Love It! Hate It! 09.29.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Ugly Betty (ABC)
“America Ferrera is instantly and consistently likable as Betty.”
Matthew Gilbert, Boston Globe

Ugly Betty (ABC)
“‘Betty’ mixes comedy, social commentary and drama in a way that few other programs manage to pull off.”
Maureen Ryan, Chicago Tribune

Ugly Betty (ABC)
“It retains a charm that far outstrips expectations.”
Tim Goodman, San Francisco Chronicle

Ugly Betty (ABC)
“This juicy comedy-drama recaptures the fun of ‘Desperate Housewives’ in its first season.”
Hal Boedeker, Orlando Sentinel

Survivor: Cook Islands (CBS)
“The world, she keeps on turning, and ‘Survivor,’ it keeps on being the same contrived old game it always has been, regardless of how ‘shocking’ the twist may be.”
Melanie McFarland, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Survivor: Cook Islands (CBS)
“Mark Burnett's great Social Experiment was, in reality, a Media Experiment, and a somewhat cynical one at that.”
Barry Garron, The Hollywood Reporter

Moms on the Road: Africa (Travel)
“It's a dialogue that digs deeper than pitting folks against each other for immunity idols.”
Josh Wolk, Entertainment Weekly

Love It! Hate It! 09.28.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Jericho (CBS)
" 'Jericho' hasn't quite decided what show it wants to be…"
Robert Bianco, USA Today

Jericho (CBS)
"There's nothing compelling about taking shelter or about the slow spread of radiation."
Mike Hughes,Gannett News Service

Jericho (CBS)
"Downbeat and earnestly preachy about community and survival, this weird show is further hampered by glum Skeet Ulrich's miscasting as the all-purpose prodigal hero."
Matt Roush, TV Guide

One Tree Hill (CW)
"Here's another WB series that should have died instead of 'Everwood'"
Mike Duffy, Detroit Free Press

Generation Boom (TV Land)
"There's no shortage of grin-worthy images and deft editing in 'Generation Boom', but no real insight."
Erik Pedersen, The Hollywood Reporter

Kidnapped (NBC)
"Sleek, action-packed and heavy on the acting talent…"
Aaron Barnhart, Kansas City Star

Love It! Hate It! 09.27.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Help Me Help You (ABC)
“… provides more of an incentive to get off the couch than to plop down on one.”
Brian Lowry, Variety

Help Me Help You (ABC)
“I don't need Freud to tell me that ABC has drilled right into my TV-pleasure center.”
Josh Wolk, Entertainment Weekly

Help Me Help You (ABC)
“Danson, always funny, is really on his game here.”
Linda Stasi, New York Post

Help Me Help You (ABC)
“…it's funny in its own way, smarter than most TV comedies and has a terrific cast — all of which makes me wonder why I'm not more moved by it.”
Robert Lloyd, LA Times

Help Me Help You (ABC)
“There's a strong odor of desperation on-screen, as if the competent and seasoned actors here know they're in this for a short ride.”
Verne Gay, Newsday

Gilmore Girls (CW)
“…may be the worst hour of network prime time you'll experience this fall…”
Melanie McFarland, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Gilmore Girls (CW)
“‘Girls’ returns re-energized.”
Rob Owen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

P.O.V.: Maquilapolis (PBS)
“…the filmmakers set out to show life as the workers see it, and they succeed, with often appalling clarity.”
Neil Genzlinger, New York Times

Love It! Hate It! 09.26.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Heroes (NBC)
"If you can stand to add another hour to your TV diet, this is the one to add."
Mike McDaniel, Houston Chronicle

Heroes (NBC)
"This eerie drama is like no other, a reason for celebration in copycat television."
Hal Boedeker, Orlando Sentinel

Heroes (NBC)
"In a year of multiple 'Lost' -like large ensemble dramas …'Heroes' soars far above the rest."
Rob Owen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Heroes (NBC)
"The writing is uneven…but the idea is audacious enough to keep you following the loose threads."
James Poniewozik, Time Magazine

Runaway (CW)
"…plays out like one very long, not-very-exciting family vacation."
Tim Goodman, San Francisco Chronicle

Runaway (CW)
"'Runaway' fails as an escapist thriller and it fails as a drama of teen angst, and together they fail even more."
Andrew Lyons, Media Life

Runaway (CW)
"…the CW network may have found its first noninherited success story."
David Bianculli, New York Daily News

Marie Antoinette (PBS)
"…good entertainment and surprisingly strong history to boot."
Sam Allis, Boston Globe

Marie Antoinette (PBS)
"…an excellent PBS journal."
Irv Letofsky, The Hollywood Reporter

