The basic problem with Numb3rs, as I've punned before, is that it has a formula. Crime happens, FBI can't work out what to do, they call in mathematician Charlie who talks absolute bollocks about maths for a bit, whizzes up a computer algorithm and points the FBI in the right direction, even though it shouldn't have much of a chance of working. Having a formula isn't necessarily a bad thing: look at CSI, which you can sum up similarly, but through good acting, decent characterisation and imaginative plotting manages to transcend its formula.

But Numb3rs rarely does transcend its formula, and even when it does, pretty soon everything's back to the status quo again in just a couple of episodes. It's the ultimate non-serial drama other than those that include the words Law & Order in the title. Case in point: last season's opener which, although a fine piece of tele, took all the good work done at the end of the third season and reset everything back to normal.

Last season's finale looks set to be similarly undone this season, as predicted. The departure of Diane Lane, who won't exactly be missed, has already been negated in clumsy style by the addition of an equally dull former LAPD officer with no discernible characteristics other than the ability to say how great she is. The other innovation was the near-incarceration of Charlie for sending 'secrets' to Pakistan, and the revocation of his security clearance. Will it surprise anyone that he doesn't get locked up and that he's pretty soon working on a case with the FBI?

Okay, so they're playing it out a little bit, allowing the secondary characters to get a look in for a change. However, since they're all 'family programming' characters, minimal depth is given to them. And the FBI crew still look a thick bunch of tossers. My guess: between one and three episodes before everything's back to normal. It's indicative of just how formulaic the show has become that the return of FBI sniper Ian, played by Lou Diamond Phillips, a breath of macho fresh air to the geeky heights of most Numb3rs episodes, is entirely wasted here. He might as well have been making the tea.

There are a few action scenes that are relatively well executed, and compared to how the FBI are portrayed in other shows, this is perilously close to something approaching reality. But for a season opener, this one was especially dull.

New arrivals will probably be bored stiff so shouldn't bother tuning in while old hands might well be wondering what they're doing tuning in still.

You can watch the whole thing on YouTube, starting with this vid below, and there's a promo for the second episode below that.