Year: 2020

Stories

Social-distance drama? It’s flawed, but fascinating

Any experiment – Wright Brothers’ flight, man on the moon, mixing chocolate with marshmallow – will have its problems.
Let’s think of the upcoming “All Rise” episode (son here) — 9 p.m. Monday, May 4, on CBS — that way. It’s flawed, but fascinating.
As COVID-19 struck, productions shut down and actors were sent home. Then came the idea of concocting an episode that could be done from their homes … representing the characters’ homes. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 2, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 4: Distanced drama and music

1) “All Rise,” 9 p.m., CBS. Consider this a grand experiment, flawed  but fascinating, For the first time, a major network drama has made a full social-distance hour.  Judge Carmichal (Simone Missick, shown here) is preparing her first virtual trial, with two of her friends (Mark and Emily) as prosecutor and defense attorney; Judge Benner supervises … while learning to cook. We see the whole thing via video chats, sometimes punctuated by a mellow Los Angeles disc jockey. The whole thing is shot at the actors’ homes, then edited cleverly. The people parts are great; the virtual-courtroom parts are an illogical mess. Experiments are like that. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 2, 2020
Stories

Bush profile: A cheerleader turns presidential

For four noisy – and kind of cheerful – decades, there was nothing presidential about George W. Bush.
Often, “he would be drinking, carousing and having fun,” Charlie Younger, a boyhood friend, says in s new PBS documentary.
He made friends easily, but stumbled at work and at life. One night, he got a driving-under-the-influence ticket; another, he crashed his car into garbage cans and challenged his father to a fight.
But then came the flip side. That’s what makes the film – “American Experience: George W. Bush,” 9-11 p.m. Monday and Tuesday (May 4-5) – so interesting. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 1, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 3: A busy night, from A to Zoey

1) “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” season-finale, 9 p.m., NBC. This has been a splendid anomaly. The concept – Zoey (Jane Levy, shown here) hears people’s thoughts via pop songs – seems silly; piled on top are a romantic triangle, a dying dad and workplace intrigue. But for some people (including me), this is wondrous, bursting with originality, glowing colors, bright sounds and endless likability. That peaks with tonight’s final number – seven minutes, one continuous shot, perfectly crafted. “Zoey” is truly extraordinary. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 1, 2020
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for May 4: Bush era; social-distance TV

1) “American Experience: George W. Bush,” 9-11 p.m. today and Tuesday, PBS. Here is a beautifully balanced and detailed look at a surprisingly complex man. We see a young people-person, a college cheerleader with lots of friends and alcohol. After a heavy-drinking 40th birthday, he transformed. He was governor at 48, president (shown here) at 54. In Iraq, he soared with a military victory, sank with an agonizing peace, revived with a “surge” offensive. Hurricane Katrina and Wall Street also dealt fierce blows. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 30, 2020
News and Quick Comments

It’s “social-distance theater,” comedy version

A new artform – we’ll call it “social-distance theater” – takes a big step tonight (April 30).
That’s when “Parks and Recreation Renion” airs at 8:30 p.m. on NBC,with the original cast (shown here in a previous photo) on-hand. The next day, it will be on YouTube, Hulu, Peacock and the NBC app.
Yes, this is an entire half-hour of faces in boxes, talking to each other. And yes, it’s quite often fun and funny. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 30, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 2: Awards and “Idol” are social-distancing

1) “Kids Choice Awards,” 8 p.m., Nickelodeon. Other award shows have been postponed, but this goes ahead in a social-distancing way, with the sub-title, “Celebrate Together.” Victoria Justice (shown here) will host, Asher Angel will sing “All Day” and LeBron James will get the Generation Change Award. Guests – presumably long-distance – will include Dwayne Johnson, Ariana Grande, BTS, Camila Cabello, Shawn Mendes, Ellen DeGeneres, Lil Nas X, Ellen DeGeneres and the cast of “Avengers: Endgame.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 30, 2020
News and Quick Comments

A trend grows: More music, more Disney

The music-from-home idea is getting another TV boost:
Buoyed by strong ratings for the first one, ABC will have a second “Disney Family Singalong.” That will be 7 p.m. May 10 – yes, that’s Mother’s Day – with details pending.
The first few at-home specials were fairly primitive, with people simply singing into a stationary camera. Since then, however, shows have kept adding extra editing touches.
“Singalong” had plenty of stars – Ariana Gramde, Michael Buble, Beyonce, etc. – and bounced between homes: Donny Osmond sang with his grandkids (shown here, with the singalong lyrics); the casts of “High School Musical” and “Descendants” merged. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 29, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-Bets for May 1: Cops & cooks & cable movies

1) “Blue Bloods” season-finale, 10 p.m., CBS. With coronavirus shutdowns, CBS’ strong Friday season is ending early. Next week, “Magnum” and “MacGyver” conclude; tonight – three episodes sooner than usual – it’s “Blue Bloods,” with a three-generation tale. Sean, 16, tracks a DNA report of a mysterious relative. His father Danny, a police detective, probes the murder of a witness. The police commissioner (Tom Selleck, shown here) — who ia Danny’s father and Sean’s grandfather — gets a woman’s request that her son get safer duty. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 29, 2020