Day: August 20, 2020

Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for Aug. 24: Time for politics and/or sexy swimwear

1) Republican convention, 8-11 p.m. ET, PBS; 10 p.m., ABC, CBS and NBC; all night, news channels. For the second straight week, the fate of the nation should get our attention. Now it’s the Republicans’ turn. Donald Trump is expected to give his acceptance speech Thursday from the White House; Mike Pence is expected to talk Wednesday from Fort McHenry (shown here), where the National Anthem was born,. Other speakers this week will include Nikki Haley, Tim Scott, Jodi Ernst, Kevin McCarthy and Kristi Noem. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / August 20, 2020
News and Quick Comments

Social-distance drama? This one feels hopeful

It’s the kind of challenge writers and actors should savor: Create stories about isolation … filmed under isolated conditions.
There have already been some interesting ones, crafted during the COVID slowdown – episodes of “All Rise” and “Mythic Quest,” a reunion of “Parks and Recreation,” a British hour called “Isolation Stories.” Coming (Sept. 12 on HBO) is “Coastal Elites,” with playwright Paul Rudnick giving monologs to Sarah Paulson, Bette Midler, Dan Levy, Issa Rae and Kaitlyn Dever.
But before that, Freeform gets a chance. “Love in the Time of Corona” (shown here) is Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 22-23, then rerunning Monday, juggling four slightly related stories. It’s a tad predictable, but skillfully written and acted. It’s also optimistic; you could say it’s very American … or maybe very Californian. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / August 20, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Aug. 22: Drama in the time of corona

1) “Love in the Time of Corona,” 8 and 8:30 p.m., Freeform; concludes Sunday. Here are dramas of human isolation – filmed in isolated conditions. Some stories cast families – Leslie Odom Jr. and his wife Nicolette Robinson, Gil Bellows and his wife and daughter – or friends (Tommy Dorfman and Rainey Qualey, shown here). Others use videochats or clever balcony scenes. We see the subtle effects of proximity – friends who could be more, a secret break-up, a forced separation, etc. The results are predictable, but skillfully written and acted. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / August 20, 2020