Cheapest FLASH Ever!! Blu FRINGE!! OFFICE!! HAVEN!! PERSON OF INTEREST!! WHO!! ALIENS!! BORED!!...

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New This Week

Was CBS’ “Person of Interest” the pilot you were keenest to get a look at last fall? Me too.

Jonathan Nolan, who co-wrote with his brother Christopher the brilliant “Dark Knight,” wrote “Person of Interest.” J.J. Abrams, who created “Alias” and “Lost” and “Fringe” before he directed “Star Trek” (these are a few of my favorite things) produced “Person of Interest.” “Lost” icon Michael Emerson stars as a brainiac determined to prevent mayhem on the streets of New York with the help of an all-seeing government computer he created. On paper it sounds amazeballs.

On a flatscreen? Not so much!

Its pilot was better than J.J. Abrams’ “Undercovers” but not even as good (to my eyes) as the pilot for Abrams’ midseason ABC sci-fi hourlong “Alcatraz.” Is that good enough? I did not think so at the time.

Michael Emerson brings a lot, and I loved when haunted homeless human weapon Jim Caviezel unpacked his whupass. But the slightly “Minority Report”-ish, slightly “Early Edition”-ish premise struck me as dopey, and the plotting in the pilot too often felt surprisingly lazy and predictable, with Cavievzel vacillating inexplicably between insanely badass and ridiculously easy to outmaneuver.

(It should be noted that “Alcatraz” met with low ratings and quick cancellation while “Person Of Interest,” which certainly garnered its champions, eventually emerged as a substantial new hit for CBS. Just because it’s not my cup of tea doesn’t mean it won’t work for you.)

HitFix says:

... Someone needs to buy star Jim Caviezel an alarm clock, or find some other way to wake him up. ... Despite the presence of Nolan (who's co-written most of his brother Christopher's films, including "Memento" and "The Prestige") and producer J.J. Abrams, this is very much a CBS crime procedural, one that could fit comfortably alongside "The Mentalist," et al. But it would help an awful lot if Caviezel had a few Red Bulls first.

AOL says:

... If 'Person of Interest' can calibrate the relationship between the leads in a way that makes their interactions more compelling, and if the show finds ways to answer Nolan's questions in creative and unexpected ways, it could be CBS' next addictive drama. ...

The New York Times says:

... there’s the rub: For a good portion of the hour we are watching a standard cop show. While the two-headed monster of a pilot is explaining the premise and setting up some recurring characters, it’s also squeezing in one of those self-contained, interchangeable mystery plots that could just as well fill out an episode of “NCIS” or “The Mentalist.” ...

The Los Angeles Times says:

... proves, once again, that a great idea for a television show is not at all the same thing as a great television show. ... The notion of preventing crimes rather than solving them is an appealing twist, although the crime in the pilot is fairly boring. …

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:

... it appears this new program has more in common with the straight-ahead procedurals that dot CBS's prime-time lineup than it does with Mr. Abrams' past efforts. …

The San Francisco Chronicle says:

... separates itself from the gimmick pack, not only because of superbly nuanced characterization and writing but also because of how it engages a post-9/11 sense of paranoia in its viewers. ...

The Washington Post says:

... It’s a whole lot of techno-hooey, relying on screenwriter-friendly leaps of logic. Emerson turns out to be a one-note actor, but Caviezel is appealing in a particle-board sort of way. ...

The Boston Herald says:

... The pilot moves at a good clip, with some bracing action and at least one respectable plot swerve. ...

The Boston Globe says:

… this tech-driven “Early Edition’’ is shockingly lifeless. Caviezel’s Clint Eastwood impression is flat, and Emerson is too darkly eccentric to keep the drama afloat. …

USA Today says:

... That may sound like standard stuff, but Abrams' productions and Emerson's performances seldom settle for standard. Emerson has a way of infusing even the simplest line with a level of menace or humor — and sometimes both — that makes you think something a tiny bit dangerous is going on beneath the placid exterior. It also makes him a good match for Caviezel, who is similarly intense in his own brooding way. They may not enchant you, but they and their series, the best new hour this year, are unlikely to bore you. Would that every new show could say the same. ...

The Hollywood Reporter says:

... Both Emerson and Caviezel are compelling and the way Nolan and Abrams have constructed the look (lots of nourish far-away shots in crowded streets, a sense of contained doom in an urban city) bodes well. That alone is worth the investment. ...

Variety says:

... "Lost" alum Michael Emerson certainly elevates the material, but Jim Caviezel's taciturn operative is so emotionally removed that viewers don't have much, initially, with which they can connect. …

One of two new fall sitcoms created by new NBC star Whitney Cummings last year, “2 Broke Girls” is not as funny as CBS’ Chuck Lorre sitcoms but funnier than CBS’ other laughtrack fare.

It’s about a newly impoverished and surprisingly nice daughter of a Madoff-like Ponzi schemer who ends up waitressing in a Brooklyn diner after her father gets sent to prison.

Kat Dennings, the Infinite Playlist girl who was Catherine Keener’s freaked-out daughter in “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” is swell as the waitress who reluctantly befriends the fallen almost-heiress. But dang that laughtrack is distracting!

HitFix says:

... has the advantage of having Kat Dennings at its center. Though her screen persona is dark, she tends to brighten up whatever project she appears in, both in the relaxed way she delivers a joke and the flinty intelligence she brings to each role. And there's a scene at the very end of that pilot where Max and Caroline are making plans for the future, and the writers have dropped all the clueless rich girl jokes and started treating Caroline as an actual person, that's more appealing than the rest of the episode combined. ...

AOL says:

... has a sprightly and viable double act at its core. The odd-couple pairing is one of the oldest ones in the TV playbook, and the two mismatched waitresses in '2 Broke' are good company, at least in the show's initial outing....

The Los Angeles Times says:

... a solid, old-fashioned sitcom ... the heart of the show is the womance — the inevitable friendship between the two women as they reluctantly team up to learn how to be truly independent.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:

... Depending on your tolerance for edgy humor, "2 Broke Girls" ain't broke, but a greater effort by the show's writers to be funny without being overly crude/cruel would help fix it for a broader audience....

The San Francisco Chronicle says:

... a tightly scripted, appealingly cast show ...

The Washington Post says:

... has just enough cheap laughs to merit a look. ...

The Boston Herald says:

... starts with that worn premise — two opposites forced to work and live together — but soars thanks to some zippy repartee and the bubbly chemistry between stars Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs. ...

The Boston Globe says:

… Am I hooked? Yes. The actresses - especially the Gwen Stefani-esque Dennings - transcend their types, and the pop-savvy humor has spirit thanks to producer Michael Patrick King from “Sex and the City.’’ After the forced opening minutes, it’s the best multi-cam-com of the season. …

USA Today says:

... thanks to the show's two bright young stars, who deliver their shared dialogue with a nice, natural ease, their scenes together have enough charm and humor to make these struggling Girls look like winners. ...

Variety says: