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.

As a single fortysomething mom, star Courteney Cox is in full frantic mode, yelling at and pushing everyone in sight, which makes for an entertaining (if not exhausting) half-hour comedy.

A pleasant surprise. [26 Jun 2003]

Like his previous series, "Studio 60" features intelligent, quickly spoken dialogue, smart arguments and terrific performances (Perry and Whitford have instant chemistry as longtime co-workers), and it's not a bad show by any means, but it doesn't soar to the heights "West Wing" did, even in its earliest episodes.

Valentine, created by Kevin Murphy ("Desperate Housewives," "Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical"), is fine but nothing special.

Still a claustrophobic show, and some of the uncomfortable stories from last year -- especially teenager Matt (John Hensley) and his involvement in a hit and run -- return, but a lot of the themes are at least a little more palatable and thought-provoking. [22 June 2004, p.B-1]

A little overheated, too obvious and too cliche-ridden. But it's still an entertaining yarn. [23 Sept 2003, p.B-1]

The plot focus this year will surely be on the discovery of a male series of clones, Project Castor, all played by actor Ari Millen. It’s a welcome re-set that may prevent Orphan Black from becoming more complicated than it already is.

As CBS procedurals go, Battle Creek is smarter and a little funnier than average.

Ripper Street is decent enough entertainment that's most likely to appeal to fans of procedural crime dramas, viewers who gravitate toward CBS shows but don't mind wading through sometimes thick British accents.

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?

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).

But when Braugher's Dr. Ben Gideon disappears, Gideon's Crossing becomes a long, languidly-paced trip through a Boston teaching hospital. [10 Oct 2000, p.D-8]

Though the storytelling isn't groundbreaking, the setting is unusual by mainstream TV standards.

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

Now Apocalypse is bizarre and will certainly be off-putting to many. For others, surely a smaller audience, there’s some titillating fun to be had in this guilty pleasure’s kinky weirdness.

The eight-episode first season of American Gods takes about four episodes to cohere, especially for any viewers unfamiliar with the novel. ... Mostly it is Mr. McShane’s performance that carries the early episodes. His Mr. Wednesday is self-assured, charming and cutthroat all at once.

Smith is a winning TV star who's adept at scenes that require great empathy or a withering stare. Given time (and more realistic characterizations), Hawthorne may grow into a series worthy of her talents.

The Birthday Boys is a consistently funny show for viewers who are regular consumers of pop culture and recognize the elements from TV and film that are being spoofed.

Elementary entertains intermittently, particularly in exchanges between Holmes and Watson, but its draw will be strongest among viewers who can't get enough crime dramas in their TV diet.

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.

Given the topic, Too Big to Fail might seem like a movie made only for policy wonks but even if you don't understand the finer points of monetary policy, it's still entertaining because it features that great equalizer in American popular culture: Wealthy, well-heeled people behave like jerks, allowing the less wealthy a certain superior satisfaction.

Show Me a Hero spends too little time with these characters [African-American residents of existing Yonkers housing projects] in early episodes for them to make as big an impact as the drama surrounding the white politicos arguing about their future.

Overall, Z Nation is pretty grounded and also manages to surprise viewers with the characters it chooses to sacrifice in its pilot episode.

It's not groundbreaking TV, but the pilot does a good job of introducing the characters, their relationships, their potential relationships.

Some of the humor works less well--Martin playing five instruments while flipping through a sketch pad is more strange than funny--but Martin is clearly a smart guy and his intellectual humor succeeds more often than it fails.

HBO's Clear History, a cable movie that plays very much like an overlong episode of "Curb."

If Vegas goes the "Good Wife" route and focuses on characters and politics, it could develop into a worthwhile series.