Stories

CBS slumber ends; a fresh surge is coming

For CBS, the winter slumber is finally ending.
It’s been a long one. Most shows haven’t had a new episode since mid-December; it was Dec. 9 for “NCIS: Origins,” Dec. 8 for “DMV.”
Now — after 9-10 weeks of hibernation — the surge begins. In one stuffed week, CBS has:
— Two new series: “CIA” at 10 p.m. Monday (Feb. 23) and “Marshals” (shown here) at 8 p.m. Sunday, March 1.
— The start of the 50th “Survivor.” It gets a three-hour launch, at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25.
— And the return of 11 more series, from “The Neighborhood” at 8 p.m. Monday to “Tracker” and “Watson,” at 9 and 10 p.m. Sunday, March 1. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 17, 2026

Stories

PBS this spring: musicals, mini-series, more

As the Olympics fade from our TV screens, viewers might re-discover PBS.
They’ll find a lot, from music (Broadway, opera, chamber) and mini-series (“Forsytes” is shown here) to documentaries pointing to Earth Day and the 250th birthday of the U.S.
On the night the Olympics end, PBS will have both the AARP’s “Movies for Grownups Awards” (7 p.m., Feb. 22) and the feel-good season-finale of “All Creatures Great and Small” (9 p.m.).
It will follow with with a compelling portrait of pioneering Congresswoman Barbara Jordan (10 p.m., Feb. 23) and an interesting trip to Turkey, site of the oldest temple on Earth (9 p.m., Feb. 25). Then, after a pause, things will be busy beginning in mid-March. Highlights, subject to change, include: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 15, 2026

Stories

“Cross” is back … and Mason is raging

When viewers met Jeanine Mason, she was a teen dancer, quick and joyful.
Now she’s a vigilante suspect (fictionally), filled with rage. That requires some acting.
“There’s a lot of anger, there’s a lot of fear” in the character, Mason (shown here) told the Television Critics Association. “We wanted you to be scared of her, certainly, but … you see how much she’s carrying.”
That’s for the second season of “Cross,” which starts with three episodes Wednesday (Feb. 11) on Amazon Prime, then has five weekly episodes. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 9, 2026

Stories

Olympic overload? Here’s a guide to the figure skating schedule and more

You may recall that life used to be simple. Even watching the Olympics was a breeze.
We just watched the one network, which decided when and what we’d see. Most of the events had already happened, but we didn’t know the results. We thought we were happy.
Now that’s changed and the Winter Olympics (shown here from 2022), on Feb. 6-22, bring dizzying choices. There are four channels; there’s live and not. Even the opening ceremony airs three times.
Not to worry. We’ll offer the specifics for one category (figure skating) and an overview for the others. First, some background: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 4, 2026

Stories

O’Hara: three (or more) gifted actresses in one

One day, long ago, Andrea Martin’s neighbor bubbled with praise.
She really liked Martin’s work in “SCTV,” she said. Also, she liked “the three other women” in the show.
Martin laughed and explained that the “three women” were Catherine O’Hara.
That story — from Dave Thomas’ “SCTV” (1996, McClelland & Stewart) — comes to mind now, with O’Hara’s death Friday, at 71, after a brief illness. For generations, she had richly varied roles.
Many people knew her from the “Home Alone” films and her Emmy-winning work in “Schitt’s Creek” (shown here). Long before that, however, she was part of Canada’s great comedy convergence. The quotes here are from Thomas’ book. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 1, 2026

Stories

“Gates” surprises doubters … including its creator

“Beyond the Gates” (shown here) is near its first anniversary now, surprising many people — including its creator.
“I didn’t think anything was going to come of it,” Michele Val Jean said.
Her doubts were logical. The number of soap operas on broadcast networks had sunk from 13 to three. There hadn’t been a new one since 1999 … and that one (“Passions”) had died in 2007.
Still, Val Jean had been hired to plan an ambitious soap, set in a gated enclave for rich Black families. “I thought, ‘It’s a good little project for me to do while Covid is going down. (I’ll) make a little extra money and then go on about my business,'” she told the Television Critics Association. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 31, 2026

Stories

Cozy and not, PBS savors its mysteries

(This is the second of two stories; the first was an overview of TV mysteries, “cozy” and not.)
These days, mystery shows reach our TV sets from all sides — streaming, cable, broadcast and beyond. They range from “cozy mysteries” (including “Miss Scarlet,” shown here) to their opposite.
A generation ago, however, PBS virtually had a mystery monopoly.
The British, after all, were the mystery masters. And “until the late 1980s, there hadn’t been much competition for British drama,” Rebecca Eaton wrote in “Making Masterpiece” (Viking, 2013). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 25, 2026

Stories

Lots of mysteries, some of them cozy

(This is the first of two story about TV mystery shows; the second one focuses on PBS.)
Sprawling across the TV landscape, mystery shows seem to fit opposite categories.
There are “cozy mysteries” (including “My Life is Murder,” shown here) and, well, uncozy ones. Sometimes, the difference is small.
And there are good and bad ones. Often, the difference is enormous.
These mysteries are especially big on two streaming networks (Acorn and Britbox), two cable channels (Ovation and Hallmark Mystery) and many Sundays on PBS. But they also reach further. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 24, 2026

Stories

PBS is taking us back — WAY back — in time

This winter, PBS will be taking us back in time.
That’s way back. It will go to the start of life on Earth … and to the first mammals … and to one of the earliest civilizations,.
That’s on “Nova” at 9 p.m. Wednesdays, starting Jan. 21. (Shown here is Angkor, featured on Jan. 28.)
The shopw won’t be spending all its time as a way-back machine. The best hour of the season — or of just about any season — is a gem about dogs that learn words and express them by stepping on the right buttons.
Still, much of the year involves looking back. That includes: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 20, 2026

Stories

Here’s a beautiful, nasty, explosive world

A new mini-series, “The Beauty,” has all the things we expect from an action- adventure tale.
There are fierce fights, wild chases and intense sex scenes. There are beautiful places — Paris, Venice, Rome — and beautiful people who sometimes explode.
But underneath that, the opener (9-11:45 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21, on FX, and then on Hulu) has strong themes.
People keep “trying to create the fountain of youth,” Ashton Kutcher (shown here) said in a Zoom press coference.
It’s an age-old obsession, Rebecca Hall added. “There’s a lot to be said about the chase for perfection.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 18, 2026