Diane Werts, Newsday
Select another critic »
For 232 reviews, this critic has graded:
-
67% higher than the average critic
-
2% same as the average critic
-
31% lower than the average critic
On average, this critic grades 0.3 points higher than other critics.
(0-100 point scale)
Diane Werts' Scores
- TV
| Average review score: | 64 |
|---|---|
| Highest review score: |
Critic Score
100
|
| Lowest review score: |
Critic Score
0
|
Score distribution:
-
Positive: 145 out of 232
-
Mixed: 46 out of 232
-
Negative: 41 out of 232
232
tv reviews
- By critic score
-
-
Diane Werts 100
Wallops don't get more walloping than the one that arrives at the end of the premiere of FX's adult cop show The Shield. Won't tell you what it is, and don't you dare read other reviews in case they blab it. This is one of those punch-in-the-stomach moments of TV you'll want to remember being stunned by. Although The Shield looks pretty dang good to that point - or pretty %@$#! good, as its characters would swear - the show suddenly becomes flat-out brilliant. [12 Mar 2002, p.B27]Posted Mar 19, 2013 -
-
-
Diane Werts 100
Man, is this a good show...Boomtown is so good, it single-handedly restores your faith in broadcast networks. They can compete with the "freedom" of premium cable. All it takes is creative smarts. And NBC's Boomtown has plenty of those. [27 Sept 2002, p.B02]Posted Mar 18, 2013 -
-
-
Diane Werts 100
"Galactica" is so beautifully designed, shot, edited and acted that you can practically smell and taste its emotional validity. -
-
-
Diane Werts 100
Best show of the season? Call me crazy, but it's a loopy-twisted-serpentine whodunit revolving around a whip-smart teenage girl...So let's recap. Engaging star, cool characterizations, witty scripts, meaty backstory. What's not to like? Only that networks always cancel deliciously offbeat gems like this. Let's hope UPN doesn't actually want to be a "real" network, after all. [22 Sept 2004, p.C01]Posted Feb 16, 2013 -
-
-
Diane Werts 100
Party Down took awhile to jell, but it has hit its stride as one of TV's most finely observed comedies. -
-
-
Diane Werts 100
Even film school snobs like me can learn a thing or 10 from Moguls & Movie Stars. The breadth and depth of information rushing through each hour is astonishing.- Posted Dec 9, 2010
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 100
For a show forever detonating bombs, it's surprising how sweet and frothy Tara feels. Just a half-hour long, it doesn't waste a second, pulling a gun within the first few and no punches ever.- Posted Mar 28, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 100
As real as real gets, invaluably adding human understanding to a hot-button topic.- Posted May 9, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 100
Showtime lets them take their time to spin serpentine story lines, gradually pulling us deep into one very sticky, scary web of intrigue.- Posted Sep 29, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
- Posted Aug 17, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
Diane Werts 100
They [directors John Dorsey and Andrew Stephan] know how much to say, and show, to viscerally deliver the sights, sounds and even smells, without scaring us away.- Posted Feb 21, 2013
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
Garcia's single-camera editing amplifies the comedy inherent, rather than being a crutch to create it. And the casting here is as good as "Earl," which is saying something--even if Leachman goes a bit off the rails as wacked-out "mamaw." -
-
-
Diane Werts 91
Producer Beers' team is the gold standard in male-aimed reality, and these guys have grit to burn.- Posted Mar 30, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
With two shopping trips in each half-hour, TLC's latest hit is so fast-paced--and such giddy consumerism--that it's fairly irresistible. Also educational.- Posted May 27, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
The soul of the show, though, is its conflicted "heroes," truly tortured, in palpable ways, recalling the best, early days of NBC's ill-fated Monday comic book. There's no cartoonery here. Just adult adventure and angst.- Posted Jul 11, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
This evocative hour doesn't lionize Steinem, but simply lays out what happened.- Posted Aug 16, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
- Posted Aug 30, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
Diane Werts 91
The show's core relationship is appealingly relaxed. It dares to suggest successful coupledom lies less in heated passion than in being able to dress down and screw up and know you're still loved.- Posted Sep 21, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
It all adds up to one solid nail-biter, with a profusion of clever clues that seems to cast suspicion on everyone.- Posted Nov 29, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
You can see Neverland as sly philosophical discourse, or you can see it as fantastically produced adventure. Just make sure you see it.- Posted Nov 30, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
No matter where you stand on the death-penalty debate, this is must-watch revelation--and, thanks to Herzog, tense and suspenseful drama.- Posted Mar 8, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
[These women make] instant impact, of course, with their stories but also through sheer personality.- Posted Jun 1, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
Strong personalities evoke the hold of the old, the tug of the new, and that intersection's human fireworks.- Posted Jul 17, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
- Posted Jul 18, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
Diane Werts 91
