Rob Owen

At some point, these lighter tangents became the rule rather than the exception, and that continues to be true in season four, which features dinosaurs, No. 1 (Rebecca Romijn) singing “Total Eclipse of the Heart” in Klingon and an episode where the crew gets turned into puppets.

“SFTSTU” is probably funnier if you know the characters from “Big Bang” and the show’s sci-fi-ish high concept may limit its appeal, but fans of “Big Bang” who tune in will be rewarded with entertaining twists on familiar characters.

In keeping with more modern TV sensibilities (and real life), characters are more complex — grayer and more nuanced, less black and white.

Overall, the final season offered a warm, humanistic portrait of characters trying (and largely succeeding!) in improving themselves, leaning into kindness over chaos, love and camaraderie over fear and disgruntlement, which ultimately makes “The Bear” a welcome salve in a time of division.

Cute but instantly forgettable, “Elle” isn’t awful, but it plays like unnecessary fan fiction.

As with most sketch shows, some sketches hit and some miss, but David’s batting average here is decent (unless a viewer really tires of his style of humor).

Through six episodes made available for review, “The Vampire Lestat” proves itself to be the show’s wildest, most risky and probably funniest season yet.

What continues to make “The Four Seasons” so compulsively watchable is how it accurately captures small but relatable details about middle-aged friendships and relationships.

Early episodes of “The Boroughs” are stronger than those deeper in the season — again, this could have been a movie; eight episodes is at least two too many — but the show’s general vibe is upbeat and there are a few surprising twists along the way (although the show’s villain is exactly who viewers will guess it to be from the jump).

“The Madison” moves at the snail’s pace of Sheridan’s “1923” — and the music score sometimes sounds nearly identical — but “The Madison” also borrows some of the humor that’s made Sheridan’s “Landman” a hit. Michelle Pfeiffer’s Stacy Clyburn isn’t as sarcastic and profane as Billy Bob Thornton’s Tommy Norris, but Stacy displays more backbone and bite than viewers might expect.