Alessandra Stanley

Irresistibly, corrosively funny. It also serves as a reminder of why HBO is home to so many comedies and dramas that are unmatched on network television.

Spooky and intriguing and almost everything that a science fiction series should be.

Its plot unfolds disjointedly and without enough suspense. And that leaves viewers with plenty of time to decide that life is too short to heed the interior monologues of four-footed creatures, even if they are hallucinations.

It’s a little like “The Shield,” the FX show that starred Michael Chiklis as a corrupt cop, but it’s a lot more like “Spiral,” the sleek French crime series on Netflix that has a cult following in Britain and the United States. So basically, “Line of Duty” is the opposite of “Downton Abbey,” except in certain elemental ways: an excellent cast, skillful writing and a knack for making an exotic, unfamiliar world seem like the viewer’s second home.

Hawaii is not a great cop show and does not break any ground in the well-trod field of buddy shows. But it has well-choreographed action and an amusingly campy feel.

Zoo is expertly made and fits the current fascination with dystopian what-if scenarios, but it’s basic.

An intriguing new series.... a cyber-age thriller infused with a dark, almost nihilistic pessimism about the Internet, capitalism and income inequality. And that makes it kind of fun.

The series finds its comic stride in the fifth episode and becomes kind of fun. But that’s a long wait, and it’s easy to be discouraged by the way it starts.

True Detective is monochromatic and self-serious, but it builds suspense with finesse and has a keen appreciation for the poetry of political corruption and urban decay. That makes it intriguing, just not enthralling.

The characters are likable but surprisingly flimsy.