Crossfire Hurricane deftly blends vintage concert footage, TV broadcasts, pieces of key songs and clips from other documentaries in with voiced-over highlights from 80 hours of fresh interviews with current and past band members--all conducted off-screen.

Grace has a world of promise with thoughtful writing by Nancy Miller ("The Closer," "Any Day Now"), an intriguing take on the nature of faith and a sheer force-of-nature performance by Hunter.

The show's characters have proven to be an engaging bunch over the long haul and several themes embedded in The Game pack more emotional punch than most sitcoms. Judging from fan response, this is clearly a game plan that works.

The solid acting performances and the family dynamics contained in Blue Bloods make for an absorbing hour of television.

Duchovny, as usual, is a kick to watch. He brings just the right touch of casual charm and swagger to the role. Meanwhile, Anthony's Manson is appropriately chilling, even as he utters kooky lines like "I pulled you out of the womb of ignorance and into the light of now." And a sound track full of evocative tunes from the era keeps things humming. All in all, Aquarius makes for a cool summer diversion.

We don’t know if Pitch can sustain its uplifting premise, but after a fun and engaging pilot episode, it’s ahead in the count.

Breakout Kings manages to compensate for its lack of creative ambition with some lively writing, good pacing and an off-kilter sense of humor. It is also blessed with a colorful cast of characters.

Through the early episodes, nothing really happens that you couldn't see coming. Still, the setting is so seductive, the period details so vivid and the acting so stellar, that it's as intoxicating as a potent mojito.

A contrived, yet effective, piece of feel-good television.

The writing is smart, the production is crisp and surprisingly stylish, given the budget, and the show has a fascinating central character in kinetic blogger Dylan Krieger.

Scenes unfold at a leisurely pace and are punctuated with visual flourishes that allow us to soak up moods and emotions. On the other hand, the show suffers from stretches of starchy dialogue, and the uneven pilot episode doesn't adequately deliver on the promise of what's to come.

While Mob City does have its weaknesses, including patches of starchy dialogue, it offsets them with some magnetic performances.

It's familiar sci-fi territory, of course, but the show tackles it in intriguing style while delivering some suspenseful touches.

Dockery’s rousing chameleonic performance, along with the tension-filled interplay she has with Botto, are enough to have us hoping that Good Behavior will ultimately be as good as it can be.

Viewers who look to Downton Abbey for loads of escapist splendor may want to temper their expectations when the wildly popular British drama returns for its fourth season on Sunday.

Supergirl pretty much hits the beats you expect it to hit. There are rollicking battles enhanced by lots of digital trickery. There are hints of sinister threats to come, and some plot twists probably aren't as surprising as the writers think. Still, Supergirl is made with style and assurance, and it does enough to keep things interesting.

This series is about the bonds of family and heated power struggles--with a big dose of vampiric hedonism mixed in. Sounds like the makings of something pretty fang-tastic.

Dallas is teeming with the soapy plots, delectable eye candy and bad blood we crave in our TV guilty pleasures. It also maintains the general tone of the original without devolving into camp.

Whether Rome attains that stature is entirely up to the Nielsen gods, but one thing is certain: The series is a lusty, violent, rollicking saga that is sure to seize plenty of initial attention, if not for its ravishing production values, then for its rampant depiction of ancient-style decadence and debauchery. [27 Aug 2005, p.F4]

For some, it has become a mostly predictable, tired pattern that causes eyes to roll. But for those who can still check their critical capacities at the door--even after seven seasons--24 continues to make for pulse-pounding, nail-biting comfort food.

What Deadwood becomes within its first four episodes is a complex, neo-Shakespearean take on social and institutional corruption, racism, environmental barbarism, and the nature of good and evil. It not only provides a different view of how the West was won but also muses on how the taming of the frontier mirrors modern times. [21 Mar 2004, p.3E]

After watching the show's first three episodes, I'm intrigued, if not totally wowed. But I want to see more.

Based on Sunday's pilot episode, Crisis has the potential to be one of the spring season's most addictive network offerings. It's intense and suspenseful.

It manages to remain faithful to the tone and lively style of the original. Newcomers really don't have to be well-versed in Torchwood lore or "Doctor Who," the series that spawned it, to get a kick out of sci-fi craziness of it all.

[Ricky Jerret, played by John David Washington (Denzel Washington's son) is] the show's secret weapon--a handsome, energetic live-wire who expertly conveys the brash ego and subtle insecurities of a player whose career may be fading into the sunset at the age of 30. But make no mistake, this is Johnson's baby. With that all-glowing smile, he brings his A-game to Ballers while always managing to look good in a suit.

With all this going for it, the real question about The Beat may be whether a smart audience will ever find it buried on the testosterone-driven UPN schedule. The series has some kinks to work out but it's definitely worth tracking down. [21 March 2000, p.1E]

Based on tonight's premiere, this mix of "Star Wars" and "Stagecoach" could prove to be visually ambitious, thematically provocative and full of crackling dialogue. [20 Sept 2002, p.1]

The writing is clever with sly references to the Man of Steel myths. In Welling and Kristin Kreuk, who plays Lana Lang, they have actors who are not only good but will be on the cover of every teen magazine within weeks. And Michael Rosenbaum manages to make Lex sympathetic even when you know he will end up being Superman's greatest enemy. [16 Oct 2001, p.1E]