Carla Meyer

Barely likable supporting characters and a tendency toward juvenile humor make the first two episodes a hard sell. But the show warms up enough in the third episode that we can envision it becoming an amiable workplace comedy, somewhere on the sweetness scale between “30 Rock” and “Ted Lasso.”

“Heartstopper” captures the joys and agonies of being a teen, when every stray text can make a profound impact, and being able to announce you are “going out with” someone means everything.

Forgive the dip into cynicism, but even Switzerland would roll its eyes after a few hours of curated Kardashian drama.

After ratcheting up to 10 early in the first episode, this show’s stress levels rarely fall below an 8.5. 15 minutes cannot go by without some twist, revelation or misdirect. Although you never know what’s coming, you always know something is. By episode six, these “surprises” lose all impact.

The show’s more serious elements hit their targets far more often than its attempts at humor. So why bother with the comedy? Perhaps to make the real story less depressing.

An often hilarious, sometimes genuinely suspenseful limited series that spoofs the alcohol-soaked, sad-voyeur movie mini-genre, unfortunately has a fatal flaw. After carefully mixing its sight gags with a plausible murder mystery, this show, premiering Friday, Jan. 28, goes off the rails like a commuter train carrying an inquisitive day drinker.

An inferior sequel. ... Filled with bad dialogue. ... Duff, though a likable, solid ensemble anchor, lacks Radnor’s exuberance, just as Sophie mostly lacks Ted’s impulsiveness.

The two episodes premiering Thursday do not just diminish a fan favorite in absentia, but saddle Miranda and Charlotte with plenty of out-of-character moments. Despite these issues, the reboot improves greatly on our gals’ last outing, the 2010 big-screen abomination “Sex and the City 2.”

Because Beth is clearly in need of moral self-inventory, the unease Beckinsale brings to the role makes some sense. But what flies in the three episodes made available to critics probably will not throughout all 10. Series creator Rebecca Addelman has transferred the dark yet madcap energy from her previous project, Netflix’s “Dead to Me,” to her new one, auguring many more comic misadventures likely to test Beckinsale’s shaky comedic skills.

Jam-packed with action, the pilot sets the stage for big set pieces in future episodes, but they never happen. Instead, we get decades-long spaceship trips and a lot of talking. “Foundation” rarely builds momentum, abandoning story lines for too long before picking them back up. Once you notice the story is going nowhere, other flaws become apparent.

Often funny and always captivating.

Although this show often lacks subtlety, there is real artfulness to how Tramble Spellman weaves commentary on systemic racism into the narrative, making it all the more troubling by highlighting its inevitable everydayness.

“Perfect Strangers” lacks “Lotus’ ” consistent satirical edge. Its tone veers from romantic comedy to “Big Little Lord of the Flies” bedlam to hallucinogenic horror.

You hang on every word in the Golden State Killer scenes, but the Oak Park section does not become truly compelling until the episode’s end.

Illuminating and uplifting FX documentary.