2020-2021 TV Season

This has been one hell of a year so far, Gentle Readers, so I’m thrilled to have something to look forward to and that something is the return of my favorite shows. Once upon a time, I would look forward to Upfronts, where the networks would have a week-long (or longer) party to announce the fall lineup (at least that’s what happens in the montage in my mind and all my fantasies about Upfronts week). This year has undoubtedly been different, and I’m sure there are many more announcements to be made about who was canceled, renewed, or ordered.

This list does not include any digital streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Apple TV, Disney+, and the many others that I may have forgotten. This also does not include premium networks like Showtime or HBO (both of which also offer streaming services).

Here is a list of all the canceled or ending shows (to rip off the bandaid and get this part over with):

• Blindspot NBC
• The Good Place NBC
• The InBetween NBC
• Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector NBC
• Perfect Harmony NBC
• Sunnyside (canceled and moving to digital platforms) NBC
• Will & Grace NBC
• Bless This Mess ABC
• Emergence ABC
• Fresh Off the Boat ABC
• How to Get Away With Murder ABC
• Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ABC
• Modern Family ABC
• Reef Break ABC
• Schooled ABC
• Single Parents ABC
• Almost Family FOX
• BH90210 FOX
• Deputy FOX
• Empire FOX
• Outmatched FOX
• Broke CBS
• Carol’s Second Act CBS
• Criminal Minds CBS
• God Friended Me CBS
• Hawaii Five-0 CBS
• Madam Secretary CBS
• Man With a Plan CBS
• Tommy CBS
• The 100 CW
• Arrow CW
• Supernatural CW

Newly Ordered Shows:

• The Kenan Show NBC
• Young Rock NBC
• Untitled Tina Fey/Robert Carlock Comedy NBC
• Big Sky ABC
• Call Your Mother ABC
• Call Me Kat FOX
• Housebroken FOX
• B Positive CBS
• Clarice CBS
• The Equalizer CBS
• Kung Fu CW
• Republic of Sarah CW
• Superman & Lois CW
• Walker CW

RENEWED (this is my favorite part!):

• The Blacklist NBC
• Brooklyn Nine-Nine NBC
• Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, Chicago PD (3 seasons each) NBC
• Good Girls NBC
• Law & Order: SVU NBC
• New Amsterdam
• Superstore
• This is Us
• Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist NBC
• A Million Little Things ABC
• American Housewife ABC
• Black-ish ABC
• The Conners
• The Goldbergs
• The Good Doctor ABC
• Grey’s Anatomy
• Mixed-ish ABC
• The Rookie ABC
• Station 19 ABC
• Stumptown ABC
• 9-1-1 FOX
• 9-1-1: Lone Star FOX
• Bless the Harts FOX
• Bob’s Burgers FOX
• Duncanville FOX
• Family Guy FOX
• Last Man Standing FOX
• Prodigal Son FOX
• The Resident FOX
• The Simpsons FOX
• All Rise CBS
• Blood & Treasure CBS
• Blue Bloods CBS
• Bob Hearts Abishola CBS
• Bull CBS
• Evil CBS
• FBI CBS
• FBI: Most Wanted CBS
• MacGyver CBS
• Magnum P.I. CBS
• Mom CBS
• NCIS CBS
• NCIS: Los Angeles CBS
• NCIS: New Orleans CBS
• The Neighborhood CBS
• SEAL Team CBS
• S.W.A.T. CBS
• Young Sheldon CBS
• The Unicorn CBS
• All American CW
• Batwoman CW
• Black Lightning CW
• Burden of Truth CW
• Charmed CW
• DC’s Legends of Tomorrow CW
• Dynasty CW
• The Flash CW
• In the Dark CW
• Legacies CW
• Nancy Drew CW
• The Outpost CW
• Pandora CW
• Riverdale CW
• Roswell, New Mexico CW
• Supergirl CW

 

Legacies: This is the Part Where You Run/Some People Just Want to Watch the World Burn

Alright, Gentle Readers, let’s dive right in with the pilot episode. Mystic Falls, Virginia and the Saltzman School, that poses as a boarding school for troubled rich kids.

