Even if you were hoping for the timeliness of The Social Network to upset the staidness of The King's Speech at Sunday's 83d Annual Academy Awards, the ABC telecast provided drama until the end -- and lots of nice moments, and story angles, and even some welcome changes to carry over for next year...

2011

Feb

FOR A VALUABLE SECOND OPINION, LOOK TO ENGLAND -- AND TO BBC NEWS AND RICKY GERVAIS By David Bianculli

With the Oscars arriving Sunday night, and several parts of the world in upheaval from revolutions or earthquakes, there's no better time to look for a different perspective than now, and no better place than England -- with BBC News for the latter, and Ricky Gervais for the former...

2011

Feb

PHOTO PHUN!: 'THE AMAZING RACE' By Diane Werts

I have nothing to say about this Sunday's CBS hour of The Amazing Race(8 p.m. ET). I just want to run this photo. Thanks, CBS!

2011

Feb

'AMERICAN IDOL' HAS FOUND ITS HEART, AND ITS SALVATION, IN JENNIFER LOPEZ By David Bianculli

Beatles night on Fox's American Idol didn't please please me -- the judges were much more impressed than I. But at the end, as the trio of judges began whittling the ranks down to the final 24 (a process that continues Thursday night at 8 ET), Jennifer Lopez became the new heart of Idol by being a very stern judge -- of herself...

2011

Feb

TRUMP CARD TURNS TO JOKER IF USED TOO OFTEN By Tom Brinkmoeller

When a good pitcher relies too often on his best pitch and telegraphs its delivery, that fast ball, curve or slider loses much of its effectiveness. The same loss can happen on TV comedies when the people in power -- writers, producers, network executives -- play too often to a popular character's quirkiness...

2011

Feb

NEWS, COMEDY, DRAMA -- BROADCAST TV'S SHINING EXAMPLES OF EACH By David Bianculli

Except for sports, most broadcast TV genres just aren't as dominant, or even as good, as they used to be. But though cable has grabbed most of the ground and momentum, there are still islands of excellence where broadcast television proves, week in and week out, it still can present the best. Ladies and gentlemen, as Exhibits A through C, I give you: 60 Minutes for news, Modern Family for comedy, and The Good Wife for Drama...

2011

Feb

AND NOW, SHOWS I HATE! By Diane Holloway

The appeal of writing for TV Worth Watching has always been the chance to steer readers to good shows -- and there are quite a few out there that are extraordinary. It feels like a noble calling. This is not the easiest task in the wonderful world of TV criticism, mind you. Spinning out a snarky pan is a hundred times easier than trying to craft a cogent explanation of what makes a TV show worth watching...

2011

Feb

SHOWTIME'S 'EPISODES': NO SECOND SEASON YET, BUT THERE BETTER BE ONE By David Bianculli

Showtime hasn't yet committed to a second season of its charming and clever Episodes series, which presents its first-season finale Sunday night at 9:30 p.m. ET -- but should, and fast. When a show comes out of the box this impressively, and wraps up its first batch of installments with such compelling brilliance, viewers deserve more...

2011

Feb

ELEMENTARY, MY DEAR WATSON: ON 'JEOPARDY,' COMPUTER BITES MAN By David Bianculli

Ken Jennings, until now the best contestant ever to play Jeopardy!, was trounced by IBM's Watson supercomputer in this week's two-game, three-day duel -- but in the final "Final Jeopardy," accepted defeat in a way that was lovably, laughably human. Beneath his correct answer of "Bram Stoker," Jennings added, "I, for one, welcome our new computer overlords"...

2011

Feb

SURPRISE! TYLER MAKES 'IDOL' A WARM WINTER TREAT By Ed Martin

The biggest surprise of this somewhat lifeless midseason is the creative resurgence of Fox's American Idol. One might assert that the renewed appeal of this show should come as no surprise at all, given the major changes made by its many executive producers following the multitude of bad choices that crippled Idol during its last two seasons...

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