Entertaining in a sober-minded, educational way, Victorian Slum House offers an illuminating history lesson without getting preachy or dull.

A highly entertaining and addictive costume drama.

Executive producer David Eick said, "We wanted to make it less about escapism and more about moral complexity and great characters." In its early episodes, Caprica certainly succeeds in achieving those goals.

As entertainment, United States of Tara succeeds through humor, vivid characters and a stunning performance by Collette, who disappears into the roles of Tara's alters.

Atmospheric and strange (images of power lines abound for no discernible reason), Durham County is not much of a murder mystery--viewers know who the killer(s) are by the end of the first episode--but it is an intriguing crime drama that's more character-driven than it is procedural.

Smart, thrilling and politically timely, "Sleeper Cell" works overtime to mix believable character drama with jolts of surprising plot twists.

Saul isn’t a failure at all. Instead, Saul feels like a series with many of the hallmarks of classic “Breaking Bad” episodes that’s set in the familiar “Bad” universe, emphasizing a similar vibe that mixes personal drama with dark comedy.

This first episode back sets a lot of goals for itself: Remind viewers of the backstory, advance the plot from the cliffhanger, and introduce and resolve the murder-of-the-week. Daisies succeeds in accomplishing these tasks and even finds time for a "Sound of Music" shout-out as Olive pulls a Maria von Trapp en route to a nunnery.

It's edgier than "7th Heaven," but not so edgy that parents will be turned off. It also expands the definition of a family and realistically shows the complexity of intergenerational relationships. [5 Oct 2000, p.D-6]

The series retains its trademark flash forwards that signal murders and/or deceits yet to be revealed. It's one of the show's more operatic touches but this time the revelation, a fantastic and personal driver for stories, feels less like an attempt to manipulate the audience and more rooted in the plausible.

The question becomes will more screen time allow the Big Secret to make sense? That will determine if the whole of Wayward Pines is ultimately worth watching. If nothing else, the first five hours are at turns intriguing, mysterious, engrossing and spooky.

Next week's episode has more taut scenes than tonight's premiere, which has to lay the groundwork for the season. No surprise -- last season, it took several episodes before "24" began to live up to its promise. [29 Oct 2002]

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

They're not making evolutionary leaps but these men do show enough signs of progress that viewers who appreciated their struggles and triumphs in the first season will have renewed reason to cheer them on in season two.

The Tick"is a funny, creative show and a risk worth taking. It's disappointing Fox has so little faith in these oddball superheroes. [8 Nov 2001, p.E-4]

Elfman, the best thing about the short-lived ''Townies,'' is a lovely live-wire who makes eccentricity appear irresistible; Gibson, who was ill-used on ''Chicago Hope,'' is a magnetic leading man who can simultaneously seem vulnerable and stable. As a pair, they fulfill the first essential requirement of a screen romance: they make you want to see them end up together. [24 Sept 1997, p.D-7]

Mad Men relies on its talented cast to communicate the unspoken, to get across the emotions and thoughts that roil just beneath the surface. I'll admit, there are times when I know I'm supposed to intuit something but I'm not completely sure what it is. And that's OK.

An engrossing, humanizing portrait of the British monarch.

Smart and well-acted with clearly defined heroes and villains--all painted in varying shades of gray--this Chicago-set show feels familiar and new at the same time.

Early on, Band of Brothers is more methodical, less emotional due to its large, unwieldy cast. Once the uniformed soldiers put their helmets on, it's tough to tell them apart. If you're like me, you'll spend too much time trying to figure out who just got killed to work up much sympathy for the mystery victim. [9 Sept 2001, p.TV-5]

There's no question this intriguing, seductive series is set to a slow boil. ... But this series picks up its pace in future episodes. Anyone taken with the dark mystery of "Twin Peaks" or "American Gothic" is advised to stay tuned.

NBC only made the premiere available for review, so I can't offer any guarantees that subsequent episodes will not disappoint, but as a pilot, "The Event" gets this series off to a rollicking start.

[Jimmy (Chris Geere) and Gretchen (Aya Cash) are] both terrible people in a myriad ways, and yet, they really seem to connect, which allows “You’re the Worst” to evince an acidic sweetness through its bleakness.

Ultimately, after eight episodes that wax and wane in intensity, viewers learn whose worldview emerges as the accurate one in this case--Hardy's pessimistic take on human nature or Ellie's more positive outlook. In a small town where everyone knows his or her neighbor, unmasking the killer is almost as wrenching as the crime itself.

In its first two episodes, AHS returns as a creepy, spooky jolt of unpredictable storytelling.

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

Big Love succeeds in entertaining through the nuance of its characters, especially perpetually seething Nicki (Chloe Sevigny, queen of the slow burn), one of the three wives of Salt Lake City businessman Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton).

Despite how outlandish some of the scenarios become, they remain relatable.