John Engstrom

Bronson Pinchot left Perfect Strangers behind, but he's still addicted to his Balki shtick. As a husband who returns after being presumed dead for a decade, only to find his wife remarried, he shamelessly steals every scene, pillaging the rest of the cast and overloading the action until it sinks in a sea of sophomoric Pinchosity. [01 Sep 1993]

A flawed but still above-average sci-fi thriller. [7 May 1993]

The orphans-hang-together story is hokey in places, but it also addresses important issues that rarely come up in usual network fare, like handling money and responsibility for and to each other. [12 Sept 1994]

For viewers who scream for quality, this is it...I can't answer for today's teens, but from this geezer-gazing distance, the show is amazingly, wonderfully right. As an added benefit, it's a perfect reminder of why I never again want to be 15. [24 Aug 1994, p.C1]

Stunning. [9 Sept 1993, p.C1]

The intentions of the new CBS drama "Christy" are properly earnest, and the premise, locations and supporting cast all exude promise. But in the end, the execution is so ploddingly predictable and - in the case of the star - so shallow that the outcome is a disappointment. [1 Apr 1994]

A rich blend of generations that has more of the juice of life and truth to it in an hour than a thousand formula sitcoms squeezed for everything they've got. [20 Aug 1990, p.D1]

What The Outsiders needs is more finesse - some "soc" boys with at least a few redeeming values, some parents who have a gnat's notion of what's going with their kids, more blurred lines between the two teen groups, more background on all these kids, and more sides to their lives and personalities, just like real life. [22 Mar 1990, p.C9]

What may be missing most in the TV mix is the supporting cast and behind-the-camera work that launched Griffith's acting rocket in the movie. [16 Apr 1990, p.C4]

Some spots are noticeably rough and unfinished, with several lapses into clicheland, and occasional bumps where the need to set the series' premise knocks against the wish to do good, episodic storytelling...There's definitely an appeal, with a homey, real-people feel to its principals and side players, most of then interesting, even just in passing. [12 July 1990, p.D15]