Befitting its title, "The Sopranos" plays out like an opera; sweeping, subtle currents change directions gradually but powerfully. [16 Jan 2000]

One of TV's funniest and most offbeat series. [5 Apr 1996]

Chiklis is chillingly effective as the brutal, sinister Mackey, a vigilante cop with a lot more than attitude. As the star of The Shield, the first original drama series from cable channel FX, he's prime time's most magnetic, complex and troubling cop since Dennis Franz introduced Andy Sipowicz on "NYPD Blue" back in 1993. [11 Mar 2002, p.D-6]

One of TV's most adult, provocative, outrageous and thought-provoking dramas -- and the bloodiest and most sex-drenched -- Nip/Tuck doesn't just push the envelope, it heaves it clear over the cliff. In an age when the FCC's rabbit-ears are more attuned than ever to what it considers issues of "decency," creator-producer Ryan Murphy and the FX channel are either incredibly brave or impossibly foolhardy. [22 June 2004, p.E-1]

It's apparent that "The Sopranos" is back in top form. [2 Mar 2001]

The smartest and most entertaining new series on the fall schedule. [3 Oct 2004]

Refreshingly original and unusual, an all-too-rare drama that will keep you guessing about the outcome of an episode until the last few minutes. In brief, it's TV's most interesting and compelling -- and therefore the best -- new show of the fall. [29 Sept 2002, p.T6]

It's drastically different from anything I've ever seen on TV: wildly funny, scathingly sardonic and brilliantly executed. [25 Sep 1992]

A sprightly, beguiling series from NBC and the best new show of this fall season. People say one thing and mean another, as they sometimes do in actual life, and keep talking while they try to figure out what they really mean. [8 Oct 2000, p.TV-1]

The pace is fast from start to finish, the situations believable, the actors are obviously enjoying their work, the production is excellent. If there's any justice in the TV business (talk about a reckless assumption), ABC, a network that desperately needs a new hit show, should have one in Sports Night. [22 Sept 1998, p.E-1]

You're going to love Felicity. You don't think so? Well, what's not to love? Felicity has everything we always say we want in a TV show -- reality seen through a romantic eye, beguiling characters, talented actors, smart script, superb production, irresistible story. [27 Sept 1998, p.TV6]

The writing is bitingly crisp, profane and bull's-eye funny. [18 Jul 1995]

Based on this season's first two episodes, "The Larry Sanders Show" maintains its killer aim: It's never been more deliciously caustic or more viciously on-target about Hollywood insiders' egos and insecurities -- or more outright hilarious. [12 Nov 1996]

Looks like the best new TV series of the fall season, filled with fascinating people, ingenious turns of plot, strong, offbeat drama, an unmistakable air of realism and some delicious bits of black comedy. [15 Sept 1986, p.C-1]

TV's most magnetic, compelling new leading actor in years, Benzali is unusual in the medium because he knows that understatement can carry more impact than shouting and scenery chewing. [19 Sept 1995, p.E-1]

Too dark, too true, too uncompromising for the network audience...It isn't really, of course. The suits make a habit of underestimating the American television audience, then they wonder why it keeps leaving. [1 June 2001, p.E-1]

Stylishly produced, with haunting music, darkly diffused lighting and some surprising violence and raw street language, "EZ Streets" has loads of bite and texture. Based on Sunday night's two-hour preview episode, it has the potential to be one of the new season's best dramas. [27 Oct 1996]

NYPD Blue is telling a tough, engrossing story about several fascinating characters...Chief among them is the grimly determined but not humorless Kelly, played by David Caruso with an irresistibly cool, understated intensity. Caruso's performance is the perfect counterpoint to that of Dennis Franz as the constantly fuming, embittered Detective Andy Sipowicz, Kelly's partner. [19 Sept 1993, p.TV-6]

The opener is a dandy little puzzler, opening with what appears to be a certain suicide in view of a crowd. [30 Nov 1987, p.D-9]

By telling one or two stories well, from beginning to end, "Chicago Hope" gets a tighter grip on the viewer's emotions [than "ER"]. [22 Sep 1994]

The series, a marvelous blending of comedy and drama, has been almost too good to be true for both the network and viewers. [23 Sept 1991]

"Roseanne" is without a doubt one of the brightest new entries of the season, one of the most unusual of any season, and one of the most welcome. [18 Oct 1988]

"Ghost Train" was an auspicious start...Spielberg has been working with movies of two or three hours length for a long time, but he can still tell a powerful story in the 25-or-less minutes allowed in a half-hour of commercial television. [30 Sept 1985, p.C-7]

It will inevitably be compared with "The Golden Girls," NBC's hit from last year about four older women sharing a house in Miami...But this entry from CBS is considerably different and, for my money, funnier and better...It is the best new show CBS is offering this season. [28 Sept 1986, p.TV-6]

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]

For the second straight time, the cable channel has rejuvenated a stale, weary TV format, taking a genre that appeared to be staggering under the debilitating effects of old age and overuse and giving it new life. [20 July 2003, p.TV-6]

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

It's one of those premiere episodes that look and feel as if the best is yet to come. [17 Sept 1996, p.E1]