THE ODD COUPLE:  Thursday 8:30PM on CBS – If Nothing Else Is On… As Chandler Bing might say:  Could there be a more CBS show than a reboot of a 45-year old multicamera sit-com, with a star 10 years from his last hit?  If the network’s new version of THE ODD COUPLE works, maybe […]

  There’s a reason why serialized dramas usually have some sort of “franchise” powering them:  a mystery to be solved, patients to be cured, a quest to be undertaken, etc.  Generating compelling stories on a weekly basis out of something like ordinary life can become awfully difficult, and a series can quickly turn mundane.  THE […]

  As we noted yesterday in writing about The Good Wife, churning out 22 hours per season is a tough challenge for any serialized network drama, especially one that concentrates on one central story, unlike, say the multiple plots of a show like Nashville.  The Originals would have fared better with a cable-sized 10 or […]

  HELL ON WHEELS:  Saturday 9PM on AMC In its 5 seasons on the air, HELL ON WHEELS has never achieved a sustained stability, shifting tones and narrative thrust on an almost seasonal basis as a perpetual bubble show in the ratings.  Based on tonight’s Season 5 premiere, this announced final stanza may be its […]

  WICKED CITY:  Tuesday 10PM on ABC Previously… on WICKED CITY:  In 1982 Los Angeles, serial killer Kent Grainger (Ed Westwick) is slaughtering young women he picks up on the Sunset Strip.  He’s recently acquired a new playmate, Betty Beaumontaine (Erika Christensen), a single mom and nurse with a very dark side.  Chasing Kent is […]

  DICE:  Sunday 9:30PM on Showtime – Change the Channel The journey of Andrew Dice Clay from an explosively successful poster child (and, many would say, cynical exploiter) of comedy political incorrectness to a long sentence in the showbiz wilderness and then a new career as an increasingly respected character actor, with solid recent performances […]

  GUILT:  Monday 9PM on Freeform – Change the Channel The network now known as Freeform is making it clear that, building on the success of ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars, it intends to be a purveyor of YA genre tales.  Unfortunately, on the basis of Stitchers, Shadowhunters and the new Guilt, it’s hasn’t yet […]

  COLOSSAL (no distrib):  Well, you haven’t seen this take on sci-fi spectacles before.  In Nacho Vigalondo’s whatzit, party girl Gloria (Anne Hathaway) and her hometown friend Oscar (Jason Sudeikis) discover that they can cause their actions to be mirrored by a giant sea monster and robot terrorizing Seoul.  In other words, if one of […]