The pilot opens with a voiceover from Hope Mikaelson, who we will soon find out to be a crucial part of the story and a Tri-brid, and it leads into  Rafael and Landon walking to Raf’s doom at an attempted exorcism. The exorcism fails when Hope and Dr. Alaric Saltzman intervene, effectively saving Raf’s life and the sanity of those in the church who were about to witness something horrifying. Raf is a werewolf.

A couple of interesting things about Raf and Landon: they are best friends and brothers, as they are both (possibly) orphans and have been to several different foster homes. They have a connection – I get it. They are connected in ways much deeper than that. Also, Raf being a werewolf and Landon being… well, nothing yet, leaves the power unbalanced.

The entire first episode serves as an introduction the Saltzman School and what role everyone plays. Landon is torn between wanting to stay and try to fit in even though he isn’t “special” and wanting to leave and move on because he knows Raf DOES fit in there because Werewolf.

While the pilot did a good job setting up the premise of the school, it would be nothing with the second episode, which focused on Hope, Raf, and Alaric chasing after Landon who accidentally stole an artifact that would turn out to be incredibly dangerous in the bigger picture.

Lizzie tries to understand why she feels broken and different than everyone and subsequently feels animosity towards Hope, growing their rivalry. It doesn’t help her growing hatred of Hope in the second episode that Alaric does not show up for the football game because he is with Hope.  Lizzie and Josie are jealous, although, Lizzie more than anyone.

Things I love:

• The constant references to Harry Potter and how everyone, including Alaric, pokes fun at the idea of a magical school. The irony is not lost of them. They even joke about playing Quidditch and have even a game they play called Wickery, which is as close to Quidditch as they can get without injury. There are also jokes about the Twilight series, and comparing the washed out vampires to the ones in this universe.
• Lizzie and Josie. Twins, fraternal, obvs. They are perfect opposites. Lizzie is blonde, outgoing, interested in being popular, and incredibly selfish. Josie is brunette, introverted, co-dependent, and will do anything for Lizzie. This will play out in interesting ways later on.
• Flag football between the Saltzman School and the local public school. It’s what all teen drama’s need – some good old fashioned school rivalry.
• There’s a dragon!  Initially thought to be a Pyromancer, the first “monster” the show encounters is a dragon, even though they have no idea what summoned it or what comes next.

Things I didn’t like:

• Landon has no immediate purpose, other than attracting trouble. As the season, and the series continues, he does find purpose, but he just seems like a red shirt from the start. He’s pretty disposable.
• Alaric’s relationship with Hope. It just seems creepy. There is more to their history, no question. But initially, I expected some dirty deeds or nefarious activity from them. As it turns out, in the pilot, Alaric is a super mentor, training Hope. Lizzie and Josie are just as annoyed by their relationship as I am, apparently.
• MG, Milton Greasley, is a pushover and very wishy-washy. He’ll do whatever needs to be done and he’ll fall over himself just to have Lizzie notice him. She never does, not in the way that he wants her. At first, it seems like MG is really into Josie and then Lizzie. He needs to make up his mind and stick with it.
• Hope’s status as a Tri-brid makes her believe she is better than anyone in the school, but also ultimately all alone.
• Lizzie is incredibly dramatic and destructive, seemingly cannot control her spell power which leads to things getting smashed and broken. She is convinced she is broken and her mental health is incredibly unstable so she needs to continue to takes steps to improve it.  Not a terrible storyline, but it is not immediately clear that she WANTS to change, only that she believes she is damaged.
• Landon and Hope… they have no chemistry. I’m not quite sure if it’s the actors or their arc, but I don’t quite believe they should be together and they just don’t fit.
• Hope continuing to be the lone hero… she needs help and never acknowledges it, acting like she doesn’t need help ever. (I need to make a point to compare, the obvious heroine of this show, to some other badass TV women, especially Buffy the Vampire Slayer, who is probably the closest to Hope as far as being the solo hero).

So, I don’t quite hate the show. It has some good to it. But there’s a lot more story that needs to happen before I actually enjoy it.

 

 

Legacies

Hello, Gentle Readers! It’s been a pretty serious year. For me, it’s been a pretty serious couple of years. But 2020 has kicked my ass in so many ways I wasn’t expecting.

