Mike Hughes

Best-bets for Jan. 14: A funny — and sometimes topical — night

1) “Superstore,” 8:30 p.m., NBC. Racial justice, it seems, can come in unlikely areas. For the store, that includes the hair-care products: Only the Black-oriented ones are locked away. That leads to what “Superstore” does best – a mass meeting, where quirks escalate. Garrett (Colton Dunn, foreground, in a previous episode) is expected to speal for an entire race; it’s a witty episode, with subjects soon range from vending machines to “reparation pizzas.” Read more…

Best-bet for Jan. 13: Kyra comedy debuts

1) “Call Your Mother” debut, 9:30 p.m., ABC. Jean (Kyra Sedgwick, shown here) is an empty-nester with an empty life. “I haven’t had sex in four years,” she confides. “And it was four years before that. It should be an Olympic sport.” Now she tries to stir up her life: She’ll to California and insert herself into the worlds of her son and daughter. This is from writer-producer Kari Lizer, a decade after her “New Adventures of Old Christine” concluded. Sherri Shepherd plays Jean’s phone friend. Read more…

Apted made fine movies, led by “Up” films

In the mainstream, show-business world – scripted movies and TV shows and such – Michael Apted’s legacy is impressive.
Apted – who died Thursday at 79 – directed a wide range of movies, from James Bond to Loretta Lynn, from a John Belushi comedy to a William Hurt mystery. He directed cable dramas, including “Masters of Sex” (which he also helped produce) and “Rome.”
But for many people, he did something far more important: He gave us “7 Up” and all its sequels, pulling us into the lives of Tony Walker (shown here) and others..
Roger Ebert called this “the noblest project in cinema history.” The New Yok Times called it “the most profound documentary series in the history of cinema.” I call it masterful. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 12: Top dramas (one surprising, one not)

1) “This Is Us,” 9 p.m., NBC. TV’s best drama series is in top form when using flashbacks to tell a story. Now it has a big one: Randall (Sterling K. Brown, shown here) grew up without knowing his birth parents. He later found his dad (now deceased), who believed that the mom had died shortly after giving birth. Last week brought news that she lived a full life before dying in Louisiana; now he goes there. That’s surrounded by the amiable “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” at 8 p.m. and an OK episode of “Nurses” at 10. Read more…

A once-ordinary medical show healed itself

For TV critics, this can be an annoyance: Shows change.
Good ones go bad. Mork gets goofy, “Miami Vice” gets glitzy, Fonzie jumps the shark.
And occasionally, a bad (or ordinary) one becomes very good. The latest surprise is “The Resident” (shown here in its early days); after steady improvement, its fourth season starts beautifully, at 8 p.m. Tuesday (Jan. 12) on Fox. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 11: Receivers rule in love and football

1) College football championship, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN. This is the way all seasons should end, with two undefeated powerhouses colliding. There were some doubts about Ohio State, because it had only played six games in the regular season; then, in the Rose Bowl, it thumped second-ranked Clemson, 49-28; Alabama followed with its 12th win, beating Notre Dame, 31-14; its receiver and quarterback (DeVonta Smith, shown here, and Mac Jones) finished first and third in Heisman voting. This should be a fun game. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 10: Gods, quarterbacks and farm animals

1) “All Creatures Great and Small” opener, 9 p.m., PBS. These amiable tales of an English veterinarian (shown here) have filled eight novels, a movie and 90 TV episodes. Now it’s time to re-tell them, using the lush craftsmanship of “Masterpiece.” This is fiction, but it’s based on the real life of a vet in Yorkshire, 80 years ago. Fresh from school, he works with a demanding vet, his undemanding brother and a diligent housekeeper. The result mixes warmth, gorgeous settings and moments of life-and-death drama. Read more…

Week’s top-10 for Jan. 11: New shows, new Batwoman

1) “Batwoman” season-opener, 8 p.m. Sunday, CW. This could have crumbled when Ruby Rose (shown here) quit the title role. Instead, it’s better than ever. We won’t spoil any surprises, but the bat suit ends up with Ryan (Javicia Leslie, the sister on “God Friended Me”), a homeless, jobless ex-con (she says she was framed) with martial-arts skills. Passionate and energetic, she’s worth rooting for. Meanwhile, Alice – the hour’s one over-the-top character – schemes, disguising Tommy as the missing Bruce Wayne. Read more…

Best-bets for Jan. 9: Pro play-offs begin

1) Football, all day. The new playoff plan has tripleheaders today and Sunday. The six winners – plus the Chiefs and Packers, who have byes – return next weekend, two steps from the Super Bowl. Today has the Bills and Colts at 1:05 p.m. ET on CBS and the Rams and Seahawks at 4:40 p.m. on Fox. At 8:15, NBC has Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay (shown here) facing Washington, the only play-off team with a losing record. Read more…