While it's never as silly or artless as HBO's overpraised "Game Change," Spector is low-stakes, procedure-oriented and deliberately claustrophobic, lacking in the sort of sharply pointed dialogue one may expect from Mamet

Lowe's job of selling Alice's yearning for Wonderland is all the more remarkable for the fact that her world-spanning love with Cyrus comes off a little bit limp in the premiere.

While we don't have the same rush of affection as we did when we first discovered "Downton," we found Mr. Selfridge entertaining.

The pilot was extremely plot-heavy, so we've got our fingers crossed that future episodes will tone down the action and dig deeper into the characters.

Merchant uses his gangly physicality (at 6-foot-7, he towers over everyone else on the show) to good effect in scenes when Stuart is on the make. Despite that, though, and despite the fact that Merchant is willing to make himself the butt of the joke, Hello Ladies doesn't quite pull off the trick of making Stuart someone you want to spend week after week seeing.

Williams signature brand of comedy and big personality dominate the show, but with an ensemble of Sarah Michelle Gellar, James Wolk and Hamish Linklater, it's less one-note than expected.

Through its first three episodes, The Carrie Diaries works quite well as a coming-of-age story, thanks in no small part to Robb's winning performance and a pretty solid cast of young actors around her.

NBC is clearly aiming for a network companion to their successful "Top Chef" franchise here, but while the aesthetics and the challenges are decidedly Bravo-esque, the personalities don't ever come close.

Red Band is one of the brightest shining new shows of the fall TV season, thanks to solid writing and great, endearing cast performances.

The second half of the pilot improves over the first. So there's progress.

Four episodes in, Black Sails is actually spinning a cleverly-crafted tale of intrigue, secrets and deceit surrounding a race for an enormous cache of gold in a Spanish galleon.

The show is no better or worse than "Perfect Couples," "Mad Love" or "Traffic Light." Which is to say it's populated with likable actors and rarely out-and-out bad, but it's also never much more than mildly amusing.

It's a fairly standard crime procedural whose hook doesn't really add much--and actually seems like it could be an obstacle further down the road.

The show is pretty much a by-the-numbers cop show.

Anxious fans should be pleased, and curious viewers outside the usual demographic might even be surprised.

Happyland is definitely a fun show with a lot of original potential. It just needs to trust itself and the ingredients it has already in the stew before going for outlandish soap opera stories over grounded character-based work.

Once you get past the idea that the bad guys are working for the good guys, it's a pretty by-the-numbers crime show.

Not all the cases turn out badly, but enough do that the show takes on a rather grim formula.... That's a lot of talent to work with and the good news is that Monday Mornings shows signs of finding its voice by episode three.

There's enough detail in the setting and characterization to keep it distinct from the mothership, but also more than enough of the template (down to the freeze-frame tic at the open and close of each act) to make it go down like a comforting plate of crawfish etouffee.

Dracula is meant to be powerful and alluring, but this version of him feels stilted and withdrawn.

Whether you like it or not depends on your ability to leap with the show. We won't lie, though. While the pilot is well-executed, once we get into hour two of NBC's planned two hour premiere, we got the feeling that this may be too much of a good thing in one sitting.

Gruffudd carries the series well and brings a trustworthy and genuine presence to the role of Henry Morgan. However, after viewing two episodes, it is unclear where the series is going in the long haul.

The new FX drama from "Homeland" and "24" executive producer Howard Gordon balances family with politics in a show that constantly questions what the right choice is when torn between the two, but oftentimes finds itself bogged down in soap opera-style drama that distracts from the greater, more ambitious story that it's trying to tell.

With so much serial killer programming on TV, like "Hannibal" and "The Following," Those Who Kill could carve out its own little place. But it's going to take some work. On the bright side, the show has Sevigny, who is the clear standout on the series.

Sometimes it's nice to have a fun, well-acted, pleasant sitcom both about and for the family.

This joyful look into the past makes the dullest of facts come alive.

At the end of the day, The McCarthys feels like an incredibly dated concept done incorrectly. If it's not the worst new comedy of the fall, it's certainly giving the others a run for their money.

The Season 4 struggle starts somewhat intriguing, but gets repetitive quick.

