vanity project to hit TV in recent years.

The 90-minute Fairly Legal pilot, written by series creator Michael Sardo, moves at breakneck speed and fairly effortlessly welcomes viewers into spastic Kate's world. It's not a bad place to visit--but I probably won't be checking in on her on a regular basis.

Ultimately, the story doesn’t really matter because the characters are paper thin and efforts to make Alice more than a damsel in distress--she’s a skull-crushing, tree climber--don’t really add much depth.

The show operates at such a constant, rapid-fire level that it’s almost exhausting.

Sure, it takes time to build characters, but “Night” feels super sluggish.

Even though the premise of The Crossing seems like it’s another TV show that should really be a movie or limited series and not an ongoing drama, the pilot offers (for a broadcast network series) some decent twists, welcome casting against type and a somewhat intriguing plot.

There are two shows struggling to exist in one in the ABC comedy Back in the Game. One is about former all-star softball player Terry Gannon Jr. (Maggie Lawson) and her relationship with her hard-charging, estranged, ex-athlete father, Terry Sr. (James Caan), who goes by “The Cannon.” This show is pretty terrible.... The second show is not at all novel but it’s at least easier to take: Back in the Game is essentially a “Bad News Bears” reboot.

It’s unclear if the series will rise above a constant cat-and-mouse game between Wells and Jack, something that seems like it could get old quick.

“Heartstrings” isn’t HBO-caliber TV but for viewers who want feel-good stories with a bit of an edge. this Netflix series offers a more expansive approach to uplifting programming.

This story of professional thieves is beautifully shot, but the structure of the pilot -- it begins with the start of the robbery, flashes back to the planning of the robbery, returns to the robbery and shows its aftermath -- is a little repetitive, which takes away from attempts to build tension and surprise.

In execution, Mr. Selfridge is a bit of a slog.

All style, no substance.

Darker and less escapist than TNT’s other new summer entry, “The Last Ship,” Legends offers a down-and-dirty hero with rough edges but surrounds him with a cadre of cleaner, less sullied colleagues, making for somewhat of a tonal mish-mash.

Will seeing a female drug dealer's rise (and potential fall if that bullet proves to be fatal, although I'm guessing it won't be) be enough to differentiate this series, told from a female point of view, and justify in investing in Queen of the South? It does seem like a more complicated, different character story. But plot-wise it's less interesting than, say, "Traffic," or certainly "Breaking Bad."

Against the Wall is not nearly as ambitious as "Chicago Code" was but there's a warmth to the characters and their relationships that should satisfy Lifetime's core audience.

Everything in Neverland is a quest as characters run from one large set piece to another without much character development except in minor strokes that are predictable and rudimentary.

In short, they do what friends do, only they do more of it more often. Too often, actually. That constant comic bantering grows a little tired, just as it would if it ever actually happened in real life. [22 Sept 1994, p.C1]

Cute but not cloying, funny but not overflowing with gratuitous sex jokes, "The Class" earns a B+, which easily puts it in contention for valedictorian among fall 2006's freshman comedies.

Seed isn’t great TV, but it’s a funny enough diversion in the context of generally disappointing summer comedy.

If April’s work world is silly, her home life is uninvolving because it’s barely sketched out and seems like an afterthought.

“Lower Decks” has its occasional chuckle-worthy moments, but too often the show opts for wild chaos as a substitute for actual comedy.

The lighthearted "Psych" charms even as it duplicates the structure and tone of "Monk."

Filmed in Austria, The Quest boasts high production values but its stated goal to populate a fictional, serialized fantasy world with reality show contestants doesn't find quite the right mix in early episodes.

BoJack Horseman gets the particulars of late '80s sitcoms right and has a few scattershot funny moments but it's mostly not a laugh riot.

A lackluster "Sex and the City" companion.

What makes “Batwoman” stand apart is that Kate is a lesbian, and by the end of the premiere she’s caught up in an unconventional-for-TV love triangle. Beyond that, this superhero show is admittedly more of the same.

How to Make It in America grows more interesting in episodes after the pilot as Ben's world expands and connections among the characters form. But to get that far viewers may need to be: a) Living Ben's lifestyle, b) Remembering their immature years fondly or, c) Have a high tolerance for slackers whose ambition outpaces their drive and/or intellect.

It is a well-made little show of horrors that's likely to scare and thrill its target audience.

The rules explained by the angel (Kimberly Hebert Gregory, replacing Cristela Alonso from the pilot) are both complicated and nebulous, and it’s not clear what Kevin is supposed to do beyond being a do-gooder. Maybe “Touched by a Guy Touched by an Angel” is what this show is going for?

Twists begin to pile up like they're falling out of a How To Write Noir handbook. And that may be the show's biggest problem: It feels contrived, which makes the audience feel manipulated.

Entertaining in the way the problems of the rich often are. [21 Mar 2006]

Mars feels somewhat familiar, but combining the fiction and nonfiction elements is an interesting attempt. Give NatGeo credit for trying something different. Whether this hybrid satisfies fans of either genre remains to be seen.

