Year: 2021

Stories

Leary’s lives bring chaotic fun

What we learn from Denis Leary’s lives – his real one and his fictional one in the new “Moodys” comedy – is basic:
Marriage and family are works in progress. Occasionally, you get it right.
“Within the course of a marriage, you do have a lot of love and anger and stories and experiences to build on,” Leary told the Television Critics Association, “in dealing with, especially, adult children.”
In “Moodys,” Leary and his wife — played by Elizabeth Perkins (they’re shown here) — have three grown-up children. A mini-series in December of 2019 saw all of them return home for Christmas; now the series (debuting at 9 and 9:30 p.m. Thursday, April 2, on Fox) has them moving back in, at least temporarily. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 29, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 31: a very good “Good Trouble”

1) “Good Trouble,” 10 p.m., Freeform. The young people in this Los Angeles co-op usually have scattered lives, jobs and relationships. But now a brilliant screenplay blends them together – with subtle bits of drama and romance, plus big bursts of humor. A “new moon” ceremony (soul-cleansing and such) involves six of the residents (four are shown here, in a previous episode) and three invitees. Then someone else arrives … as does a mysterious critter. It all builds to a daft and delightful crescendo. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 29, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 30: Black issues, past and present

1) “American Experience,” 9-11 p.m., PBS. Isaac Woodard was a Black veteran of World War II, still in uniform and heading home to South Carolina. He argued with a bus driver who didn’t want to make a rest-room stop; at the next stop, police jailed, beat and blinded him. The result had national impact: President Truman promptly desegregated the military and the federal government; a local judge became a pariah in his community as he spoke up for civil rights. It’s a powerful story, but a tough one to watch; for a modern racial view, “Soul of a Nation” (shown here) is the next item. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 28, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 29: “Piercer” ends season, “Proof” ends tale

1) “Snowpiercer” season-finale, 9 and 10 p.m., TNT, rerunning at 11 and midnight. Wilford is in charge again, living in luxury and planning a carnival (really). Layton (Daveed Diggs, shown here in a previous episode) – formerly a revolutionary hero – is at the bottom, working with sewage. Still, he schemes to rescue Melanie, who left the train to gather vital information at a research station. These two hours are harsh, brutal and, as usual, beautifully crafted. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 27, 2021
Stories

“Mayans” duo world — noisy action, subtle passion

It’s a small, quiet scene in a show known for big, noisy ones. And it packs the emotional power we expect from “Mayans M.C.”
On one side of the glass is Alicia, who hasn’t been in jail before; on the other is EZ (shown here, second from right, in a previous episode), who has.
“Anything you try to keep – hope – will just get destroyed” in prison, he tells her. “So kill it first …. Shut it all down.”
Her question: “When I get out, how do I turn it back on?”
That’s a question for Elgin James, who’s been on both sides of the glass. He’s the co-creator and producer of “Mayans,” which airs at 10 p.m. Tuesdays on FX, then goes to Hulu. He’s in charge of a much-praised drama; he’s also spent a year in prison. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 27, 2021
News and Quick Comments

TV helps fill any empty Easters

For the second straight year, television has a bigger Easter role.
Some churches remain closed by COVID; others downsize their events. TV, however, booms ahead. It has old movies — “Ben-Hur” (shown here) and “Ten Commandments” and such — and new ones, including “Mahalia,” on Easter eve. It has music and mini-seres and more.
Here’s a round-up of events between Palm Sunday (March 28) and Easter Sunday (April 4). Not included here are the kids’ shows, with bunnies and eggs and such. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 26, 2021
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for March 29: flurry of finales, debuts

1) “United States of Al” debut(shown here), 8:30 p.m. Thursday, CBS. For six dangerous years, these men were close. Riley was a Marine; Amalwir (“Al”) was his Afghan translator, friend and sometimes protector. Now, after three years of bureaucracy, Al reaches the U.S.; culture shocks begin on both sides. Unlike many Chuck Lorre shows – “Big Bang,” “B Positive” (now moving to 9:30), “Mom” – this doesn’t have big laughs. Like all Lorrte shows, it has lots of little laughs, plus some deeply likable characters. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 26, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 28: Zoey and Jackie return

1) “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” return, 9 p.m., NBC. After a seven-week pause, this odd delight steps into a new night, with Zoey(shown here in a previous episode) in a funk. She worries about a brother she likes, a co-worker she dislikes and friends who are opening a restaurant. She worries a lot; that happens when you can hear people’s thoughts via pop songs. She also clings to a sweet memory of her late father. But for all the gloom, this hour also has a large and joyous song-and-dance number and a great ending. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 26, 2021
Stories

Bacon masters a verbal volcano of schemes and hate

Jackie Rohr is a verbal volcano. Words spill out – sometimes clever, often caustic and conniving.
He’s racist, misogynist and nasty; he’s also an FBI agent in 1993 Boston. As played by Kevin Bacon (shown here with Aldis Hodge) in “City on a Hill” – which starts its second season at 10 p.m. Sunday (March 28) on Showtime – he’s one of TV’s most memorable characters.
And yes, there are viewers who admire the fact that he gets things done.
“These are not things I personally feel about the man,” Bacon told the Television Critics Association. “He’s not really a person (I would) like or respect or want to spend time with. He’s a (feces), really.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 25, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 27: Awards have Murphy, Misty, Maxwell, more

1) NAACP Image Awards, 8 p.m., CBS, BET, MTV, VH1 and more. After a decade of being on only one cable network, this returns to broadcast and beyond. Viola Davis is up for best actress in a movie (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”) and TV (“How to Get Away With Murder”) and for entertainer of the year, alongside Regina King, Tyler Perry, D-Nice and Trevor Noah. Maxwell performs, Eddie Murphy (shown here in “Coming 2 America”) and Misty Copeland get special awards and presenters include Leslie Jones and JB Smoove. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / March 25, 2021