Titanic: Blood and Steel

That producers opt to tell a different Titanic story is admirable in light of so many filmed versions of the story that already exist, including a four-hour miniseries that aired on ABC earlier this year. But the decision not to reveal the fates of the miniseries' fictional characters may feel like a cheat to anyone who invests 12 hours in this program.

Though it is flat and obvious at times, and some might call it ill-paced--I think of it as leisurely--it is only a little sanctimonious and not at all stuffed.

Hard-core lovers of historical drama who've made no other TV appointments this fall might find the time.

A tediously boring story.