g) "The Rookie"
I feel like I'd much rather Nathan Fillion do a full-on comedy than get into another ABC drama even more conventional than "Castle." But as unpromising as "The Rookie" seemed on its face, the pilot was really strong, they did a pretty good job of laying the groundwork of who the characters are and how this is and isn't like other cop shows (it mostly is).

h) "The Kids Are Alright"
There have been so many sitcoms over the years following the "Wonder Years" formula, but most of the recent ones have taken place in the '80s and '90s, where "The Kids Are Alright" actually takes place in 1972, part of the period "The Wonder Years" took place in. And there's nothing wrong with the show's execution, it just feels like I've seen everything about it too many times before.

i) "Bodyguard"
"Bodyguard" has nothing to do with the Kevin Costner The Bodyguard, but it is about a bodyguard having an affair with the woman he's sworn to protect, so it's not entirely unrelated, I guess. But this British show, which had record-breaking ratings for the BBC, is kind of a boilerplate sexy political thriller while also getting into some interesting themes. I can't imagine the biggest show in the U.S. being about Iraq veterans wanting to murder a politician who supported the Iraq invasion.

j) "The Woman In White"
The 1859 novel The Woman In White by Wilkie Collins is regarded as one of the earliest mystery novels, and the BBC's current miniseries adaptation is the 8th time it's been adapted for the screen and the 3rd time by the BBC alone. But this is my first experience with the story so I'm trying to just go along with it, it's pretty interesting, although I think they failed in a typical TV way to cast Jessie Buckley as a character who is supposed to be "not attractive" in the novel, she's really cute.

k) "Best. Worst. Weekend. Ever."
This Netflix show is one of those things that's about teens but I'm not sure who's really the audience for it, I find it boring as an adult but I don't know if a teen or a pre-teen would like it much either, it's like a watered down version of that movie Fanboys that wasn't good to begin with.

l) "The Curious Creations Of Christine McConnell"
An odd little Netflix show that feels like a spooky version of "Martha Stewart Living," with a creepy yet charming lady talking to weird little puppet creatures and creating weird ooky dishes and crafts. I think if I was throwing a Halloween party I would totally watch this show and take a bunch of notes.

m) "Eli Roth's History of Horror"
This been a pretty cool little documentary series so far, I have mixed feelings about Eli Roth as a horror filmmaker but he's probably as much a student of the genre as anybody to oversee something like this and they got some good interviews with directors and actors from the classics, I like the way they divided it up into episodes about zombie movies, slasher movies, demonic possession movies, and so on.

n) "T-Pain's School of Business"
I've always liked T-Pain's music and thought he came off as a pretty charming, relatable guy, so FUSE having him host a show about inventions and tech start-ups is a cool idea. The music-related stuff is the most interesting and natural for him to talk about, but they've showcased a pretty cool range of stuff and he's able to get the ideas across well.

o) "Brainchild"
This Netflix show kind of feels like someone watched "Adam Ruins Everything" and decided to copy its entire format and gear it towards teens and preteens. It's not the worst idea, though, they pull it off well enough, I might try to show my son this show and see if he likes it.

p) "Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj"
My favorite thing Hasan Minhaj did on "The Daily Show" was his recurring bit satirizing YouTube vloggers where he'd overemphasize everything he said and gesticulate dramatically like a camp counselor. So it's a little weird to me that that body language has seeped into the way he hosts his own Netflix show, but I think maybe he'll get a little more comfortable once he's done it for a while, I like the way the first couple episodes dove into current events from his perspective as an American Muslim.
r) "The Alec Baldwin Show"
"Sundays With Alec Baldwin" had a soft launch earlier this year when ABC aired a one-off pilot episode, and now the show has finally started a weekly run, still on Sundays but under a different title. The biggest change is that episodes now end with weird little bits where they play an interview excerpt that didn't appear earlier in the episode while showing drawings of Baldwin and the interview subject by a New Yorker illustrator, it's really bizarre. Anyway Baldwin is obviously not a very seasoned interviewer and the conversations all seem to exist inside this weird celebrity bubble that reminds me of the "SNL" sketch where he and Kim Basinger and his brothers were on "Family Feud" and gave ridiculous showbiz answers to every question. It's a pleasant show but I dunno how much longer it'll stay on the air what with Baldwin getting arrested for fighting in parking lots and shit.

s) "You"
I was really intrigued by this show when it debuted in September, and at the time I felt it could go either way of being great or kind of painting itself into a corner. And I'm happy to say that it's continued to be really gripping, albeit in a strange and uncomfortable way where the unreliable narrator can be charming and smart and relatable while doing horrible things. The fact that they've already renewed it for a second season, and have a second book about Joe to base it on, has me really curious how they're going to end this season.

t) "Kidding"
One of my pet peeves is when TV shows launch with a big name director who usually does features directing the pilot, and then every subsequent episode they don't direct looks different and usually worse or missing their distinctive touch. Michel Gondry has directed 6 of 10 episodes of "Kidding," so the majority of the season. And there's always something in his episodes that stands out and makes me realize the other episodes don't have the same visual flights of fancy, but the show is really more about the characters and the performances so it's not a big problem. I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about this show, there are these little surreal moments where it comes alive but the characters could be fleshed out a little more beyond their current problems.

u) "The Resident"
There's a funny thing with big network ensemble shows where once they're successful, they just keep piling on more established actors who want part of the action. So by the time "The Resident" finished its first season a few months ago, Malcolm-Jamal Warner had joined the cast, and when it returned for the second season, Jane Leeves had also joined, with Jenna Dewan in a recurring role. The original core cast was fine but I like the additions, especially Warner's character, who's one of those brilliant egotistical surgeons that TV actors love to play in medical shows.

v) "The Deuce"
When the second season of "The Deuce" started a couple months ago, I felt like the show was still this new thing that would be around for a while, or at lest 4-5 seasons like "The Wire" and "Treme." Then it was announced that the third season would be the final one, so we're already into the back half of the show's run. There's a lot I like about it, particularly in the second season, but it also often feels like this hug ensemble of characters is just breezing past me without me getting to know them or care that much.

w) "Castlevania"
This cartoon full of blood and cursing based on a video game from my youth was one of last year's great surprises, so I'm happy that it's back with twice as many episodes as it had last time. The Peter Stormare-voiced character that they brought in for this season is a great addition.

x) "The Good Place"
This show is such an unusual achievement in that it manages to bring you back to your funny sitcom friends every week even while the ground is constantly shifting under your feet and the whole nature of the show keeps shifting. I was skeptical that the show could be as good on Earth as it was in the afterlife, but this season has been good.

y) "Daredevil"
Now that Netflix has been letting the hammer fall on "The Iron Fist" and even "Luke Cage," I wonder if they're trying to focus on keeping their more successful Marvel shows around for as long as possible, or if they're not too far off from getting canned too. My investment in these shows was never too strong and it's at an all-time low, but I still like the characters enough that I'm giving season 3 a try. I thought I wanted Kingpin back but so far I'm not sure if I actually do, maybe when he gets out of jail things will be exciting again.

z) "Bob's Burgers"
Even though they don't have any traditional way of doing it like "Treehouse of Horror," "Bob's Burgers" always does great Halloween episodes and this year's was no exception, it's crazy to think they didn't even air the show in the fall until the 3rd season.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 05, 2018 at 10:09 AM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.