News and Quick Comments

News and Quick Comments

Tonys: high-octane, high-spirited fun

OK, that was a reminder that award shows can, on occasion, be really good.
The Tony Award show was high-octane, high-spirited and mostly very entertaining. It started with two big production numbers – one with Alicia Keys joining the music from her “Hell’s Kitchen” – and ended with a moderate surpise: “The Outsiders,” (shown here) not “Hell’s Kitchen,” was for best musical.
The rest offered few surprises. Of course, “Stereophonic” – most nominated play in Tony history – won for best play. Of course, “Merrily We Roll Along” – finally repairing a show that Stephen Sondheim never quite fixed – won for best revival, alongside two of its stars.
But the real surprise was how the show kept soaring. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 17, 2024
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With the right heroine, “Bridgerton” soars

OK, I’ll admit that I once had misgivings about “Bridgerton.”
When the show arrived – on Christmas Day, 2020 – I said the show is “part classy Jane Austen and part tawdry Harlequin novel.”
It still is, but the classy side keeps gaining. This third season – which released its second half on Netflix Thursday (June 13), four-weeks after its first half – is a delight, partly because of the surprising choice (shown here) of whom to focus on.
(One caution: I won’t spoil anything that happens in this second half. I will, however, talk about things that preceded it. If you haven’t seen the first half — or the first two seasons — stop reading and start watching.) Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 14, 2024
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TCA nominations: “Dogs,” “Bear,” “Hacks” and newcomers

Some new– or almost-new — titles are up for the top prize in the Television Critics Association awards.
“Baby Reindeer,” “Ripley” and “Shogun” – each in its first (or only) year – are nominated for program of the year. They’re jpined by three returning shows – “Hacks,” “The Bear” and “Reservations Dogs” (shown here) … which is seeking some belated awards glory, after its third and final season. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 10, 2024
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Presume this one is compelling

Many of us like writers a lot and lawyers a lot less.
But lawyers who become writers? That can be John Grisham or Erle Stanley Gardner or Scott Turow or David E. Kelley; it can sometimes be wonderful.
And now two of the best have combined: Kelley has adapted Turow’s novel, “Presumed Innocent” (shown here), into an eight-part mini-series that starts Wednesday (June 12) on Apple TV+. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 10, 2024
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Summer TV: country, sharks, “Chosen,” more

TV’s summer doldrums will be broken up by country singers, sharks and (at the end of summer) Jesus and his disciples.
That last one has “The Chosen” returning to the CW network for two-hour slots on September Sundays. The mini-network has also announced the renewal of two shows – “Penn & Teller: Fool Us” and (in a surprise) “All American.” Details include:
— “CMA Fest” is culled from concerts during the Country Music Association’s fan days in Nashville. This year it will be June 25, hosted by Ashley McBryde (shown here). That’s on ABC, which is stuffing June with special events – basketball and hockey finals, plus this concert – before returning its summer game shows in July. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 3, 2024
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Spurlock’s films had a super sized impact

Morgan Spurlock, who died Thursday at 53, did much to expand the noble world of documentaries.
Like Michael Moore, he showed that “look at me” can be a legitimate technique … and that a light approach can fit a serious subject.
And unlike most people, he showed that everyday subjects can be documentary-worthy. That began two decades ago, with “Super Size Me” (shown here).
Spurlock died of complications from cancer, a spokesman said. He left a rich body of work that fit neatly into the prime of cable-TV. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 24, 2024
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“Wild Cards” gets its overdue renewal

After a prolonged pause, the CW network has decided the obvious: “Wild Cards” (shown here) will be back for a second season.
That won’t be until 2025, but it will be for 13 episodes, compared to 10 for the first year.
The light-hearted crime show did relatively well in the ratings, but the network was noncommittal about its future. The news finally came two months after the show’s first season ended and a week after the network set its fall schedule. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 24, 2024
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CW’s multi-personality continues this fall

This fall, the CW network will continue its multiple personality.
Twice a week, it will seem like a traditional broadcast network, with back-to-back dramas. (including “Sullivan’s Crossing,s’ shown here. On other days, it will be more like a cable network, with wrestling, sports, movies and game shows.
That’s part of the transition for the network once known for sleek superheroes. The new owners canceled most of the previous slate and went for cost-efficiency, including dramas co-produced in other countries.
For this fall, that means Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 16, 2024
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Pac-12 (or Pac-2) now has a TV deal

The Pac-12 conference now has its own football deal with a broadcast network.
It’s not a big network, but then again, it’s not a big conference. It only has two teams, Oregon State (shown here) and Washington State.
We’ll pause here, for the benefit of idealists who assumed the Pac-12 has 12 teams. These are the same people who think the Big Ten has 10.
(It has 14 now, but in August will have 18, none of them specializing in math.) Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 15, 2024