Love It! Hate It! 09.25.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Brothers and Sisters (ABC)
" …an incoherent, almost unwatchable mess…"
Charlie McCollum, San Jose Mercury News

Brothers and Sisters (ABC)
"…a well crafted hour of what may well be the better ensemble dramas to air on network TV."
Drew Mackie, After Elton

Brothers and Sisters (ABC)
"… it's an earnestly predictable but impeccably produced soap opera, with a blue-chip cast of characters as rich and beautiful as they are miserable and mopey…"
Matt Roush, TV Guide

Brothers and Sisters (ABC)
"This new ABC concoction is a piece of fakery that goes through the motions of a 'dysfunctional family drama' and winds up as a dysfunctional 'dysfunctional family drama.'"
Matthew Gilbert, Boston Globe

Desperate Housewives (ABC)
"For though they may have improved from a year ago, the characters are still the over-the-top caricatures of the last 44 episodes and it all seems so redundantly feckless now."
Tim Goodman, San Francisco Chronicle

Desperate Housewives (ABC)
"Pass the word: If you've given up on 'Desperate Housewives,' it's time to return to the neighborhood."
David Bianculli, New York Daily News

Law and Order (NBC)
"…a clockwork concept that just keeps rolling along, a singular oasis of creative stability in a notoriously fickle television world."
Ray Richmond, The Hollywood Reporter

Brotherhood (HBO)
"…one of the very best shows on TV that almost no one is watching."
Mike Duffy, Detroit Free Press

Love It! Hate It! 09.22.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Shark (CBS)
“Subtract James Woods from ‘Shark’ and you'd have an empty carcass.”
Jonathan Storm, The Philadelphia Inquirer

Shark (CBS)
“As Sebastian Stark…Mr. Woods has found a television role that suits his gift and runs away with it.”
Alessandra Stanley, New York Times

Shark (CBS)
“ ‘Shark’ is one of the season's best and fastest-moving new dramas…”
Tom Shales, The Washington Post

Shark (CBS)
“Good actors can get away with glib, and Woods is one of the best, persuasive enough to have you spotting freshness in the familiar and wisdom in clichés.”
Diane Werts, Newsday

Six Degrees (ABC)
“Six Degrees fancies itself as clever but is really little more than a one-trick pony.”
Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly

Six Degrees (ABC)
“It's meant to explore the degrees of separation that connect people - but after watching one episode, I was ready to make the separation permanent.”
David Bianculli, New York Daily News

Six Degrees (ABC)
“…the romantic sense of yearning that infuses ‘Six Degrees’ is refreshing in a TV schedule full of corpses and cops.”
Maureen Ryan, Chicago Tribune

ER (NBC)
“It's still going strong and it's still a great show.”
Sandy Deane, America Online

My Name Is Earl (NBC)
“Things seem to be off to a good start for ‘My Name Is Earl’, and let's hope they can keep the momentum going.”
Michael Sciannamea, TV Squad

Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)
“This is a show that is all pleasure and no guilt.”
Robert Bianco, USA Today

Love It! Hate It! 09.21.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Jericho (CBS)
“…a catastrophic nuclear crisis never looked as boring and convoluted as it does here.”
Melanie McFarland, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Jericho (CBS)
“A good idea mushrooms into a dull show.”
Robert Bianco, USA Today

Jericho (CBS)
“‘Jericho’s’ questions could make the series the next big TV addiction.”
Mark A. Perigard, Boston Herald

Jericho (CBS)
“It's an interesting approach, but despite well-drawn characters and the strong cast, there's a sense that the show is trapped in amber, a perfectly preserved relic from another age.”
Glenn Garvin, Miami Herald

Kidnapped (NBC)
“…stylishly executed TV brain food, a little too moody for its own good but otherwise fine pulp.”
Paul Brownfield, LA Times

Kidnapped (NBC)
“The visuals are moodily lovely; the plotting is tight; it's an all-around high-class production.”
James Poniewozik, Time Magazine

Kidnapped (NBC)
“'Kidnapped' is captivating but could use a little more mystery.”
Matthew Gilbert, Boston Globe

Andy Warhol: A Documentary Film (PBS)
“In terms of personal reminiscence and expert commentary, we probably will never see a better popular account of Andy Warhol's life and work…”
Kenneth Baker, San Francisco Chronicle

Andy Warhol: A Documentary Film (PBS)
“A fascinating, if overlong look at one very strange dude.”
Ray Richmond, The Hollywood Reporter

Love It! Hate It! 09.20.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Smith (CBS)
"…'Smith' is as slick as Dean Martin's hair, but as 'been-there' as 'Ocean's 14'"
Linda Stasi, New York Post

