Mike Hughes

News and Quick Comments

Post-strike, CW sticks with lower-budget plan

When the big networks return to full-budget, scripted shows, the CW will stand fast.
It will have the same sort of shows it (and others) settled for during the strikes. There will be lots a non-fiction, plus Canadian shows (including “Children Ruin Everything,” shown here) and a movie night.
For years, the CW had youthful shows — often high-octane, superhero ones. But 15 months ago, it got a new owner with plans to lower the costs; then the strikes saw all the networks trying that. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 13, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 15: Christmas tree, parade, movie

1) “National Christmas Tree Lighting,” 8 p.m., CBS. We don’t think of President Calvin Coolidge as a festive guy, but in 1923 he presided over the first lighting of the national tree. A century later, that’s a TV-ready celebration. Mickey Guyton (shown here) hosts and sings, with Dionne Warwick, Joe Walsh, Ledisi, Darren Criss, St. Vincent, Renee Rapp and Samara Joy. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 13, 2023
Stories

British custom — Christmas Day TV — reaches U.S.

A British custom – TV episodes planned for Christmas Day – is making modest inroads in the U.S.
The big one this year is a “Doctor Who,” introducing a new Doctor and his companion (the stgars are shown here). It marks the show’s move to Disney+.
In addition, however, there are two others arriving exactly on Dec. 25 (PBS’ “Call the Midwife” and Acorn’s “Madame Blanc Mysteries”), two that come a day earlier (Britbox’s “Lot 249” ghost story and its “Beyond Paradise”) and some others from earlier in the month. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 13, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 14: “Crown,” country, Christmas

1) “The Crown” conclusion, Netflix. A great series wraps up. In each of its previous five seasons, “The Crown” drew an Emmy nomination for best drama series. (It won once, with last season still pending.) It has 64 more nominations, 20 wins and an admiring audience. Four weeks ago, the season’s first four episodes arrived, taking us to Diana’s death; now the final six spend more time on the William-and-Kate (shown here) and Harry stories, and on the struggles of a changing monarchy. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 12, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 13: a night stuffed with new dramas

1) “Quantum Leap,” 8 p.m., NBC. Last week’s episode had a finish that was far-fetched, even by time-travel standards. Now “Leap” bounces back; an engaging story, set among spies in 1950s Egypt, marks the return of the show’s best character. Hannah (Eliza Taylor, the former “100” star) is the only person outside the lab who knows about Ben’s time-travel. He met her when she was an underemployed waitress and steered her toward her career as a physicist (shown here); now they meet again in Egypt. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 11, 2023
News and Quick Comments

Shows’ return dates? Here’s an alphabetical list

As the real TV season finally nears, viewers can start to ask about their favorite shows.
They might wonder when the final seasons begin for “Young Sheldon,” shown here, or “Blue Bloods” (Feb. 15 and 16). They might want the first season of Jon Hamm’s animated “Grimsburg” (Jan. 7), the 20th of “Grey’s Anatomy” (March 14) or the 25th of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (Jan. 18).
Most of those details are available now, so we’ve put them into two alphabetical lists. One has 14 new shows; the other has 49 returning ones.
This sticks to prime time in the five main broadcast networks, plus the Sunday dramas on PBS. It skips cable and streaming networks, which tend to have fluid schedules, even during the strikes. It also skips the few shows (“Simpsons” or “60 Minutes,” for instance) that never went away. A few shows haven’t been scheduled yet and everything is subject to change: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 10, 2023
News and Quick Comments Stories

When does the real season start? Soon … or not

(This is an updated version, adding several CW shows)
After waiting semi-patiently for three months, TV viewers have a logical question:
Now that the strikes have ended, when will the real season start? The answer varies; it will be:
— Quite soon. Two comedies (one is shown here) arrive Dec. 23; 11 more shows arrive in the first week of January.
— Really late. Another 12 shows – led by the eternal “Grey’s Anatomy” – wait until March.
— Or somewhere in between. You could think of the Super Bowl, on Feb. 11, as the turning point. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 10, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 12: holiday joy or “Fargo” fury

1) “Christmas With the Tabernacle Choir,” 8-9:30 p.m., PBS. From its opening moments, this is a truly gorgeous concert. More than 500 volunteers are in the massive choir, orchestra and more, with Lea Salonga (shown here) — from Broadway and from Disney’s “Mulan” and “Aladdin” – as soloist. The music soars through classical and pop, sacred and secular, and David Suchet tells a moving story. This also airs on BYU-TV on Dec. 17, 21, 22 and 24. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 10, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 11: time for games and songs

1) “Big Brother Reindeer Games” start, 8-10 p.m., CBS. For eight hours over the next two weeks, we’ll see past “Big Brother” contestants compete in action games. The nine-person field includes the winners from 2020 to 2022 (Cody Calafiore, Xavier Prather and Taylor Hale), plus the 2016-17winners (Nicole Franzel and Josh Martinez). They’re joined by Danielle Reyes, Cameron Hardin, Frankie Grande and Brittney Haynes.Others (including Jordan Lloyd, shown here, will help with the games.) That continues Tuesday, Thursday and next week. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 9, 2023