“Star Wars Day” – the unofficial “holiday” on May 4 — gets an extra boost this year:
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” (shown here) will reach Disney+ that day, two months earlier than expected.
That’s one of several recent TV changes related to the pandemic. Also, one award show is moving from Las Vegas to Nashville; another will go ahead … in a social-distancing way. Details: Read more…
“American Idol” has changed a lot in the past two decades. The singers are much better; the judges are much worse.
Then again, the entire music-from-home trend has changed a lot in a few weeks. Everything is better.
On Sunday (April 26), “Idol” became the first performance-reality show to switch to a social-distancing format. That will rerun Saturday (May 2). with a new episode the next day. Then, on May 4, “The Voice” has its first social-distance show. Read more…
1) “What We Do In the Shadows,” 10 p.m., FX. Guillermo (the terrific Harvey Guillen, shown here) once seemed gentle and harmless, the mild aide (called a “familiar”) to do-nothing vampires in Staten Island. Then he learned he’s descended from vampire-hunters; now he uses his skills to protect his masters. Tonight, he infiltrates a vampire-hunter club. The result isn’t for everyone, but many people will consider this an odd delight. Read more…
1) “Secrets of the Dead” return, 8 p.m., PBS. The Notre-Dame cathedral (shown here) in Paris has had a huge role in fiction and fact. The hunchback hid there; it’s held the funerals of presidents and the coronation of Napoleon. When it burned a year ago, the rebuilding task seemed overwhelming. Still, this terrific film shows that it’s been constantly renewed. Construction started in 1160 and took a century; a 20-year remodeling began in 1844. Details – from flying buttresses to gargoyles – were added gradually. Read more…
Right now, networks are scrambling to fill their virus voids.
Changes are made quickly — sometimes too quickly for viewers toi catch up. This weekend:
Saturday (April 25), 8-10 p.m.: CBS reruns “Let’s Go Crazy” (shown here), its Grammy tribute to Prince. Taped before the virus shutdowns, that was packed with stars, from Alicia Keys, Beck and John Legend to the Foo Fighters and Earth, Wind & Fire. Read more…
1) “The Voice,” 8-10 p.m, NBC. This is a perfect time to catch up, as the show prepares for its detour. It had taped its episodes early, trimming to 17 contestants (including Arei Moon, shown here). But that was before the coronavirus was forcing shows to shut down or use social-distancing. Now “Voice” pauses to show what’s happened so far. Next week, the three-week finals will have music from home, “American Idol” style. Read more…
The new “Penny Dreadful” season sprawls across huge emotional turf.
It ranges from scheming Nazis to a sweet-spirited evangelist. It has crooked politicians, troubled cops (shown here with Daniel Zovatto and Nathan Lane), displaced families and a deadly Latina demon.
Yes, a demon. “As a Mexican, I have lots of stories in my family about supernatural things … We have a lot of stories and we love these stories,” Adriana Barraza said. Read more…
1) “Homeland” series-finale and “Penny Dreadful” debut, 9 and 10:10 p.m., Showtime. One of the all-time great series concludes. Carrie (the superb Claire Danes, shown here in a previous episode) returns to Afghanistan, trying to revive the peace treaty. That’s followed by a stylishly filmed tale set in 1938 Los Angeles, complete with Nazis, old Hollywood, radio evangelism and the demons of Mexican folklore. That last part is an odd but interesting detour from a strong drama, with the terrific casting of Nathan Lane as a crusty cop. Read more…
1) “Council of Dads” return, 9 p.m. Thursday, NBC. The debut saw a cancer-stricken dad ask three friends to help his kids if he died; he did. That aired after the “This Is Us” season-finale, which had similar warmth and passion; it reruns at 8 p.m., leading to the second episode, another good one. One “dad” tries too hard, another doesn’t try hard enough, the third feels guilty. Also, the eldest daughter (shown here) has married and plans to move to New York City. Stick around, there’s a sharp plot twist at the end. Read more…
Let’s consider this the ultimate name-dropping.
HBO has just sent a reminder that it’s super-streamer, HBO Max (shown here with “Game of Thromes,” will arrive May 27. That brought my knee-jerk reaction:
What terrible timing, I figured. Disney+ has grabbed more than 50 million subscribers during this stay-at-home phase. Max will arrive just as we’re finally leaving home and strolling into the sunshine.
Will yet another super-streamer succeed? As the HBO name-droppers put it: “Ross, Rachel, Penny, Sheldon, Rick, Morty, Princess Bubblegum, Big Pussy, Mr. Big, Chandler Bing, Elmer Fudd, Diana Prince, Jon Snow, Dorothy … Bruce Wayne and (more) certainly think so.” Read more…
