Mike Hughes

Best-bets for Jan. 6: tales of rage in 1955 and 2021

1) “Women of the Movement” debut, 8-10 p.m., ABC. Once a star student, Mamie Till became a young mother in Chicago. In the summer of 1955, she reluctantly let her son Emmett, 14, visit his cousins in Mississippi; he was soon abducted and killed, in a case that spurred the civil rights movement. His mother became a teacher (with bachelor and master degrees) and an activist; her story (shown here, with Adrienne Warren and Cedric Joe) is told in this six-hour, three-week mini-series and in a documentary at 10:01 p.m. Read more…

The mid-season rush begins

The TV Season 2.0 has begun. And yes, we really need it.
The first step came Sunday (Jan. 2), when Fox debuted “Next Level Chef,” which promptly jumps to Wednesdays. On Monday, ABC launches a new “Bachelor” and NBC has the gentle fun of “Kenan.”
But the real burst starts Tuesday (Jan. 4). Two of broadcast TV’s best shows return (“This Is Us” and “Black-ish”) and a terrific new comedy arrives — “Abbott Elementary,” created by and starring Quinta Brunson, shown here.. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 5: new “Sam,” interrupted “Race”

1) “Good Sam” debut, 10 p.m. CBS. Shows used to stir conflict simply by having a female boss. For “Prime Suspect,” for instance, that meant instant distrust. Now a drama needs more: Samantha (Sophia Bush, 39) is young to be the chief of surgery. One of her underlings (Jason Isaacs, 58), emerged from a coma, is the former chief … and a noted surgeon …. and her father. (They’re shown here.) That sets the groundwork for strong drama and occasional humor. The opener is entertaining, despite way too much medical jargon. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 4: TV’s top shows return

1) “This Is Us” season-opener, 9 p.m., NBC. From its first episode, this has been a rarity – a drama with twists, surprises and deep human emotions. Now its sixth and final season starts with lives in flux. In last year’s season-finale, Kevin’s wedding fell through and we saw signs that his sister Kate will lose her marriage. Tonight, they gather with their adoptive brother Randall (shown here with  Kevin in an earlier episode), to mark their 41st birthday. Read more…

Betty White: an 82-year TV career

Betty White started her TV career before people had TV sets. Really.
White– who died on New Year’s Eve, 17 days shy of her 100th birthday – described that in “Here We Go Again” (Scribner, 1995).
She had just graduated from Beverly Hills High and fancied herself – incorrectly, she later said – as a possible opera singer. She and a classmate were asked to sing a shortened version of “The Merry Widow” in front of a TV camera.
“Our telecast only carried from the sixth (floor) to the ground floor,” where it was viewed by “our parents and a small handful of interested parties.” Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 3: Blizzard and mobsters fill our screens

1) “9-1-1: Lone Star” season-opener, 8 p.m., Fox. Last season ended with a dust storm hitting Texas; this one starts with a blizzard. That happens just as Owen (Rob Lowe, shown here) tries to separate himself from the world. The world promptly shows up at his door, with the potential for danger, romance and heroics. This starts a multi-week story that mixes big action scenes and deeper personal moments. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 2: food, Fogg and fun

1) “Around the World in 80 Days” debut, 8 p.m., PBS. This is a “Masterpiece” show, but feels more like an epic adventure – a good one – for the big screen. It’s an international co-production, with David Tennant (who’s English) as the frantic Phileas Fogg, Ibrahim Koma (French) as his valet and Leonie Benesch (German) as a reporter. (They’re shown here.) After betting he can circumnavigate the globe, unheard of in the 19th century, Fogg faces thieves and revolutionaries. But by the end of the first hour, he’s soaring – literally. Read more…

“All Creatures”: a small, sweet pleasure

Nicholas Ralph, it seems, is a lot like the rest of us.
Yes, he’s a TV star. In “All Creatures Great and Small” – the gentle pleasure that starts its second season at 9 p.m. Sunday (Jan. 9) on PBS – he has the lead role of James. But as a viewer, he keeps wishing James would express his feelings to Helen. (They’re shown here.)
“I was screaming at the telly, ‘Say something’ …. I hope that’s how an audience feels when they watch it,” Ralph said, in a virtual press conference with the Television Critics Association. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 1: Year begins with parade, bowls, more

1) Rose Parade, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET, NBC and ABC. Every year should start with the giddy flash of a parade. The Rose Parade (shown here in a previous year) was canceled last year, but now it expects 20 bands, 40 floats and lots of horses. LeAnn Rimes does an opening song; LeVar Burton – who was a University of Southern California student when he got the “Roots” lead, 45 years ago – is grand marshal. It’s the 95th year NBC covers it on radio or TV; Chrissy Metz and Susan Kelechi Watson (“This Is Us”) do commentary. Read more…

Three agree: “West Side Story” triumphs

Chances are, few things in this universe will draw unanimous agreement from People magazine, arts critic Ken Glickman and me.
Here’s one that does: Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” (shown hee) is a triumph, well worth seeing.
Those sources are quite different. The magazine worries about whom Jennifer Aniston is dating; Ken doesn’t. He’s a classical conductor/critic; I’m just a writer who sometimes succumbs to alliteration.
Ken and I did once agree that the Stratford theater summer had one great musical and one bad one. We just didn’t agree on which was which. But now comes a movie most people can savor: Read more…