Tag Archives: Night Flight

Lisa Marie’s Week in Television: 1/29/23 — 2/4/23

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

I watched quite a bit.  Let’s see what I can remember about it.

Accused (Tuesday Night, FOX)

This week’s episode was actually pretty good.  It has an enjoyably macabre ending and was well-directed by Jonathan Mostow.

The Amazing Race 5 (Netflix)

The fifth season of The Amazing Race is on Netflix!  I watched a few episodes this week.  I’m glad that Colin and Christie were given a second chance to compete on the show because they really were the strongest competitors during the fifth season.  After getting used to the mellow Colin who appeared the second time, it was interesting to be reminded just how intense and ultra-competitive he was the first time he appeared on the show.  I know that Colin and Christie were meant to be the fifth season’s “villains” but, honestly, it’s impossible not to like them.  I respect the fact that they consistently refused to yield or U-turn anyone.

American Auto (Tuesday Night, NBC)

Anna Gasteyer’s character went on the Seth Meyers show to try to soften her image and convince everyone that she really wasn’t the country’s most hated CEO.  I understand that the whole point here was to reunite Gasteyer and Meyers, as I assume they were on Saturday Night Live at the same time.  But I don’t know.  Gasteyer had a few funny moments but Meyers has never really appealed to me a a talk show host.  And really, if  you were a CEO trying to improve your image by appearing on a talk show, would you go on the one that most people don’t watch?  She should have held out for Fallon.

The Bachelor (Monday Night, ABC)

Boring!

The Brady Bunch Hour (YouTube)

I wrote about The Brady Bunch Hour here!

California Dreams (YouTube)

I wrote about California Dreams here!

City Guys (Tubi)

Uh-oh!  It looks like Tubi has removed a few episodes of City Guys!  Fortunately, I think I can find them all on YouTube.  Anyway, click here to see what I wrote this week!

Football Game: Bengals vs Chiefs (Sunday Evening, CBS)

I watched this game with Jeff and Erin.  I guess I’m glad the Chiefs won.  The Bengals uniforms were a kind of silly looking.

Football Game: Eagles vs 49ers (Sunday Afternoon, FOX)

Was it on FOX?  I honestly can’t remember.  Anyway, I watched this game with Jeff and Erin and they were a lot more into it than I was.  I decided that I would root for the 49ers because Philadelphia is the city of Parking Wars but I changed my mind once it became obvious that the 49ers weren’t going to win.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

I’m not sure if I agree with Chef Ramsey’s decision to keep  Dafne over Sommer.  Sommer may have been abrasive when she was put in charge of the Kitchen but she was still a lot less scatter-brained and more effective than Dafne was.  That said, we all know that Alex is going to win this season.

Kids Behind Bars: Life or Parole? (Hulu)

This show originally aired on A&E.  I watched an episode on Monday morning and I was immediately reminded of why I never particularly cared for this show.  Not only does it exploit real-life tragedy but it’s also so biased and heavy-handed that it’s not really worth watching as a work of journalism.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week, the murderer was a prosperity preacher.  Nolan Price used a bunch of shady legal tricks to convince a judge to force a minister to break his sacred oath.  This show is always at its most cringey when it tries to deal with religion.  As I watched this week, I noticed that the show is now playing up the whole “relationship” angle between Price and Maroun.  They’re a cute couple but I kind of want to see Maroun handle a case without Price hovering over her shoulder.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about The Love Boat here!

Night Court (Tuesday Night, NBC)

I know I watched the episode because I jotted it down in my notes for the week but I can’t remember a thing about it.  That’s kind of a recurring problem with Night Court.  I’ve seen every episode so far and I still can’t really tell you anything about the show or its characters.

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

I watched an episode from the 80s.  It was all about the use of animation in music videos.

Survivor: Philippines (Hulu)

There are several old seasons of Survivor on Hulu.  I watched a bit of the Philippines season, which featured the unbelievably hot Malcolm and the unbelievably obnoxious Abi-Maria.  Along with Penner, RC, Russell, and a few others, this season featured some of the least likable castaways ever but it also featured Malcolm so it all worked out.

