12 Good Things I Saw On Television In 2020

Posted on January 30, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

What to say about television in 2020?

It’s hard to come up with much, largely because there really wasn’t a whole lot of television to watch. With the pandemic shutting down several productions and even knocking out stuff like the Olympics, network television was even more of a wasteland than usual. As far as the major networks were concerned, 2020 was a year of rerurns and overproduced celebrity-themed game shows.

I’m sure that some would say that the presidential election livened things up and I have to admit that I did enjoy snarking on Michael Bloomberg, Tom Steyer, and MJ Hegar, all three of whom seem to be competing to see whose campaigns could put out the most cringe-worthy commercials possible. But, with Trump on one side and Biden on the other, there was little about this election that was enjoyable to watch. Indeed, I’ve reached the point where just thinking about hearing someone say, “Fake news” or “Come on, man,” makes me want to throw something across the room.

Even my old reliables failed me this year. Survivor halted production. The Amazing Race and Big Brother both featured the least likable cast imaginable. It’s hard to get excited when bullies are winning your favorite shows.

As usual, the streaming services did a bit better than the networks but, in the end, it feels as if I spent most of 2020 watching the retro channels. Whenever the real world got too stressful, annoying, or stupid, I would go out to my private office and I’d watch a channel like MeTV, AntennaTV, ForwardTV*, or maybe even CoziTV. To be honest, it really didn’t matter what old shows they were showing. All that mattered was that watching those shows of the past provided an escape from all the bad stuff happening in the present. They provided non-threatening background noise and there’s something to be said for that. They’re televised time capsules, perfect for a history nerd like me.

(*To be honest, I’m not sure that there really is a network called ForwardTV. I do know that I frequently watch Ghost Whisperer on one of the retro channels and I’ve never actually caught the name of the channel. Maybe it’s ForwardTV. Who knows?)

So, this year, my list of good things that I saw on TV is going to be shorter than usual. Who knows? It could be for the best. I usually watch too much TV as it is.

A Teacher

This miniseries, about a teacher who has an affair with a student and how it continues to determine the shape of their lives long after the affair ends, was an unusually intelligent and thought-provoking show. As the teacher and the student, Kate Mara and Nick Robinson both gave realistic and empathetic performances.

2. Bad Education

One of the best films of the year premiered on HBO. On the one hand, it’s sad to think that the film would have been eligible the Oscars if it had only been bought by Netflix. On the other hand, though, it’s totally possible that more people saw it on HBO than would have seen it otherwise. Hugh Jackman didn’t win an Emmy and he’s not going to get an Oscar but he still gave one of the best performances of 2020.

3. Michael Bloomberg blowing it during his first Democratic Debate

Considering how obnoxious and ever-present his commercials were (“Mike will get it done!”), there was something deeply satisfying about watching this smug technocrat totally blow it when he actually found himself on live TV and having to deal with actual human beings. There wasn’t much to enjoy as far as politics went in 2020 but seeing Bloomberg get booed after trying to explain away all of the HR complaints against him was a joy.

4. Seduced: Inside the NXIVM Cult

There were two high-profile NXIVM series last year. HBO had The Vow, which was a lengthy series that was produced by a bunch of former NXIVM members and which tried to make the director of What The Bleep Do We Know into some sort of hero. Seduced, meanwhile, was an honest look at life in the cult, one that pulled no punches and which made The Vow look worse and worse with each episode.

5. Saved By The Bell: The Reboot

The Saved By The Bell reboot turned out to be a 100 times better than it had any right to be.

6. 9-1-1: Lone Star

This show is a guilty pleasure for me, I’ll admit it. On the one hand, it does a fairly good job of capturing the feel and attitude of my homestate. On the other hand, I don’t know that there’s as many volcanoes in Texas as this show seems to think. No matter, though! It’s over-the-top and fun.

7. The Mandalorian

I’m not even into Star Wars and even I had to admit that The Mandalorian was pretty damn cool. I’m among the many people who started watching for Baby Yoda and who stuck around because the show itself turned out to be so unexpectedly entertaining.

8. Better Call Saul

Saul Goodman never lets us down.

9. The Queen

Neither does Queen Elizabeth.

10. Ghost Whisperer Reruns

And neither does Melinda! Eve when she’s appearing in reruns airing on Hulu and whatever ForwardTV actually is.

11. Coronation Sreet

They have a ton of episodes on Hulu! Considering that it often seemed as if I might never get to leave the country again, there was something nice about being able to go on Hulu and watch something as British as this show.

