Keeping a clean and carefully edited DVR has always been important to me. As a TV journalist, it feels like part of the job. But then I got pregnant, had a baby and went on 16 weeks of maternity leave, and I'm here to confess that all DVR hell broke loose.

At its best "Orphan Black" has the feel of a reasonably entertaining, low-budget European crime thriller, half "Taken" and half "Luther." It's a story in which the lead character can't trust the basic facts about her life, but you can probably trust the show's creators to keep the twists coming.

If we're lucky, this Elisabeth Moss mystery tale will just be the start of a new love affair between Jane Campion and the television industry.

The intention of "Parade's End" may have been to explore the love and hate that the two lead characters (played by Benedict Cumberbatch and Rebecca Hall) have for each other, but what ends up on the screen is often a muddled soup

New executive producers Moses Port and David Guarascio do a reasonable job of extracting the kinds of comedy "Community" fans have come to expect. There's no doubt they've been handed an impossible task.

Last year, "Smash" fans and critics complained, cajoled and hate-watched, and despite the barbed nature of that last pastime, a good chunk of the grousing sprang from a sincere desire to see the show do better. Be careful what you wish for.

Basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar shared his two cents about "Girls" on The Huffington Post last week and while the review was mostly negative -- ...

Episode 3 contained some of my least favorite "Girls" moments ever. In that installment, Booth Jonathan locked Marnie in a box and isn't "Girls" tacitly endorsing Booth's behavior by showing how well it worked out for him?

The early arc of "House of Cards" shows Francis (Kevin Spacey) taking out his enemies like so many unfortunate ducks in a barrel. You can't picture this guy giving a damn about lost ducks wandering into his back yard, a la Tony Soprano.

If "Argo" gave you a yen to see great character actors wear mustard-colored clothing and play beleaguered intelligence types, you should definitely give "The Americans" a sustained try.

Ultimately, my dislike for "The Following" has less to do with its gore factor than with its essential laziness, silliness and pretentiousness. Certain aspects of the plot don't make much sense, but that's really the tip of the iceberg.

"Enlightened's" must-see second season is one of the best stories I've experienced in a long time. And -- apropos for a show about a woman who wants to live a more vivid and connected life -- it is an experience.

Jodie Foster wittily surveyed her career and broached the topic of her sexual orientation in front of millions of people (even if she never said the words "gay" or "lesbian," her meaning was clear).

NBC wants broader comedies, but "1600 Penn" may to broad to finesse that divide. Meanwhile, Cinemax's "Banshee" is very far from reinventing any wheels, but it gets a lot of basics right and it has a few distinctive touche.

Season 2 of "Girls" doesn't start off nearly as strongly as Season 1 finished, but I'm optimistic about where it's heading. "Girls" isn't consistent or perfect: Sometimes it's distractingly disorganized and frankly, a bit full of itself and other times, it's euphoric fun.

The lovely thing about "Justified" is that it delivers all the shaggy charm of a diverting character piece even as a supple, strongly structured story gives the whole affair an unmistakable energy and direction.

This "Cougar Town" vintage may be a bit brasher and brighter on TBS in its fourth season , but never fear: It's still quite potent and drinkable ... It's held on to the core things that made the ABC version of the show so much fun.

What "Downton" does well is worth the price of admission, and the actors in this cast are a continual treat, yet I feel compelled to list the problems and pleasures I find in the drawing rooms and the servants' quarters.

It's easy to come up with a list of a few things a movie about Elizabeth Taylor-Richard Burton should do. "Liz and Dick" does absolutely none of these things. All it really does is make you sad about what's become of Lindsay Lohan.

I had issues with "Top Chef" last season -- a lot of issues -- and though "Top Chef: Seattle" feels like my old favorite reality competition show again, I am still a bit wary.

Now that "Last Resort" is a few weeks into its maiden voyage, it's time to check on the progress of the submarine drama. The good news: This week's episode is focused, suspenseful and enjoyable. If it's not quite as gripping as the pilot.

The relationships between the show's characters are shifting, and seeds are being planted in both the emotional sense and a more psychological and darker aspect.

I somehow found a way to get through the last six months without the "Happy Endings" gang, but I won't lie to you -- it wasn't easy. If the television gods saw fit to put 20 new episodes of "Happy Endings" on my DVR every week, I would watch them all.