Cupid

NewsdayVerne Gay

Cannavale's Cupid is at least funny and charming. He's good here and so is Paulson. The weak link--the "B" story, like tonight's tepid one with the Postie, which was as appetizing as week-old cod.

San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman

It's all light, good fun. Yes, there's a heavy dose of syrup, but Cannavale should be able to cut that to satisfactory levels. Paulson is perfect as the love guru who believes in rationality while Cupid believes in passion.

Miami HeraldGlenn Garvin

Cupid, like most romantic comedies, can be sappy, sloppy and schemingly manipulative. But the bright writing (no surprise to anyone who watched Thomas' snappy teen-detective drama "Veronica Mars") and affecting performances by Cannavale and Paulson make being manipulated seem a guilty pleasure in this case.

New York MagazineEmily Nussbaum

The two investigate love stories, not homicides, a clever conceit that injects the procedural form with the dizzy spirit of a Drew Barrymore film festival.

Entertainment WeeklyMark Harris

It's nobody's fault that Cannavale and Paulson so far lack the chemistry a show like this needs. The problem with this version of Cupid isn't the actors, but its strained "Touched by a Love Boat" concept, which has the two main characters gluing together a fresh couple every week while inching bickersomely toward their own mutual attraction.

Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan

The problem is, though this good-natured show doesn't lack for energy, Cupid is a little bland and formulaic.

Chicago Sun-TimesPaige Wiser

There are some great lines, but it seems like a predictable formula: Get one couple together per episode, flirt with doctor. Where's the magic in that?

New York PostLinda Stasi

If you've never had an in terested suitor impose the Big Gesture on you, then ABC's revival of the 1990s dramedy Cupid is so not up your alley that you may as well live on Mt. Olympus. And that just happens to be where Cupid (Bobby Cannavale) comes from in this sweet, not-horrible show.

Newark Star-LedgerAlan Sepinwall

It's fun and diverting, and certainly has the potential to be much more, based on Thomas' work on the original series--and the glimpses we see of Cannavale and Paulson in these roles. But right now, it seems less a great romance rekindled than a reunion fueled by nostalgia instead of passion.

Kansas City StarAaron Barnhart

True, Cannavale and Paulson take some getting used to, at least among those of us who remember Piven and Marshall. But the premise still has miles more appeal than a “CSI” knockoff.

Orlando SentinelHal Boedeker

The remake isn't as charming as the original, which paired Jeremy Piven as Cupid and Paula Marshall as his doctor.

Hollywood ReporterRandee Dawn

The balance is off, but there is still a sweetness to the show that makes it worth checking out.

Los Angeles TimesRobert Lloyd

Television, like love, is a matter of chemistry, of which none is yet obvious between the leads here. Will it come? Trevor would tell you that you should know it in an instant, while Claire would reserve judgment; they're both right, of course, some of the time.

USA TodayRobert Bianco

It faces the standard problem of all anthologies, which have to interest us in new characters each week. But it also ties those stories to two recurring characters who are better off avoided, leaving you torn between the ones you don't know and the ones you don't like.

VarietyBrian Lowry

Cupid remains a rather wispy premise, with this second go-round bookending other similarly themed premises, such as NBC’s “Miss Match,” which failed, too--and in that case also featured a female lead who couldn’t quite follow her own romantic advice.

Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen Gray

Cupid may really be insane, and the undeniably offbeat Piven never let you forget it. Cannavale just seems, well, stubborn.

Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen

It's impossible not to compare the two casts or to find the new version a pale imitation whose characters don't feel fresh in the slightest, because, well, they're not.

Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert

Thomas, who has shown more originality with "Veronica Mars" and his new Starz series "Party Down," seems bent on making this concept work, despite its impossibly flat premise.

SalonHeather Havrilesky

Piven seems perfect for the role of Cupid: Sweet, manic and slightly slippery. Cannavale and Paulson, on the other hand, don't come close to having Piven's comic timing, and that's a serious impediment.

New York Daily NewsDavid Hinckley

Wile Bobby Cannavale plays a credible Cupid and Sarah Paulson is likable as his mortal sparring partner Dr. Claire McCrae, there just isn't a whole lot here.

Slant MagazineJulie Leung

Cannavale lays on the charm rather thick, but, for the most part, he carries the role with enough animated panache to keep Trevor engaging. His chemistry with Paulson limps along, relying too much on the clichéd banter that pits her cautious approach against his impulsive perspective.

The New York TimesGinia Bellafante

Sticking with Cupid requires a certain attachment to the idea of a Claire-Trevor love connection, one apparent only in moody glances and pronounced opposition rather than in even the faintest semblance of chemistry. In any other series Claire and Trevor would go out for a hot dog once and realize that they were actually much better off with their respective exes.

Washington PostTom Shales

Throughout the show, his behavior is quirky and smug in cloying and annoying ways, which seems a self-destructive miscalculation.

Philadelphia InquirerJonathan Storm

Cupid seeks to lure thirtyish women, prized by advertisers, by reviving a supposedly romantic old show that, besides being poorly scheduled, was sappy and annoying, too. This time around, at least they've got the schedule fixed.