"The Riches" certainly has some rich elements -- there's even a little dark humor, just not enough of it -- but in early episodes, the show remains wobbly as it tries to find its footing.

There's nothing revolutionary about this story of four friends.

It’s a role that could fall into caricature, but Ms. Winfrey brings vulnerability and believability to the part. Henrietta Lacks also benefits from a strong supporting cast. ... The film, directed by George C. Wolfe (“Lackawanna Blues”), stumbles most profoundly in the way it wraps up. The conclusion to the 90-minute film comes too quickly with an abrupt shift in tone.

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.

It's an OK CBS procedural where Weatherly's character, Dr. Jason Bull, always seems like the smartest guy in the room when he's running mock trials using a mock jury.

Gratuitous elements aside, Strike Back is a decent enough cops 'n' terrorists drama.

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.

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

It's not a bad show, just nothing special or innovative. It's another plot-driven, bland character drama from executive producer Dick Wolf. [29 Sept 2001, p.C-6]

Powers doesn't get off to the the best start but the concept is strong and the world so detailed and cleverly built out that it's probably a series that bears some monitoring to see if it will improve.

Family Tools is an occasionally funny (but mostly not) show about a son who takes over his father's handyman business.

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.

A not-awful but not-great drama.

Often funny when it tackles taboo topics head on, the show walks a fine line between honesty and unnecessary crudeness, and it often goes a step too far.

The pilot is relatively inert for a thriller as it pretty much tacks in all the expected directions.

Without some Cliff’s Notes handy, the first half of Monday’s pilot is a muddle as to who’s a Montague and who’s a Capulet. Once Romeo and Juliet die (about halfway through the pilot), Still Star-Crossed improves as the focus shifts to the politics of their deaths and those left behind.

The Odd Couple is genial--but not hilarious--multi-cam sitcom business as usual.

Viewers who crave a nostalgic kick for single-case crime dramas of the late 1990s might find something to like here but for viewers seeking a more contemporary style of storytelling, there are no TV firsts in Murder in the First.

Not wild enough, not funny enough, Wedding Band comes off as merely OK entertainment.

Te pilot episode was written by Michaela Watkins ("Trophy Wife") and Damon Jones ("Peep Show"), who write to Ms. Coupe's comedic strengths while also peppering the background with amusing comic gags (viewers who pay closer attention will reap the most laughs from "Benched"). A second episode sent for review was less funny than the pilot and the plot was also a head-scratcher.

It's a cute, generally uplifting concept but I'm not sure it will work.

Some of his jokes--about the pope’s privates, AIDS and Whitney Houston’s relationship with crack--probably gave an equal number of viewers reason for concern about taste, or elation that Mr. Noah will not pull punches. Senior Mars correspondent Roy Wood Jr. (“Sullivan & Son”) made a strong first impression joking about which black celebrities might get a chance to visit Mars.... Mr. Noah’s least interesting segment was an interview with comic actor Kevin Hart.

Bunga stops a gazelle stampede with a big old passing of gas heard and shown in all its green-hued glory. Kids will love it, of course, and it's certainly better than fighting turtles but between tarnishing memories of the original film and that shouting honey badger, Return of the Road won't encourage co-viewing among children and their parents.

They’re remaking The Tomorrow People and the results are just kind of “meh.”

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.

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.

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

Tries too hard to be tough, but fans of crime dramas might get hooked anyway. [12 Jun 2005]