Notorious

The exuberant and universal cynicism of Notorious makes it a lot of fun to watch, even as your concept of morality shrivels up like a vampire in the sun. Not that the show won't force you to ask some searching questions.

The show obvi­ously wants you to believe their characters are meant for each other, but given that this show seems to be teasing everyone with everyone else, it’s hard to take that seriously--or even be inter­ested.

Perabo and Sunjata have fun playing off of each other (notably in an elevator scene), but without each other to spark off of, both performers fall flat.

Admittedly, the collusive relationship between Jake and Julia is a useful plot mechanism. It might even be credible if it weren’t for the fact the rest of the story is so junked up with eyebrow-raisers. Ultimately, the real reason Notorious is at least watchable is the cast. Perabo and Sunjata are magnetic in whatever they do, and they have great chemistry.

The show could work if it took advantage of Perabo and Sunjata’s great dynamic, but right now there aren’t nearly enough lighthearted, banter-filled moments, and the actors appear to be trapped by a script that takes itself way too seriously.

The people are pretty (and pretty underhanded), the situations mildly predictable, and the production as frenetic as any cable news hour.

Notorious is the perfect kind of easy-to-digest, fluffy drama series that doesn’t feel beholden to a deeply serious central event (a la Quantico or Designated Survivor), but whose attractive cast and confidence in its storytelling make it a worthy successor to glossy, fast-paced series like Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder.

The concept is muddy, the twists are hokey, the Shonda Rhimes-esque tone and pace are exhausting, the compelling ethical questions about journalism and the law are unexplored, and the relationship between Sunjata and Perabo is smirky and unintentionally hard to understand.

Featuring unconvincing dialogue. ... Notorious is otherwise instantly forgettable as soon as each scene is completed.

As silly and contrived as Notorious is, it might have worked as an end-of-the-work-week guilty pleasure if it were more fun, or more willing to wink at its own absurdity, or more something. Instead, it takes all of its poorly written media and/or legal manipulations so seriously that the only way to respond is with an eye roll and a yawn.

It’s like the writers are just throwing ideas on a wall to see what sticks. Nothing about this pilot feels finely tuned or carefully constructed. It’s a shame, actually, given the great chemistry between Perabo and Sunjata in the first place.

There are several deaths in the Notorious pilot, but there’s nothing that feels like it’s life-or-death. The story always returns to the eventful but uninteresting frenemyship of Julia and Jake, with its anemic banter and ever-so-slight sexual tension.

The network was probably aiming for “Scandal,” but by the end of the first episode the mix of ridiculous plot twists and awful soap-opera-ish dialogue make you wonder if “Scrambled” might not have been more appropriate title.

A nearly wall-to-wall mess. ... Every convoluted plot twist of the pilot feels like an unnecessary embellishment on top of an already nonsensical premise--because the show also fails to explain why this producer and this lawyer being friends with each other is unusual or interesting.

This is a show without any nutritive value, innate appeal or sense of purpose. It slogs through its muck until the buzzer sounds.

There's little visual style to Notorious, and the main case of the week is standard fare, a trying-to-be-twisty but quite predictable tale of a tech billionaire accused in a hit-and-run, while the B plot about a political blackmailing is completely forgettable.

Mistaking cynicism for sense and creepy for sexy, Notorious just might have been able to yank yet one more thread out of the social fabric--were it not, almost thankfully, so numbingly lazy, stupid and inadequate.

Character likability is actually just one issue. Plausibility is the other.

A show that halfheartedly duplicates the pacing and attitude of previous hits without bothering to create compelling characters or interesting plots.

Notorious is populated by unpleasant, self-absorbed characters, some of whom are murderers. ... Their chemistry is forced. And, like the rest of Notorious, it fizzles. This is certainly a candidate to be the first show canceled this fall.

Almost every beat of Notorious feels off, every emotion or attempt at humor feels sour.