A lethal robot (Zoie Palmer), who tries to kill one of the six before they wipe her memory. She then sets about reconstructing the ship’s data, eventually learning the ship’s destination and their possible purpose that throws everything the audience has learned in the show’s first hour into question. It’s a good twist. What Dark Matter makes of it in future episodes remains to be seen.

Aggressively unpleasant and unrepentantly nihilistic, Syfy’s Deadly Classis likely to have limited appeal.

There are moments when Shades of Blue feels like more than the sum of its recycled parts but then there's a manipulative, tension-filled scene that tacks in just the direction a savvy viewer could predict.

It's one thing to laugh at characters on TV shows who behave foolishly, who deserve to be mocked. Valerie's crimes for the sake of comedy are nothing more than aging with an undiminished Hollywood ego. It's a little funny at first, but it quickly turns sad, something you want to look away from, not laugh about. [2 June 2005, p.WE-37]

Parks has its funny moments but the comedy's first episode also has a distant and chilly feel to it.

It’s a dark, sometimes dreary Lost in Space with great special effects and some interesting character relationships that sit awkwardly alongside predictable plots.

"Glee" benefitted from the novelty of its musical performance and high-camp humor. Red Band Society has almost no unique attributes, which renders it an OK but not outstanding teen soap.

To be sure, Grace and Frankie is better than CBS’s recent “Odd Couple” reboot but Grace and Frankie does feel like a network sitcom (minus the laugh track), maybe “Friends: The Golden Years” if the focus was on Monica and Phoebe (and if Chandler and Joey became a couple).

Privileged has the potential to be a largely positive, female-skewing series.

A decent if not extraordinary action hour.

Stylista is a guilty pleasure thanks to its cast of catfighting, bickering characters, including one who is hospitalized following a panic attack in episode two.

Viewers accustomed to Connie Britton playing Teflon-strong characters on “Friday Night Lights” and “Nashville” may take a minute to adjust to her role as a soft-spoken, breathy interior designer who falls for a scam artist in Bravo’s pulpy, addictive “Dirty John.”

The pilot's plot leads them in a direction where "this just in" becomes an obvious sexual metaphor--some of it is funny, but there's just too much.

The Finder is not sophisticated TV but it does have its charms, mostly stemming from star Geoff Stults.

Through its first two hours, Black Sails is entertaining enough but not nearly as addictive as "Spartacus" came to be through its first season; perhaps in time that will change.

Kings begins with a refined approach and grows more pedestrian in subsequent episodes. Still, there's plenty to love about this series that dances with symbolism--the butterfly on the Gilboa flag is not a mere adornment--and replaces clandestine backrooms with windowed board rooms.

Created by writer Justin Spitzer, Superstore has its funny moments as it alternately mocks People of Wal-Mart types while trying to protect the dignity of the store’s employees. It’s difficult for the show to have it both ways. Superstore is at its funniest when it’s also at its most ruthless and offensive, but those moments are few.

There is some decent dialogue but it gets lost in the scenery chewing maw of the show's star.

Truly funny interactions between Triumph and celebrities in the field get dropped into the studio-based inanity. The studio stuff is often dull, less funny and pathetically produced; it looks like some of the movies I made in high school.

Happy Endings excels at fearless humor that's sometimes shocking, not because it's gratuitous, but because it's an unexpected surprise--and a welcome one at that.

Defiance is less gritty than Syfy's best series, "Battlestar Galactica," and the characters aren't as well drawn as on the superior "Farscape." "Defiance" lands at a slightly higher end of the murky middle ground of quality.

The Limitless pilot, the only episode CBS made available for review, offers a terrific hour of character introductions that builds on the world established in Mr. Cooper’s movie. There are a few plot holes, but they’re forgivable. Then in the last 10 minutes of the pilot, everything that made the hour unique is threatened with extinction when you can see the confines of the CBS crime procedural box closing in.

