David Bianculli

Comedian and actor Andy Richter's new sitcom is Andy Barker, P.I. Richter plays an accountant who is mistaken for the detective who formerly occupied the office he is renting. He reluctantly takes on the role of private investigator and discovers he likes it.

The show just premiered on NBC and airs Thursdays at 9:30 p.m.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new drama series “The Riches” on the FX cable network. It stars Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver.

The Black Donnellys is a new television show created by Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco, the team who wrote the Oscar-winning movie Crash.

Two new British shows premiere on American cable television: Longford and The State Within.

TV critic David Bianculli previews three shows with season openers this Sunday: Extras and Rome on HBO, and the popular Fox TV series 24.

This season's new trend in boxed sets of television series on DVD is something that ought to be called the "megaset." These aren't just single-season collections of TV shows. They are compilations of every episode in a series.

Three new prime-time TV series premiere this week: scripted dramas on ABC and CBS, and a new quiz show on ABC. This week also brings the season finale of ABC's Dancing with the Stars, and lots of other activity involving first-run weekly television shows. Our TV critic says that all this action is related -- and little of it is cause for celebration.

Helen Mirren introduced the character of British police inspector Jane Tennison in the first Prime Suspect miniseries, imported by PBS 14 years ago. This weekend and next, the PBS anthology series Masterpiece Theatre presents the last entry: Prime Suspect: The Final Act.

David Bianculli reviews a new episode of the popular British crime series, Cracker. The program was originally produced in the 1990s, and Robbie Coltrane returns to star as Edward Fitzgerald, an abrasive criminal psychologist. The new two-hour show, Cracker: A New Terror, airs at 9 p.m. on BBC America.

Film critic David Bianculli reviews 30 Rock the new NBC sitcom created by and starring Tina Fey, former head writer and "Weekend Update" anchor on Saturday Night Live. It's the second NBC show about a behind-the-scenes look at a fictional late-night live variety show.