Mike Hughes

Best-bets for July 23: opening night for games, “Law”

1) “Match Game” debut, 9 p.m., ABC. Since 1962, this game has sprawled across three networks and beyond. Gene Rayburn was the first host; Alec Baldwin (2016-21) the most recent. Now it’s Martin Short. Panelists include Selena Gomez (his “Only Murders in the Building” colleague) and Cara Delevingne (who played her friend in the second season). They’re shown here, upper left. Read more…

Best-bets for July 22: hero reborn; elegant era ends

1) “Daredevil: Born Again,” 8-11 p.m., FX. Created by Stan Lee 61 years ago, this blind crimefighter still thrives. Ben Affleck played him in a 2003 movie; then Charlie Cox (shown her) took over. Cox starred in a Netflix series for three seasons and was briefly in a movie, a mini-series and three TV series. Then came this nine-hour series on Disney+; it now reaches FX. Read more…

Best-bets for July 21: Lego joy; Ian survival

1) “Lego Masters,” 8 p.m., Fox. We’re down to the final four duos in this fun competition. There are brothers … and a brother-sister … and two wedding DJ’s … and two school guys, a coach and a band director. Inan impressive hour, they make Lego creations (shown here) that can nudge a ball across a table. That leads into next week’s finale … and, for four Mondays after that, a junior edition. Read more…

Best-bets for July 20: crime on land, terror at sea

1) “Patience” season-finale, 8 p.m., PBS. Over five episodes, Patience Evans (shown here) has transformed. Young and autistic, she burrowed in the police records section, rarely talking. Nurtured by Detective Inspector Bea Metcalf, she’s become a skilled crimesolver. Now Metcalf is barred from a case; the result is smartly written and perfectly played. Read more…

ABC fall line-up starts early (but scriptless)

It will be an early or late start for ABC’s shows this fall:
Early, if you like unscripted shows — people dancing or romancing, people buying companies or buying vowels or tackling one another. All of those arrive in September or sooner.
But late if you like scripted shows, the sort that networks used to thrive on. ABC only has six of them and only “High Potential” (shown here) starts soon; the other five will wait until Oct. 1 or 16. Read more…

Best-bets for July 19: a basketball hero, a medical hero

1) WNBA All-Star Game, 8:30 p.m. ET, ABC, pre-game at 8. For Indiana, already basketball-obsessed, this is big. It’s hosting the game for the first time and its star, Caitlin Clark (shown here), is the top vote-getter and a captain. Last year, as a rookie, she led the league in 3-pointers and assists. She’s missed half this year’s games with injuries, but is back now. Read more…

Week’s top-10 for July 21: games, sharks, daredevil action

1) “Daredevil: Born Again,” 8-11 p.m. Tuesday, FX. Sixty years after Stan Lee created him, this blind crimefighter thrives. Ben Affleck played him in a 2003 movie; then Charlie Cox (shown here) took over. Cox starred in a Netflix series for three seasons and was briefly in a movie, a mini-series and three TV series. Then came a nine-hour series on Disney+; it now reaches FX. Read more…

Best-bets for July 18: Here’s an epic, musical life

1) “Billy Joel: And So It Goes” (2025), 8-10:27 p.m., HBO, rerunning at 11:30. It’s been a big career for Joel (shown here), with 160 million records sold, from the basic “Uptown Girl” to the complex “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” And a big life, with four marriages and lots of Madison Square Garden” sell-outs. Susan Lacy, the “American Masters” founder, co-directed this film. Read more…

Emmy nominations: It’s a Seth-and-Jason kind of year

For those of us still trying to discern the difference between Seth Rogen and Jason Segel, this will be a tough Emmy season.
Both are nominated for best actor in a comedy series. Their shows — both on Apple TV+ — are both are up for best comedy.
Rogen’s “The Studio” (shown here) is one of the year’s hot newcomers, with 23 nominations. It trails only “Severance” (also Apple), with 27, and another newcomer, Netflix’s “The Penguin,” with 24. HBO Max’s “White Lotus also has 23; its “The Last of Us” has 16. Read more…

Emmy nominations? Here’s a sampling

We now know this year’s Emmy nominations … or, at least, a micro-smidgen of them.
Most of the nominations will arrive in one surge, at 11:30 a.m. ET today (July 15). We’ll have another story then.
But almost four hours early, CBS was allowed to reveal few. That involved only two categories and a total of zero surprises:
— REALITY COMPETION SHOW: “Survivor” (shown here), “Amazing Race,” “Top Chef,” “The Traitors,” “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
— TALK SHOW: Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, “The Daily Show.” Read more…