Quantico

Although a bit over-frenetic at times, the series seems to take inspiration from a man-on-the run Hitchcock thriller.... So far it’s one of the most-promising new shows, and Chopra is someone worth keeping an eye on.

After its unpromising beginning, the pilot has nary a dull moment, and Chopra alone would be reason enough to watch.

We're left with just a sense of promise. And Quantico is a hell of a promising pilot.

The series premiere of Quantico is never dull. Chopra is charming, and so is the rest of the well-assembled cast.

If the first hour is any guide, though, there will be enough action and interplay and people to feel safe around, or suspect, to keep it constantly entertaining.... So far, paying attention to all that is exciting.

The difference between Quantico and other new dramas is that Quantico totes its bullshit with a sense of wit and style.

There are times when Quantico feels a shade mechanical, in moments when you can practically hear the plot gears moving. But it accomplishes what the opener of a whodunit needs to do: establish a wide range of plausible suspects and spark our interest in the mystery and the hero. Which means, so far, they got away with it.

The plot is intricate and compelling, the characters magnetic and mysterious at the same time.

Sure, it’s all sort of dumb, but Quantico also doesn’t mess around.... Chopra brings a sincere, centrifugal force to this swirling story line. You leave the first episode wanting to know what happens next and where this conspiracy leads.

If you're expecting Quantico to be another "Grey's Anatomy," you could be disappointed.

Quantico is slick enough, and well-enough cast, to probably keep a good-sized audience watching.

Prior to the ludicrous escape, the pilot had done an admirable job keeping up the pacing, the interest and certainly the excitement level. That alone should get you to watch the second episode.

It is an odd mix of horrific terrorism and popcorn thriller. But, at least in the first episode, it somehow works.

As much as it adheres to formula, from its photogenic cast to its overly dramatic musical cues and insistence on flashback as a legitimate narrative device, the series is also a great deal of fun, at least in this early stage, blending its ingredients together with commendable gusto.

Writer Josh Safran (season two of “Smash”) allows Quantico to bubble with questions and craftily gives all the characters motives. It’s a crackerjack, character-driven mystery that showcases a uniformly attractive, United Colors of Benetton cast.

If Grey’s Anatomy set at Quantico with a long-term terrorism plot sounds bad to you, proceed no further: This is not your show. If it sounds kind of appealing, as it does to me, Quantico may be your least execrable show of fall.... The pilot doesn’t dwell on the senseless carnage, and if you don't either, what’s left is sexed-up spy games.

This show knows what it wants to do and it churns through its story with efficiency and the gloss that comes from executing the ABC house style with energy and a bit of flair.

If hardly a moment feels plausible, the show has energy to spare and so many balls in the air by the end of the pilot that it's hard not to want to see where they will come down.

Like Grey's Anatomy when it started out, the Quantico cast is mostly young and relatively unheralded, the latter condition likely to remain unless this show's metabolism can be significantly slowed.

The narrative gymnastics make the first half-hour of Quantico pass quickly and entertainingly. Too much of this, though, keeps you from investing much in the characters.

Quantico moves along briskly without nailing down an overall believability.

[Chopra's] attractive, all right, and so is the rest of the telegenic crowd surrounding her. What's missing is much of a reason to care about her (or them). That's the fault of a pilot which spins a wild-eyed premise.

For a show about highly trained, incredibly intelligent agents, Quantico’s pilot often succumbs to lame-brained plotting and a less-than-convincing portrayal of its specialized milieu.