Cold Case pours an old formula into a new bottle and mixes up an amiably entertaining hour that could attract both young fans and those who are still wondering where Jessica Fletcher went. [28 Sept 2003]

A promising, solidly crafted comedy series. [3 Mar 1997]

The Brits just love Ali G, but they have a considerable appetite for rude, politically incorrect satire. Americans may just find him rather peculiar. [21 Feb 2003, p.E5]

What "Enterprise" doesn't have are charismatic, fun characters. [26 Sep 2001]

"Platinum" may be just the black drama that TV has been waiting for. ... It's considerably more fun, irreverent, ironic and energetic than its predecessors. [14 Apr 2003]

I'm still not sure what's going on. It may be more or less than meets the eye, but I'm sure I want to see more. [14 Sep 2003]

Think "Bewitched" for the '90s and Sabrina can be pleasant enough...But only if you buy the concept. [27 Sept 1996, p.E9]

So how come he knows absolutely everything, but some things he doesn't? You're not supposed to ask.

Dangerous Minds is the most appealing and meaningful new drama of the season. And, to borrow a word from the title, it's also the most dangerous. [30 Sept 1996, p.E-1]

Very early on, "Christy" runs into problems of simple logic. [3 Apr 1994]

A pleasant, inoffensive, forgettable way to spend a half-hour. Did I say it's mediocre? Well, maybe so. [20 Sept 1993, p.E-8]

It's not your father's "Cheers." [3 Aug 2005]

Titus deftly carries off the delicate trick of creating comedy out of a background of tragedy and chaos, and for that it deserves a look. [20 March 2000, p.E-7]

It's all a lot of fun, if not terribly consequential, but if you've ever moved into a college dorm with a bunch of strangers, you've been there. [21 May 1992]

TV comedy at its most conventional and least interesting. [17 Sep 1991]

The question that needs to be asked of The L Word is this: Absent the novelty of seeing a cast of lesbian characters on TV, would the lives of these people make for fascinating drama?...The answer, I'm afraid, is -- probably not. [18 Jan 2004, p.TV-6]

Unlike most series based on movies, this one has a great advantage. It's written and produced by the people who made the original, the husband-wife team of Charles Shyer and Nancy Meyers...So the writing and the pacing are crisp and quick, reflecting the confidence and experience of the creators. [10 Sept 1998, p.D-1]

Every situation, every character is a cliché, whether from the Western story shelf or the discount sci-fi stock. Judging from the dusty, rocky scenery, it might have been shot on the planet Borrego.

The new "Family Guy" is much like the first, an animated family sitcom that tries too hard to be quirky and is only sporadically funny. [29 Apr 2005]

The Office has its moments, but it's just too loud and too clumsy...Like the original, the American The Office tries to pull off the most difficult comedy stunt of them all: getting laughs at the expense of a fellow who thinks he's funny but is pathetically, awkwardly, embarrassingly unfunny...The execution is less confident and less successful, more Spike Jones than Mozart. [21 Mar 2005]

MOONLIGHTING IS a quirky comedy, offbeat and free-floating and rather beguiling and very, very talky, which by the way I find refreshing. [26 Mar 1985, p.E9]

In the air, it's a case of "Top Gun" meets "Star Wars," with all the cool, high-tech trappings. Aboard ship, however, it's a low-brow melodrama. [23 Sep 1995]

The only thing for sure about Quantum Leap is that it's a difficult show to explain to anybody, and that the more difficult it is to explain a show, the less likely it is to succeed. [25 Mar 1989, p.C-7]

You get the absorbing pleasure of watching celebrities try a demanding art form that could leave their toes blistered and their egos bruised. It also has the potential to make them look like dorks. [9 Jun 2005]

It's that tongue-in-cheek, lighthearted mood that elevates "Charmed" from the dreary, self-important solemnity that hangs like a pall over so much so-called fantasy and science fiction. [6 Oct 1998, p.E-1]

It worked for the Monkees. Maybe it'll work for O-Town. The concept is almost the same. [24 March 2000, p.E-11]

By delving into a principal character so deeply from the get-go, the newest "CSI" brilliantly one-ups its predecessors. [21 Sep 2004]

So many scenes work so wonderfully well in the first episode of Picket Fences. Trouble is, the show has nearly as many sappy, melodramatic scenes, the kind of cloddy clunkers that ultimately weigh down the entire affair. [13 Sept 1992, p.TV-16]