The warm-and-fuzzy doctor has been a staple of television, back as far as “Ben Casey” and “Dr. Kildare” in the early 1960s. “House,” debuting at 9 tonight on Fox, puts a scalpel through that stereotype. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]];… Read More
Physician, heal thyself. That’s the essence of “Huff,” a new, 13-episode drama debuting at 10 p.m. Sunday on Showtime. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length;… Read More
It’s been too long since there’s been a good trashy, adult-oriented nighttime soap. Don’t get me wrong. Fox’s “The O.C.” and about half of The WB’s lineup explore teen angst with abandon (to the point where “Best Look of Unrequited Longing” should be an Emmy… Read More
A new show tonight defines the term “life-altering experience.” In “Kevin Hill,” debuting at 9 on UPN, the titular character, an entertainment lawyer, is living large. The hunky Kevin (played by Taye Diggs) is popular with the ladies and hits clubs nightly with his horndog… Read More
This fall, CBS will celebrate being No. 1 in the ratings last season by … taking no chances. After all, with it taking so long to gain enough viewers, why risk offending anyone? googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes… Read More
On a busy night of premieres, the best choice of the evening is not the much-ballyhooed sequel, but instead an under-the-radar surprise. In case you’ve been living in a cave, CBS has spun off a second sequel from “CSI,” this time based in New York. Read More
This isn’t your father’s “Five-0.” “Hawaii,” debuting at 8 tonight, isn’t like any past crime show set in the islands. It’s Hawaiian shirts instead of suits. It’s soul patches in place of bushy mustaches. In TV exec-speak, it’s “Miami Vice” goes aloha, full of the… Read More
“Rescue Me” stems from a natural combination. The drama, which focuses on a New York City firefighting unit, stars an in-your-face actor, Denis Leary, and debuts at 10 tonight on FX, an in-your-face cable channel. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]];… Read More
Country-music fans are in for a treat this evening when Maine Public Television airs a superb program on the brilliant, troubled life of Hank Williams. If you think you know everything about country and western’s first superstar, tune in anyway. This PBS “American Masters” profile… Read More
The climax of many a courtroom drama comes when the jury foreman announces the verdict. Now a new series on Fox takes viewers inside the deliberations that lead to that verdict. “The Jury” debuts with two episodes at 9 and 10 tonight. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
Take a group of disparate people and put them in a foreign location without all the tools of modern society. The goal: to have them create a thriving community. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner… Read More
Shakespeare was clearly a prophet when it came to foreseeing the TV landscape. All those years ago, ol’ Bill wrote, in “King Henry VI, Part II,” “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.” googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes =… Read More
It seems like TV has been touched by the divine lately. First came a high school girl shanghaied to run missions for God on “Joan of Arcadia.” Next was the morgue assistant who gets sent back in time to aid the recently dead in “Tru… Read More
Let’s be frank about why reality TV works for executives in that industry. No costs for talent or writers. Just rough out a scenario, and turn loose some money-grubbing real folk. It’s kinda like improv, only without the talent to pull it off successfully. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
As envisioned by Stephen King, Kingdom Hospital, setting of the series of the same name, is more than a little like the Eagles’ Hotel California. You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave. As if there weren’t enough to be… Read More
Network executives aren’t giving any gifts to the producers of new TV shows when they launch them in the midst of the holiday season, when many are too busy to even watch anything except evergreens such as “Frosty the Snowman” or “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”… Read More
Tru Davies is having a bad day. A recent college graduate, Tru finds out that her hospital internship, which she saw as her ticket to med school, has been eliminated. Instead, she takes the only thing she can find in a related field – working… Read More
Ol’ Bill Shakespeare would be a rich man if he were alive today. After all, for years and years, film and TV writers have been relentlessly cribbing from his works (of course, he’s been accused of that, too). Can you imagine the royalties he would… Read More
An action drama featuring crackling dialogue and a strong female lead, set in Miami. Elmore Leonard must be involved somehow. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i… Read More
Rob Lowe didn’t spend much time on the prime-time TV sidelines. Less than a full season after his badly handled exit from “The West Wing,” Lowe is back in a new series, “The Lyon’s Den,” which debuts at 10 p.m. Sunday on NBC. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
A circle of six pals, three men and three women, gathering at each other’s apartments or eateries to discuss life and relationships. It’s a formula that’s worked wonderfully for NBC before with “Friends.” Now that network’s honchos hope they’ve found that departing series’ replacement in… Read More
If it’s fall, it must be time for another new series from David E. Kelley. One would think that the uber-producer, who grew up in Waterville as the son of then Colby hockey coach Jack Kelley, would have enough on his hands with his existing… Read More
As the first of tonight’s new series proves, creating TV programs isn’t rocket science. You just take elements of other popular shows and mash them together. If you do it well enough, the viewing public just might buy it as something original. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
For the past two years, as it has in regular life, Sept. 11 has had fallout in the TV world. Most production staff have had the common sense to use the effect of that day on the American psyche sparingly, as part of the backdrop, or as an… Read More
If “All About the Andersons” feels a little familiar, that’s because it is. The comedy, which debuts at 9:30 tonight on The WB, is supposedly based on star-executive producer Anthony Anderson’s own experiences. That may well be, but it also has elements of other popular… Read More
Be thankful for niche programming. Without it, science fiction just wouldn’t find a home on network TV. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) {… Read More
Well, it sounded like a good idea. I mean, let’s set a drama in the wealthy enclaves of California’s Orange County. It’s got “Dallas” or “Dynasty,” or at least “Falcon Crest,” written all over it. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]];… Read More
FX has taken an approach to original programming that other basic cable channels ought to emulate. They’ve gone slow but steady, choosing projects carefully and not oversaturating the market, focusing the spotlight on one series at a time. Pushing the envelope standardswise doesn’t hurt, either. Read More
TV long has been a brand-name medium, from its early days of “Texaco Star Theater,” “Colgate Comedy Hour” and “The Gillette Cavalcade of Sports” to the present. ABC and Bangor’s own Stephen King have enjoyed a fruitful partnership over the past dozen years, and a… Read More
It’s easy to list successful series with predominantly minority casts: “The Cosby Show,” “The Jeffersons,” “Sanford & Son,” “Good Times,” “What’s Happening?” But the list gets a whole lot shorter when it comes time to list the dramas of color that endured for any length… Read More
Any new TV series is a gamble. But in the case of cable channel FX, a relative neophyte in the area of original programming, the stakes are especially high, as executives there had to choose a show to launch following the critical acclaim given to… Read More
You wouldn’t want to say director Stephanie Slewka is mailing it in, but there is a postcard glossiness to the lobster boats, summer people, spunky locals and Bean boots of North Haven island, the topic of a one-hour documentary, “On This Island,” which airs at 11 tonight nationally… Read More
One should never doubt Dick Wolf. With the success of his three “Law & Order” series, Wolf is the closest to a sure thing when it comes to TV producers. Still, it must have given many pause when Wolf decided to update that hoary video… Read More
Every January, ABC faces the same challenge: what to schedule on Mondays after its cornerstone, “Monday Night Football,” concludes its season, especially when most of the series on opposing networks have had four or more months to establish themselves. This year, the network smartly abandoned… Read More
Midseason is a time of diminished expectations on television (that’s why cable premieres many of its original series around this time). Even dubbing these shows “replacements” implies they’re something less than the new shows that debut in the fall. That’s why two series premiering tonight… Read More
A year after the ratings success of “Smallville,” which tells the story of Clark Kent before he becomes Superman, the same production team is launching a new, youth-oriented drama based on another comic-book legend, Batman. Actually, “Birds of Prey,” debuting at 9 tonight on The… Read More
ABC’s Tuesday night is packed with new comedies. The best of the lot premieres tonight, improving on inferior efforts by John Ritter and Bonnie Hunt. “Less Than Perfect,” debuting at 9:30, is yet another TV workplace comedy (don’t TV executives realize that few people in… Read More
Cutting-edge visuals. Pounding music. Setting as a character. Those are just three signs that Michael Mann has returned to TV. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i… Read More
Another variety of specialty investigation is detailed in tonight’s new CBS series “Without a Trace,” debuting at 10. The series takes viewers inside the world of the FBI’s Missing Persons Squad. That group uses psychological profiling to determine the victim’s whereabouts. Their goal is to… Read More
Tonight’s only new program is a timely look at the health-care system in the United States. On “MDs,” premiering at 10, compassionate hospital workers seek to find ways around the profit-conscious health-care industry in order to better take care of their patients. While other recent… Read More
A series set in a big-city hospital, produced by John Wells, Lydia Woodward and Christopher Chulack. Hmmm … must be that old warhorse “ER,” right? googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var… Read More