The Black Lives Matter movement is something that I care very deeply about and one that I will continue to support. There is so much happening and it’s hard to maintain mental health with the constant spew of EVERYTHING, especially on social media.

So here I am, back to the things I love: TV and writing.

And with that said, I binged the first two seasons of Legacies on Netflix. First, Legacies is currently a CW network show, and Netflix has picked up the series for syndication – if it’s even called that now that streaming is a thing.

I’m thinking of doing either an episode by episode review of the series so far, or maybe a group of episodes, depending on the story arcs and where they fall. Or maybe I’ll simply break it down by season… so many decisions, and I don’t know that I’m great at those at the moment.

So, episode by episode it will be…

First, though, I have some general thoughts on the series as it stands with only two seasons. It was officially renewed for a third season, but new episodes probably won’t be seen until at least 2021. And I just realized that it is a spin-off series of both the Vampire Diaries and the Originals. (I tried watching the Vampire Diaries and got a few seasons in, but it wasn’t overly memorable for me… but people seem to love it).

The town of Mystic Falls has a new generation of protectors in this spin-off of “The Vampire Diaries” and “The Originals.” The Salvatore School for the Young and Gifted is home to Klaus Mikaelson’s daughter Hope, Alaric Saltzman’s twins Lizzie and Josie, and other young adults who are coming of age as witches, vampires and werewolves, nurtured to be their best selves and overcome their villainous impulses. Together, they rely on ancient folklore and tales to learn how to battle their far-reaching enemies and attempt to keep balance in the world.

It’s really soap-y. Like, REALLY soap-y. Like, Dawson’s Creek is a critically acclaimed drama compared to Legacies. And that’s not a terrible thing. BUT, I am a viewer who LOVES relationships and watching them unfold on screen. There is so much jumping around from person to person, love interest to love interest, it almost makes you dizzy, but I also feel like it takes away from the organic relationships that ARE happening in the series.

I LOVE that is it a fantasy/sci-fi show. It does well enough with the Monster of the Week trope, and those monsters do well enough contributing to the overarching story. Simply for distracting entertainment, I love it. And I love to hate it. The characters are okay-ish and the story is decent once you really start getting into it.

Yeah, I’m really going to do an episode by episode look at this one. I NEED to know the things I missed.

Lemony Snicket Series Coming to Netflix

It has just been confirmed that both Neil Patrick Harris and Patrick Warburton have signed on to be in the new Netflix series Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events.  Harris will be playing Lemony Snicket, a role played by Jim Carrey in the movie version.  And Warburton will grace us with his legendary voice as the narrator.  Harris and Warburton are joining the ranks of the already confirmed Malina Weissman and Louis Hynes.

I couldn’t be more excited to hear that two of my favorite television actors are starting up with new projects, and together, no less.  It should be yet another great production by Netflix.

Netflix has not yet announced a release date for the new series, but rumors are already going around that filming will be happening this month in Vancouver.  A release could be sooner rather than later.  Woohoo!  I have never seen the movie, and I have yet to read the books, but perhaps now that Netflix is putting a series into action, I’ll have to do both.

Thanks, Netflix.

Favorite Dawson’s Creek Episodes

In honor of one of my favorite shows coming to Hulu (finally), I decided to compile a list of my favorite episodes of the series.  Each episode has its own special meaning and has touched me in a different way.

It became apparent looking back at my favorite episodes that most of them occurred when the characters were taken out of their regular, every day situations and put into something completely different and somewhat random and watching how they react.

Detention 1.7 – The gang all gets Saturday detention, Breakfast Club style.  Tensions are high and no one can seem to get along, but much like the Breakfast Club, it only takes a few hours until everyone is best friends again.  And the movie references are great throughout the whole episode.

Beauty Contest 1.12 – Joey enters a beauty contest to win the $5000 prize.  I like this one quite a bit because it’s the first time we see what Pacey later refers to as “other Joey.”  She’s a different girl, confident and stepping out of her comfort zone.  This is also the first time Dawson really SEES Joey, which will later lead them to get together.

To Be or Not To Be… That is the Question 2.14-15  – This is an important two-part episode of the series, where Jack is forced by his evil English teacher to come out.  Jack comes to terms with his sexuality and the poor non-existent relationship he has with his father.  And Pacey comes forward as the hero of the day proving he’s the one who always tries to help the little guy, no what the issue.

