Between

Though Between doesn’t belong among the most ambitious shows on that roster, it knows what it wants to do and sets about doing it efficiently, effectively and with a minimum of fuss.

The pilot does the work of introducing the ensemble of characters, but spends so little time with each of them that when it builds to a cliffhanger in which one of those characters is imperiled, it doesn’t feel any more important than the frequent deaths of the adult characters.

Beyond that conceit [that none of the survivors are over 21], though, most of the action in the opening episodes is familiar ensemble soap opera with conspiracy-theory embroidery (the government knows more than it’s saying).

The town is lovely, the premise solid if overfamiliar, but the script lacks both depth and tension (big problem), and McCurdy is one of the few cast members who can act. All of which makes it difficult to care very much.

A post-apocalypse is only as interesting as the people left behind, and these are all a bland, badly acted bunch.

The dialogue on Between is horrendous, and the performances are not much better.

It is flat, filled with some surprisingly horrible performances sketching two-dimensional characters.