1) “The Voice,” 8-10 p.m., NBC. The show has its final five now, with Blake Shelton (as usual) at an advantage. He has two people, Cam Anthony (shown here) and Jordan Matthew Young; the others have one apiece — Victor Solomon, Rachel Mac and Kenzie Wheeler. Now they sing and viewers vote; on Tuesday, after lots of guest performances, we’ll have the 20th “Voice” champion. Read more…
1) “American Idol” finale, 8-11 p.m. ET, ABC. Last week, voters picked their final three – Willie Spence, Grace Kinstler and Chayce Beckham. That ousted Casey Bishop, drawing surprise and complaints – similar to when Chris Daughtry finished fourth, 15 years ago. Tonight, we’ll get music from nine finalists (one dropped out) … from the judges … and from Alessia Cara (shown here), Luke Combs, Sheryl Crow, Lindsey Buckingham, Mickey Guyton, Leona Lewis, Chaka Khan, Fall Out Boy and Macklemore. Read more…
1) “The Voice” finale, 8-10 p.m. today and Tuesday, NBC. This will revolve around Blake Shelton – as life often does. He has two of the five finalists, Jordan Matthew Young (shown here) and Cam Anthony. (The others are Victor Solomon, Rachel Mac and Kenzie Wheeler.) His fiancee Gwen Stefani will be there, singing with Saweetie; so will his friend Adam Levine, with Maroon 5. Other performers Tuesday: Justin Bieber, Thomas Rhett, OneRepublic, Kelsea Ballerini, Snoop Dogg, Ben Platt and Lauren Daigle. Read more…
1) “Saturday Night Live” season-finale, 11:29 p.m., NBC. Two years ago, Anya Taylor-Joy (shown here) and Lil Nas X were mostly unknown; now they’re host and music guest. She was up for two Golden Globes this year; she won for “The Queen’s Gambit” and was nominated for “Emma.” He saw his “Old Town Road” start on the country chart, cross over to pop … and spend 17 weeks at No. 1. Breaking barriers, he became the first Black and openly gay man to win a Country Music Association award. Read more…
CBS new fall line-up will be both daring and ultra-cautious.
The daring part involves the schedule itself: “NCIS” – TV’s most-watched show – moves to Mondays …. The best comedy spot (9 p.m. Thursdays) goes to a newcomer (“Ghosts,” shown here) … And the successful cop-and-crook block on Fridays will be one hour shorter, to make room for an unscripted show.
And the meek part involves the shows selected. Taking no chances, CBS will add fresh editions of “NCIS,” “CSI” and “FBI”; it will even put three FBI shows back-to-back on Tuesdays. Read more…
While money men work out the future, the former Ted Turner networks have basic plans for now.
The billion-dollar stuff – merging Warner and Discovery channels – is for later. For now, the “TNets” range from the silliness of “Wipeout” and “Go-Big Show” to the dead-serious “Snowpiercer” (shown here) and “Claws.”
Coming is what Brett Weitz, general manager of TBS, TNT and TruTV, calls “a very packed summer.” That will range from the comic “Miracle Workers” to the crime drama “Animal Kingdom,” and will include a fresh twist to movie night.
TBS’ “Friday Night Vibes” will have Tiffany Haddish hosting films and chatting with friends; that starts June 18 with a Juneteenth celebration that includes a “Creed” double-feature. “She’s such a pro …. I can’t wait to see who she gets to hang with her each week,” Weitz told reporters. Read more…
1) “The Dick Van Dyke Show – Now in Living Color,” 8 p.m., CBS. Here are two episodes from a great comedy (shown here in a promo photo), now with color added by computer. The second – from the final season– lets Mel (Richard Deacon) finally stand up to Alan (Carl Reiner), his boss and brother-in-law. The first was co-written by Garry Marshall, recalling a real-life time when he had to secretly rewrite a play. Marshall would go on to produce “Happy Days,” “Laverne and Shirley, “Mork and Mindy” and more. Read more…
There is still room for evil in our media landscape.
Or, specifically, for “Evil” – the series that disappeared 16 months ago. Its long-delayed second season will skip CBS and jump directly to the Paramount Plus streaming service.
No date has been set for the move, but another show will wait until this fall. That’s when “SEAL Team” (shown here) has a special on CBS, then jumps to the streamer. Read more…
Repeating a trick it learned during the pandemic, ABC will have two reality shows on consecutive nights this fall.
It will be “Dancing With the Stars” on Mondays and an extra “Bachelorette” – right after the summer one – on Tuesdays.
The latter will provide a lead-in for a promising drama-with-music: “Queens” (shown here) at 10 p.m. Tuesdays, has Eve and Brandy in a story of a former hip-hop band, re-uniting. Read more…
1) “Last Man Standing” series-finale, 9 and 9:30 p.m., Fox. It’s been a strong run for this comedy – nine seasons, spanning 10 years and two networks. The farewell, however, reminds us of that this is a very ordinary show, with forced humor salvaged (barely) by likable characters. The 9 p.m. episode – a “camping boot camp” – is so-so. The 9:30 one gives some awful lines to Jay Leno, but also has its moments, using a stolen truck (shown here) as a metaphor for a canceled show. The truck, at least, is a classic. Read more…
