Jane Austen might never have imagined that her 1816 novel "Emma" could be turned into a fresh and satirical look at ultra-rich teenagers in a Beverly Hills high school in "Clueless."

Cher (Alicia Silverstone) and Dionne (Stacey Dash), both named after "great singers of the past that now do infomercials," are pampered upper-class girls who care less about getting good grades than wearing the right clothes and being as popular as possible.

But Cher, who lives with her tough yet warm-hearted lawyer dad (Dan Hedaya) and hunky, sensitive stepbrother (Paul Rudd), also has an innate urge to help...

In season two, "Jericho" has fulfilled the promise of an uneven first year and become possibly the most gripping and action-packed hour of prime time television. Of course barely anyone knows that because only about 6 million people are watching. Guess the allure of "Primetime: What Would You Do?" is a little too much.

Sad music = sad times

This week's episode begins with the aftermath of an epic shootout at the Richmond farm that left Bonnie (Shoshannah Stern) dead and Mimi (Alicia Coppola) badly wounded. The mood around town is quite somber, and not even an appearance by t...

The logic behind the spin-off is very sound. Take a beloved character or concept from a pre-existing series and create an entire new show. You have an established character or brand and thus a built-in fan base. It makes perfect sense, no?

Unfortunately, the reality of the situation is not quite that simple. Certainly there have been spin-offs that attracted both fans and critics and managed to create a legacy all their own. Shows like "Frasier," "Angel," and "The Jeffersons" instantly come to mind. But for every successful spin-off, there have been dozens of miserable failures...