THE HUMANS (A24/Showtime – Nov. 24):  There are typically two strategies for adapting a celebrated play about a small number of people in a limited space to the screen.  One is to “open it up,” adding scenes, characters, or at least locations outside the original set.  The other is to lean into the claustrophobia, […]

> THE CABIN IN THE WOODS:  Watch it At Home – Clever and Culty Seeing THE CABIN IN THE WOODS is sort of like being in Fight Club:  the first rule is not to talk about it.  Or, at least, not to reveal any of the wild, ingenious twists put into place by its producer/co-writer […]

  JUSTIFIED:  Tuesday 10PM on FX JUSTIFIED is pure dark pleasure to watch.  Other cable series are more thematically or structurally ambitious (which is why Justified is unfairly ignored at awards time), but Graham Yost’s series, taking its cue from the late Elmore Leonard’s original prose, is utterly assured in its command not just of plotting […]

  If THE DARK KNIGHT had no superhero or comic book trappings–if The Joker were scarred but not hideously made up, and Batman were a bit lower-tech and merely disguised rather than wearing a cowl and cape–Christopher Nolan’s film would still be one of the best action-adventure crime movies of the past 20 years.  Within […]

  THE LIBRARIANS:  Sunday 8PM on TNT Previously… on THE LIBRARIANS:  In the long-term absence of head Librarian Flynn Carsen (Noah Wyle), a trio of apprentices preserve magical historical artifacts and keep the world safe from their use:  history/literature/mechanical genius Jacob Stone (Christian Kane), mathematical savant Cassandra Cillian (Lindy Booth), and master thief and hacker […]

  THE TWILIGHT SAGA:  BREAKING DAWN PART 2:  Watch It At Home – Fangless Eternal Love, For the Last Time Even for those of us decidedly not devotees of the TWILIGHT saga, there are some things to be said for BREAKING DAWN PART 2, beyond the obvious one that it marks the last time we’ll […]

  GRACEPOINT:  Thursday 9PM on FOX starting October 2 – Potential DVR Alert PLAYERS:  Broadchurch, the wildly successful limited (and now continuing) British TV series, of which Gracepoint is a remake.  Broadchurch returnees, including series creator Chris Chibnall, director James Strong and star David Tennant.  A cast surrounding Tennant that includes Anna Gunn, Nick Nolte, […]

With the 2011-12 broadcast season now concluded, here’s a list of all our Season Finale reviews at The Sked: 2 BROKE GIRLS  30 ROCK 90210 AWAKE  BONES COMMUNITY More after the break–