Smith (CBS)
"Interesting but not fully compelling, it's a long shot to make a big score."
Brian Lowry, Variety

Smith (CBS)
"Psychologically, 'Smith' is like 'The Sopranos' on baby aspirin."
Jonathan Storm, Philadelphia Inquirer

Smith (CBS)
"It's a smart series with a pacing that sometimes takes your breath away."
Aaron Barnhart,Kansas City Star

The Megan Mullally Show (Syndicated)
"If she ever gets over her jitters…it may actually have some entertainment value."
Roger Catlin, Hartford Courant

The Megan Mullally Show (Syndicated)
"…dead on arrival."
David Bianculli, New York Daily News

Standoff (FOX)
" 'Standoff' doesn't re-create the genre, but it certainly refreshes it."
Gillian Flynn, Entertainment Weekly

Love It! Hate It! 09.19.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (NBC)
“…‘Studio 60’ - with its intelligent dialogue, ironic humor, brilliant acting and Schlamme's inspired direction -- lays claim to being the most exciting new show of the season.”
Barry Garron, The Hollywood Reporter

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (NBC)
“‘Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip’ is the best new series of the fall season, hands down - and a relief to anyone who thought smart, sophisticated drama might have died with ‘The West Wing’.”
Gail Pennington, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (NBC)
“Teeming with rich characters and terrific actors, brimming with wit, drama and unexpected urgency, ‘Studio 60’ brings its workplace to full, immensely entertaining life.”
Robert Bianco, USA Today

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (NBC)
“There is nothing else quite like it on television…”
Alessandra Stanley, New York Times

The Class (CBS)
“Everyone involved with this sorry production should be flunked right out of show business.”
Mark A. Perigard, Boston Herald

The Class (CBS)
“In the mostly undistinguished roll call of new comedies, it goes to the head of the class.”
Brian Lowry, Variety

The Class (CBS)
“Minor quibbles aside, we'd indeed be lucky if ‘The Class’ turns out to be one of this year's most likely to succeed.”
Drew Mackie, After Elton

Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater (HBO)
“…a funny, affectionate and extraordinarily insightful film…”
Glenn Garvin, Miami Herald

Rachael Ray (Syndicated)
“She wears mom jeans, calls extra virgin olive oil E.V.O.O., and everything else ‘delish'...and there's nothing you can do about it because Oprah's got her back.”
Alynda Wheat, Entertainment Weekly

Love It! Hate It! 09.14.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

The Underground (SHOWTIME)
"Oh, the void, the Chappelle void."
Virginia Heffernan, New York Times

The Underground (SHOWTIME)
"…a cafeteria of crap."
Michael Endelman, Entertainment Weekly

The Underground (SHOWTIME)
"Sometimes hilarious, sometimes not, but the humor always comes from a good place."
Barry Garron, The Hollywood Reporter

The Underground (SHOWTIME)
"…this latest sketch exercise plays like warmed-over improv stew that labors way too hard to shock."
Brian Lowry, Variety

Happy Hour (FOX)
"'Happy Hour', or as I like to call it: 'Really, Fox? This?'"
Paul Brownfield, LA Times

Happy Hour (FOX)
"…the fall's lamest new comedy."
Hal Boedeker, Orlando Sentinel

Survivor: Cook Islands (CBS)
"To make a gimmicky game of race is witless, lame, obvious and unnecessary."
Kevin McDonough, United Features Syndicate

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

The Today Show (NBC)
"If Meredith Vieira's 'Today' gig doesn't work out, at least she can get a book from the experience: 'When Stupid Shows Happen to Smart Women.'"
Mark A. Perigard,Boston Herald

The Today Show (NBC)
"Vieira has mastered the tonal tightrope walk between being taken seriously and keeping the proceedings light and moving."
Brill Bundy, Zap 2 It

The Today Show (NBC)
"Cake smashed into faces, on-air bickering, gushing over cute boys--maybe Meredith Vieira's new gig isn't so different from the old one after all."
Gina Serpe, E!