The cast is good enough and the premise strong enough to carry it. Right now, though, Deception is a show that doesn't know what it is.

The premiere episode of the new series, "Always and Forever," tells pretty much the same story as the backdoor pilot, only from the point of view of Elijah (not Klaus, as before). This works on some levels but stumbles on others.

Lifetime chose to tell a by-the-numbers tale of passion gone wrong rather than the potentially compelling (if lurid) courtroom story that played out on news channels for weeks earlier this year.

Lucas is actually quite good as Mitch, as is Molly Parker as his wife, Abby. The issue lies more with the mechanics of the plot.

The show is so overstuffed and dancing so fast in its effort to achieve cultdom that it forgets some basic things, like making us care about the characters in the middle of this whole mess or drawing some clear stakes for what happens.

Eventually, the series makes way for just enough plot to give our poor, overstimulated eyes a rest. There's a bit of political maneuvering, fierce rivalries, the examination of slavery vs. free will, ludus-yard hazing and even romance.

Is it must-see TV? Perhaps not, but it's a lively and light addition to The CW lineup and pairs well with the unabashed silliness of "America's Next Top Model."

It's a show I would really like to like, and there are elements present in the pilot that make me want to see how it's doing by, say, episode four or five, but it's not there yet.

Broad, cheap and tedious, it wouldn't have the slightest chance of cracking a major network's schedule during the regular season.

Teen romance does play a major role in [Star-Crossed]... but there's a serious story of prejudice hiding underneath. That serious side--a look into the good and bad of humanity when faced with the "other"--is as compelling as it gets.

This won't be a show focusing on teenage angst, which is a healthy breath of fresh air from a network that capitalizes on brooding male protagonists.... One major aspect the pilot lacks is character development, as the fast-paced action and plot dominate the first hour to set up the series.

It's hardly the worst show of the fall, but it never really lands.

It's a not always comfortable mix of action, drama and comedy, and if it's far from the worst new series to hit the airwaves this season, it's also not at the top of the list. It's a little too middle of the road for its own good.

OTM doesn't immediately grab us the way "Grey's" or "Private Practice" did--though the latter did suffer an admittedly rocky start. This probably has a lot to do with the fact that there seems to be a bit of an identity crisis happening here.

Instead of an entertaining half-hour to ease our wait for the return of "30 Rock," the network has given us another "Outsourced."

It's too cringe-worthy for overempathizing animal lovers, but general audiences might tune in for lighthearted, escapist fun.

Visnjic's smooth and mysterious turn in just a handful of scenes instantly emerges as the best thing Red Widow has going for it. That's either the sign of a series with fundamental flaws, or the roots of a show that will only get better as it goes.

All in all--the action will draw viewers in and the loveable characters will keep them for the long haul.

It feels like a happy medium between "The New Normal" and "Everybody Loves Raymond," but it manages to feel comfortably familiar as opposed to stale and overdone, largely due to the extremely talented, relatable cast.

Action will only take the show so far, but eventually viewers need to care about the characters or they don't have a reason to keep watching and Chase turns into a show that gets watched as an afterthought, not as appointment viewing.

If you're hoping for a slow-building romance, a relatable lead character, and a sweet follow-up to lighthearted lead-in "Hart of Dixie," you're in the right place.

A boring non-event.

It takes awhile to get into the investigation launched by Jeff and Skye. At the same time, the fictional "Cult" TV show seems more compelling than the real Cult TV show we're watching.

Super Fun Night isn't the world's greatest show, but it has some serious potential.

Taken together, the monotone voices and 2D characters end up falling flat.

As you might expect, the results are pretty offensive, but not even for their obvious racial and cultural ignorance. It's the laziness with which every element of this show was assembled that makes Outsourced such an annoying blister of a television series.

The Playboy Club is fun fare. The show could really take off if it chooses to not only be fun, but also explore the various frontiers the 1960s backdrop provides.

Rush is a pretty good pilot that could turn into an excellent addition to USA's lineup of complicated character dramas.

It's Detective Ironside who carries this entire show. No other character is especially memorable in the pilot, with the two characters who stick out the most being Ironside's jerk former partner (Brent Sexton as Gary Stanton) and blonde fellow detective (Spencer Grammer as Holly). Fortunately Underwood lives up to the hype and delivers a flawed, wounded man who is simultaneously a fantastic cop while also being very troubled.

