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NBC’s new season: “Leap,” Lee, Lopez, Larroquette

NBC will play it safe this fall, then get only a tad friskier as the season goes on.
Its line-up, announced today (Monday), has only two new shows, both with familiar names. One is a reboot of “Quantum Leap,” with Raymond Lee (shown here) as the new star; the other has George Lopez, now paired with his daughter in the comedy, “Lopez vs. Lopez.”
Another reboot arrives at mid-season: “Night Court” has John Larroquette returning to his Emmy-winning role, now with Melissa Rauch (“Big Bang Theory”) as the judge. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 16, 2022

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Update: Fox sets fall line-up … with “9-1-1”

Update: A half-day after leaving it in doubt, the Fox network has made something clear:
Yes, it will have “9-1-1” and “The Resident” (shown here) next season.
When executives talked to reporters early Monday morning, that was still in doubt. Charlie Collier, the network CEO, would only say that negotiations were going well; he even took the unusual step of announcing the other shows for the fall season – but not a day-to-day schedule.
A spin-off, “9-1-1: Lone Star,” was definitely coming back, but “9-1-1” – Fox’s top show in the Nielsen ratings – was indefinite. Heading into its sixth season (as is “The Resident”), it needed a new contract.
Now the earlier story:
Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 16, 2022

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USA Network season: It’s mostly macho

The USA Network will be a mostly macho place next season.
It will also be mostly unscripted, at least among its original (non-rerun) shows. The network — which once debuted “Monk,” “Psych,” “Suits” and “Mr. Robot” — has plans next season for exactly one scripted original –continuing “Chucky,” the killer-doll tale.
Instead, USA seems to reflect the success of its Monday and Tuesday wrestling, via the WWE. (One new show will be hosted by WWE star Nikki Bella, shown here; a returning reality show features a WWE couple.) It also reflects an expanded sports line-up, now that sister channel NBC Sports Network has folded. The announcements for next season include Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 14, 2022

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Freeform plans a scripted summer

As the broadcast networks launch their summer line-ups – even before summer starts – scripted shows are scarce.
Not to worry; cable and others are filling the gap. Freeform has set June or July starts for four of them – one new, two starting its season, one returning for the season’s second half ..,. and “Motherland: Fort Salem” starting its final season.
Some networks have been in a hurry to get their summer shows in place. ABC installed a games-and-reality night on Tuesday, May 3; Fox returns “So You Think You Can Dance” – for the first time in three years – on Wednesday, May 18.
But scripted shows are another matter. The Freeform summer has: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 5, 2022

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CNN Films score (again) with “Navalny”

It’s easy to dump on Jeff Zucker, the former head of NBC and CNN and more.
But let’s look at something that has turned out well: Under Zucker, CNN developed a strong lineup of shows on Saturday and Sunday nights; that’s clear now, with:
–Sundays: “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy” has just started its second season. Barring breaking news, it’s at 9 p.m. and midnight, with another travel-and-food show (“Nomad with Carlton McCoy”) at 10 and 1, plus a Tucci rerun at 11.
— Saturday, May 14: “Navalny” (shown here), a compelling documentary movie, reruns from 9-11 p.m., followed by Tucci and McCoy reruns. It had been set for May 7, but then was pushed back a week. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / May 1, 2022

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“Signora” brings smart stories, Foxy fun

Sylvia Fox didn’t really want to go to small-town Italy for her niece’s wedding.
She had plenty of things to do in London. Working for the MI-6 unit, she handled informants worldwide; also, she had an ex-husband with benefits.
But after fuming at her bosses, she departed for the wedding. She would soon prove to be one of the greatest aunts in fictional history.
That’s the start of “Signora Volpe” (shown here), an exceptionally good mystery series. The first season – three movie-length tales – streams over three Mondays (starting May 2) on www.acorn.tv. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 29, 2022

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CNN+: quick end to a bad idea

CNN+ now goes down as one of life’s really bad ideas.
It lasted three weeks longer than the Titanic, 13 months less than the Hindenburg. No one was killed, but lots of talent (including Chris Wallace, shown here) was wasted.
Officially, the streaming service will shut down on April 30, 32 days after it began. The cause-of-death is listed as corporate confusion: Officials went ahead with the plan, fully aware that the incoming owners (Discovery) might dislike the idea; they did and shut it down instantly.
But unofficially? This was just never a good idea. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 22, 2022

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Welcome to Earth Day

This is Earth Day (Friday, April 22) and the streaming networks and PBS are busy. A separate piece (see Stories) looks at three new Disney+ shows; meanwhile, here’s a round-up:
ARRIVING TODAY (April 22)
— Three films on Disney+. “Polar Bear” (shown here) is from the DisneyNature people, whose lush films are usually in theaters the week of Earth Day. The others are from National Geographic: “Explorer: The Last Tepui” follows Alex Honnold (the climber of “Free Solo” fame), as he leads a climb up a 1,000-foot cliff, so a botanist can study an “island in the sky.” Also, “The Biggest Little Farm: The Return” revisits John and Molly Chester, city people creating an eco-friendly farm in California.
— A two-day marathon of BBC America reruns. “Planet Earth” is 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, followed by the marine-world “Planet Earth: Blue Planet II” from 5-11 p.m. They then rerun – “Planet Earth” from 11 p.m. to Saturday at 9 a.m., “Blue Planet II from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, then “Africa” from 3-8 p.m. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 22, 2022

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A very short story

While watching the “Nature” season-finale, I learned an important fact: Storks like cork trees.
There are a lot of those trees in Portugal, with the cork bark harvested every eight years. Its branches often hold giant stork nests. I learned this while catching an advance version of the episode that airs at 8 p.m. April 27 on PBS.
Then I considered writing an epic poem. It would have a stork sitting on cork with a friend from York, brandishing a fork and studying a quark. I decided not to; it would make me seem like a dork.
(The end) Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 20, 2022

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Here’s the schedule for Earth Day TV

As Earth Day arrives (Friday, April 22), the streaming networks and PBS are piling up specials. Here’s a round-up.
COMING UP
–Wednesday (April 20), then at pbs.org and the PBS Video app: PBS has “Changing Planet” at 8 p.m., launching a seven-year effort to study key areas. “Earth Emergency” follows at 10.
— Friday: Three films debut on Disney+ (see separate story). “Polar Bear” (shown here) is from the DisneyNature people, whose lush films are usually in theaters the week of Earth Day. The others are from National Geographic: “Explorer: The Last Tepui” follows Alex Honnold (the climber of “Free Solo” fame), as he leads a climb up a 1,000-foot cliff, so a botanist can study an “island in the sky.” Also, “The Biggest Little Farm: The Return” revisits John and Molly Chester, city people creating an eco-friendly farm in California. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / April 18, 2022