Critic Reviews

Ms. Kreuk and Nina Lisandrello, as her police force partner, are unconvincing as detectives. But the pilot's hint of a connection between the beast's condition and the murder of Catherine's mother offers the promise of future depth.

All this setup, and more, happens at the speed of light. But it's all easily understandable and gets us right to the real attraction.

Beauty and the Beast won't hurt all that much to watch, but the dialogue and plot stretches can add up to a lot of little ows.

Beauty and the Beast's pilot is rarely more than competent, sometimes stubbed-toe clumsy. But if it can hang around for a while, devise a style that matches its story, and tap its stars' sincerity, it could become a cult hit: perpetually underrated but loved.

A new but forgettable TV treatment for an old story, with results that look very "CW."

The show ill have to overcome the distinct lack of spark between hard-nosed detective Catherine Chandler ad her unpredictable love interest. [12/19 Oct 2012, p.98]

The true horror here is the utter lack of imagination.

The love story-slash-procedural returns with a Cat and, well, Beast chase that's more dull than thrilling.

It is all so dreadfully familiar--the lovely, headstrong and feisty heroine, the nice guy who wants her (in this case, the medical examiner played by Max Brown) and the broken bad boy she loves instead. The only point of light is provided by Catherine's partner, Tess.

Beauty and the Beast is a little hacky at times, with the characters leaping dozens of plot points in a single bound. But Kreuk and Ryan keep their faces straight and their bodies hard, which is what CW shows are mostly about, and all in all, it could be a lot dumber than it is.