12. I learned to appreciate the Daytime Dramas

When you’re working from home in the middle of a pandemic, there’s something oddly comfortable about turning on the TV and seeing something like the Bold and the Beautiful or General Hospital. Those shows are always there, they’re always dealing with same stuff that it’s been dealing with for decades, and they are also the shows most likely to get interrupted by a breaking news alert. So, as long as I turn on the TV at 12:45 and I see The Bold and the Beautiful instead of Norah O’Donnell looking somber, I know that the day’s probably going to be crisis-free.

TSL Looks Back at 2020:

Hey! Here’s Yet Another Trailer for WandaVision!

Posted on January 10, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Hey! Did you know that WandaVision is going to be streaming in another five days!?

Well, if you didn’t, you obviously haven’t been spending much time on YouTube or Twitter and I guess you haven’t been reading this site much either so shame on you. It seems like, every day, there’s another trailer, preview, or teaser for WandaVision. The trailers mix black-and-white sitcom-style laugh tracked scenes with color scenes that seem like they’re from a 70s soap opera. My assumption is that the show features Wanda creating an alternate universe where she and Vision can attempt to live happily, one that I’m going to guess she created out of her knowledge of old television shows. That’s a nice thought and, of course, an alternate universe means that Marvel will have an easy way to correct past mistakes.

“Robert Downey, Jr. wants to come back to the MCU? Go snatch Tony Stark out of an alternate universe!”

“Everyone finally realized that it was freaking stupid to kill off the Black Widow and that the MCU is better with Scarlett Johansson than without her? QUICKLY! TO THE ALTERNATE UNIVERSE!”

As I said, I think it’s a good idea and, the next time I find myself in my office, watching the retro TV stations, I will be sure to think about how I can use each episode of Ghost Whisperer to create a new universe. And, as snarky as I am about the constant trailers, I am actually looking forward to WandaVision. Even though I think the MCU reached it’s logical end with Avengers: Endgame, I’m still looking forward to seeing if Marvel can keep their winning streak alive. Thanks to the pandemic, it’s been a while since we had a new MCU production and I’m a bit curious to see whether or not that absence is going to help or hinder the franchise.

Add to that, I like Elizabeth Olsen. I like Paul Bettany. I’ll watch them in almost anything. Elizabeth Olsen deserves better than to just be the romantic interest in a Godzilla film. Paul Bettany deserves better than to just be everyone’s eccentric British friend (or the European villain in the latest action movie). As played by Bettany and Olsen, Vision and Wanda were two of the more interesting characters to be found in the MCU. Both the actors and the characters deserve a chance in the spotlight and I’m happy to see them getting one.

Here’s the latest trailer:

Finally, all of twitter was abuzz (bleh! Did I really write that?), with the news that some people were allowed to watch the first three episodes of WandaVision. Their reactions were so incredibly positive that it would be good to remember that early reactions are always overly positive to almost every new TV show and movie. I mean, if your entire career is dependent upon keeping Disney happy and maintaining your access to “company insiders,” it’s only common sense to have a positive reaction to the latest Disney product. Always take these things with a grain of salt, I’m saying.

That said, I really hope WandaVision is good. We’ll all find out in five days!

Here’s The Latest Trailer for WandaVision!

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Well, it’s a new day and I guess that means that it’s time for another enigmatic trailer for WandaVision. It’s been interesting to note that, even with all the trailers that Disney Plus has released for this show, it’s still hard to get a definite feel for just what exactly WandaVision is going to be. That’s not a bad thing, of course. The enigmatic is intriguing.

Judging from the trailers that have been released so far, this is either going to be brilliant or a disaster. I don’t really see much room in between those two extremes. I am going to guess that Wanda and Vision are living in some sort of alternate reality, one that Wanda constructed from a lifetime of watching old TV shows. That’s my guess, anyways. I’ve come across a few people online who have a much darker interpretation — i.e., Wanda is actually in some sort of coma and the entire show is her dying fantasy of having a perfect life with Vision. I mean, seriously — that would be like a Marvel show from the darkest timeline. I would have to put a blue streak in my hair if that happened! (“Life got dark!” to quote Britta Perry.)

Anyway, this latest trailer continues to mix comedy with darkness. I’ll definitely give this show a try, if just because I love both Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen and I don’t feel that either one of them has really gotten all of the opportunities that they deserve. Disney Plus, obviously, is hoping that they’ll have another Mandalorian-style hit with this one and it is interesting to consider that, with the pandemic and all, this will be the first new MCU release in a year. To a certain extent, the reception of this show will answer the question of whether or not the MCU can continue to thrive after the apocalyptic conclusion of Avengers: Endgame. The show will be available on Disney Plus on January 15th so we should have our answers in just another two weeks!

