Mike Hughes on TV

Strike quickly jolts broadcast TV

Life, you may have noticed, is rarely fair.
That’s become clear now, as the Writers Guild strike settles in, leaving an uneven impact:
— At one extreme are the movie studios, which pile up scripts and projects far in advance. For now, everything seems unchanged – same superheroes, supervillains, super collisions.
— In the middle are the streamers and a few cable networks. They try for the movie-studio approach.
— At the other end are the commercial broadcast networks. For them, the effects are instant and jolting; Pete Davidson (shown here) was one of the first to be smited. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 9, 2023

News and Quick Comments

CBS uncancels “SWAT” and adds games

Staring into a foggy future, CBS has made some quick shifts.
Today (May 8) it did something rare – uncanceling a show: “SWAT” (shown here) will be back next season, after all; however, another police drama, “East New York,” will not.
That came after recent moves to add two primetime game shows. Both will be produced and hosted by leading-man types – Josh Duhamel and Jaime Camil.
The games seem to be well-timed: The writers strike is expected to be long-term, leaving networks in need of unscripted shows. The cop-show switch, however, was unusual. The details: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 9, 2023

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 11: three finales and lots of country

1) “Ghosts” season-finale, 8:30 p.m., CBS. When Sam inherited a mansion last year, she decided to turn it into a bed-and-breakfast. What could go wrong? A lot so far, despite help from the ghosts that only Sam can see. Now comes another problem: Someone arrives (shown here, right), claiming to be the rightful heir. There’s a surprise, CBS says, that could sharply change things. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 9, 2023

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 10: It’s Vanna’s moment, on a game-filled night

1) “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune,” 9 p.m., ABC. After four decades of spinning the letters for “Wheel,” Vanna White (shown here) might have picked up some skill at guessing the puzzles. We’ll see tonight, when she competes with Ken Jennings (whose “Jeopardy Masters” tournament continues at 8 p.m.) and another “Jeopardy” genius, Mayim Bialik. “The Game Show Show” follows at 10 p.m. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 8, 2023

Stories

It’s a great celebration, Broadway-style

If you call yourself “great” every week, what do you do for a special occasion?
Well, it had better be something good or maybe almost great. Fortunately, it is. “Great Performances” is wrapping its 50th season with a Broadway blitz. At 9 p.m. on PBS, it has:
— May 12: An anniversary celebration filled with potent voices and frisky dancers. Sutton Foster hosts a romp through musicals, from Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber to Carole King and Sara Bareilles.
— May 19: “Richard III,” filmed in Central Park, with Danai Gurira portraying Shakespeare’s villainous hero. “Is there anybody else like this in contemporary drama?” Stephen Segaller, who supervises the show via the WNET station, asked the Television Critics Association. “Maybe Tony Soprano.”
— May 26: The opposite of Richard’s ferocity. It’s a rerun of Foster singing and tapping in “Anything Goes” (shown here), with a flimsy story connecting vibrant Cole Porter songs. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 7, 2023

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 9: fun, games and a tough finale

1) “Accused” season-finale, 9 p.m., Fox. This has been one of the year’s most engaging new shows – and, at times, one of its most painful. For the fourth time in 16 episodes, a story involves a troubled son. This one is back from his latest drug-rehab and working with his father. The dad (Keith Carradine, shown here) is a music star, overwhelmed by this dilemma. Like every “Accused,” this is written and acted with subtle skill; like many, it’s tough to watch. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 7, 2023

News and Quick Comments

“Bridgerton” prequel: some greatness, then very-goodness

In its first hour, the “Bridgerton” prequel seems ready to be a really great show.
It soon retreats into merely being a very good one; it insists on emphasizing – and even expanding — a crisis from history. But that opening hour is a gem.
“Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story” (shown here) is a six-parter that arrived recently on Netflix. It maintains the lush look and vivid characters, while jumping between two timelines.
There’s the one we know from the first two “Bridgerton” seasons: King George, descended into madness, is mostly invisible; his wife Charlotte is the unflinching, unsmiling ruler. And there’s this prequel time, when she was 17, heading to marry a king she’d never met. That’s the part that produced three amazing scenes in the first hour: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 6, 2023

Stories

Golden glimpses can be fun

Having now seen the past two British coronations on TV, I can assure you: The one today (Charles III) was way better than the previous one (his mom). That might be because:
— I was way too young to appreciate the previous one. Once I realized that none of those swords were going to be put to productive use, my interest waned.
— The telecast was better this time. In particular, it was in color.
At various points, Charles was on a golden carpet (ahown here) … was wearing a golden robe … and was being taken away in a golden carriage. Watching all of that gold, one thought persisted: Donald Trump must be quivering with jealousy. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 6, 2023

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 8: a new “Jeopardy” and a 25-year movie

1) “Independent Lens: Sam Now,” 10 p.m., PBS. Reed Harkness used to make goofy movies, with his half-brother Sam as a superhero. Then he suggested something bigger – trying to find the mother who had vanished when Sam was in his early teens. The resulting film – sort of 25 years in the making – tells a remarkable story, with a deep empathy for Sam (shown here) and mom.
Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 6, 2023

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 7: Hank leads a finale-filled night

1) “Lucky Hank” finale, 9 p.m., AMC, rerunning at 11:02. This superb mini-series finds Hank (Bob Odenkirk, shown here) flailing. The school president wants him to fire three faculty people … his wife (Mireille Enos) is in New York, with a big, new job and a tiny, new apartment … and their daughter’s marriage is crumbling. It’s a busy hour that, as usual, offers deep characters and witty dialog. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 5, 2023

Mike Hughes on TV

Cline: an eternal star, 61 years after her death

Tortured genius? No, Leo was the life of the party

A massacre’s impact resonates through history

CBS shuffle: “Sydney,” “Squares,” “Watson,” more

ABC patches some holes in mid-season shift

Strike quickly jolts broadcast TV

CBS uncancels “SWAT” and adds games

Best-bets for May 11: three finales and lots of country

Best-bets for May 10: It’s Vanna’s moment, on a game-filled night

It’s a great celebration, Broadway-style

Best-bets for May 9: fun, games and a tough finale

“Bridgerton” prequel: some greatness, then very-goodness

Golden glimpses can be fun

Best-bets for May 8: a new “Jeopardy” and a 25-year movie

Best-bets for May 7: Hank leads a finale-filled night

Cline: an eternal star, 61 years after her death

Best-bets for Nov. 19: surfers, vampires and da Vinci

Best-bets for Nov. 17: As “Yellowstone” nears the end, new show arrives

Tortured genius? No, Leo was the life of the party

Week’s top-10 for Nov. 18: from Da Vinci to Lisa Simpson

Mike Hughes on TV