TV Party (Nightflight Plus)

I watched an old episode of this 80s public access program on Friday night.  Chris Stein, of the band Blondie, led a small band in playing medieval music.  Then a bunch of drunk people called the studio and threatened to beat him up.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 1/8/23 — 1/14/23

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week did not leave much time for television watching.  I had a doctor’s appointment on Wednesday.  I drove my father to and from a doctor’s appointment on Friday.  And I had a lot of movies to watch!

Here’s some notes on the five (yes, only five) television programs that I watched this week!

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

“FIGHT!”

What a wonderful episode, this was.  Sometimes, kid just don’t get along and there’s nothing you can do about it.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

It’s time for the blind taste test!  The blind taste test is an annual Hell’s Kitchen tradition but it’s hard for me to think of another season where the chefs failed quite as dramatically as they did during this season.  It was a bit odd because, for the most part, the chefs have been pretty strong this season.  Last night proved that anyone can have an off-day.

Brett was sent out of Hell’s Kitchen as the end of this week.  To be honest, I don’t think anyone was surprised, as it was obvious that Brett will be a great head chef once he gets more experience but he wasn’t quite ready just yet.  Still, it was kind of sad to see Brett go.  He was always entertaining and he definitely always seemed like he was doing his best to improve with each dinner service.  Brett also seems like the type who will be back whenever the show does another all-star season.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

For the second week in a row, Samantha Maroun actually got to do something more than just gaze lovingly Price.  This week, she led the prosecution of a rich teenager who was arrested for beating an ex-con to death.  The teenager’s defense was that he had been driven temporarily mad by super-strong marijuana.  (Yes, I can hear everyone rolling their eyes.  Look, I’m just reviewing.  I didn’t write the episode.)  Maroun was determined to get a murder conviction until Price told her that she was taking the case personally and that she needed to set aside her personal feelings and her own guilt about the death of her sister.

To which I have to say, really?  Like, who is Price to tell anyone not to take a case personally?  Price takes every case personally.  Price put a pharmaceutical CEO in prison because Price has never gotten over the death of his junkie brother.  Price may have been correct about Maroun but it still feels a bit hypocritical on his part.  That said, I think the writers may have figured out that having two prosecutors who take everything personally doesn’t always work dramatically.  Ever since the show returned from its holiday break, Price has suddenly been a lot more pragmatic.

There’s a lot of people online who, after last night’s episode, are convinced that Price and Maroun are in love with each other.  They’re probably right.  McCoy’s not in any position to forbid it, either.  (It’s kind of funny how McCoy has gone from being a self-destructive, alcoholic womanizer to being the voice of wisdom.)

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

This week, we finished up watching Night Flight’s 1982 New Year’s Eve special.  Most of it was made up of footage of Grace Jones performing and being interviewed.  It was weird but entertaining.  Apparently, 1983 got off to a very trippy start.

Project Greenlight (YouTube)

On Wednesday night, I watched three episodes of the third season of Project Greenlight.  This is the season that aired on Bravo and which detailed John Gulager’s efforts to direct Feast.  No one had any faith in Gulager but he did a pretty good job with Feast and he’s the only one of the Project Greenlight winners to go on to have a notable career.  The episodes that I watched deal with the casting of the film and it was once again infuriating to watch as the film’s casting director went out of her way to undercut Gulager and cast her best friend in the film.  The third season of Project Greenlight is the one that really makes the viewer hate Hollywood.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 1/1/23 — 1/7/23

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

As the first week of January comes to a close, here’s some thoughts on what I watched!

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

Abbott Elementary returned this week with a sweet episode in which we got to see that Melissa actually is a really good teacher and that Jacob has no idea how to do a podcast.  I have to admit that I cheered a little when, at the end of the episode, Melissa revealed that, due to the contest rules being poorly written, her “classroom” had indeed won the reading competition.