The four guys at the center of the show, in addition to actually being friends before the cameras came around, are portrayed as caring, involved dads, albeit with a few sitcommy quirks.... But thinking the dads on Modern Dads are somehow unique is really not capturing the whole picture.

The disconnect between what Mind Games wants to be and the show bubbling just under the surface makes it a bit of a puzzling viewing experience.

Now that finished episodes are out there, we can tell you that it's not great.

While the show is clearly still finding its footing, there looks to be enough raw material there to make Perfect Couples, if not an instantly vital cog in NBC's Thursday comedy lineup, at least a reason to stay put between "Community" and "The Office."

There are parts of Hart of Dixie that need addressing. The pace lags at certain points. And some of the characters, sometimes even Bilson, are more like caricatures.

Because there's no direction to the story just yet, the show balances on Heigl's appeal. Although she is styled well and written to be likable, she's not going to win you over with her charm.

We think if you are a fan of this franchise, then "Suspect Behavior" should please you.

Labyrinth takes way too long to hit the ground running and introduce the actual story, so part 1 is confusing and fails to get viewers to care about both the past and present storylines.

If you value your time, you'll change the channel after "Modern Family."

While a nice romantic comedy is a good escape, this one uses too many romantic cliches a little too late.

The multicamera, laughtrack sitcom is completely unoriginal, the jokes are recycled and many of the characters--especially Reba's obnoxious teenage son and daughter--are underdeveloped stereotype. Still, the charismatic country star and Tomlin's droll Lillie Mae, who successfully balances her sharp tongue with surprising softness, are entertaining.

For all its stylistic appeal, one sizable problem remains with Allen Gregory--it's not funny.

Well, let's hope the show gets better after the pilot episode.

Just know going in that you'll be far better served by acknowledging the towering silliness of the plot, because it's just about impossible to take it seriously.

Despite being populated with likable actors giving mostly solid performances, it's hard to escape the feeling that you've seen this before.

The pilot shows promise, especially seeing the chemistry between (at least three of) the leads, but Episode 2 treads no new sitcom ground.

You might feel bad for the wine, and maybe for the hour you could have spent doing other things. You probably won't feel bad for Sara or Jack.

The Cole/Price problem just continues to come across as ridiculous, rather than serious. It doesn't keep the viewer invested in the character at all.

The show feels like it should be better.

It quickly devolves into borderline slapstick comedy that was old when the Three Stooges were doing it.

It is the perfect mix of fun and cheesiness that makes holiday films so enjoyable.

It still carries a decidedly throwback vibe, and the ongoing bluster about the state of manhood in the world feels, at best, two steps behind the times.

There are random fast forwards to jump to the parts of Aaliyah's story Lifetime was able to secure the rights to tell rather than trying to portray an accurate timeline of her career. For fans of the late singer it feels egregious and for casual watchers it's disorienting and uncomfortable.

From shows like "Alias" to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" to "Nikita," it has become commonplace to see hot chicks action stars. So a "Charlie's Angels" reboot has to offer something else in order to work. And it doesn't.

There's no on-screen chemistry between Schneider and Bassols, the jokes are weak and the acting is forgettable.

There was one laugh-out-loud moment in the premiere and that was when son Henry imitated his father and William Shatner's character remarked that no one can do a good impression of him. Otherwise it was a lot of furrowed-brow staring at the TV when the laugh track roared, wondering what the #*!! they were laughing at.

Liz & Dick, Lindsay Lohan's corny "comeback vehicle," is so awful it makes the entire slate of Lifetime guilty-pleasure TV movies look like Masterpiece Theatre.

When you add to that a string of obvious, unfunny cross-dressing jokes and a set of female characters that are barely even one-dimensional, the premise pretty much collapses entirely.

This new CBS drama proved to be as trite and cliched as was expected, with the extra added bonus of gratuitous violence perpetrated against women that did nothing but produce a disgusted eyeroll.

It's the kind of sitcom writing that gives sitcoms a bad name.

After about 10 minutes of "Jersey Shore," I needed to pick my slack jaw up off the coffee table, so stunning was the display of mookitude.