News and Quick Comments

“The Stand”: King’s potent, twice-told tale

For most authors, Hollywood wonders if any of their stories should be filmed.
For Stephen King, it’s a different matter. They all should be filmed, apparently, so there’s another question: Which ones should be done a second time?
The latest is “The Stand” (shown here), which arrives Thursday (Dec. 17) for a nine-week run on CBS All Access. It follows plenty of other King two-timers, including “Carrie,” “It,” “The Shining,””Salem’s Lot,” “Pet Semetary,” “Creepshow,” “The Dead Zone” and more.
In short, Hollywood really likes the guy. “He’s one of the great storytellers in the history of humanity,” said Benjamin Cavell, the “Stand” showrunner. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 15, 2020

News and Quick Comments

Two specials celebrate a Pride-ful life

Over the next few days, viewers can celebrate one of the great figures in Americana music.
Charley Pride died Saturday (Dec. 12) at 86, of complications from COVID. By various counts, he had between 29 and 36 No. 1 country hits, including “Kiss an Angel Good Morning” and “Is Anybody Goin’ to San Antone?”Now come two chances to revisit his life, via:
– PBS. “Charley Pride: I’m Just Me,” an excellent “American Masters” documentary, is available through Dec. 26 at www.pbs.org/americanmasters and on the PBS app.
– The CMT cable channel. “CMT Remembers Charley Pride” will air at 8 p.m. Wednesday (Dec. 16), rerunning on 9 a.m. Thursday and noon Saturday. It will include clips of Pride, plus comments (new or past) from his wife of 64 years, plus Tim McGraw, Loretta Lynn, the late Merle Haggard, Shania Twain and Darius Rucker … who had a key connection with Pride this year. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 15, 2020

News and Quick Comments

Super Bowl will kick off big week

CBS is counting on the Super Bowl to propel its mid-season shows.
The network has just announced two shows that will arrive in the days after the Feb. 7 game. It will be the second season of “Tough As Nails” on Feb. 10 and the debut of “Clarice” (shown here) – the FBI agent from “Silence of the Lambs” – on Feb. 11.
That follows the decision to give the best spot – debuting after the Super Bowl – to “The Equalizer,” a reboot starring Queen Latifah. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 8, 2020

News and Quick Comments

Yes, the missing shows are on the way

Some of the final pieces of the fall TV season are on the way now – albeit in the winter.
The most recent steps – see separate story – involve three shows (“Equalizer,” “Call Me Kat,” “The Masked Dancer”) that will be launched after football games. That followed several other moves: CBS has just returned four of its dramas … NBC set Ted Danson’s new “Mr. Mayor” comedy (shown here) for Jan. 7 … ABC and Fox set January dates for returning shows and for some mid-season game shows.
Here’s an updated, alphabetical list of what’s scheduled on the five broadcast commercial networks. Others – cable, streaming and PBS – tend to have shorter runs throughout the year. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 7, 2020

News and Quick Comments

“Equalizer,” others, get football boost

Struggling to launch a handful of new shows, the networks turn to the one thing they can count on – football.
CBS has given its best spot – after the Super Bowl on Feb. 7 – to “The Equalizer” (shown here) The show – a reboot starring Queen Latifah – will remain on Sundays, starting 8 p.m. Feb. 14.
Earlier, Fox decided to launch both of its new shows after NFL doubleheaders.
“The Masked Dancer” will debut Dec. 27, then settle into a temporary spot at 8 p.m. Wednesdays. “Call Me Kat,” a Mayim Bialik comedy, debuts Jan. 3, then moves to 9 p.m. Wednesdays. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 6, 2020

News and Quick Comments

An honorable judge sinks into chaos

This is a basic challenges of fiction: Find a plausible way for an ordinary person to plunge into an extraordinary situation.
That’s what “For Honor,” the mini-series starting at 10 p.m. Sunday (Dec. 6) on Showtime, does so well. Aided by the subtle skill of Bryan Cranston (shown here with Hunter Doohan), it keeps sinking deeper into a pit.
Such stories are best if the protagonist starts with a small sin he wants to hide. He joy-rides in a car, unaware there’s a body in the trunk … sneaks into an apartment, unaware it’s a drug house … cheats on his wife, unaware that the object of his lust is obsessive.
In this case, there’s an extra layer – a widowed dad is desperate to help his son. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 3, 2020

News and Quick Comments

Pro football: No home, no name, no quarterback, no (?) schedule

There was a time when every pro football team had a home. And a name. And a quarterback (several actually). And a schedule, set in stone.
That was a dull-but-simple time, before the chaos of 2020. Now the changes keep coming.
There are games — some involving the unbeaten Pittsburgh Steelers (shown here) — at unexpected times – this Wednesday afternoon (Dec. 2) … early Monday evening (Dec. 7) … and Tuesday night (Dec. 8). For the second time, a Thursday-night game will be scrapped. And schedules have changed and unchanged for NBC, ABC and Fox.
Most, but not all, of this is COVID-related. The changes include: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 1, 2020

News and Quick Comments

“The Crown”: Great drama, flaws (many) and all

Many shows vanish in an eyeblink. Moments after fading from the screen, they fade from our minds.
Then there’s Netflix’s “The Crown” (shown here), which sticks around. Two weeks after the fourth season arrived (Nov. 15), the British press has been awash with commentaries. Even the New York Times – located 3,500 miles from Buckingham Palace – had several pieces about it, including Nov. 27 and 28. So let me jump in here, with a few comments:
From a sheer drama-craftsmanship view, this season is a resounding success. Even with some flaws – and there are big ones – it is brilliantly written, filmed and (mostly) played. Catch all 10 episodes.
And accuracy? That seems to be another matter. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / November 29, 2020

News and Quick Comments

There’s lots of Christmas TV; here’s the list

This sounds like the title of the worst holiday movie ever: “COVID Conquers Christmas.”
Fortunately, it didn’t work out that way. TV people adapted, adjusted, improvised. In quantity, we’ll have about the usual number of Christmas shows – somewhere between a zillion and way too many.
And in quality? We’ll notice some changes, right away on Thanksgiving Day. One “parade” (on NBC) will only ba a block long, with some of the music acts taped in advance; the other (on CBS) will mix new music with clips of past parades. At night on ABC, Derek and Julianne Hough (shown here) will start with a new song-and-dance number … then simply show ones from past specials. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / November 25, 2020

News and Quick Comments

When do shows return? Here’s an update

After months of delays and adjustments, the TV networks have now scheduled most of their fall shows.
Many, however, will be arriving mid-winter, not in the fall. That starts with four CBS shows in early December (including “Magnum, P.I.,” shown here), then speeds up in January.
The latest news involves January starts for three ABC shows – “The Rookie” (Jan. 3), “Mixed-ish” (Jan. 26) and the new “Call Your Mother” (Jan. 13). Still in limbo are a few shows that were expected this fall – CBS’ “Evil” and “Equalizer” and NBC’s New Amsterdam” and “Manifest.” Also, ABC reversed course and canceled Stumptown.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / November 21, 2020