1) “American Idol” finale, 8-10 p.m., ABC. We can expect a couple powerhouse moments. One has Cynthia Erivo lead the show’s final 11 in an Aretha Franklin medley; the other has Lionel Richie and some “Idol” alumni sing “We Are the World,” which he co-wrote with Michael Jackson. (They’re shown here, with famous friends.) There’s much more – a song by each of the other judges, two songs by the final five contestants – and a champion. Read more…
1) “The Voice” finale, 8-10 p.m. today, 8-11 p.m. Tuesday, NBC. This year’s final five is a richly varied field. The young people are from Japan (Micah Iverson, 25), Hawaii (Thunderstorm Artis, 23) and South Carolina (CammWess, 21). And the others? Todd Tilghman – a Mississippi pastor and father of eight, some of them in this hectic screen shot – is 41; Toneisha Harris, of Georgia, is 44, resuming her career after her son recovered from leukemia. Tonight, they sing from home; performances rerun at 8 p.m. Tuesday, with the finale at 9. Read more…
The CW network has a fresh plan for stocking a fall schedule in the age of COVID:
It will simply wait. It will have a patchwork of acquired shows this fall and hold back the main ones – “Flash” and “Batwoman” (shown here) and “Riverdale” and such – until January. Read more…
1) “Graduate Together: America Honors the Class of 2020,” 8 p.m, CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox and social media. This is the graduation ceremony we all deserve – Barack and Michelle Obama (shown here) as the commencement speakers, joined by music people – Pharell Williams, H.E.R., Bad Bunny, Ben Platt and the Jonas Brothers. LeBron James will also be there. He organized this event because three million people will graduate from high school this year without a prom or a full graduation ceremony. Read more…
TV networks have reached a fresh phase. We’ll call it “involuntary stability.”
Gone (for now) are the quick cancellations. Viewers may like this phase; networks try to seem happy.
When CBS announced that it has renewed 23 shows, Kelly Kahl, its entertainment president, said the network is in an “incredibly stable position.”
Then Fox was the first network to set its fall schedule (including Kim Catrall’s “Filthy Rich,” shown here). Charlie Collier, its entertainment CEO, talked of “relative stability”; Marianne Gambelli, its advertising president, praised “consistency” and “stability.” Read more…
1) “Great Performances: Bernstein’s Mass,” 9-11 p.m., PBS. Even during this social-distance time, we can savor the epic power of supersized music. Leonard Bernstein wrote this powerful piece for the 1971 Kennedy Center opening; this performance (shown here) is from last July at the Ravinia Festival, near Chicago. Paolo Szot (a Tony-winner for “South Pacific”) is superb, backed by the Chicago Symphony, a children’s choir, a vocal quartet, a 22-person “street chorus” and, yes, a marching band. Read more…
Hollywood keeps handing out freebies during the COVID-19 shutdown, but now comes an extreme:
“Hamilton” (shown here), filmed with the original cast, will reach the Disney+ streaming service on July 3. Read more…
1) “How to Get Away With Murder” series finale, 10 p.m., ABC. For six seasons, this show has delivered tangled mysteries, spiced by spectacular performances from Viola Davis (shown here with Tom Verica) as Annalise. She already has an Emmy and three more nominations; now come pivotal moments. On trial for murder, she learns there’s a surprise witness. Then there’s the pesky mattert of a flashforward that showed Annalise’s funeral. ABC promises we’ll learn what that’s all about and who (if anyone) killed her. Read more…
The CW network has gone on a shopping spree, grabbing four shows that have aired elsewhere.
That includes “Coroner,” plus three supernatural tales – “Swamp Thing” (a favorite among some fantasy fans), “Tell Me a Story” and the animation/live action mix of “Dead Pixels” (shown here). Read more…
The Fox network has concocted a pandemic-proof (almost) schedule for this fall.
It’s found ways to have a full schedule without any shows that require a fresh pilot film. That includes repurposing two series — “L.A.’s Finest” (shown here) and “Cosmos: Possible Worlds” — that have aired elswhere.
The result still has a batch of shows for mid-season, when football ends and voids begin. It makes no mention of “Last Man Standing,” “The Resident” or “Deputy.” Also, “Empire” had finished its six-season run. Read more…
