Year: 2022

News and Quick Comments

A sci-fi (or Syfy) gem is overlooked

One of TV’s best shows is nearing its “mid-season finale,” getting a fraction of the attention it deserves.
“Resident Alien” (9 p.m. Wednesdays on Syfy) has it all – droll humor, zestful science-fiction, intriguing characters and a talking octopus. Its March 2 episode is another good one, with two more before the show rests after March 16.
Our hero (well, our protagonist) had a simple assignment: Secretly land on Earth, trigger a device to destroy all humans, then return home.
That started smoothly, when he killed a cabin-dwelling loner and assumed his body (shown here). Then the problems began: Part of his kill-everyone device was lost in the crash; he must find or replace it.  Also, Harry (the guy whose body he has) was a doctor who suddenly is needed in town. The new “Harry,” a fast learner, had to take over the clinic. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 27, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 28: a night of (much) better things

1) “Better Things,” 10 and 10:46 p.m., FX; repeating at 11:21 and 12:07 and 12:42 and 1:25. This is one of TV’s best shows – once you get used to it. It has subtle, scattered moments in the random life of Sam Fox (Pam Adlon, right, who also writes, directs and produces), her three daughters and mom (they’re shown here) and more. The openers bring a genealogy jolt, a black-out, a dreaded job and more. There’s a crisis coming later, but mostly this is about life’s better and lesser things. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 26, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 27: “Idol” leads a superpumped, superbusy day

1) “American Idol” season-opener, 8-10 p.m., ABC. Starting its 20th season (and its fifth on ABC), this is a piece of TV history. It hit No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for 2005-6, after two years at No. 2. Ryan Seacrest remains as hosts; the judges (shown here) are Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. This year’s tours reach Nashville, Los Angeles and Austin, Texas. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 25, 2022
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for Feb. 28: “Race” and “Chef” end; others arrive

1) “The Amazing Race” finale, 8-10 p.m. Wednesday, CBS. TV’s longest race ends. Filming started two years ago, then was delayed by Covid. The final stretch (Greece to Portugal to Los Angeles) has four duos. Kim and Penn Holderness (shown here) launched an Internet career with “Xmas Jammies.” Others are Ryan Ferguson (exonerated after a decade in prison) and his friend Dusty Harris; Arun Kumar and his daughter Natalia; and flight attendants Raquel Moore and Cayla Platt. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 25, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 26: Saturdays are funny again

1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. For three Olympic weekends, we’ve had laughless Saturdays. Now the drought is over and John Mulaney hosts a new episode. He was an “SNL” writer for four years, co-creating Bill Hader’s Stefon character. (They’re shown here.) This is his fifth time as host and his first since finishing drug-rehab a year ago. He’s also returned to do uncredited bits and to write for some hosts. The music guest is LCD Sound System, which won a Grammy for “Tonite.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 24, 2022
Stories

True stories focus on uberwrought young geniuses

TV sems to savor two kinds of real-life stories – true crime and true tech. Now come the tales of:
–Uber and Travis Kalanick. “Super Pumped” (shown here), 10 p.m. Sundays on Showtime, starts Feb. 27.
— Theranos and Elizabeth Holmes. First was an HBO documentary movie; next is “The Dropout,” a Hulu mini-series Thursdays, starting March 3.
Each depicts a hard-charging person, creating a billion-dollar business; still, there’s a key difference. “Travis isn’t a con man, said “Super Pumped” producer Beth Schacter. His idea worked. “We all walk around with Uber in our pocket; we don’t walk around with Theranos.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 24, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 25: “Blacklist” and its almost-clone

1) “The Blacklist” and “The Endgame,” 8 and 9 p.m., NBC. After filling in on Thursdays (and after a five-week break), “Blacklist” (shown here in a previous episode) returns to its Friday slot. Its task force is probing a network for untraceable cell-phone calls, when there are sharp consequences. That leads into a rerun of Monday’s “Endgame” debut … which is a lot like the “Blacklist” debut, nine years ago. Again, a master criminal is confined, but in control; the result is slickly crafted, but lacks believability. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 23, 2022
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Best-bets for Feb. 24: law & order & “Grey’s & such

1) “Law & Order” season-opener, 8 p.m., NBC. The 21st season begins, a dozen years after the 20th. The long rest, however, hasn’t done it much good; the opener has a fairly flat story about a Cosby-type star and the aftershocks. Sam Waterston (shown here), 81, is back briefly as the district attorney, but the courtroom work goes to Hugh Dancy. Anthony Anderson, currently in three series, is back as a cop, with Jeffrey Donovan as his sullen partner and Camryn Manheim as their boss. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 22, 2022
News and Quick Comments

One PBS night: from frontier horse to bionic limbs

As the Olympics finally fade away, we can rediscover the rest of the TV universe.
That includes PBS, which has a remarkable night of non-fiction Wednesday (Feb. 23). In one night, it takes us from horses – the heroes of the American frontier – to a new generation of bionic limbs.
That starts at 8 p.m. with a beautifully filmed edition of “Nature.” Horses were here 40 million years ago, filmmaker Eric Bendick told the Television Critics Association, then disappeared from North America. “They actually came back with the Spanish conquistadores, (leading to) the arrival of the mustang” (shown here). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 21, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 23: propulsive “P.D.,” amiable “Alien”

1) “Chicago P.D.,” 10 p.m., NBC. This is easily the best of the three “Chicago” series, as shown tonight. After a bland “Chicago Fire” at 9 p.m., we get this taut hour. It starts with Haily Upton (Tracy Spiradakos, shown here) on a nighttime run. A crisis leads to a stunning opening; then the propulsive story streaks toward its emotional finish. There’s strong writing and visuals, plus great work from Spiradakos. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 21, 2022