The Greg Behrendt Show (Syndicated)
"That the spiky-haired, goateed host is entertaining is clear enough, but it is difficult to imagine visiting daily with a hipster dude whose whole spiel surrounds making a mockery of our romantic lives."
Ray Richmond, The Hollywood Reporter

Project Runway (BRAVO)
"Admit it: You just want this season over so you can buy Michael's line."
Alynda Wheat,Entertainment Weekly

Love It! Hate It! 09.13.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Men in Trees (ABC)
"…a halfhearted, feebleminded attempt at a situation comedy…"
Tom Shales,Washington Post

Men in Trees (ABC)
"…a clever, stylish entertainment treat."
Mike Duffy,Detroit Free Press

Men in Trees (ABC)
"…puts a pleasing spin on a well-worn romantic comedy premise."
Robert Lloyd,LA Times

Standoff (FOX)
"An awkward pairing of adult relationship drama and procedural cop show, 'Standoff' bombs on both counts."
Phil Gallo, Variety

Standoff (FOX)
"'Standoff' fails to connect on almost every level…"
Melanie McFarland,Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Desire / Fashion House (MY NETWORK TV)
"There are desires that are best left unfulfilled."
Robert Bianco, USA Today

Love It! Hate It! 09.12.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

The Path to 9/11 (ABC)
“ ‘The Path’ is an irresponsible film, with its factual distortions wrapped in a really terrific package that lulls viewers into complacency, setting them up for the propaganda that is to follow.”
Samantha Bonar, LA Times

The Path to 9/11 (ABC)
“That it also happens to be powerfully acted, artfully produced and shot like a truly riveting page-turner is sure to be overshadowed by the controversy it is generating.”
Ray Richmond, The Hollywood Reporter

The Path to 9/11 (ABC)
“It is intensely serious, and seriously well done.”
Matt Roush, TV Guide

Dust to Dust: The Health Effects of 9/11 (SUNDANCE)
“…powerful and persuasive…”
Anita Gates, New York Times

Vanished (FOX)
“‘Vanished’ is one of those dramas that's so ‘unpredictable,’ it's predictable.”
Gillian Flynn, Entertainment Weekly

The Keith Ablow Show (Syndicated) “He'll have you all figured out and on the path to wellness in under an hour, we promise.”
Sandy Deane, America Online

Love It! Hate It! 09.11.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

The Wire (HBO)
“‘The Wire’ reclaims its place in the top tier of American drama.”
Matt Roush, TV Guide

The Wire (HBO)
“….the best series on TV, period.”
Gillian Flynn, Entertainment Weekly

The Wire (HBO)
“HBO’s ambitious series retains its anger and its extraordinary storytelling.”
Aaron Barnhart, Kansas City Star

The Path to 9/11 (ABC)
“Dramatic license was certainly taken, but blame is spread pretty evenly across the board.”
Alessandra Stanley, New York Times

The Path to 9/11 (ABC)
“Too confused for a documentary, insufficiently dramatized for a movie, ‘Path’ simply doesn't have the skill needed to support its intentions.”
Robert Bianco, USA Today

The Path to 9/11 (ABC)
“On a simple quality drama level, it's the best network miniseries in several years.”
Mike Duffy, Detroit Free Press

Koppel on Discovery: The Price of Security (DISCOVERY)
“…the kind of important and thoughtful work you practically never see on network television.”
Barry Garron, The Hollywood Reporter

Koppel on Discovery: The Price of Security (DISCOVERY)
“…it has the same depth and insight of his best work at ABC…”
Charlie McCollum, San Jose Mercury News

Love It! Hate It! 09.07.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

‘Til Death (FOX)
“This is probably the worst sitcom of the fall.”
Tim Goodman, San Francisco Chronicle

‘Til Death (FOX)
“Put it this way: Any comedy that milks multiple jokes from a character being named ‘Woodcock’ is pretty much running on fumes.”
Brian Lowry, Variety

‘Til Death (FOX)
“Finally, the sun breaks through the clouds that have already gathered around Fox's new season with a show that is so achingly familiar - in content, tone, stars, everything - that it's actually funny.”
Verne Gay, Newsday

‘Til Death (FOX)
“…there’s an easygoing red-state pleasantness to it too, a celebration of timeless and consoling suburban inertia.”
Virginia Heffernan, New York Times

Happy Hour (FOX)
“Watching ‘Happy Hour’ …is a bit like getting hung over without ever having been drunk.”
Matthew Gilbert, Boston Globe

Happy Hour (FOX)
“…a bad morph-job of ‘Seinfeld’ and ‘Friends’ but without the simplicity of the first, the chemistry of the second or the brilliance, timing, and writing of either.”
Linda Stasi, New York Post

Breaking Up with Shannen Doherty (OXYGEN)
“It may be her worst acting job yet.”
Josh Bell, Media Life

Love It! Hate It! 09.06.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric (CBS)
"…professional, fairly relevant and only slightly cheesy."
Doug Elfman, Chicago Sun-Times

The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric (CBS)
"…as breakthroughs go, it's hardly Hillary in '08."
Brian Lowry, Variety