Be Careful What You Wish For 2.16 – Dawson turns 16 and Andie lets loose.  One of my favorite scenes in this whole episode is when Pacey, Dawson and Andie are in the club, and while Pacey is in the restroom, the other two order drinks and get hammered.  And then they get up and sing the blues onstage.

A Weekend in the Country 3.12 – The gang comes together to help Joey impress the critic that stays at her newly opened Bed and Breakfast.  By now, it’s pretty clear that Pacey has a thing for Joey.  But it is also nice to see all her friends set their stuff aside and bond family-style.  Her B&B turns out to be a big hit.

True Love 3.23 – Dawson’s parents get remarried, and Pacey prepares to leave on his boat trip.  Also, after having spent the last few episodes fighting over Joey, Dawson finally “let’s her go” so she can be with Pacey.  Joey and Pacey run away to the sea together.  Yeah, I’m swooning.  Deal with it.

Two Gentlemen of Capeside 4.3 – Pacey and Jen get lost at sea when a big storm moves in, somewhat unexpectedly.  Dawson rescues them both.  This is a great because Dawson and Pacey put aside their differences and stopped fighting and proved that even though they hate each other, they were still friends no matter what.

The Unusual Suspects 4.8 – Dawson, Pacey and Jack frame Drew by pulling the senior prank to end all senior pranks.  This is another time when the two best friends put aside their hatred and come together to do something awesome.  And the bonus is that no one was the wiser because they were still openly fighting.

Hotel New Hampshire 5.8 – After the tragic loss of his father, Dawson and Jen attend a film festival.  Before his death, Dawson’s dad entered him into the film festival, and he ended up winning.  Dawson was finally in a place of healing in this episode and not being sad about his father’s death, but feeling honored to have known him.  I was thrilled when Dawson got out of that funk.  But… he started dating Jen again.

Something Wild 5.11 – Joey and Audrey celebrate various accomplishments by going to a college bar/club.  This marks another appearance by “other Joey.”  She gets up on stage and sings her heart out, and kisses Charlie on a whim.  Clearly college agrees with her, and she comes out of her shell a little more.

Downtown Crossing 5.15 – Joey gets mugged in Downtown Crossing on her way to see Professor Wilder after filming Dawson’s latest movie.  The interesting thing about this episode is that Joey is the ONLY regular character in it.  And even though she was attacked and mugged, she shows and incredible amount of compassion for the man who mugged her.

Spiderwebs 6.8 – The gang goes to a No Doubt concert.  Because who doesn’t love a little shameless band promotion.

Clean and Sober 6.14 – Pacey and Jack have a party to celebrate their new big screen TV, and Audrey spends time in rehab with a visit from Dawson.  If we had all forgotten how much Pacey loved Joey, it was painfully apparent in this episode.  She lets loose and gets drunk, and he dotes on her.  Fine.  I’m swooning again.

Castaways 6.15 – Pacey and Joey get locked in a Kmart overnight.  Yes.  They are my favorite couple.  And this episode lets us have a glimpse into what they are like as a couple with no other distractions, much like when they ran away to sea together.

Joey Potter and the Capeside Redemption 6.22 –  Ever the problem-solver and fixer of the group, Joey gets the gang together and pulls major strings to help Dawson make his movie.  I love ambition and her determination to see her friends all being friends again, after having drifted apart so far.

All Good Things Must Come to an End 6.22-24 – The series finale.  Makes me cry every time.  The gang reunites for Gail’s wedding to her new husband, but stay together when they find out Jen is sick and dying.  Everyone is forced to deal with their own mortality and tie up all those loose ends they’ve left open for their entire lives.  Spoilers: Dawson FINALLY gets his meeting with Spielberg, and Joey and Pacey finally end up together.  This two-parter has me in tears for most of the time.  Every single time.

Bones Final Season

Bones has been renewed for its twelfth and final season.  It will air the final twelve episodes during the 2016-2017 season.

