Mike Hughes

Best-bets for Jan. 21: “SNL” is new; so is football

1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. A dozen years ago, Aubrey Plaza and Michael B. Jordan were supporting players in NBC-produced shows (“Parks and Recreation” and “Friday Night Lights”). Now they’re movie stars, wth their first turns as “SNL” hosts. Next week, is Jordan, with Lil Baby as music guest; this week (with Sam Smith as music guest) is Plaza, who has soared with “Emily the Criminal” (shown here), “White Lotus” and more. Read more…

An old/new idea: a TV anthology

In the olden days, primetime TV wasn’t into binges or serials or tangled story lines.
Often, it had anthology series. Some had hosts – Ronald Reagan, Rod Sterling, Loretta Young, Alfred Hitchcock, Old Ranger – and some didn’t; most had stories that were quick and self-contained.
Now comes a nod to the past. “Accused” (shown here) debuts after football Sunday on Fox, then settles into its spot at 9 p.m. Tuesdays. Each hour offers a separate courtroom trial, with ample flashbacks.
“An anthology, to me, is the perfect antidote to … ‘bingeing,’” producer Howard Gordon said. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 20: “Godfather” leads a dramatic night

1) “The Godfather” (1972), 12:30 and 9 p.m., AMC. Francis Coppola’s gem had a passionate story, crisp dialog, strong visuals and some of Hollywood’s best actors, led by Al Pacino, Marlon Brando (shown here) and James Caan. Then “The Godfather, Pari II” (1974) – at 4:30 p.m. and 1 a.m. — added Robert De Niro. The original film is No. 2 (behind “Citizen Kane)” on the American Film Institute’s all-time list; “Part II” is No. 32, the only sequel in the top 100. Read more…

Top-10 for week of Jan. 22: “Accused,” “Auto” and a new bachelor

1) “Accused” (shown here), 9:01 p.m. Tuesday, Fox. After a grim and disturbing opener Sunday, this anthology bounces back sharply. In a skillful directing debut, Marlee Matlin guided talented actors, some who are deaf, as is Matlin. The story involves a deaf baby and a drastic decision. Even when a character makes a huge mistake, we’re rooting for her. That’s a hallmark of this series, which offers neatly nuanced portraits of people in swirling situations. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 19: Even Netflix joins the comedy rush

1) “That ‘90s Show” (shown here) debut, Netflix. For eight years, “That ‘70s Show” gave us nostalgia, humor and some fresh young stars. Now Topher Grace and Laura Prepon return briefly as Eric and Donna, but the focus is on their smart and snarky teen, spending the summer with her grandparents (Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp). She meets the son of Kelso and Jackie, who – no surprise here – turns out to be flirty and charming. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 18: Scottish beauty, school comedy

1) “Nature,” 8 p.m., PBS. Here’s a fresh approach, centering on a tree that prospered for five centuries in the Scottish highland. The hour imagines the natural history around it and adds some human history – farmers, rebels, even the future Queen Mary. The notion is a stretch, but it offers gorgeous scenes (the generic Scottish scene here isn’t from the show), plus insights into evolving nature. Read more…

“Weird, shrunk-in-dryer kid” became a star

PASADENA — On the way to becoming a TV star and producer, Melissa Rauch (show here) was strongly impacted by laundry appliances – twice.
Really. These days, she stars in the revived “Night Court” (8 p.m. Tuesdays, NBC, starting Jan. 17), a show she and her husband willed into existence, in the midst of a pandemic and a baby boom.
But long before that, there were times when she scrambled for comedy gigs. “There were stand-up nights in a laundromat,” she recalled. “People would be doing their laundry next to you.”
And much earlier, Rauch found herself being mocked for her height, or lack thereof. Her mother’s suggestion was to have fun with it; they concocted a story: “I would tell people that I was playing hide-and-seek in the dryer and someone accidentally turned it on.” It was a clever notion that, alas, backfired: “Now I was the weird kid who shrunk in the dryer.” Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 17: Doctors end, judge begins

1) “Night Court” debut (shown here), 8 and 8:30 p.m., NBC. This blends key pieces of past comedy hits: There’s “Night Court” and John Larroquette, who won four Emmys as Dan Fielding, before withdrawing from consideration. And there’s Melissa Rauch, who was Bernadette on “The Big Bang Theory.” Now she plays the daughter of Judge Harry Stone, taking over his courtroom … and luring Fielding back. The result is big and broad and, often enough, quite funny. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 16: Bob, Brady and Ben the bounty hunter

1) “Bob (Hearts) Abishola” return, 8:30 p.m., CBS. After missing last week (because of the all-night “NCIS” crossover), one of TV’s best comedies has its first new episode in six weeks. When we left it, Abishola was fretting: Bob mortgaged the house to finance a risky step, moving sock-production back to Detroit. Now there’s a new dispute on whether Dele (shown here with Bob) should be driving. Read more…

Week’s top-10 for Jan. 16: a busy week for comedy

1) “Night Court” debut, 8 and 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, NBC. Here are key pieces of past comedy hits: There’s “Night Court” and John Larroquette, who won four straight Emmys as Dan Fielding, before withdrawing from consideration. And there’s Melissa Rauch – Bernadette on “The Big Bang Theory” – playing the new judge. She wants Fielding back (they’re shown here) — but this time handling the defense. The result is big and broad … and, at times, quite funny Read more…