It clicks, crackles and arrests attention with a blend of compromised cops, assorted criminals and homier family values.

HBO has done it again, investing in a project of substance and a lead actress who powers it home.

The portrayal of Paterno is right up there with Pacino’s very best work. Kudos to HBO for keeping him center stage, which is where he still belongs.

Empire, its flaws notwithstanding, looks as though it has the potential to be a mainstream success. It roars into view and keeps everything humming throughout its all-important first episode.

The Jim Gaffigan Show showcases its star at his exasperated best, putting his now well-honed spin on the befuddled dad genre from which many a sitcom has supped.

Freak Show looks like a beauty, with a wealth of fascinating characters and a little smattering of heart helping to balance out the grisly appointed rounds of a so far unidentified clown with a hellish half-mask.

Edelstein’s pitch-perfect performance elevates Girlfriends’ Guide to one of the best new series of the season.

Anderson is quite good in the lead role, though, and Sasse nicely upholds his half of the equation. But No Tomorrow decidedly is not a step-up from either Crazy Ex-Girlfriend or Jane the Virgin.

Investing in ABC’s Emergence looks like it could be a winning proposition. And even if the suspense and premise begin to sag, there’s always Allison Tolman to keep hope alive. ... Tolman’s performance is thoroughly grounded.

The Detour isn’t always in full command of its absurdities, but the killer lines keep coming.

A grossly uneven but still oft-scintillating mess-terpiece.

Protective town officials, ostracism and an increasingly divided community serve as appendages in a multi-layered whodunit/coverup with enough pulling power to endure for the rest of this summer and early fall.

The producers of Pitch of course say that it’s a character-driven drama with baseball action in the mix but not a focal point of each weekly episode. Episode One, however, is appealingly diamond-centric, with Ginny’s travails and resolve (plus some well-chosen mood music) providing more than enough tension to engage even hardcore non-sports fans.

Despite its flaws, 11.22.63 ends up closing the deal in a way that for the most part makes it a long, strange time travel worth taking.

Creature Shop Challenge is inviting enough to merit another look. Not for its pro forma adherence to the “reality competition” handbook but for whatever creative hoops await its very eager group of contestants.

For now, The Killing has made a very good re-start.

Manhunt’s navigations of clues and dead ends at times are enough to keep this pot simmering if not boiling. Nor is there anything wrong with Clunes’ lead performance, which unfortunately is in service to a not-so-greater whole.

It’s a solid enough re-start to a series that Showtime already has renewed for two more seasons beyond this one.

Bold, provocative and at its core heartbreakingly endearing, it borrows from the original mold--and then breaks it.

Authentically grimy, solidly built and well-paced, Hatfields & McCoys is violent without being gratuitous.

Dinklage excels in a very difficult role to pull off while Dornan keeps pace as his reluctant Boswell. Their love story, so to speak, is both an entertaining romp and a cautionary tale about a rocket ride to fame and the abundant excesses and afflictions that often are part and parcel.

Galifianakis, Anderson and Kelly fit their roles like the thick rubber gloves used in emptying human waste from portable johns. What fine messes they’re in.

Even with its air-brushing and reticent title subject, Ethel is a watchable, oft-affecting film.

Seven Seconds, which runs for more than 10 hours that seem like 15, follows the grim and grimy Sud playbook without really saying much of anything new. The fault lies not with its stars, most of whom perform very ably or well beyond that. It’s just that sometimes enough is enough.

Murder jumps around a lot, to the point where it’s perhaps too much.

Arkin is a cinch Emmy nominee for his contributions and Douglas may well find himself along for that ride. The scenes with the acting class students for the most part don’t work as well. ... Viewers of a certain age may well respond with knowing head nods to the age-old predicaments that Sandy and Norman find themselves in. But the series might also have some traction with advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds.

Bent ends up being worth watching for the recurring grins it provides. Just don't expect to ever know what happens to any of its main characters.

A Very Murray Christmas is as uneven as a child’s first effort to build and frost a gingerbread house. It’s also different, which sometimes works in its favor.