Now that I have had a chance to process this information, I can finally talk about it and how it is both devastating and awesome in equal parts.  It is devastating because I hate when shows end or get cancelled – ESPECIALLY on FOX.  It is truly awesome because they get twelve more episode to give the show the ending it deserves – something that will stay true to the series AND satisfy the fans.

Bones has been a FOX staple for the last eleven years, being the “beacon of stability.”  It has lasted so long, not only because it’s an excellent show, but also because it has been so flexible with scheduling, fitting in wherever there was a hole to be filled.  It is also currently the longest running drama series on FOX right now.

While I am not looking forward to the show ending, I AM looking forward to seeing what’s in store for my favorite characters.

But, now excuse me while I go sulk in the corner and wait for the rest of this season to air.

Fuller House Renewed

Everyone can collectively stop screaming now.  It is official.  Fuller House has been renewed for a second season.  And less than a week after the first season premiere on Netflix.  Is this a record or something?  Can someone look that up?

Considering Fuller House, a reboot of the 80s/90s show Full House, was not praised by critics, it was incredibly well received by fans of the original.  Members of the cast have come out, saying they did not make the show for the critics – they made it for the fans.  And what a show it is…

There is no official word yet on who will return or who will guest star, but I’m hoping we see more of the same from season one.  The cast was great and all the cameos were awesome.  Season two will be just as good, if not better – and most of it is fueled nostalgia.

If you haven’t already, check out my recent post Thoughts on Fuller House to get my likes and dislikes.  And binge on, gentle readers.  Binge on.

Thoughts on Fuller House

I have now watched Fuller House three or four times.  Mostly because my kids absolutely love it (L loves it so much that he has said he wanted to be Max – the new middle child).  But partly because I AM a child of the 80s and 90s and a reboot speaks to that inner child.

Fuller House is the story of the Full House kids, all grown up.  Minus Michelle – just because.  DJ (Candace Cameron Bure) is the center of the family now, and moves into her childhood home after her husband, a firefighter, died in the line of duty.  Danny (Bob Saget), Uncle Jesse (John Stamos), Aunt Becky (Lori Laughlin), and Joey (Dave Coulier) are all moving on to bigger and better things in LA and Las Vegas, respectively, so DJ will ultimately be left alone to raise her three boys alone… until sister Stephanie (Jodie Sweetin) and best friend Kimmy Gibbler (Andrea Barber) come to her rescue.

As far as professions go, they were constructed so they could fit a premise similar to the original series.  DJ is a Vet, so her hours are crazy, but somewhat flexible hours.  Stephanie is a DJ and aspiring singer, who keeps a crazy schedule, but is meant to be a combination of Uncle Jesse and Joey with her freelance-style work.  This keeps her free to babysit and give her awesome “aunt talks” which she clearly needs to get better at.  And then there’s Kimmy, who is a professional party planner.  If that’s not fitting, I don’t know what is.

Michelle is obviously missing from the show.  Her absence is explained away with pointed jokes about her being in New York to run her super-successful fashion empire.

 

What I liked:

• Kimmy.  She is just so… Kimmy.  And she’s great.  Of all the characters, she is still unapologetically the same and it’s nice to see that she’s still weird.  And her style is definitely reminiscent of the 80s and 90s.  My inner child is squealing with geeker joy.
• On their girls night out, Kimmy invents the “She Wolf Pack” and howl to show sister solidarity.  It keeps coming throughout the episodes, and it’s actually pretty funny.
• Max is the cutest of the new kids.  And L wants to be him – which is the cutest thing ever.
• All the cheesy things that made the original series so great are present in this new incarnation.  It’s so fully of cheesy goodness.
• Once the pilot was over, it got better.  Sure, there was overacting, but it was much better than all the canned laughter and obvious cameos to make sure everyone got to be seen.

What I didn’t like:

• Stephanie.  I don’t like that she’s the slacker sister, given that her entire childhood she was an overacheiver.  And she took DJ’s name – DJ Tanner and “DJ Tanner” is just plain annoying.
• There were not enough cameos from the original adults.  Granted, DJ is trying to “make it on her own,” so having parental interference doesn’t quite fit into that premise.  But it would have been nice to see more anyway.
• The new theme song.  Carly Rae Jepsen has a nice voice, but I’m a purist.  I don’t typically like it when things get remade.  The saving grace to Fuller House is that all the original cast is back (with little exception), rather than rebooting the show with ALL new people.  The theme song, however?  Not quite there.
• DJ’s high school boyfriend just looks old.  He’s very funny, but you can feel how much you are truly ageing by watching him looking old.  But, then again, watching everyone on the show makes me feel old, considering I was 5 when the show originally aired in the 80s.