Bloated and still inconclusive, the new “Unsolved Mysteries” benefits from Netflix’s usual high production values for nonfiction programming, but there’s no reason for these episodes to drone on as they do; there’s not enough story to support their running time.

Swissvale native Billy Gardell returns in this new Chuck Lorre sitcom that has a slight premise and few laughs, but newcomer Folake Olowofoyeku as Abishola gives an effortless performance that’s equal parts sweet and tart.

The second new NBC show this fall to give a bit of a “Community” vibe, just not as funny as that pilot was. But the “Sunnyside” study group characters offer promise for bigger laughs to come.

There's definitely some amusing moments but the show will have limited appeal.

Everything else that's supposed to be a shock is telegraphed well in advance. Everything meant to surprise falls hopelessly flat. [18 June 1999, p.44]

The Menendez Murders lacks the multiple social themes of “The People v. O.J. Simpson,” settling instead for an occasionally pulpy story that takes a turn into purple prose when it begins to explore the role of Erik’s therapist, Dr. Jerome Oziel (Josh Charles). ... The presence of Ms. Falco, whose character gets a husband (Chris Bauer) and workaholic back story, elevates the proceedings, but she appears sparingly in the premiere.

Power is fine but it doesn’t live up to its title. It’s not a powerful drama because viewers have largely seen all its tricks, plots and character relationships before.

Unforgettable is completely forgettable because it brings nothing new to the increasingly creaky crime procedural. CBS has gone to that well over and over, and, credit to them, it's worked.

As serialized mysteries go, Game isn't terrible but some of it is preposterous enough that viewers may not want to play it again.

The pieces may be familiar, but there are enough new elements that prevent this series from feeling like a total rip-off.

NYC 22 is very much a prototypical CBS show--it lacks ambition but it's not terrible.

There’s timeliness to the never dull “Damnation” despite its period setting, particularly in episode two when a professor (Gabriel Mann, “Revenge”) disparages the “unwashed rural masses.” Just don’t go looking for any heroes: There are none to be found.

Allegiance is not terrible, although its characters are paper-thin, and, beyond feeling derivative, the show isn’t all that credible.

Whether Scream can overcome Noah's legitimate concerns about adapting a slasher movie for TV remains to be seen. But tonight's premiere gets the show off to a strong creative start.

It’s an interesting conceit to follow one character at three points in his life every week and see how things that happen in one era influence another. It also seems like quite a juggling act for the show’s writers. Time will tell how they manage to maintain it on a weekly basis.

While the character drama is compelling and often well-acted, the viciousness of this world proves a barrier to entry some viewers will understandably choose not to cross.

Dollhouse isn't awful, but neither is it remarkably good. It's a passable hour of entertainment that shows potential to improve but flails and confuses (and occasionally bores) from the start.

While The Comedians is OK, the overall effort feels a little too familiar.

If Powerless had been funny, the lack of big-name heroes would be excusable, but with not much to laugh at a viewer is bored enough to consider all the things this show could be, but is not.

A cute enough pilot from writer Emily Kapnek (“Suburgatory”). But is there really a weekly TV series to be had here? Time will tell.

Memphis Blues has a similar feel to "The Closer" at the same stage. The secondary characters are not yet developed, and the show feels fairly pat. But it has the necessary ingredients for a lightweight, innocuous procedural.

With so few traditional sitcoms on the air this year, the new ones had better be good. Happily for viewers, Fox's "Back to You" and CBS's Big Bang Theory qualify as generally welcome newcomers.

Through the first two episodes it’s just not enough to differentiate this series from so many conspiracy thrillers that have come before.

True, it may be a little too high-concept, but it held my attention much better than plenty of other, much worse TV comedies.

It’s similar to History’s “Six,” which aired earlier this year, as well as CBS’s own 2006-09 show “The Unit.”

As close-ended procedurals go, "Raines" certainly offers an intriguing hook, but I'm not sure it's one with much staying power.