It's not that Lopez is terrible, just terribly unoriginal as it depicts its lead character as slightly out-of-touch, overly concerned with his image, etc.

In its early going, Strange Angel just isn’t strange enough to warrant sustained viewer interest.

Every reality show needs a mix of those you cheer for and those you jeer against, but "Texas Ranch House" has too many of the latter.

There's nothing egregiously wrong with Aquarius--it's sometimes dull but also at turns surprising--but with so many options for entertainment content today, this NBC procedural-serial hybrid doesn't do much to stand out.

Hello Ladies has several funny moments in its premiere episode, but it's another comedy strictly for viewers who like to squirm at bad behavior.

It shows the most potential as a buddy comedy focused on Mr. Williams and Mr. Wolk. By comparison, Ms. Gellar’s character is a wet blanket.

Although it feels overly familiar, The Family kicks off with a strong pilot. But like many series, the question is, will it keep viewers hooked? And will the “is this the real Adam or a fake” question linger so long viewers get annoyed with the tease?

Maybe network executives are just throwing their hands up for now and clearing the cupboard shelves of what’s left, which includes the funny, engaging Weird Loners.

O'Donnell and LL Cool J form an easy alliance that's filled with lighter moments of humor even as they investigate a plot that's decidedly obvious and unsurprising.

Tyrant continues to fascinate even as it’s flawed. Adding Chris Noth as an American military leader with a connection to former first lady Leila (Moran Atias) doesn’t bring much to the series, which also suffers from a lack of sandy, panoramic exterior shots that marked the show’s first season.

At just six one-hour episodes (two airing each Sunday for three weeks), “Valley of the Boom” runs out of gas well before its conclusion and begins to feel padded, especially in its last hour. The series also suffers from tension-free drama as the stories mostly go the way viewers will expect.

Fast, frothy and fun, “Flack” only falters when it slows down and tries to get serious about Robyn’s issues – her mentally ill mother committed suicide; Robyn may have some mental health challenges, too – but when it sticks to its soapier agenda, “Flack” moves like a runaway train.

Fans of these true crime shows may be intrigued by My Life Is a Lifetime Movie but viewers hoping for a series as irreverent as this title suggests may be disappointed.

It's an intriguing drama with an enjoyably creepy vibe. [2 Jan 2005]

Sometimes the aliens-as-immigrants rhetoric is a little too on the nose but as remakes go, this iteration of “Roswell” seems like it will appeal to the current CW audience.

The show may not hold the attention of TV fans who crave complex storytelling--there's not much for fans of psychologically intriguing character development to dig into--but for viewers who enjoy a steady USA diet, Graceland may darken the network's Blue Sky programming approach just enough to intrigue.

The investigations are intriguing. The investigators are blah, their relationships a poorly defined muddle. [6 Oct 2000, p.44]

Comfort food appeal to some viewers who could certainly do worse than this series that tends to be more lighthearted (listen for the bouncy music soundtrack), with enjoyably quirky supporting characters. It’s just unfortunate the show’s primary story is often overwrought and obvious.

This retelling of the Arthurian legend feels overly familiar and there's just not enough that's new or different to make it worthwhile.

It's entertaining enough if real-life make-it-or-break-it tension is what you're looking for in TV. That's also a bit of better-them-than-me satisfaction that comes in watching this and all the Tough Guy TV shows. Gold Rush has the added element of will-they-or-won't-they make it rich.

Although Friday's season premiere is a bit confusing at times, the Spartacus world comes into better focus in episode two.

The show is inoffensive, tedious pabulum with forced postal humor.

Once you get past the sex and if you can endure the sadness of the stories, Tell Me begins to have an addictive quality.

Business buffs may love it, but Shark Tank lacks the lush visuals of "Survivor" and the star power of Trump. It just doesn't have the same bite.

"The Lost Room" is certainly a more creative exercise than past Sci Fi miniseries (including "The Triangle"), but it sometimes feels rushed.

While this series also begins with an unwieldy amount of place-setting involving a war that led to the current refugee crisis, “Carnival Row” proves more palatable than “The Dark Crystal.” The Amazon series is easier to follow even as it introduces initially-unconnected characters in multiple social classes. This gives “Carnival Row” plenty of areas to explore. If only it all felt more unique.

It’s all a little too on-the-nose and predictable. Falco is fantastic as always, but the writing in early episodes lacks anything approaching the nuance and sophistication of Falco’s past series, “The Sopranos” and “Nurse Jackie.”

It comes across as a rather dull, ineptly produced program that looks like it was filmed with dated technology in plodding style.

It's a static look that makes these half-hour shows a bit tough to endure visually (don't try watching two episodes back-to-back). This format lends itself better to web shorts but it is fun to see Dr. Wallice's world expanded, especially for fans of comedy that doesn't telegraph a joke well in advance.

Aggressively dumb, sex-obsessed and occasionally misogynistic.