The Circle (Netflix)

The Circle was back with four more episodes on Wednesday.  Marvin destroyed his game by trying to be a player while Billie-Jean and Shubham ended up getting eliminated.  (Shubham did not help himself by losing his temper while answering a “savage question.”)  I want to like Raven but the whole “everything about Raven is perfect” narrative makes it difficult.  At this point, my favorites are Tom and Xanthi & Brett.  I also have to say that I found Sam to be a lot more likable this week than I did last week.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Hell’s Kitchen returned and we have finally reached my favorite part of the season, when Chef Ramsay starts to show his softer and more encouraging side and the remaining chefs finally get a chance to show how good (or bad) they can be.  Abe got sent home but he also get some words of encouragement.  That was nice.  I actually like all of the remaining chefs but it’s hard not to feel like its pretty obvious that Alex is going to win.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

Law & Order returned with a new episode and this week and — yeesh!  After several episodes that were generally intelligent, well-done, and not too heavy-handed, this week’s episode felt like a parody of Law & Order.  This week’s murder victim was a undocumented immigrant who had been sent to New York City from Texas so, of course, we had to spend a lot of time listening to the cops talk about how heartless the governor of Texas was.  It always amuses me how this show always features a bunch of blue collar cops suddenly talking like MSNBC analysts.  I wonder if the show will do a future episode about the Democratic governor of Colorado sending people to New York?  I kind of doubt it.

Anyway, it turned out the murderer was a real estate mogul who was obviously meant to be a stand-in for one of the Trump kids.  In order to convict him, the prosecutors had to get testimony from a woman who worked in his office but — are you ready for this? — the woman was also an undocumented immigrant!  As soon as she testified, she was deported back to Lebanon.  After 20+ episodes, Sam was finally allowed to get upset about something and show a hint of personality.  Whatever else you might say about this episode, it’s nice that Sam finally got some hint of a backstory.  Up until last night, she was one of the most underwritten characters in the history of this show.

The show certainly tried to tug at the heart strings with this episode but it was so just so heavy-handed and clumsily written that it had the opposite effect.

Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street (Netflix)

This is Joe Berlinger’s latest Netflix true crime docuseries.  Over the course of four episodes, Berlinger explores the story of Bernie Madoff.  When I started watching, I was skeptical because I really didn’t feel that there was much left to be said about Bernie Madoff but both Berlinger and the show did a good job of explaining not only what Madoff did but also how he was able to get away with it for so long.  Along with taking a look at Madoff’s life, the film also examined the people that he hurt (including his two sons, both of whom emerge as tragic figures).

One thing that I did learn is that, while Madoff did handle accounts for a lot of famous and rich people, the majority of his clients were just normal people who were looking for someone to handle their retirement funds.  These people were victimized twice, both by Madoff and then by the government regulators.  Despite the fact that none of these people knew about Madoff’s crimes, many of them lost their homes and were driven into bankruptcy when they were ordered to help pay back the money that Madoff had stolen.

The film features a lot of footage of the now-deceased Madoff being interviewed in prison.  Even imprisoned and shunned by his family, Madoff still didn’t seem to feel that he had done anything wrong.  This is probably the first Madoff documentary that has really convinced me that Bernie Madoff really was as evil as everyone says.

Night Flight (Night Flight+)

On Friday night and Saturday morning, I watched the Parts 3 and 4 of Night Flight’s 1983 New Year celebration.  The music was good.  The stand-up comedians were bad.  A surprisingly coherent Ozzy Osbourne was interviewed about whether or not he had actually bitten the head off of a bat.  He said it was an accident and assured the interviewer that the rabies shots were not fun.

Tough as Nails (Wednesday Night, CBS)

The blue collar reality show is back.  To be honest, this show would be more interesting if it was office workers and executives being forced to do things like build buildings and unclog drains.  But whatever.  I like Phil Keoghan as the host.  Just as with The Amazing Race, he seems to genuinely care about the people competing.