Cane is probably the most traditional of these soaps. Unfortunately, it's also hampered by a muddled pilot episode with ham-fisted character introductions and an ending that's likely to put off some viewers.

Black and white pedestrian characters and plots may satisfy traditional CBS viewers, but it won’t win over many new recruits.

Tonight's City of Angels premiere offers toothless, almost bland TV drama. It's not hyper-revved like "ER," and is probably most similar to "Chicago Hope" in its depiction of behind-the-scenes hospital politics. With both of TV's existing medical dramas growing tired, the time is right for "City of Angels," but it needs work... It's pretty uninspired melodrama with a dash of attention-grabbing weirdness.

The new season of "Carnivale" continues to showcase the series' potential, but it still doesn't live up to the show's enormous promise. It's a cryptic series full of mysteries and that should suck viewers in. But I've yet to feel the full effects of its gravitational pull, which is disappointing because, as they said so often on "The X-Files," I want to believe. [7 Jan 2005]

As a drama, The Last Tycoon is slightly less successful. Occasionally plodding and without a lot to say in the early going that isn’t spelled out in capital letters--NAZIS = BAD!--early episodes offer good, not great drama.

The whole thing is pretty cheesy, but I could see "The Apprentice" becoming addictive a few episodes in. [4 Jan 2004]

Sophomoric and crude, The Life & Times of Tim may be a viable alternative for fans of Cartoon Network's Adult Swim.

This Bionic Woman pilot is a downbeat drag, but buried somewhere beneath all the moping is an intriguing show that might yet emerge.

The show’s cocaine-fueled energy is undeniable, although some may find it exhausting. In early episodes “Black Monday” seems to be trying to find its footing while rushing headlong into schemes and character development at as loud a volume as possible.

Networks want their shows to look like movies these days, but the Intelligence pilot makes the border of Pakistan and Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C., both look like Vancouver, where the pilot was filmed. It's a minor but telling detail in this unimaginative rehash.

With its talented cast and a willingness to reference current events, Superior Donuts evinces some potential, especially if the show’s writers can come up with better, less redundant sitcom plots.

If Mr. Morrow takes his performance down a notch, the character will be much easier to embrace....As in most of her roles, Ms. Tierney elevates the script, playing Kathryn as a hard-charging but sympathetic prosecutor whose personal life takes a backseat to her professional duties.

Viewers who want TV to wash over them as light entertainment may enjoy Franklin & Bash, but viewers who prefer thought-provoking TV programs that engage on a higher level may not be satisfied.

She's not a Ewing, but grandma Ryland (Judith Light) is far more entertaining than any of the young hunks fighting around the pool at Southfork.

Missing is like a bad Lifetime movie blown up into a weekly series.

The Newsroom characters grow a bit over the show's first four episodes and begin to seem less like types and more like fully-defined people, but they never feel altogether real, the unintended consequence of inhabiting an idealistic fantasy land.

The big problem with Wrecked is that the pilot episode is just not that funny. A second episode was slightly funnier but not entertaining enough to warrant watching a third half-hour.

The Nat Geo movie is a thoroughly entertaining, exciting docudrama.

Actually, the casting is pretty great and works well. Everything else about the show is pretty much what you'd expect. There are some fun action scenes and attempts at pathos, especially around Riggs and the death of his pregnant wife that's turned him into such a loose cannon. But Lethal Weapon also feels extremely familiar.

So, the dialogue is cliche, the characters are cliche, the situations are cliche. What is there to recommend about this show? In the end, it's the twists that had me popping episodes into the VCR until I'd watched the first six. There's just enough of a thread -- whether it's clues that endanger Falcone's undercover operation or threats to his family -- to keep you wondering what will happen next.

Spartacus worked best when it was an ancient "Upstairs Downstairs" with the house of Battiatus as the "upstairs" component and the gladiator school as the "downstairs." With that element gone, the show has no natural home base and feels a bit unmoored.

Creatively, the show seems to be in pretty decent shape.