Here’s the latest trailer:

Here’s The New WandaVision Teaser!

Posted on December 25, 2020 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Today, Marvel Studios decided to say “Merry Christmas” by releasing a new teaser for WandaVision!

And here it is!

WandaVision will premiere on Disney+ on January 15th! Personally, I’m looking forward to it but then again, I look forward to anything that features Paul Bettany. Plus, Wanda was the Avenger to whom I most related. Let’s just hope things work out for the best for those two. They deserve a little happiness!

Great Moments In Television History: Bing Crosby and David Bowie Share a Duet

Posted on December 24, 2020 by Jedadiah Leland

In 1977’s Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas, Bing and his family travel to the UK to visit Bing’s long-lost relative, Sir Perceval Crosby. It’s while staying at the Crosby estate that Bing celebrates Christmas and discovers that Sir Percy lives next door to David Bowie!

You might not expect Bing Crosby and David Bowie to have much in common as far as musical tastes are concerned but that’s where you’re wrong. After discussing their parenting techniques and their favorite songs, Crosby and Bowie share a duet that has become a classic.

From Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas (which aired on ITV 33 years ago today), here are David Bowie and Bing Crosby performing Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth.

Previous Great Moments In Television History:

Horror on TV: FreakyLinks 1.13 “The Final Word” (dir by David Straiton)

Posted on October 31, 2020 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Well, Halloween is nearly over and so is Horrorthon. Here’s is our final episode of televised horror for 2020. It’s also the final episode of FreakyLinks!

In this episode, Ethan Embry and the team try to prove that a murder was actually a supernatural occurrence. Their efforts are recorded for a true crime television show. The mockumentary approach is reminiscent of The Blair With Project, which was done by the same people who were behind FreakyLinks. So, there you go!

It’s too bad that there was never a Baywatch Nights/FreakyLinks cross-over.

Oh well. This episode aired on June 22nd, 2001 and it brought to an end the story of Derek Barnes. Enjoy the show, everyone! Happy Halloween!

Dracula Part 3, Review by Case Wright (The spoilers you deserve!)

Posted on October 31, 2020 by casewright

Happy Horrorthon! Part 3!!! Drac is back…..ALRIGHT!!!! So, I decided to break this up and give Part 3 its very own post! Dracula needs to face his inner-self and see what makes him tick and fear. Dracula is in the 21st century in an underground secret lab because…why not?! It kept the story fresh and there’s nothing fresher than seeing a private industry emulate bloated government spending.

He’s not there as long as you’d think because Drac got lawyered up and he fed on Agatha’s descendent, BUT she has cancer and it is poisonous to Old Drac. This creates a good plot twist and has a great payoff at the story’s end. This episode tries to plug in the ideas from the book into this modern twist. However, it wasn’t flawless; the Renfield character never really worked for me because the actor kept playing it for comic relief and thought he was in a Benny Hill sketch. Nina played it well. She represented the Information Age: the veneer of sophistication, but really it is just narcissism with an iPhone.

Nina gets into Drac and claims to not fear age or death, but that’s easy to say when you’re young, hot, and everyone wants to get into your britches. Then, once she got turned into a vampire and was burned into a horrible crisp, she couldn’t get staked fast enough! Nina does do more than just become the world’s greatest Roomba achievement; Nina allows Drac to have a mental breakthrough.

Even though Nina was not really as intrepid about death as she claimed, her purported fearlessness attracted Drac for a reason and Agatha 2.0 was going to find out why! Drac is a Veteran. He wanted to die in battle with honor, but he wasn’t able to do so. His continued existence is his shame. Instead of dying in battle, he feared death, forcing him to live as a monster coward. Therefore, his final act of forgiving himself was to drink the poisoned blood of Agatha 2.0.

Her blood, her love, her life, gave Dracula what he needed- Death. Dracula gave Agatha what she needed: to touch the mystical and, by doing so, she touched the face of God. See, I told you it was a love story.

Dracula Part 2 (Netflix), Review by Case Wright

Posted on October 31, 2020 by casewright

Happy Horrorthon! Dracula is saaaaaaailing, sailing takes me away to where I’ve always heard it could be and he’s eating every one the boaaaat. This episode was almost a bottle episode. Dracula REALLY wants to go to England. I love meat pies too; I can relate! Drac spends the episode eating …. EVERYONE!!! Dracula, Food does not equal love!

Mmmmm Talking Fudge!!!

I enjoyed the episode, but it was kinda rediculous. Dracula was eating everyone and NO ONE really suspected him until the end? Really? Nah, couldn’t be the weird Eastern European guy whose cabin smells like rotting flesh. Really, just look at the guy! No suspicions?!

Dramatization:

There are some interesting people on board, but really I just felt like they were kind of a distraction from the much more Frost/Nixon style debate between Dracula and Agatha. Their dialogue was masterful. It pulled you in and it was SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY – Enlightenment Vs Reason! We’ll sell you the whole seat, but you’ll only need the EDGE!!!!

It turns out that Agatha is Dinner. When Agatha awakens, she and the remaining snacks manage to blow up the ship and Dracula is off the coast of England. He’s next to a hole, a hole, a hole at the bottom of the sea! When he wakes, he walks ashore and it’s MODERN DAY with helicopters! I didn’t see that coming, but why not? This was fun!

Horror on TV: FreakyLinks 1.11 “Live Fast Die You” (dir by David Barrett)

Posted on October 30, 2020 by Lisa Marie Bowman

On tonight’s episode of FreakyLinks, Ethan Embry and the crew investigate real-life adrenaline vampires! Agck!

This episode features appearances from Jeffrey Combs, Dennis Christopher, Paige Moss, and everyone’s favorite, Eric Baflour!

This episode originally aired on June 1st, 2001.

Dracula (Netflix) Review By Case Wright

Posted on October 30, 2020 by casewright

Happy Horrorthon fellow travelers. It’s been a awhile. I’ve been struggling with engineering classes and it’s been hard to set time aside for this essential part of my life. How does this relate to Dracula? Dracula at its core is an unrequited love story. It drips with sanguine hopes and failed dreams (pun intended). Really, we’ve all that relationship that we really wanted, but it was always doomed, doomed, doomed.

I got to enjoy this mini-series the best way possible: a live tweet with the TSL staff. Back to Dracula, this series was originally broadcast on the BBC. It took Dracula from the past to the present. I have read most of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. It’s kinda boring, which is why the first episode was uneven in terms of excitement because it held close to the book, which was b o r i n g. Part I established Dracula at home. As in the book, he wanted to see the World, meet new and interesting people in England, and eat them.

To whet his appetite and get waaaaay younger, he decided to feast on a lawyer- Jonathan Harker. This Dracula gets all the memories and knowledge from the people he feeds on, which begs the question: Why travel anywhere? Just hang out at a train station and snack on people. Come on, Drac! I did like how the first episode set up the Courtly Love Interest – Agatha Van Helsing; she’s a Nun with ice water in her veins.

Sister Agatha (Van Helsing) gets a visitor at her convent – Jonathan Harker. He looks dead…well undead. He even has a fly crawl across his eyeball without him noticing. Flies buzzing and crawling about eyeballs is a big theme in this mini-series; you just have to get used to it.

Jonathan describes meeting the Count under the presumption of a land holding trans… sorry I dozed off there. The book was a lot like that too. It would have exciting moments and then BAM… Back to the real estate transactions! As Jonathan stays at the Count’s castle, the Count gets younger and he gets older. His lifeforce is drained away. In fact, all of his memories get drained away as well to the Count after one feeding ah ah ah and then two feedings ah ah ah.. Jonathan appears to succumb to the Count and feel nothing, but his resignation is all an act. DUN DUN DUN!

Jonathan is searching for a way out of the castle and it works….kinda. I mean he ends up at a convent and we learn that he’s undead and under the power of Dracula. This is gleaned from Sister Agatha who relentlessly interrogates …well everyone. I wish she were my best friend. She attracts a lot of monsters, but nobody’s perfect.

Unfortunately, Dracula can sense Jonathan and he has pursued him to the convent. This is where Dracula meets the true love of his life Sister Agatha. She’s fearless, smart, and scientific; the opposite of everyone else whom Dracula encounters. Agatha is a force of reason like Dracula is a force of nature. He represents feudalism and magic, she enlightenment and technocratic future. She is what he aspires to be, but cannot. She hopes that in solving the mystery of Dracula she will understand the mystical and develop her elusive affinity with God.

Of course, by getting close to understand Dracula, Agatha inadvertently allows Dracula to enter the convent and eat everyone, including……her and he does it by wearing a dead man’s face. That was awesome! Gotta see it again!

Two and three will post tomorrow!!!!