The Twilight Zone (Sunday and Monday, SyFy)

On New Year’s Day, SyFy had their annual Twilight Zone marathon!  I watched a few episodes, in between watching movies and doing other things.  I caught the Monsters Are Due On Maple Street and the one where Burgess Meredith breaks his reading glasses and realizes that he’ll never be able to read another book.  Unfortunately, I did not catch the one with William Shatner and the Gremlin on the wing.

I watched a few more episodes on Monday.  Again, I missed the Gremlin on the wing but I did see the one with the guy who was dreaming about being on death row.  That’s personal favorite of mine.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 12/25/22 — 12/31/22

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to my final week in television for 2022!  I spent most of the past week with my sister Megan and her family.  We probably watched the news more than anything else, what with that guys getting arrested for committing those murders in Idaho.  Here’s some thoughts on the non-news programming that we watched.

1923 (Paramount+)

On Tuesday, my sister Megan and I watched the first two episodes of the latest Yellowstone prequel.  It wasn’t bad, though I do have to admit that I was only half-paying attention to it.  Harrison Ford is ideally cast as an aging western icon.

California Dreams (YouTube)

Megan and I love this show and we watched several episodes this week.  The reviews will be available every Saturday!

The Circle (Netflix)

I swore to myself that I was not going to allow myself to get sucked into another stupid reality show but then, on Wednesday, I decided to just take a quick peek to discover what The Circle was like.  I wasn’t planning on watching much of the latest season.  I just wanted to get maybe a 5-minute sample.

Of course, as soon as the show started, I discovered the Brett was on the show.  Brett was a part of Big Brother 20.  He was a total jerk but he was honest about it and he was frequently one of the funniest people in the house.  He was the type of bad boy that I’ve always had a weakness for.  As well, his betrayal of Rockstar (yes, that was the name she used in the House) led to the classic moment of Rockstar yelling about how she had been betrayed on “my daughter’s birthday!”

Anyway, Brett was one of the first people voted out of the Circle but, fortunately, he and Xanthi are still secretly playing the game.  Brett and Xanthi are a cute couple and if we don’t see some sort of evidence of them hooking up by the end of next week, I can only assume that the show is hiding it from us.

Also, one of the contestants is a British comedian named Tom.  He mentioned that he lived in the Tower of the London.  “I’ve never heard of the Tower of London,” the other contestants said while I screamed internally.  Anyway, Tom’s adorable.

Despite my best efforts, I’ve been sucked into The Circle.

Dragnet (YouTube)

I watched two episodes of this 1960s cop show on Thursday.  One featured Joe Friday on a talk show, where he debated a snide hippy and a pompous professor.  The other featured Friday taking a class at night school and justifying his decision to arrest one of his classmates for possessing marijuana.  Welcome to the 60s!

The Love Boat (Paramount+)

I wrote about the Love Boat here!  Megan and I watched several episodes this week.  We both agreed that the ship looked nice.

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

Late Saturday night, I experienced New Year’s 1983!  It was a bit trippy.

Upstart Crow (Sunday Night, PBS)

On Sunday night, my sister Megan and I watched all of the Upstart Crow Christmas specials.  I had already seen them but I enjoyed introducing them to my sister.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 11/13/22 — 11/19/22

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

I’ve been on vacation this week.  Here’s what I watched.

(Yes, that’s not my best intro but seriously, I’m tired.  I always take some time by myself after my birthday so that I can reflect on the year and plan the next one.  It’s a tradition that is the result of having watched too many movies and read too many books about women who retreat to a lake house for a holiday and achieve enlightenment or, at the very least, write a really great book.  Unfortunately, that always seems to work better in movies than in real life.  In real life, I’ve spent a good deal of time inside because the average temperature this week has been close to freezing.  As a result being stuck inside for hours at a time, my original plans of watching next to no television and only going online to host my weekly live tweets were quickly abandoned.  When I did go outside, I got caught out in the rain more than once and I also banged up my knee and probably nearly broke my neck when I tripped over a tree root while exploring the surroundings.  The sun has occasionally peeked through the clouds, mostly just to remind me of the fact that I cannot tan to save my life.  I’m now catching a cold, and I’m no closer to being enlightened than I was before.  This has not been my best-planned getaway, though it will make a great book someday.  Anyway….)