Expedition Impossible, executive-produced by Mark Burnett ("Survivor"), is [not] the worst reality show ever (not by a long shot), but it reveals how challenging it must be for producers to introduce a whole mess of teams in a season premiere.

Crossbones doesn’t offer compelling enough drama to complement its banal brutality.

The problem with toning her down is that it means diluting the only thing that distinguishes Body of Proof from all the other crime procedurals, and what's left is a generic show with an above-average star.

There are several intriguing concepts built into Syfy’s Ascension, but the execution is not quite up to snuff in the first episode and infuriating by the conclusion.

The best new fall drama.

There's nothing wrong with any of this except that it doesn't feel fresh or new; there's no added, bewitching spark to a familiar concept.

Fans of teen soaps may enjoy Happyland for the lark that it is but veterans of the genre may also move on quickly: Even the happiest place on earth gets old after a while, and the same goes for what’s ultimately a likeable but fairly generic series.

While some aspects of the Magic City characters and their relationships are handled sloppily, others are too on the nose.

Press notes indicate these five folks impacted by the shockwave are “angels of the apocalypse,” but Messengers never comes out and says this. A general rule of thumb in TV reviewing: When press notes do a better job of explaining a show's intent than the show itself, viewers beware.

Potentially intriguing moments feel entirely manufactured, and the plots in between are paint-by-number plain with sometimes painfully bad dialogue.

Merlin looks, well, typically British with shoddy production values. Worse, it tells dull stories.

The show isn't helped by a two-hour premiere that states and re-states its premise too many times.

A children’s reality competition — one that would be at home on Nickelodeon. ... HBO Max waters down the brand with shows like this.

There are no television breakthroughs in Breakout Kings, a pretty pat procedural that tries a little harder than some of its predecessors.

The first two episodes of “Disenchantment” are more amusing than funny with entertaining enough puns and parodies of modern-day brands in the names of shops in the Kingdom of Dreamland.

Waco is a surprisingly pedestrian, paint-by-number docudrama. It’s fine but doesn’t soar like the two installments of FX’s “American Crime Story”: “People v. O.J. Simpson” and “The Assassination of Gianni Versace.”

King & Maxwell doesn't have much that's new to offer, but it's fine, forgettable, escapist summer fare.

Underemployed is one of the most enjoyably upbeat twentysomething scripted dramas to hit prime time in ages.

There’s not much to cracking “The Code,” which is a paint-by-numbers show if ever there was one.

[“The Violet Hour”] takes some unexpected and some predictable turns along the way, but it’s ultimately an enjoyable, charming story. ... “The Royal We” is less involving than “The Violet Hour.” Shelly’s story proves more compelling than Michael’s and the Romanoff theme is more pronounced and bizarre. ... [The third episode is] the second best of the first three episodes made available for review.

The first hour of Heroes answers enough questions and moves the story forward in such a way that a few "Huh?" moments won't matter as long as they're answered in short order and don't linger for too long.

A fun, frothy, limited-series period drama.

Unlike "Monk," which is essentially warmed-over "Columbo" with a more interesting character in the lead, In Plain Sight augments its plain premise with a full cast of colorful characters.

To be blunt, Starz’s Blunt Talk is spectacularly unfunny.

Madigan Men fails creatively for one simple reason. Its rhythms are all wrong for a sitcom filmed in front of a studio audience. This show is screaming to be a single camera comedy shot on film, similar to "Sex and the City." The humor is subtle. It doesn't warrant the guffaws of the studio audience that interrupt its natural flow. [6 Oct 2000, p.44]

Occasionally funny but mostly sort of dull, “The Moodys” seems unlikely to become a Christmas classic.

Another superhero show is overkill, but for what it is, Titans strong-arms its way into acceptance and occasionally more (the series’ depiction of a Beaver Cleaver-style family of killers, introduced in episode two, is especially clever).

When a wannabe TV thriller doesn’t work, the show devolves into a morass of characters making repeated bad decisions, like “Groundhog Day” but without the intentional comedy.