1) “Fire Country” season-finale, 9-11 p.m., CBS. Two new episodes conclude a strong season. At 9 p.m., a fire erupts at a gas station; Manny (shown here) and Bode jump into action. At 10, fierce winds push a wildfire toward the town and toward the care home where Walter Leone (the retired fire chief, who is Vince and Luke’s father and Bode’s grandfather) lives. Read more…
1) “Elsbeth,” 9 and 10 p.m., CBS. This season has had a mental duel between Elsbeth (Carrie Preston) and a corrupt judge (Michael Emerson, Preston’s husband; they’re shown here). It’s been a delight, but now it concludes in an oddly unsatisfying way. Stick around, though: At 10 is a better episode, a rerun with Vanessa Bayer as a Christmas mogul. Read more…
“The Conners” (shown here) says farewell Wednesday (April 23), ending a journey that’s been long, bumpy and sometimes wonderful.
A good show in its final years, a great one in its early years, it’s a key piece of TV history.
When this started (as “Roseanne”) in 1988, TV comedies had seemed unaware of blue-collar America. Sure, there was Jackie Gleason in “Honeymooners” and (briefly) “Life of Riley,” but not much else.
Then Roseanne Barr’s show rippled with blue-collar life. The fictional Roseanne and Dan (John Goodman) were getting by, through changes in jobs and in life. Read more…
1) “The Conners” series finale, 8 and 8:30 p.m., ABC. An oft-terrific series (shown here) concludes after 16 seasons, spread over 35 years. It started as “Roseanne,” dropped Roseanne Barr (and killed her character) and persisted. The finale brings key relationships, a lawsuit and some fond farewells. Read more…
1) Earth Day, streaming networks. This is the day for streamers to debut nature films. There’s “Sea Lions of the Galapagos” on Disney+ and “Kiss the Ground” on Amazon Prime, each with a companion film. Also, Netflix has “Pangolin,” Apple TV+ has the new “Jane” season and Peacock and Hulu have the “Americas” series (shown here), a gem that just finished its NBC run. Read more…
(This is the latest chapter of the book-in-progress, “Television, and How It Got That Way.” For the full thing, so far, click the category, “The Book.”)
In the halls of history, Michael Nesmith actually gets three spots.
He was a Monkee … he was a white-out heir … and he was a music-video pioneer. That last one is important here, but let’s admire the others first.
The world knew Nesmith as a star of “The Monkees” (shown here, with Nesmith at left), a bright, Beatle-ish show that had two fun seasons (1966-68) on NBC. It was about a make-believe pop band … which, in real life, then had three No. 1 hits.
Before that? As Nesmith told it, his parents divorced and he grew up with his mom, who was a good artist and a not-so-good secretary. To cover her typing mistakes, she used her art skills to create a white-out. She called it “Liquid Paper,” built up her company … and sold it to Gillette for $47.5 million.
This was the ideal combination for a music-video pioneer: Nesmith was a musical guy who had inventive roots and the financial freedom to dabble Read more…
1) “America’s Most Wanted” season-opener, 9:02 p.m., Fox. Back in 1988, Fox was a mini-network, airing only two nights a week. It debuted “AMW,” with John Walsh (whose son was kidnapped and killed) profiling suspects. The show was canceled after 23 years, then revived often. Now it’s back, hosted by Walsh (shown here), 79, and his son Callahan. Read more…
1) “Secrets of the Penguins” (shown here), 8-11 p.m., National Geographic. Here’s wildlife filmmaking at its finest – brimming with information and emotion. We see adult penguins from 4-foot-tall to 18 inches, from the Namib desert to the Antarctic ice. We see patience, anger and clever strategies, from herding anchovies to stealing fish out of the bill of a pelican. Read more…
1) Earth Day, Tuesday. Alongside splendid films in their libraries, streamers have new ones – “Sea Lions of the Galapagos” (shown here), Disney+; “Kiss the Ground,” Amazon Prime; “Pangolin,” Netflix; “Jane,” Apple TV+; “The Americas,” Peacock and Hulu. Also, the delightful “Secrets of the Penguins” is on Disney+ and reruns 8-11 p.m. Tuesday on National Geographic. Read more…
1) “Elsbeth,” 8 p.m., CBS. The world isn’t quite ready for Elsbeth (Carrie Preston) on a jury (shown here). A lawyer herself, she’s smarter than the prosecutor, way smarter than the rumpled defense attorney … and way more honest that the judge. He’s played by Michael Emerson (Preston’s husband), in a terrific rerun that sets up next Thursday’s so-so episode. Read more…
Best-bets for June 29: The July 4th build-up begins 
Best-bets for June 28: music, young comic, old Mel 
Best-bets for June 27: Swayze, spies, soccer 