The overall feeling I have is that I do love this show, if for nothing else than to satisfy my inner 80s/90s child.  Considering it has only been available for streaming for three days, it might be too soon to figure out if there will be a second season.  But, it was a beautiful 13 episodes of pure cheesy goodness that I will watch over and over (which is equal parts “I love it” and “my kid wants to watch it nonstop.”

What did you think of Fuller House?  Will it keep going?

Gilmore Girls: Seasons, Casting

Ever since the news broke about the Gilmore Girls (limited) return on Netflix, I have been fangirling… hard.  Almost as much as I did when I heard Veronica Mars was getting a movie.  And (almost) every day since the 4-part series was announced, a new cast member – or tidbits about the upcoming show – has been announced.

In case you have been living under a rock since last year when Gilmore Girls had their ATX reunion, Netflix and Amy Sherman-Palladino have decided to reboot Gilmore Girls with a 4-episode series entitled Gilmore Girls: Seasons.  Each episode will take place during one calendar/weather season over the course of a year, and each will last 90 minutes.  That will total 6 hours of brand new Gilmore Girls content to be excited about!

Anyway…

So far, things are looking good.  Here is the returning cast list so far –

• Lorelai – Lauren Graham
• Rory – Alexis Bledel
• Emily – Kelly Bishop
• Luke – Scott Patterson
• Christopher – David Sutcliffe
• Dean – Jared Padlecki
• Jess – Milo Ventimiglia
• Logan – Matt Czuchry
• Lane – Keiko Agena
• Zach – Todd Lowe
• Mrs. Kim – Emily Kuroda
• Paris – Liza Weil
• Doyle -Danny Strong
• Michel – Yanic Truesdale
• April Nardini (Luke’s daughter) – Vanessa Marano
• Brian (of Hep Alien) – John Cabrera
• Kirk – Sean Gunn
• Taylor – Michael Winters
• Babette – Sally Struthers
• Miss Patty – Liza Torres
• Gypsy – Rose Abdoo
• Caeser – Aris Alvarado
• Town Troubador – Grant Lee-Phillips
• Finn – Tanc Sade
• Andrew – Mike Gandolfi

There are going to be plenty of newbies in Stars Hollow of course, so there will be plenty of new things to get acquainted with once we’re done collectively screaming over the return of ALL of Rory’s boyfriends.  I’m still Team Logan on this one, but it will be great to see them all back in action and to answer that one big question: who does she choose (if any of them)?  And are they all still fighting over her?

I would have loved to have seen Sookie and Jackson, but the news/rumor was that Melissa McCarthy was not asked to be part of the revival – even though the producers have said she had an open invite.  Office politics is what it is.  It would have been nice, but I’m still excited all the same.

As we get closer to the premiere date (which has not yet been announced) there will be more news and cast updates.  I, for one, cannot wait.  In the meantime, I will probably be watching Gilmore Girls over and over to get my fix.

The TGIF Phenomenon

There was something special about Friday nights when I was a kid.  It was chock full of TV sitcoms geared towards me.  Shows like Full House, Family Matters, Boy Meets World, Step by Step, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Dinosaurs and Perfect Strangers were a big staple for Friday nights in the 90s on ABC.  And I loved them… mostly.  I can’t remember not liking any of them.

In December, Entertainment Weekly published this great article called TGIF on ABC: An Oral History of ABC’s TGIF.  The producers and creators of that programming on ABC talk about how they found comedy/family gold and ran with the concept.

These days, ABC has a powerhouse lineup on Thursday night with the semi-recycled tagline of TGIT, “Thank God It’s Thursday.”  Shonda Rimes is to thank for creating Shondaland and giving us shows like Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder.

I don’t know where I’d  be in life if it weren’t for TGIF in the 90’s and Shondaland now.

What were some of your favorite shows from TGIF?  Or TGIT?