Mike Hughes

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USA Network season: It’s mostly macho

The USA Network will be a mostly macho place next season.
It will also be mostly unscripted, at least among its original (non-rerun) shows. The network — which once debuted “Monk,” “Psych,” “Suits” and “Mr. Robot” — has plans next season for exactly one scripted original –continuing “Chucky,” the killer-doll tale.
Instead, USA seems to reflect the success of its Monday and Tuesday wrestling, via the WWE. (One new show will be hosted by WWE star Nikki Bella, shown here; a returning reality show features a WWE couple.) It also reflects an expanded sports line-up, now that sister channel NBC Sports Network has folded. The announcements for next season include Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 14, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 16: finales and classy movies

1) The Good Doctor” season-finale, 10 p.m. today, ABC. When this show started, Shaun was an autistic kid who was brilliant at surgery and overwhelmed by life. Things transformed when Lea, a sweet-spirited techie, moved into the apartment next door. (They’re shown here.) Last week, she was in her wedding gown when she realized a big-deal ceremony would be too much for him. Tonight, they try again, this time with a less-formal wedding. Then, ABC says, someone has a medical emergency. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 14, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 15: “Equalizer” ends season; music multiplies

1) “The Equalizer” season-finale, 8 p.m., CBS. This is a classic case of making the best of a bad situation. After sex-abuse accusations, Chris Noth was fired, leaving a void;. He’d been Bishop, Robyn’s former mentor and her CIA contact., so a new story emerged: Bishop was killed when Mason Quinn downed his plane; now Robyn’s obsession with revenge turns dangerous. Also, her daughter (shown here in a previous episode) finally meets the people Robyn has been working with. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 13, 2022
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for May 16: a flock of finales

1) “American Idol” (shown here) finale, 8-11 p.m. Sunday, ABC. In a week stuffed with finales, this is a big one – naming the 20th “Idol” winner. We’re far from the days when “Idol” topped the ratings and its winners (Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood) became stars. But this is still ABC’s most-watched show and is second only to “The Bachelor” for ages 18-49; its ratings declined moderately this year, while others plunged. Tonight, we can expect performances by guests and the contestants … and then a winner. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 12, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 14: “Top Gun” tops a big movie night

(This is an improved version of the five TV best-bets for Saturday, May 14, adding CNN’s “Navalny” rerun. It moves No. 3 to the No. 5 spot, where it adds “Navalny”; the others move up to 3 and 4.)

1) “Top Gun” (1986), 8-10:30 p.m., CBS. Tom Cruise’s career was off to a good start, with a dandy comedy (“Risky Business”) and some dramas. Then this film shot it into the stratosphere. Playing a cocky pilot, Cruise was surrounded by director Tony Scott’s flashy visuals, plus soaring music, macho-guy dialog and strong support from Anthony Edwards, Meg Ryan, Val Kilmer, Kelly McGillis and more. The result was the year’s top box-office draw; it’s back, two weeks before its sequel reaches theaters.
Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 12, 2022
Stories

Richie savors a life of music and history

Right now, Lionel Richie (shown here) seems to be in his happy place.
Then again, he sort of lives there; that’s what his adoptive daughter keeps telling people. “Nicole always says I’m the happiest guy in the world,” he said, without disputing it. And now he has extra reasons for joy, with:
— The finals for “American Idol,” which he judges alongside Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. At 8 p.m. Sunday (May 15) on ABC, the final five perform; a week later, the show has its 20th winner.
— The Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, at 9 p.m. Tuesday (May 17) on PBS. He’s the 13th annual winner, putting him alongside such people as Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, Gloria Estefan, Garth Brooks and two of his old Motown colleagues, Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 11, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 13: musicals, great and not

1) “Great Performances: Anything Goes,” 9 p.m., PBS. Last summer – before Broadway began its comeback – Sutton Foster (shown here) and director/choreographer Kathleen Marshall did this show in London. They had done it on Broadway a decade earlier, winning Tonys; now they triumphed again. The plot is way too silly, but the Cole Porter songs ripple with wit and zest. Foster is superb in Marshall’s epic song-and-dance numbers.
Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 11, 2022
Stories

Time-travel can be tough on romance

Time-travel is always kind of complicated. As humans, we like to know where we are and when we are.
But it’s infinitely tougher when you can’t control it. And you’re in love. And you’re naked.
That happens in “The Time Traveler’s Wife” (shown here) now in its third incarnation. It’s been a 2003 novel that sold 2.5 million copies in its first six year. … a 2009 movie that did fairly well, drawing $101 million worldwide …and now a six-part series on HBO — starting at 9 p.m. Sunday, May 15 — and HBO Max.
The longer format gave writer Steven Moffat room to play with the story, but he says he used restraint. “Everybody loves the book,” he told the Television Critics Association, “so there’s no messing around with the stuff that matters.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 11, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 12: Georgie faces church’s wrath

1) “Young Sheldon,” 8 p.m., CBS. After pausing last week for reruns, the show is back to its best storyline: Georgie, 17, lied about his age; now his ex-girlfriend, 29, is pregnant. (They’re shown here with his grandmother.) His mom (who was pregnant with Georgie when she married) was stunned when friends avoided her Bible club. Now it’s time to face the congregation. Sheldon is perplexed, but his twin sister speaks up for Georgie. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 10, 2022
Daily Best Bets

Beat-bets for May 11: Let’s visit dinosaurs or Chicago

1) “Nova: Dinosaur Apocalypse,” 9 and 10 p.m., PBS. Long ago, a meteor struck Mexico, sending clouds that killed the dinosaurs and more. Now – some 2,000 miles (and 66 million years) away – paleontologists in North Dakota have apparently found remnants of the meteor and some of its victims. “Nova” spent three years filming the work, adding special effects and David Attenborough (shown here). The result is fascinating – top-drawer science, related in a thoroughly entertaining way. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 9, 2022