Reservation Dogs

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Little “Reservation Dogs” adds big-time honors

“Reservation Dogs” – a quiet show in a noisy TV world – has received one of the top honors … again.
For the second straight time, it’s on the American Film Insiitute’s list of 10 TV “programs of the year.” Also repeating were “White Lotus” (which ends its season at 9 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 11) and “Hacks.”
Those two are on HBO and HBO Max, which are known for big stars, big budgets and top honors. “Reservation Dogs” (shown here) is something else. A modest show with relatively unknown American Indian actors playing teens in small-town Oklahoma, it slides between comedy and drama, with occasional trips to the surreal. That’s produced by FX for Hulu; also on the list are: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 10, 2022
Stories

Stay or go? The question propels a strong series

Sterlin Harjo had achieved an elusive goal – being an independent filmmaker.
Alongside the usual projects (documentaries, shorts, a few TV episodes), he had made three scripted movies. Each, he said, got “good reviews from the critics who saw it – which are, like, maybe five.”
Then “Reservation Dogs” (shown here) happened … and the number was much higher than five. “The first season was featured on more than 80 critics’ year-end best lists,” said John Solberg of FX,
FX makes the show – with an all-Native cast and crew — for Hulu, which has just started streaming the second season. The first won awards — including Peabody and American Film Institute– and is nominated for two more (best comedy and best new show) by the Television Critics Association. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / August 4, 2022
Stories

No reservation about it: Here’s a fun show

Growing up 8,000 miles apart, these two men emerged with similar tales and memories.
Sterlin Harjo is from small-town Oklahoma, with Seminole and Muscogee roots; Taika Waititi is from New Zealand, with Maori roots. They could easily swap boyhood adventures.
“The stories were never sad or depressing,” Harjo said, in a virtual session with the Television Critics Association. And these fun accounts “are not the stories that ever get told about native people.”
At least, not until now. “Reservation Dogs” (shown here), starting Monday on the FX hub of Hulu, offers a sly wit. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / August 6, 2021