Mike Hughes

Stories

A splendid comedy says farewell

One of the best TV comedies is saying farewell on Thursday (May 13).
But don’t expect a big send-off in the “MASH”/”Seinfeld”/”Big Bang” mode. “Mom” (shown here, 9 p.m., CBS) has spent its eight seasons in a middle ground – usually funny, sometimes poignant, rarely honored.
Its honors have been strictly for Allison Janney, the show’s amazing star – five Emmy nominations and two wins. (There have also been four nominations for editing and one for cinematography.) Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 8, 2021
News and Quick Comments

Here’s the second-half schedule for Classic Film Festival

The Classic Film Festival is at its mid-point now, with lots more top films on Turner Classic Movies.
That starts Saturday morning (May 8), with some cartoons for grown-ups. It continues through Sunday night, with “Goodbye Girl” (shown here), “Fame” and more.
Or you could go to the TCM hub of HBO Max, where lots more classics are waiting. A separate story offers an overview of the festival; meanwhile, here’s the schedule, trimmed down to the final two days: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 8, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 10: funny Kate, fishy Dory, more

) “Power of Women: The Comedians,” 8 p.m., Lifetime. In previous years, this has focused on movie stars and singers. Now it honors six masters of TV comedy. Half started on “Saturday Night Live” – Kate McKinnon (shown here_, Maya Rudolph and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. So did two people (Aidy Bryant and Bowen Yang) doing interviews, plus Tina Fey, who presents a tribute to the original “SNL” star, Gilda Radner. Also honored: Sofia Vergara and two writer-producer-stars, Mindy Kaling and Michaela Coel. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 8, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 9: Let’s savor Zoey and Johnny

1) “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist,” 9 p.m., NBC. This has become a delight, making clever use of its gimmick: Usually (shown here), Zoey can hear other people’s thoughts, via pop songs. But now that gimmick is set aside for a week, with great results. A brilliant script (by newcomer Celeste Klaus and Sam Laybourne, one of the producers) flashes back to before Zoey’s “gift” … and before she knew Max and Mo … and before her dad was sick. It does insert some music, in sly little touches that fans will savor. Stick with it to the end. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 7, 2021
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for May 10: “Mom” leads flood of finales

1) “Mom” series finale, 9 p.m Thursday., CBS. At times, this has been TV’s best comedy, a dandy blend of quiet emotion (as recovering alcoholics cope with life) and loud humor. The latter part is propelled by by Bonnie’s unapologetic adventures. Allison Janney (shown here with William Fichtner) has mastered the role, winning two Emmys and three more nominations – to go with four Emmys and an Oscar elsewhere. Now some news gives Bonnie a new outlook on sobriety. And Jill and Andy, now re-connected, take a big step. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 6, 2021
Stories

“Sanditon” returns to life … again

“Sanditon” (shown here) will rise from the dead … again.
It’s a tale that vanished with Jane Austen’s death in 1817. It returned – more than two centuries later – with a lush PBS mini-series … then was abruptly canceled after its first season. Now, more than a year later, comes the surprising news that second and third seasons will eventually be produced. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 6, 2021
Stories

A layman as “SNL” host? Occasionally

When “Saturday Night Live” announced its final hosts of the season, it included one surprise.
Two of them – Keegan-Michael Key on May 15, Anya Taylor-Joy on May 22 – fit the usual mold. He’s an actor/comedian; she’s an actress.
But first, on May 8 (with Miley Cyrus as music guest) is Elon Musk, of Tesla and SpaceX fame. And that breaks a long trend of using only singers, actors or comedians.
The last layman (as we’ll call him) hosting was football’s J.J. Watt; that was 15 months ago. Before that, the last ones were basketball’s Charles Barkley in 2018 … and, alas, Donald Trump in 2015. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 5, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 7: Season ends, season starts, “Plan 9” persists

1) “Magnum P.I.” season-finale, 9 p.m. CBS. The Friday-night finales are spread out – “MacGyver” last week … “Magnum” now … “Blue Bloods” next week. (“MacGyver,’ with an 8 p.m. rerun, won’t be back next year; the others will.) In this one, a woman who has no idea why she’s being stalked. Also, friends try to nudge Magnum and Higgins (shown here in a previous episode) together romantically, at a key time: Higgins’ boyfriend, Ethan Shah, wants her to join him on an extended Doctors Without Borders journey. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 5, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for May 6: Strong comedy … and a film festival

1) “United States of Al,” 8:31 p.m., CBS. In its first season, “Al” has offered few big laughs, but lots of pleasant, little ones … plus some immensely likable characters, Now it adds some solid emotion: A veterans’ group wants to honor the guys, but that requires a speech – which is an ordeal for Riley (shown here, right), but a breeze for Al (center), his former Afghan translator. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 4, 2021