David Bianculli

The seventh season of 24 premieres this Sunday. Critic David Bianculli assesses the four-hour, two-night return of counterterrorist Jack Bauer — who's got some new allies, and some new enemies.

The year in television started with a bust — or to be more precise, a writer's strike — but Fresh Air's TV critic says there were plenty of TiVo-worthy programs in 2008. Prominent among them: AMC's Mad Men.

TV critic David Bianculli shares his thoughts on the final episode of Boston Legal — and the announcement this week that Jay Leno will begin a new nightly prime-time talk show on NBC next year.

A two-hour self-contained 24 movie on Fox follows Jack Bauer to Africa, where he's hiding out from his own government and working at a charity boys' school. But as reviewer David Bianculli reports, wherever Bauer is, trouble surely follows.

Fans of NBC's Friday Night Lights might want to look into DirecTV; the show, about a small Texas town and its high-school football team, begins its third season exclusively on DirecTV's "The 101," and won't hit broadcast TV until 2009. David Bianculli has a review.

TV's most charming serial killer is back for a third season on Showtime. With new murders, new dangers and new characters, TV critic David Bianculli says the new season is a real thrill.

NBC's 30 Rock cleaned up the major comedy prizes, but the big drama awards went to basic-cable breakouts like AMC's Mad Men and FX's Damages. TV critic David Bianculli recaps the evening.

In the ABC series, Pushing Daises, co-executive producers Barry Sonnenfeld and Bryan Fuller combine romance, fantasy and mystery to tell the story of a man who can bring the dead back to life. The first season of the show is now out on DVD.

Lost creator J.J. Abrams discusses his latest television show, Fringe. The show, which Abrams describes as having a "a slight 'Twilight Zone' vibe," focuses on the unnatural occurrences in the world of a brilliant but mentally-unstable research scientist.

The new HBO series centers on a vampire clan living in a small Louisiana town. It's by Alan Ball, creator of the hit series Six Feet Under, and based on a series of novels by Charlaine Harris. Anna Paquin stars.