One of tonight’s new series would seem to be the no-brainer of the season. Take “CSI,” CBS’s top-rated show, transplant it to another colorful location, and you should have an instant winner. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes =… Read More
After masterfully blending horror with youthful angst, Joss Whedon now turns his eyes toward space … the final frontier. Gene Roddenberry once described “Star Trek” as “‘Wagon Train’ in space.” Whedon launches in the same direction, creating a Western at the galaxy’s outer edges in… Read More
A guilty pleasure is something that a person enjoys but is embarrassed to admit. “Fastlane,” premiering at 9 tonight on Fox, promises to become such for many viewers. It’s loud and high-powered and packed with gratuitous skin … and a lot of fun. It’d be… Read More
The award for most bizarre new show goes to “Push, Nevada,” premiering at 9 tonight on ABC. “Push,” produced by Ben Affleck and his partner, Sean Bailey, wants to be both a mystery and a game show. (That sounds like an old “Saturday Night Live”… Read More
Already on its Sunday night lineup of original series, Lifetime features a medical drama (“Strong Medicine”) and a police drama (“The Division”). So “For the People,” debuting at 10 p.m. Sunday, was the logical next step – a courtroom drama. The new series, starring Lea… Read More
Quirkiness has always been an element of TV detectives. “Monk,” debuting with a two-hour movie at 9 tonight on USA, takes this to another level. Adrian Monk is TV’s first obsessive-compulsive detective. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes =… Read More
Think HBO’s hit comedy “Sex and the City” is an exaggeration? Then you should check out “Single in the City,” premiering at 8 p.m. Sunday on WE: Women’s Entertainment. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner… Read More
For years, Dick Wolf’s “Law & Order” series, especially the original, have been making a ratings killing with thinly veiled recreations of real-life cases. Producing a new series about real-life cases was a natural next step for Wolf. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var… Read More
If you want gritty, street-level drama, David Simon is the person with whom to start. After all, Simon was a crime reporter for the Baltimore Sun for 13 years. His book, “Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets,” was the basis for NBC’s critically acclaimed… Read More
TV comedy has a new face, and it’s that of a fuzzy brown rabbit. “Greg the Bunny,” debuting at 9:30 tonight, is a perfect fit on Fox. Like the best comedies of that network, it presents one man’s often-caustic vision, and it’s sure to offend… Read More
Who knew that the Supreme Court was such fertile dramatic ground that it would inspire not just one, but two midseason replacements? First on the docket was CBS’ “First Monday,” which has proved thuddingly executed despite having a strong cast. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More
Starting tonight, Andy Richter will try to answer the eternal question: “Can a second banana make it on his own?” First Ed McMahon and now Paul Shaffer kept their night jobs while exploring other projects. But Richter left Conan O’Brien’s show in 2000 and hasn’t… Read More
The best new midseason series isn’t on the networks, or even on much-acclaimed HBO. As hard as it may be to believe, the series is on FX, the cable channel whose only previous original entertainment programming was Howard Stern’s raunchy “Baywatch” send-up (and guilty pleasure)… Read More
Although it probably doesn’t make Maine native David E. Kelley happy, tonight Fox begins its auditions for a replacement for his rapidly aging “Ally McBeal.” “The American Embassy,” its six-episode run debuting at 9, started out as “Emmy Brody,” named after its young, waifish protagonist. Read More
TV executives seem to be under the impression that Americans want more self-involved, young, pretty people. They certainly have their fingers on the pulse. UPN has even built a new hour tonight around this dubious presumption. One program is diverting, the other repelling. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
Does this sitcom concept sound familiar? Four Manhattan-based friends in their 30s regularly get together for catty chats about relationships. If you guessed “Sex in the City,” you’re on the right track. “Leap of Faith” is the creation of Jenny Bicks, Emmy and Golden Globe… Read More
A “Seinfeld” alumna has actually come up with an enjoyable starring vehicle. Get out! googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) {… Read More
“City Confidential,” airing tonight at 10 on A&E, looks at an eerie time in Bangor’s not-too-recent past – the murder of pediatric neurologist John Malmstrom. “City Confidential: Bad Medicine in Bangor” is a fairly in-depth examination of the case, from the violent slaying of the… Read More
Rose Red violates the first law of real estate. The gargantuan mansion at the heart of the ABC miniseries “Stephen King’s Rose Red” (9 p.m. Sunday, Monday and Thursday) has a great location, right in the midst of Seattle, and yet most wouldn’t want to… Read More
At first glance, the ’80s wouldn’t seem like great fodder for a sitcom. Reagan, corporate greed and narcissism were all in during that decade. But it was also a time when Madonna, Boy George, “Miami Vice” and “Dynasty” dictated the fashion that many wore, and… Read More
