The joy of this series really comes down to two things: lots of action and some babelicious butt-kicking. Not something to be proud of for enjoying it, but true. Pass the chips and ale -- and down in front!

Having seen the first four episodes, you need to be a part of this. You need to doff the skepticism and get on the ride.

A stunning piece of television about a rogue cop and that dangerous line between effective police work and ethical transgressions. This series is brutal and frank, with little wasted energy or misdirection.

What remains compelling about The Shield as it heads into its last hurrah are the gray areas and ethical gradations of the characters that have defined it.

Stunningly great execution.

The breadth and ambition of "The Wire" are unrivaled and that taken cumulatively over the course of a season -- any season -- it's an astonishing display of writing, acting and storytelling that must be considered alongside the best literature and filmmaking in the modern era.

In the end, there will likely be a lot of unhappiness, dead bodies, same-as-it-ever-was institutional failure, lack of responsibility and the triumph of self-interest over the greater good. Not exactly a Hallmark card, but one hell of an artistic achievement.

Graham Yost, who wrote HBO's "Band of Brothers," creates deeply drawn characters who are revealed slowly over the course of an episode (and season). He's the kind of writer whose vision and touch you can trust over the long haul.

This series is one of a kind.

There are moments in Arrested Development, Fox's new sitcom, that are pants-wettingly funny. There are jokes and scenarios that bend you over in gleeful agony. All of a sudden, with this last new fall series offering -- hope having been beaten out of all of us -- we get one of the most hysterically ridiculous half hours on television.

This is one of maybe six or so elite series on all of television that you should absolutely be watching. Pitch-perfect acting (ensemble stars Jason Bateman and Jessica Walter were robbed of Emmys) and nuanced writing that staggers you with its cleverness and lunacy makes this more than a typical dysfunctional-family sitcom. [3 Nov 2004, p.E1]

State of Play is one of those series where a moment's brilliance is rivaled by the very next scene, a careening thriller that gives credence to the idea that there may not be any better format for telling an impact story than over the course of four or six hours. [16 Apr 2004, p.E1]

"Battlestar Galactica" not only lives up to its sci-fi gold-standard reputation but also should be considered straight up as one of television's most appealing dramas, no matter the genre.

There are many small and wonderful dramatic accomplishments in the underappreciated gem that is Battlestar Galactica, but perhaps the most enduring is that what was conceived of as an epic space adventure has turned into a finely detailed, intimate drama.

Lost has a stellar, varied cast, it is shot beautifully and it surprises more often than it makes you wince or wheeze, which, in the math of action-adventure-sci-fi-thrillers, is a good thing. [22 Sept 2004, p.E1]

Three more words: Oh. My. God.

Lost is a different genre, one that may infuriate even the loyalists, but there's something impressive and rewarding in its density.

Rescue Me races out of the gate as confidently brilliant as ever before, wildly mixing emotions along the way.

Right out of the gate, "The Boondocks" is a water-cooler series that lives up to the hype. It is funny, fearless and continues the vibe of the strip.

"Weeds" is colossally great... a series far better than its premise and utterly essential for devotees of smart, entertaining television.

Kohan and her writers deserve perhaps more credit than they're getting for forcing change and making it artistically compelling.

The fall's funniest sitcom.

With elements of "Wonder Years," "Cosby" and the "The Jeffersons," but also a spirit all its own, "Chris" is a sitcom that finally makes the family funny again.

"City of Men" pulses with the kind of energy you don't get often on American television, and the realness of the shot-on-location scene really makes each episode feel like a minimovie.

"Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" lives up to the advance hype, easily qualifying as one of the best new broadcast series of the fall.

Welcome back, 30 Rock. Even in a season of wonderful sitcoms--trend story alert!--you get it done.

It's Close who makes "Damages" a series to contend with.

It's a serialized mystery that pays off your devotion.

Daring and original.

This series has always handled the duality of his character with masterful strokes. And it has done viewers a favor by quickly setting up the seasonlong scenario.

When Season 3 kicks off spectacularly, there's a slight exhale in the first 59 minutes--then a twist. And not a small one, either. By the second episode, the writers give you roughly 40 minutes to digest that twist, then drop a real stunner. Which is--just to cut to the chase here--truly and incredibly exciting television.

All your favorites are back in force, with a few twists, but the allure of the series always has been and always will be Hall, who manages to make a killer (who kills only people who deserve it, mostly) likable, believable, engaging and funny, as he works his job as a blood splatter expert at Miami Metro Homicide.

The new offering, from executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick (the team behind "BSG"), stands on its own and in many ways might be more inviting to viewers who are not hard-core sci-fi fans.

A cleverly crafted, ingenious thriller with only scant moments of implausibility. Most of it has the unmistakable imprint of a smart premise beautifully executed.

It's not very often that a TV show bursting with imagination, audacity, rude charm and a relentlessly funny worldview gets on the air, much less appears fully formed. But Sarah Silverman... has delivered an offbeat gem.

"The Riches" is both unique and intoxicating -- and plenty more.

It's a gloriously visual fairy tale full of saturated colors and whimsical stories, the kind of romantic comedy/whodunit that should, by rights, captivate a nation starved for quirkiness and delight.

Again, it's back to the writing and the look. Both are superb.

"Flight of the Conchords" may well be the funniest thing you've seen in ages and -- at least for a half hour -- answers the question of whether HBO has any good shows left.

The level of cleverness of Flight of the Conchords is off the charts.

The writing and acting are hit out of the ballpark on this one, and that's not a vibe you pick up out of nowhere.

There's a lot to love in Californication, from the blowtorch-keen dialogue of creator and writer Tom Kapinos to the way that Duchovny's ever-so-slightly-fading good looks perfectly encapsulate the character's downturn in Hollywood, to a multitude of standout performances in the ensemble cast.

Hirst, Rhys Meyers and the rest of the cast (and Bergin's costumes) make it all somehow meatier but no less entertaining in Season 2.

The acting (from a mostly unknown cast), cinematography (you can just stare at this series) and especially Weiner's writing carry the series to exceptional heights.

The writing is a real thing of beauty - from the aforementioned nuance to searing workplace witticisms and pitch-perfect tone from a multitude of characters.

All the elements Mad Men does well - the humor, the note-perfect clothing and sets, the creeping cultural change - are still there to be savored.

The first three episodes of Season 2 that AMC sent out continue that level of achievement with no evident missteps.

Soak in the visuals, listen to the mesmerizing use of sound. The writing and acting will lure you in, but have appreciation for all the details that go into making this series so great.

Generation Kill is rewarding in its complexity. It feels real - and that realness is bracing, sad and funny in equal measures.

Few series have exploded onto the scene with such a rich array of potential stories and inherently interesting characters.

As Sutter proved in the intriguing and original first season, there's plenty more riveting storytelling to tap into as Sons of Anarchy boldly comes of age.

The Pacific is a superb, viscerally moving and harrowing depiction of World War II and a worthy complement to "Band of Brothers" (2001).

Little Dorrit is anchored by an extraordinary performance by one of England's best actors. And like "Twist," that central performance is only one of many elements that make Dorrit not only terrific entertainment, but, in some ways, perhaps even better than its source material.

What is not surprising at all about the fourth season of one of television's elite series is that Weiner continues to explore what it means to be human.

Sons of Anarchy remains as bare-knuckled and, almost inconceivably, as funny and crass as ever. And it doesn't take Season 3 very long to ratchet up the twists

Glee, one of the season's best and most anticipated new series, delivers on both counts - and more. It's a quirky, sweet, humorous, nonpartisan funfest.

If you like big-screen-level thrills and complicated plot structures, you'll opt-in to FlashForward. And you'll be rewarded. Here's hoping it stays strong and compelling as it heads to April 29.

The Life & Times of Tim--is flat-out brilliant and easily one of the funniest newcomers to television.

It means there's finally something good (and funny) on Tuesday nights.

Just like "The Wire," Simon has again delivered a series unlike anything you've seen on television before.

In a fall season surprisingly flush with good sitcoms, the best new comedy by far--and it's not that close of a race - is Modern Family on ABC.

The best news of all is that Olyphant backs it up with an incredibly riveting performance. Better yet, Justified as a whole really delivers, from the explosive pilot to a couple of other, less adrenaline-filled but no less superb episodes that add humor and nuanced storytelling to the mix.

There's a vibrancy to the stories in each Boardwalk Empire episode. With echoes of the gangland mentality of "The Sopranos" and the frontier recklessness of "Deadwood," HBO seems to have found in Boardwalk Empire a fertile, sprawling new franchise series.

In the case of Sunny, it comes out of the gate as brilliantly twisted as ever.

Shameless is excellent, compelling television from the first moment. As long as it stays true to the roots of the original, it's going to be essential viewing.

