Stories

Love lasts forever … but how long, exactly?

“Happily ever after” is a fine notion — depending on how long “ever” is.
A five-decade romance can be pleasant; five centuries might be a bit much. That’s one of the ideas behind “Eternally Yours,” at 8:30 p.m. Thursdays on CBS, starting Oct. 8.
Charles and Liz (Ed Weeks and Allegra Edwards, shown here) married in the heat of passion. Now, 500 years later — did we mention that they’re vampires? — the passion has cooled. Life gets complicated for their adopted daughter and her new boyfriend.
The idea reflects two Joes (Joe Port and Joe Wiseman), who created the series. They’re not romantic and not, to our knowledge, vampires; still, Port said, it’s “very, very autobiographic, in a weird way.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 5, 2026

Stories

He’s the consummate New Yorker … via Los Angeles

As the latest “NCIS” spin-off begins, Sam Hanna is finally coming home. So is LL Cool J, who plays him.
Hanna has done 342 episodes in Los Angeles and Hawaii. Now — starting at 9 p.m. Tuesday (Oct. 6) on CBS — “NCIS: New York” (shown here) begins.
It will visit “every kind of nook and cranny of New York, in the five boroughs,” said showrunner Byron Balasco.
That makes this different from other shows, LL Cool J promised. “It’s definitely more gritty …. It gives you so many different people from all over the world, so many different types of energies.”
And it pairs him with a guy who feels like the consummate New Yorker. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 1, 2026

Stories

“Marshals”: beauty, gunfire and domineering dads

As “Marshals” launches its first full season, it has an ongoing theme.
Yes, this is still an action show. The season-opener — 8:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 4 (but 8 p.m. on the West Coast), launching what CBS calls Premiere Week — has guns blazing from horsemen, helicopter and Jeep.
But beyond that are questions about following a strong father. That’s “definitely a theme throughout the season,” said showrunner Spencer Hudnut.
We see that in the opener, with Dolly Weaver and her domineering dad; Kayce Dutton likes one, hates the other. And we see it with Kayce’s struggles with his son (shown here). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 30, 2026

Stories

They’re ready to make war, not love

Half of a conversation — just one word, actually — helped nudge a new drama series.
Well, that word was repeated often and with increasing glee. For writer George Kay, it was a spark for “War,” which starts at 9 p.m. Thursday (Oct. 1) on HBO and HBO Max, with Dominic West and Sienna Miller (shown here) as divorce combatants.
Kay had already envisioned the basics — a show about two high-end London law firms, one old and one new. Each season would involve one case, viewed from both sides. But what would the first case be? Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 27, 2026

Stories

Yes, Halloween now lasts 31 days

Remember when Halloween was exactly one day long?
Or maybe — if you added some mischief and/or Day of the Dead — two or three days, tops?
Not lately. In 1998, TV people decided it should run for 13 days; 20 years later, that was expanded to a month.
That’s where we are now: Beginning Oct. 1, the Freeform channel has “31 Nights of Halloween,” with lots of old movies and — starting on opening night — a new series (shown here) about teen witches. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 25, 2026

Stories

Now, that’s acting: Light plunges into a fragile soul

(This story ran in May, when “Devil in Silver” debuted on Shudder and AMC+. Now the show gets a broader impact on AMC. Here’s the original story, slightly updated.)
We know that actors can stretch far beyond themselves. They can… well, act.
But they don’t usually stretch this far.
Judith Light (shown here) is one of the most involved and articulate people in show business. In the six-part “The Terror: Devil in Silver” — its second episode is 9 p.m. Sunday (Sept. 27) on AMC, rerunning at 10:03 — she’s Dorry, her life crumbling inside a mental hospital.
“She’s fragile and she’s heartbreaking,” Light told the Television Critics Association. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 22, 2026

Stories

“Different World” reboot captures HBCU joy

As a different “Different World” arrives, it’s time to return to college life.
It’s time for “the HBCU experience, the immersiveness of it,” said writer-producer Felicia Pride.
That vibe (for historically Black colleges and universities) ripples through the “A Different World” reboot, arriving Thursday (Sept. 24) on Netflix, starring Maleah Jai Moon (shown here). It ranges from music, dance and romance to discussions of authors and philosophy.
That could invoke envy from some viewers … and maybe one of the actors. For a while, Darryl M. Bell, now 63, was in an opposite world. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 21, 2026

Stories

At a tot’s party, a Secret Service show emerged

\es, birthday parties for 2-year-olds can seem a tad frivolous.
There’s too much noise, too little substance. But one such party led to “Line of Fire” (shown here), which debuts at 10 p.m. Monday (Sept. 21) on NBC, the first new, scripted show of the broadcast-network season.
That started three years ago, with a party for Barbara Bush’s daughter. Guests included Jenna Bush Hagar (Barbara’s twin sister) and writer-director Joshua Safran, a neighbor whose daughter was a friend of the birthday girl.
The conversation, Hager said, got around to the Secret Service people who protected their father (President George W. Bush) and his family. “We talked about this dynamic of people who are putting other people first, in many circumstances. What happens in their own family is complicated.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 19, 2026

Stories

The new season starts now … or maybe later

(This is the lead story for a three-part season-preview. The others — also under “stories” — have round-up of the streaming shows and the broadcast-network shows.)
Right about now, shouldn’t we be celebrating a new TV season?
Perhaps, but two questions loom: When does it start? And is it worth celebrating?
For that second one, the answer is “sort of.” It’s a modest start — no new shows on ABC or Fox, three each on CBS and NBC — but with bright spots.
One new fall show is terrific (CBS’ “Cupertino,” shown here), some others are promising. One mid-season show is excellent (NBC’s “Rockford Files” reboot), others could be. And six of last year’s mid-season shows are on the fall schedule, one of them (Fox’s “Best Medicine”) outstanding.
But when does the season start? Take your pick: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 18, 2026

Stories

Yes, there are new shows — a few, anyway — this fall

(This is one of three stories previewing the fall season. The other two — also under “stories” — are a main piece and a round-up of streaming shows.)
Here are this fall’s new, broadcast-network TV shows — a meager list,
Lumping together six networks, there are still only eight new series. ABC and Fox each contribute zero.
Networks seem to be waiting for mid-season, when they’ll have “Baywatch” and “Rockford Files” reboots, a “Grey’s Anatomy” spin-off and more.
Some of the new fall shows — especially “Cupertino” (shown here) — are instantly likable, some not. The list is chronological, by category; three of the eight — “Newlyweds,” “NCIS: New York” and “Private Eyes West Coast” — still didn’t have episodes available for review, as of Sept. 16: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 16, 2026