Sincere host, unguarded participants, sensitive treatment. And more cool stuff!- Posted Aug 20, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
It's less the Plot Events that ring true here than the well-played little side moments and background squabbles, the simmering resentments and recriminations, the emotional tugs-of-war.- Posted Sep 7, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 91
Browncoats Unite keeps the focus on the work itself. And that's what keeps "Firefly" afloat.- Posted Nov 9, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
- Posted Mar 26, 2013
- Read full review
-
-
Diane Werts 91
There's humor, there's heart, you'll laugh when you don't expect to.- Posted May 17, 2013
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 90
He's rude, sarcastic, bitter, brilliant and, delightfully, the most compelling character of the fall TV season. [14 Nov 2004, p.11]Posted Mar 11, 2013 -
-
-
Diane Werts 90
The most intriguing thing, actually, is that Lost may not even need the hoodoo voodoo. Abrams and script creator Damon Lindelof ("Crossing Jordan") have already set up a pretty compelling cross- section of earthlings as a study of simply human behavior. [19 Sept 2004, p.11]Posted Feb 16, 2013 -
-
-
-
Diane Werts 90
Like Hugh Laurie's irascible "House" title character, star Ellen Pompeo's newly minted Dr. Grey conveys such substance that you simply can't stop watching. [25 March 2005, p.B33]Posted Feb 20, 2013 -
-
-
Diane Werts 90
Layering such unnatural proceedings into the family-drama format only intensifies both story angles when you do it right. And Cassidy has, with strong casting, solid structure and a fine feel for what's most frightening. -
-
-
Diane Werts 90
It all flows from the heart in a way few shows do, unfolding with the ease of being surrounded by people you've known forever already. -
-
-
Diane Werts 90
[A] rewardingly seasoned new drama series that's practically indistinguishable from the acclaimed feature film, except that it's better. -
-
-
Diane Werts 90
This four-hour gem is exquisite from start to finish, rife with the texture of its place and time, rich with human understanding expressed in everyday articulation and small gestures. -
-
-
Diane Werts 90
The 10 hours of PBS' immersive miniseries Carrier are frank and intimate, hard-hitting and heart-rending, rocking (with hit songs) and rolling (when the ship pitches so sharply, planes can't land). -
-
-
Diane Werts 83
Caprica feels torn between soulfully mature ruminations and adolescent "accessibility" for gamers wondering where the space action went. Let's hope the pilot's spellbinding second hour points the way toward greatness. -
-
-
Diane Werts 83
These actors are serious sitcom pros, and their show is actually about something genuine--sibling bonding/rivalry, parental button-pushing, relationship-building. It's nice to see some emotional meat in a live-audience staging again, feeding off the energy and reactions of real people. -
-
-
Diane Werts 83
While critics like me count quibbles, kids of all ages should share my husband's assessment: "It's a superhero show. Superman flies. Give The Cape a little space."- Posted Jan 6, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
Future episodes aren't as snappy or scenic. But Shahi & Show deliver win-win, anyway.- Posted Jan 19, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
These stylish suits aren't empty, by any means. But we'll have to see if USA is truly willing to let its heroes' souls get emotionally naked.- Posted Jun 21, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
There's texture galore in this city-shot cop hour, eyed by handheld lenses echoing "Homicide's" edge (and director Peter Berg's "Friday Night Lights" intimacy).- Posted Sep 21, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
Science channel publicity materials call the show "a real-life Twilight Zone," and in terms of mood, that's on the mark.- Posted Aug 31, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
Robbins means business, calmly prodding family members--and not just the apparent aggressors--to truly comprehend where others are coming from. She calls people on their bull, eliciting not just tears from stress but tears of realization.- Posted Oct 25, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
Method makes a solid case for Lewis as underappreciated auteur.- Posted Dec 16, 2011
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
A great concept, mostly divorced from reality, with superb execution, just might extend forever.- Posted Jan 6, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
One thing you can say for USA: It knows what it's doing. It's got its shtick, and it's sticking to it.- Posted May 8, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
The show has sneaky depth. The leads are pretty without being "pretty," refreshingly down-to-earth likable, and able to flesh out their youthful stereotypes with this weird thing called personality.- Posted Apr 20, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
Thought I was going to hate "Total Blackout." Then couldn't help laughing out loud.- Posted Apr 27, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
- Posted Jun 11, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
Diane Werts 83
The good Lord created sitcoms like The Soul Man as relaxing, relatable humor with heart, and Cedric's new creation isn't about to mess with His template.- Posted Jun 19, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
The characters hold promise, the show looks swell, the stories reflect rich history and the makers have earned our trust.- Posted Aug 16, 2012
- Read full review
-
-
-
Diane Werts 83
Her shrewd, straightforward perspective and her semisweet, offhand attitude make her reflections fresh and relatable.- Posted Apr 29, 2013
- Read full review
-
