DAVID BIANCULLI

Founder / Editor

ERIC GOULD

Associate Editor

LINDA DONOVAN

Assistant Editor

Contributors

ALEX STRACHAN

MIKE HUGHES

KIM AKASS

MONIQUE NAZARETH

ROGER CATLIN

GARY EDGERTON

TOM BRINKMOELLER

GERALD JORDAN

NOEL HOLSTON

 
 
2009
Mar
30
 
 
I adore "60 Minutes." I love that the oldest surviving TV show in prime time is still among the very best. I'm thrilled that it caters to intelligence rather than panders to stupidity. Living up to its name, it's 60 minutes of outstanding television. Well, 55 minutes, anyway...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
26
 
 
I love the way NBC's "ER" is winding down. Rather than wait for next week's two-hour finale to serve its veteran and current characters, the series has been doing it every week, with moments that are touching, revealing, surprising and eminently satisfying. Shane West, as Dr. Ray Barnett, made a surprise appearance to cap last week's show with a perfect grace note...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
12
 
 
The best thing about NBC's new series "Kings," is how unusual it is. It's like "Dallas," but with a biblical spin, and with lots of allegorical undertones. It's not subtle, but it IS different. On NBC, which seems hell-bent on churning out enough TV guano to choke itself to death, that makes it almost shockingly intriguing...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
11
 
 
Any show that replaces "Knight Rider" on the NBC schedule has to be an improvement. But why, and how, did tonight's new "Chopping Block" series (8 p.m. ET) make it so marginally close? As TV cooking-competition reality shows go, Chopping Block deserves an immediate beheading...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
10
 
 
You can't blame this on the current economic crisis, because Ken Burns has known for a year what only now is being made public: General Motors is ending its decades-long corporate sponsorship of Burns and his invaluable PBS documentaries...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
8
 
 
If you're a Joss Whedon fan -- and all quality TV enthusiasts should be -- you're already sold on Nathan Fillion's roguish charms, thanks to his starring roles as the space cowboy in Firefly and the hammy hero in "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog." In ABC's "Castle," anyone who watches should be equally enthusiastic...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
6
 
 
Last season, American Movie Classics' "Breaking Bad" was one of the more delightful surprises of the year. Bryan Cranston's performance, creator Vince Gilligan's dark vision, and the show's relentless, involving dramas and crises -- they combined for a seven-episode blast of high-octane, darkly comic, intensely dramatic television...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
5
 
 
Archbishop Desmond Tutu showed up for an improbable, unprecedented visit to CBS's "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" Wednesday. It's the show the Ferguson folks should submit for Emmy consideration this year -- and it's also the show that should end all sensible speculation regarding the late-night TV wars. I have seen the future of late-night TV, and his name is Craig Ferguson..
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
4
 
 
Night two of NBC's "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" was loose enough to improve a bit upon opening night, but consistent enough in where it faltered to permit some more focused criticisms and advice. So here it is...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2009
Mar
3
 
 
You can't judge a new talk show by opening night. It takes weeks, months (and years, if you get them), to work out kinks, throw out what doesn't work and rind a comfortable style and rhythm. But the very first impressions of Monday's premiere of NBC's "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" had plenty of early indicators...