Year: 2024

Preston’s husband becomes her “Elsbeth” foe

So there is some logic to the TV world, after all:
Michael Emerson will soon be a recurring character on “Elsbeth,” the show that stars his wife, Carrie Preston. (They’re shown here.)
That starts Dec. 12, with Emerson-playing Milton Crawford. CBS says he’s a “haughty, soft-spoken judge” from a prominent New England family.
And yes, that combination has always seemed logical. “I would love, obviously, to have my husband come on the show,” Preston, 57, told the Television Critics Association session in July. Read more…

Best-bets for Oct. 30: Halloween episodes for all (?) ABC’s comedies

1) “Abbott Elementary,” 9:30 p.m., ABC. In an annual tradition, ABC has Halloween episodes for each of its comedies. That continues this year – but the network only has one comedy. At the school’s party (shown here), Janine and Gregory have a couple’s costume that doesn’t click. Also, parents question the hygiene of Barbara’s bobbing-for-apples event. Read more…

Best-bets for Oct. 29: It’s double-Selena day

1) “Only Murders in the Building” season-finale, Hulu. After lots of twists, this gem reached a breakthrough last week: The young writer, we learned, apparently stole Sazz’s script, put his name on it and killed her. But now Mabel (Selena Gomez, shown here) is alone with him; she and her colleagues (Steve Martin and Martin Short) will be in mortal danger. Read more…

Best-bets for Oct. 28: baseball greats & great vampires

1) World Series, 8:08 p.m. ET, Fox; pre-game at 7. After two games in Dodger Stadium, the games move to Yankee Stadium, a familiar spot. The Yankees (shown here) are in their league-leading 41st Series, with 27 championships; the Dodgers are in their 22nd, , with seven. This continues Tuesday and, if needed, Wednesday and (in Los Angeles) Friday and Saturday. Read more…

“Lincoln Lawyer” juggles sleek and serious drama

The latest “Lincoln Lawyer” mini-series (shown here) is sleek, smart and kind of fun.
It also puts Netflix back in its sweet spot – light mini-series that thrust a hero into weirdly complicated cases.
Other streamers also do that, of course. The best is Hulu’s annual “Only Murders in the Building,” which wraps its fourth season Tuesday (Oct. 29).
But Netflix does it most often. It’s had Vince Vaughn in the 10-part “Bad Monkey,” Arnold Schwarzenegger in the eight-part “FUBAR,” Edgar Ramirez in the seven-part “Florida Man.” And its most consistent success is “The Lincoln Lawyer,” with Manuel Garcia-Ruffo; it recently released its third 10-part season. Read more…

Best-bets for Oct. 27: Trackers tangle; civilians solve

1) “Tracker,” 8:30 p.m., CBS, Sofia Pernas is back as Billie – the former lover and current nemesis of Colter (played by her husband, Jason Hartley; they’re shown here). They link to search for a baseball star. Pernas moved to the U.S. from Morocco at 5. She met Hartley on “The Young and the Restless” and starred for two summers in CBS’ “Blood & Treasure.” Read more…

Week’s top-10 for Oct. 28: Halloween time is kinda fun

1) “Elsbeth,” 10 p.m. Thursday, CBS. Mac (Brittany O’Grady, center, who’s terrific) is a former child star, gorgeous and clueless. She wakes up on Halloween-with a haircut, a hangover, a tattoo, an arrest and a nightmare (or maybe a memory) involving shooting someone. Elsbeth (in cocktail-hour costume) investigates, in an hour that’s bright, funny and well-plotted. Read more…

Best-bets for Oct. 26: baseball vs. football vs. Hitchcock

1) “I Am Alfred Hitchcock” (2021), 8-10 p.m., CW. Deftly fanning his fame, Hitchcock (shown here) did interviews, hosted a TV series, did cameos in his films … and directed great movies. Ranging from the haunting “Psycho” to the lively “North by Northwest,” they drew 46 Oscar nominations and six wins. Here’s a profile of a man who also had a controlling attitude. Read more…

Best-bets for Oct. 25: A baseball classic returns

1) World Series, 8:08 p.m. ET, Fox, with pre-game at 7. It’s the Dodgers (shown here with Shohei Ohtani) and Yankees, in what used to be a Series tradition. When they were neighbors (in Brooklyn and the Bronx), they did seven Series from 1941-56; the Yankees won six. Then the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles. They’ve only met in four more Series (each winning two), and none since 1981. Read more…