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

WITH "KINGS," NBC DOES SOMETHING DIFFERENT -- AND INTERESTING By David Bianculli

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

NBC'S "CHOPPING BLOCK": OFF WITH ITS HEAD By David Bianculli

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

DOES KEN BURNS NEED A NEW SPONSOR -- OR A FEDERAL BAILOUT? By David Bianculli

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

NATHAN FILLION MAKES ABC'S "CASTLE" A COMFY PLACE TO VISIT By David Bianculli

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

"BREAKING BAD" RETURNS BRILLIANTLY, WITH EVEN MORE INTENSITY By David Bianculli

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

LATE-NIGHT TV CHESS: THANKS TO A BISHOP, CRAIG FERGUSON IS KING By David Bianculli

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

SECOND IMPRESSIONS: NBC'S "LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON," DAY TWO By David Bianculli

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

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: NBC'S "LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON" DEBUT By David Bianculli

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...

2009

Mar

TALK SHOW HISTORY IS WRITTEN TONIGHT, IN A NEW GAME OF LATE-NIGHT CHESS By David Bianculli

Jimmy Fallon succeeds Conan O'Brien as host of NBC's "Late Night" tonight. It's a battle that won't be won or lost overnight, or in a week or month -- but the battle is waged regardless. And like the opening moves of a chess game, what starts simply soon will lead to tiny, subtle, significant variations...

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David Bianculli

Founder / Editor

David Bianculli has been a TV critic since 1975, including a 14-year stint at the New York Daily News, and sees no reason to stop now. Currently, he's TV critic for NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross, and is an occasional substitute host for that show. He's also an author and teaches TV and film history at New Jersey's Rowan University. His 2009 Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour', has been purchased for film rights. His latest, The Platinum Age of Television: From I Love Lucy to the Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific, is an effusive guidebook that plots the path from the 1950s’ Golden Age to today’s era of quality TV.

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