| 100 |
Christian Science Monitor Gloria Goodale
Sorkin brings the same intensity and political sensibilities to the story. |
| 100 |
Chicago Tribune Maureen Ryan
"Studio 60" is not just good, it has the potential to be a small-screen classic. |
| 100 |
Detroit Free Press Mike Duffy
"Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" is another Sorkin mother lode of stylish wit, uncompromising quality and timely, topical substance. It's TV with a brain for viewers in search of something other than the same old, same old. |
| 100 |
USA Today Robert Bianco
Teeming with rich characters and terrific actors, brimming with wit, drama and unexpected urgency, Studio 60 brings its workplace to full, immensely entertaining life. |
| 100 |
San Francisco Chronicle Tim Goodman
"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. |
| 90 |
Hollywood Reporter Barry Garron
There are more than a few well-made dramas this season, but "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. |
| 90 |
Miami Herald Glenn Garvin
Fearlessly funny and scathingly introspective. |
| 90 |
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Melanie McFarland
The agile humor and light, sharp intelligence permeating the script make "Studio 60" far and away one of the season's best new dramas, if not the top entry. |
| 88 |
San Jose Mercury News Charlie McCollum
The characters are intelligent, complex people you quickly care about, even if -- this being a show about television -- they can be egotistical and self-centered. |
| 88 |
Chicago Sun-Times Doug Elfman
Fans of Sorkin's years on "The West Wing" will likely enjoy "Studio 60." And there should be enough mature viewers who crave bright writing to make the show a sudden mainstay. |
| 83 |
Entertainment Weekly Gillian Flynn
Every so often, when the tension feels DefCon 1 high, there's a temptation to remind Sorkin that the fate of the free world isn't at stake. Then again, with such mesmerizing speed-bag dialogue, Studio 60 is a great case for taking TV seriously. |
| 80 |
Arizona Republic Bill Goodykoontz
It's easily one of the best new shows of the season. |
| 80 |
Boston Globe Matthew Gilbert
"Studio 60" is one of the best new dramas of the season, assuming you aren't Sorkin-phobic, and with some tweaking it could be the very best. |
| 80 |
The New York Times Alessandra Stanley
There is nothing else quite like it on television, and that is actually saying a lot. |
| 80 |
Philadelphia Inquirer Jonathan Storm
[It] is sure to occupy a special place in Emmy voters' hearts. |
| 80 |
Variety Brian Lowry
His exploration of an aging latenight franchise is so bracingly smart it's sure to hook discriminating viewers. |
| 75 |
New York Post Linda Stasi
Don't believe the hype. "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" is not the best new show of the fall season. It's a pretty darned good one, but not the best one. |
| 75 |
New York Daily News David Hinckley
As good a cast as you'll find anywhere on TV.... But in the end, the decisive question may be whether inner TV provides as much material as the inner White House. |
| 75 |
Slant Magazine Len Sousa
While the actual comedy being prepared for the variety show isn't often a success... the drama behind the scenes is clearly what's worth watching. |
| 70 |
Salon Heather Havrilesky
Sorkin may be self-important, but he's certainly not mediocre. |
| 70 |
Philadelphia Daily News Ellen Gray
As long as "Studio 60" stays backstage, though - while finding something a little more interesting for the genuinely funny D.L. Hughley to do - I'm likely to keep tuning in. |
| 70 |
Baltimore Sun David Zurawik
The banter between Perry and Whitfield... is dazzling enough to make one forget the pilot's storytelling sins. |
| 70 |
The New Yorker Tad Friend
Unfailingly enjoyable. |
| 70 |
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Rob Owen
Like his previous series, "Studio 60" features intelligent, quickly spoken dialogue, smart arguments and terrific performances (Perry and Whitford have instant chemistry as longtime co-workers), and it's not a bad show by any means, but it doesn't soar to the heights "West Wing" did, even in its earliest episodes. |
| 60 |
Newark Star-Ledger Alan Sepinwall
Last fall, "Studio 60" would have easily been the best new drama; this fall, it's lucky to squeeze into the top five, and a lot of that is based on potential more than what's on screen. |
| 60 |
Kansas City Star Aaron Barnhart
If [Sorkin] intends to preach off-key sermons every week, “Studio 60” is going to get old fast. |
| 60 |
Wall Street Journal Nancy DeWolf Smith
Here's hoping that the strong whiff of sanctimony in the pilot of "Studio 60" is blown away by fresh air in future episodes. |
| 60 |
Washington Post Tom Shales
Sorkin aspires to "importance," which can sometimes curdle into pretentiousness. |
| 50 |
Newsday Verne Gay
There's a wonderful cast here... There's even an intriguing core idea... But the show also feels phony from beginning to end. |
| 50 |
Time James Poniewozik
From the mood lighting and stirring music to the hot-button story lines to the characters' arias on the august legacy of their show, Sorkin makes running a comedy program seem like negotiating an arms treaty. |
| 50 |
People Weekly Tom Gliatto
The show feels weighed down by its own clout. [25 Sep 2006, p.43] |
| 50 |
Los Angeles Times Paul Brownfield
Here it feels as if Sorkin has chosen an outdated media milieu for his secular humanist dramaturgy. His first TV series, "Sports Night," was ahead of the times, but "Studio 60" is behind them. |
| 30 |
LA Weekly Robert Abele
Really, I just wish it were funny. Not walking-banter funny, or look-what-I-know funny, but funny funny. Even a little bit. |