When the creator of “First Monday,” debuting at 9 tonight on CBS, decided to make a legal drama, he went straight to the top. “First Monday,” which moves Friday to its regular 9 p.m. time slot, takes viewers to the Supreme Court, not only into… Read More
Versatile actor Hank Azaria has made his mark on TV (“The Simpsons,” “Tuesdays with Morrie”) and movies (“America’s Sweethearts,” “The Birdcage”). The likable actor is a natural for a lead in a TV sitcom. It’s a shame that Azaria didn’t better develop “Imagine That,” which… Read More
In his new eponymous Fox sitcom, Bernie Mac follows the first rule for stand-ups moving into TV: “Comic, play thyself.” “The Bernie Mac Show” debuts with back-to-back episodes at 8:30 and 9 tonight, settling into its regular time slot, 9-9:30 p.m. Wednesday, next week. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
The most novel of the fall’s new series premieres at 9 tonight on Fox. The last of this year’s four new spy dramas, “24” happens in real time, meaning that the entire season covers what happens on a particular day, with each episode covering one… Read More
Between the George Reeves version in the ’50s and “Lois and Clark” in the mid-’90s, not to mention the string of movies starring Christopher Reeve, one would think that the Superman mythos had been pretty thoroughly explored. Still, “Smallville,” debuting at 9 tonight on WB,… Read More
When will the “Seinfeld” players be allowed to move on with their acting careers? Probably when the reruns leave syndication and move on to Nick at Nite, sometime in the next decade. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes =… Read More
You would think that the final frontier had been pretty well pioneered by now. But Paramount disagrees. Not content to make only movies with its cash cow, the studio revisits “Star Trek” for a fifth time, as “Enterprise” launches at 8-10 tonight on UPN. It… Read More
Not surprisingly, tonight’s best new offering comes from the always reliable Steven Bochco (“NYPD Blue,” “High Street Blues”). Debuting at 10 p.m. on ABC, “Philly” is a courtroom drama starring Kim Delaney. Perhaps the plum role of Kathleen Maguire is a reward for Delaney’s tenure… Read More
With the shuffle of network premieres following last week’s national tragedy, only one show debuts tonight, but it’s a strong entry. That’s no shock, since “Undeclared,” at 8:30 on Fox, is the latest creation of writer/producer Judd Apatow (“The Ben Stiller Show,” “The Larry Sanders Show”). Read More
Pity “Wolf Lake.” Debuting at 10 tonight, the CBS supernatural thriller soon will find itself up against venerable TV institutions, “Law & Order” on NBC and first “20/20” and later “NYPD Blue” on ABC. Even if it were perfectly executed, which it’s not, it would… Read More
The hair. The hurt. The pout. The smirk. Only James Franco, a wily 22-year-old actor best known for his turn in the 1999 NBC drama “Freaks and Geeks,” could have slipped so convincingly into James Dean’s rumpled sweater and khaki trousers. googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
One of the most reliable sources of fresh, edgy summer programming is the Sci Fi Channel. The cable channel shows new episodes of its original series during the summer, where they stand out among the network reruns and burn offs. Now, the USA network is… Read More
It’s been a season full of screen actresses moving to TV, with most falling by the wayside, including Geena Davis and Bette Midler. Now it’s Joan Cusack’s turn. The always dependable, film supporting player tries her luck on the small screen in “What About Joan?”… Read More
Filmmakers just don’t know what to do with Denis Leary. The actor-comedian broke onto the scene as a caustic cabbie in a memorable series of ads for MTV. Then the powers that be tried to sand off his rough edges in such forgettable films as… Read More
Don’t blame Neil Simon. He only created the seminal buddy comedy, “The Odd Couple.” Don’t fault Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, or Tony Randall and Jack Klugman. Those two acting pairings just did it right, first in the movie version, then the TV version of… Read More
Mary Stuart Masterson joins the stream of actresses who are trading occasional film work for a steady TV gig when her series, “Kate Brasher,” premieres at 9 tonight on CBS. “Kate Brasher,” which does the viewing public a favor by replacing “Walker, Texas Ranger” for… Read More
From its breakout hit “Married … With Children” to the recent success of “Malcolm in the Middle,” Fox has long been the Dysfunctional Family Channel. Although it’s not up to either of those standard-bearers, there is an amusing new entry in this category, “Grounded For… Read More
I know, I know! The last thing TV viewers need is another sitcom about an oddball extended family. And yes, “Three Sisters” (debuting at 9:30 tonight on NBC) is so packed with female bonding that you may think you’ve accidentally switched to Lifetime or Oxygen. The… Read More
High-speed chases. Larger-than-life characters. Scantily clad women. These are some of the trademarks of Roger Corman’s films, who returns to make his mark in the new millennium. Corman teams up with writer Craig J. Nevius to create “Black Scorpion,” which debuts at 8 tonight on… Read More