Breaking Bad is unquestionably one of the greatest dramas in TV history. What it should be rewarded and applauded for is the wanton willingness to throw the concomitant success of all that away in the service of the story.

There's a real allure to costume-dramas that pair dense mythology with all of the crowd-pleasing elements of war, honor, pride, lust, power and, yes, even humor. Thrones has all of those in spades and supports them with exceptional storytelling, strong writing, superb acting and some stunning visual effects.

Like any episode of Archer, telling the jokes does them no justice. You need to find out for yourself why this series is such a politically incorrect gem.

In Cinema Verite, 90 minutes might not do justice to the historical impact of An American Family. But it makes you wish there were 90 more minutes to the story, which is saying something.

Ambitious? As always. And if the first few episodes are any indication, tighter, even more evocative and as lush and lovingly constructed as possible when conveying the plight of the forgotten.

Game of Thrones is so much more than a genre series, a fantasy epic. It's a series that doesn't need to feel dramatically inferior up against the likes of Mad Men or Breaking Bad, Justified or anything else.

Now entering another wince-inducing season, Larry David proves again that he can mine gold over and over from the same idea.

This Holmes update's second season continues to be both clever and classic.

It's essential viewing. All of the promise of last season looks to be realized with impressively deft storytelling, beautiful cinematography and impeccable acting.

Starz has its channel-defining series in Boss, a wholly impressive new drama that comes out of the gate with gravitas, swagger, originality and intrigue.

Frozen Planet is one of those instantly riveting series where you marvel at the beauty and majesty of it all but also spare more than a passing thought for the effort involved.

The new HBO series from Lena Dunham (Tiny Furniture) is one of the most original, spot-on, no-missed-steps series in recent memory.

Homeland is as riveting and addictive as when we last saw it, kicking off with no lull in the pulse-pounding action.

It's not a matter of wondering if Breaking Bad will be great, but where in the pantheon it will ultimately reside.

Girls kicks off its second season even more assured of itself, able to deftly work strands of hard-earned drama into the free-flowing comedic moments of four postcollege girls trying to find their way in life.

Here’s to a dense, layered, enterprising and fascinating journey through Season 3--and as many more seasons as need be to complete this incomparable fantasy.

A quirky and hilarious gem.

The series reflects the youth and intelligence of its writer and succeeds by quickly getting viewers past what would seem an insurmountable obstacle -- caring about what happens to rich white kids in Orange County.

Beyond the superb pilot, Lights Out begins to get wonderfully nuanced and more interesting with each episode. And though the series avoids most boxing cliches while keeping true to the inescapable elements of "the sweet science," the real key to its success is McCallan.

Episodes, which got uproarious laughter in cut-down form at the Television Critics Assn. press tour in July, does not disappoint an ounce as it rolls through a seven-episode season. It also signals a savvy return to television for LeBlanc, who manages to be the butt of the joke one moment then hilariously likable the next.

The entertainment value and suspense of Falling Skies is paced just right. You get the sense that we'll get those answers eventually. And yet, you want to devour the next episode immediately.

The series, which had a string of stand-alone episodes before becoming more serialized, gets the balance a little better in Season 2 (though there are still some stand-alones to welcome newbies).

The series is excellent, absorbing and addictive. When each episode ends, you long for the next--a hallmark of great dramas.

The characters are so beautifully and thoroughly rendered that we, as viewers, are caught up in their lives.

The Walking Dead hasn't lost the most important ingredient in its strangely successful recipe: it's thrilling.

Mad Men stays relevant and exciting by moving forward.

The first three episodes of Season 3 indicate there has been no slippage at all, but rather a digging in of the philosophy at hand.

Archer proves exactly why it's been so great since the beginning: Smart writing, great voice cast, cool animation and, just so you understand, still more smart writing.

Smash is excellent, a bar-raiser for broadcast networks.

Every actor nails their lines, which keeps Veep moving at a brisk pace. In fact, the episodes seem to end so quickly, you'll wish they lasted an hour.

It seems to be shifting into a higher gear, when no one thought that option was even available.

Not only is the pilot a wonderful mix of hilarious moments (pretty much any time Faxon is in the picture) and subtle sentiment, but it's one of those shows where the acumen of the off-camera talent (Fox) is impressive and clear, which gives hope for long-term success.

It's a heavyweight new contender in the drama category, just as Netflix now is as a content provider.