Year: 2024

Stories

Sci and fi make an intriguing blend

Science and fiction have always had a cozy relationship. Magnify the facts a tad and you have wild whimsy.
That’s clear in “Constellation,” an Apple TV+ eight-parter that has its first three episodes Wednesday (Feb. 21).
This is a blend, producer-director Michelle MacLaren told the Television Critics Association, with parts “drama, thriller, horror.” Still, she said, “we The story clearly sounds like fantasy/horror. Having barely survived in space, an astronaut returns to what doesn’t feel like her world. “Her gut feeling,” said Noomi Rapace, who plays her, “is saying. ‘This is not my baby, (shown here), but she looks like my baby.’”wanted it to be based in reality.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 19, 2024
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 20: Three dramas start, one ends

1) “The Good Doctor’ season-opener, 10 p.m., ABC.. Over six seasons, Shaun has evolved from a timid teen, autistic and socially clumsy, to a gifted surgeon who’s now a husband and a new dad. Now the 10-episode final season begins, with a crisis. As Shaun and Lea (shown here) adjust to parenthood, he has a dilemma, with two babies needing a transplant. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 18, 2024
Stories

“Dream role” brings scams, wigs and fun

Some roles require little acting – a subtle smile, a sly smirk, maybe a pregnant pause.
Then there’s Max, on “Wild Cards,” who does … well, everythinng. “It’s kind of like a dream role,” said Vanessa Morgan (shown here), who plays her.
The show (8 p.m. Wednesdays on CW) has a cop (Giacomo Gianniotto) reluctantly paired with Max. A lifelong con artist, she has a bag of tricks (literally) from which she has produced wigs, pistachios and a grappling hook. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 18, 2024
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 19: talent winner, irrational farewell

1) “America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League” finale, 8-10 p.m. today, NBC. The show has its top ten acts – three apiece on the Simon Cowell and Howie Mandel teams, two with Heidi Klum and Mel B. There’s a singer, a choir and a drumline, plus two aerialists (including Aidan Bryant, shown here), two dance acts, an acrobat duo, a rollerblade duo and a shadow act. Last Monday, all 10 performed and viewers voted; now one wins $250,000. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 17, 2024
News and Quick Comments

Want dramas? ABC has a Tuesday surge (briefly)

Tuesdays have become a feast-or-famine time for ABC.
For months, the night was confined to reruns and reality and such. Now, starting Feb. 20, comes a drama surge.
It’s the second season of “Will Trent,” the sixth of “The Rookie” (shown here), the seventh and final one of “The Good Doctor.” Three popular shows return, back-to-back.
And then, after just 10 episodes, their seasons will be done. More on that later. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 16, 2024
News and Quick Comments

Sam Spade’s wine-sipping detour concludes

Sam Spade’s French adventure is ending now. Zombies are ready to take his timeslot.
First, the story needs to be resolved – or, in this case, semi-resolved. The “Monsieur Spade” (shown here) finale is 9 p.m. Sunday (Feb. 18) on AMC.
Viewers can also catch the full, six-episode experience on the Acorn or AMC+ streaming services. They’ll find an Americana classic – the tough, terse-talking private eye – transferred to an opposite world.
“I just thought it was as far away from Sam Spade as possibly could be: Having a vineyard, even drinkng wine at all,” producer-director Scott Frank told the Television Critics Association. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 16, 2024
Daily Best Bets

Bet-bets for Feb. 17: Austen and all-stars

1) “An American in Austen,” 8-10 p.m.,, Hallmark. Lots of people might imagine being in the world Jane Austen created for her best character, Elizabeth Bennett. In this film, that happens: A modern Austen buff (played by a Canadian actress, shown here, who happens to be named Eliza Bennett) is transported to that era. Also, “Paging Mt. Darcy” (2024), set at an Austen conference, reruns at noon. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 15, 2024
News and Quick Comments

This year, Olympics won’t wait for primetime

For Olympic fans, the days of the primetime surprise may be over,
NBC will have a different approach for the games (July 26 to Aug. 11) in Paris: Every major event (including gymnastics, with Siimone Biles shown here) will be live in the daytime, then repackaged for night.
That’s a big change from the days when it was easy to keep secrets. Major events – including, in the winter, U.S-Russia hockey and Kerrigan-Harding skating – could be delayed for hours, then delivered to surprised viewers at night.
Not any more. “The network is going to be live (in the daytime), no holding back,” Molly Solomon, president of NBC’s Olympics coverage, told the Television Critics Association. At night, the same events will be in “a curated presentation – the best performances of the day, distilled down to three hours.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 15, 2024
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10: Dramas return, “Talent” departs

1) “The Good Doctor’ season-opener, 10 p.m. Tuesday, ABC.. A well-crafted show starts its final season … trimmed from 13 episodes to 10. There’s a lot to cover in the world of Shaun (Freddie Highmore), the brilliant and autistic surgeon. He and Lea are raising their baby (shown here) while he faces a tough case — two babies needing a heart transplant. Also this season, a younger autistic doctor will arrive. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 14, 2024