The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric (CBS)
"What Couric and her new producers brought to the 'CBS Evening News' was a casualness, a softening of the formerly stern, aging-male anchor style so readily mocked in TV skits."
Tim Goodman, San Fransisco Chronicle

The View (ABC)
"If you thought months of youtube.com wackiness was as weird as 'The View' could get, you thought wrong."
Maureen Ryan, Chicago Tribune

The View (ABC)
"It's a fascinating social experiment, like adding a new fish to the aquarium."
David Hiltbrand, Philadelphia Inquirer

Project Runway (BRAVO)
"With its chic and creative challenges, kooky but talented contestants, and a secret weapon named Tim Gunn, the Emmy-nominated 'Project Runway' is turning haute couture into très addictive TV."
Missy Schwartz, Entertainment Weekly

Justice (FOX)
"But for all its fast cuts and headache-inducing visual style, it's simply one more show that connects the dots in solving a crime."
Josh Bell, Media Life

Love It! Hate It! 09.05.06

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Standoff (FOX)
“The tonal dissonance in ‘Standoff’ is deafening, like pairing up, say, Jewel and Meat Loaf for a duet.”
Matthew Gilbert, Boston Globe

Standoff (FOX)
“It's hard to imagine a civilized audience of any significant size wanting to sit through these trumped-up conflicts and lazy-daisy crises week after week.”
Tom Shales, Washington Post

Nip/Tuck (FX)
“…‘Nip/Tuck’ is more or less back on track, and the Carver is thankfully nowhere in sight.”
Maureen Ryan, Chicago Tribune

Nip/Tuck (FX)
“ ‘Nip/Tuck’ too often turns into ‘General Hospital’ with liposuction instead of life support, and breast implants in lieu of amnesia and evil twins.”
Alessandra Stanley, New York Times

The Nominees (SUNDANCE)
“It's all utterly ridiculous and at the same time ingeniously subtle, the kind of inventive comedy that leaves you pining for more.”
Ray Richmond, The Hollywood Reporter

Desire / Fashion House (MY NETWORK TV)
“Passable production values, naughtiness about as salty as an issue of Maxim and some pretty stiff acting provide modest camp allure, but it's hard to imagine either new series qualifying as a so-bad-it's-good guilty pleasure.”
Brian Lowry, Variety

The View (ABC)
“This new ‘View’ is still a team effort, but one that is already Rosie-centric.”
Bob Sassone, TV Squad

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Dan Rather: A Reporter Remembers (CBS)
“One thing Rather may remember after tonight is the lousy Labor Day weekend time slot given him by the network he devotedly served for so many decades.”
David Bianculli, New York Daily News

Dan Rather: A Reporter Remembers (CBS)
“Talk about your grudging tributes.”
Robert Bianco, USA Today

Weeds (SHOWTIME)
“‘Desperate Housewives’ for smart people.”
Alessandra Stanley, New York Times

Weeds (SHOWTIME)
“…if ‘Weeds’ doesn't deliver belly laughs, to say it's moderately addictive isn't just blowing smoke.”
Brian Lowry, Variety

Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of Diff'rent Strokes (NBC)
“…a rather clunky flick that supplies further evidence as to why the made-for-TV-movie genre remains on life support.”
Ray Richmond, The Hollywood Reporter

Merlin’s Apprentice (HALLMARK)
“…destined to magically disappear from your memory before the end of the closing credits.”
Clark Collis, Entertainment Weekly

Inside the Twin Towers (DISCOVERY)
“It’s the most harrowing special to date and begs the question: At what point do these 9/11 films cross over from tributes to snuff films?”
Mark A. Perigard, Boston Herald

Love It! Hate It! 09.01.06

« 08.01.06 10.01.06 »

Video Music Awards (MTV)
“Music videos — remember them?”
Melissa Rayworth, The Associated Press

Video Music Awards (MTV)
“What we will see come VMA night will be a big media monster trying to come across as something youthful, adaptable and tapped into the pulse of the new generation.”
David Hyland, NBC 30

A Closer Walk (PBS)
“‘A Closer Walk’ is an extremely humane, warm-hearted and conscientious film, filled with patients, dedicated caregivers, passionate advocates, and especially children who you'll come to know, respect and maybe even love.”
Jack Garner, Gannet News Service (The News Journal)

Midnight Money Madness (TBS)
“This is either a really dumb idea or an ingenious one, I haven't figured out which.”
Adam Finley, TV Squad

Celebrity Duets (FOX)
“The principal problem with this slavish copy of ‘Idol’, even beyond its basic cheesiness, is the celebrity singers themselves.”
Robert Bianco, USA Today