Stories

It’s a culture shock for Lois Lane … and for the actors

Superman, of course, has a big city to protect.
Metropolis needs him; sometimes, the whole world does. The Daily Planet may need Clark Kent, too.
But Clark is still a Kansas kid; now the new “Superman & Lois” series (shown here) nudges him back home to Smallville. The show debuts at 8 p.m. Tuesday (Feb. 23) on CW, reruns at 9 p.m. Saturday (Feb. 27) on TNT, then settles into a CW spot at 9 p.m. Tuesdays.
“We talked a lot about shows like ‘Everwood’ and ‘Friday Night Lights’ and (a small-town) family drama that had Superman in it,” writer-producer Todd Helbing told the Television Critics Association. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 21, 2021

Stories

In the pandemic, makers, fixers and gamers thrive

Amid the economic gloom of the pandemic, there are still some fields doing better than ever.
They range from gamers to fix-it folks to streaming services. That’s been clear during the Television Critics Association’s winter sessions – which are conducted via Zoom, another growth area.
One show locked into the trend is Tim Allen’s “Assembly Required (shown here), at 10 p.m. Tuesdays on the History Channel, starting Feb. 23). “A pandemic, forcing us to be in our homes, … gives people the free time,” said April Wilkerson, the show’s do-it-yourself expert. People are “putting it into using their hands.”
Some boom areas include: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 21, 2021

Stories

Solid, stoic Murdoch discovers slapstick

There are many words we’d associate with the lead character (shown here) in “Murdoch Mysteries.”
They include “steady,” “sturdy,” “solid,” “stoic” and such. They do NOT include “slapstick.”
But here is the season-opener, at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT) Saturday (Feb. 20) on Ovation, directed by the show’s star, Yannick Bisson. It has versions of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Stan Laurel, plus a big sight gag, complete with a collapsing building. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 17, 2021

Stories

As stardom loomed, he stocked groceries

When the COVID shutdown began, it was important to be nice to grocery-store workers.
They were essential, after all. And one of them was waiting patiently to be a movie star … or, at least, to play one on TV.
That’s Bradley Constant (shown here), one of three people playing early versions of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson on “Young Rock,” at 8 p.m. Tuesdays (starting Feb. 16) on NBC. Landing the role was a big break … followed by a long COVID delay.
His reaction? “I went back to working at the grocery store,” he said. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 15, 2021

Stories

Rocky road led to Rock stardom

Being Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson should be easy, it seems.
He’s bigger, stronger and (we’re told) better-looking than other people. He’s open and amiable. Also, his movies have made more than $12 billion.
But getting there was complicated. When “Young Rock” debuts (8 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16, on NBC), it will bounce between three phases, catching small slices of a large life.
“I lived in 13 different states by the time I was 13 years old,” Johnson (shown here) told the Television Critcs Association. “I also lived in New Zealand.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 15, 2021

Stories

“Black Church” ripples with history, humanity

For centuries, the Black church has towered over American life.
“The church was the epicenter,” Stacey Holman, producer-director of a vibrant PBS documentary, told the Television Critics Associaition. It was “where we could gather freely, we could commune freely.”
It’s been a place of music and message, said gospel great Yolanda Adams. “Jesus was always about uplifting the people who were downtrodden.”\
And it’s been a place of permanence, said Henry Louis Gates (shown here), the show’s writer and host. “The Black church is the oldest, the most continuous and most important institution” in African-American history. So he’s fashioned “The Black Church: This is Our Story, This is Our Song,” from 9-11 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday (Feb. 16-17). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 12, 2021

Stories

“Clarice”: a CBS show with a movie soul

Watching the new “Clarice” series, you might think you accidentally switched channels.
Is this really a CBS show? Don’t worry; its producers were wondering the same thing.
“We had originally envisioned this as a streaming show,” Alex Kurtzman told the Television Critics Association. “And CBS said, really unequivocally, ‘Please put it on our network and we will let you make whatever show you want.’”
That opens the door for a lot. “Clarice” (10 p.m. Thursdays, starting Feb. 11) is a sequel to the “Silence of the Lambs” movie, following a young FBI agent (shown here) a year after she caught a serial killer. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 10, 2021

Stories

This park has lots of nature, few people

If your goal is to be outdoors and away from people, then Big Bend National Park (shown here) is your spot.
It has a lot of outdoors – almost 800,000 acres, in the bend of the Rio Grande River, in Texas. And it has few people. “It is one of the least-visited national parks in the U.S.,” said Skip Hobbie, who filmed a gorgeous hour for “Nature,” at 8 p.m. Wednesday (Feb. 10) on PBS.
That’s relative, of course. Overall visitation (400,000 a year) is topped ten-fold by Yellowstone and Yosemite – and 30-fold by the Grand Smokey Mountains National Park. But some get fewer people – 26,000 at Isle Royale in Michigan, 10,000 at Gate of the Arctic in Alaska Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 8, 2021

Stories

It’s time for “Equalizer” to right wrongs

“The Equalizer” (shown here) is back, for its third incarnation.
The first was a 1985 CBS series that ran for four seasons; the second had a pair of movies. Now – boosted by a Super Bowl lead-in Feb. 7 – the idea is back on CBS.
In each version, the hero helps people who can’t turn to authorities. That may be why it’s eternal.
“The notion of the outsider who comes in and helps the little guy has been around for a long time,” said Andrew Marlowe, one of the showrunners. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 1, 2021

Stories

Looking at a maybe-super day

For most of us, Feb. 7 will merely be Super Sunday, a 12-hour blur (see schedule, under “news and quick comments”) of fuss and football, plus music, drama and catchy commercials.
But for Queen Latifah (whose “Equalizer” follows the game), it might be super-er or super-est or something.
“I am a huge, huge football fan …. I think it’s going to be one of the most exciting Super Bowls,” Latifah said of the 6:30 p.m. ET game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Bucs.
Some others seem to agree, especially because of the quarterback confrontation: Patrick Mahomes (shown here), 25, of the Chiefs, faces Tom Brady, 43, of the Bucs. “I think it’s going to be one of the great match-ups in history,” said Tony Romo, who will be in the CBS booth with Jim Nantz. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 1, 2021