Meadowlands

Edgy and dark, this is the shadow version of "The Waltons."

Fans of "The Sopranos" looking for a new Sunday-night must-see may find it here - though perhaps not fans driven to fits by that HBO hit's ambiguous conclusion.

Whether this is all weirdness for weirdness' sake or something more complex isn't clear, not even after the first four episodes.

Whether or not they add up to much, the scenes play well, and there are enough heavy-breathing soap-operatics, random acts of violence and unanswered questions to keep one idly watching.

Murphy is adept at creating clever mind games between his characters, but moments of true suspense or fright are few and far between.

"Meadowlands" demands too much of a slog for too little in return.

Nothing seems to bring it to life — not its obsession with voyeurism, its forays into cross-dressing, its objectification of the obese.