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

“RALPH!”

This episode will always be remembered for the broken eggs and Barbara’s reaction to the way one of the mothers dressed.  However, I think this episode deserves to be remembered for the brief moment when Ava has a serious conversation with Barbara about that mother.  I always like the episodes where we discover that Ava actually does kind of care about her job and other people.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here!

California Dreams (YouTube)

Being stuck inside, I watched a few episodes of California Dreams so that I could write and schedule a few reviews in advance.

City Guys (Tubi)

Being stuck inside, I watched a few episodes of City Guys so that I could write and schedule a few reviews in advance.  Hmmm …. that sounds familiar.

Graffiti Rock (YouTube)

I watched the only episode of this 80s dance show on YouTube on Friday night.  A young Debi Mazer and an adorable Vincent Gallo were amongst the dancers!  It was fun to watch.

The Greatest American Hero (Weekday evenings, ACE TV)

This is an early 80s show about a klutzy teacher (William Katt) who is gifted a red suit by a group of aliens.  The suit turns the teacher into a superhero but, because the aliens didn’t give him any instructions, he’s not really sure how all of his powers work.  He fights crime with his girlfriend (Connie Selleca) and a drunk FBI agent (Robert Culp).  One of his student was played by a very young and handsome Michael Pare.

I watched an episode on Thursday while I was having dinner.  The teacher battled criminals while preparing for an IRS audit.  It was actually a pretty cute show.  William Katt was as likable here as he was as poor, doomed Tommy Ross in the original Carrie.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

It was a good dinner service but Chef Ramsey still had to send someone home.  At least he was polite about it this week.  I’m really liking this season of Hell’s Kitchen.  I could honestly see any of the chefs winning.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week’s episode of Law & Order dealt with a murder that was linked back to Iraq War burn pits.  Considering that Price and Mouron are the two most self-righteous prosecutors in the history of this franchise (and that’s saying something!), I was cringing a bit at the thought of them relitigating the Iraq War.  But this episode was actually fairly well-handled.  I never would have expected that Cosgrove and Shaw would become my two favorite characters on this show but they’ve managed to do it.  I think that’s because Cosgrove and Shaw does their job without complaining, whereas Price always has some moral dilemma going on.  Seriously, McCoy needs to bring in somebody new.

Law & Order: Organized Crime (Thursday Night, NBC)

Stabler’s going to give himself a heart attack if he’s not careful.  CALM DOWN, STABLER!

Law & Order: SVU (Thursday Night, NBC)

The squad was hunting a serial rapist and murderer who targeting transgender women.  Greg Grunberg played one of the victims’s father, an NYPD detective who was not comfortable with his child’s identity and who was trying to hide evidence that would have confirmed that she was transgender.  Eventually, however, he did the right thing and handed over the evidence that allowed the D.A. to get a conviction.  Grunberg, as always, gave a good performance.

Magnum, P.I. (Weekday Mornings, Charge TV)

On a chilly and rainy Monday morning, I watched a two-part episode of the original, 1980s Magnum P.I.  Magnum and his friends were being stalked by a KGB agent named Ivan.  The episode ended with Magnum executing Ivan in cold blood.  Ivan totally deserved it.

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

Friday night, I watched two episodes of this 80s entertainment digest.  One episode was about the early days of rap and while the other episode that profiled Sade.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here!

Too Close For Comfort (Weekday Afternoons, Antenna TV)

This is an old 80s sitcom, about a grouchy old man who lived on the second floor of a San Francisco townhouse.  His daughters lived on the first floor.  A bizarre manchild lived on the third floor.  This show has been on Tubi for a while and also on Antenna TV.  On Tuesday, after spending the first part of the day hiking and trying to meditate, I decided to unwind by shuffle dancing to The Chemical Brothers.  Then, after that, I collapsed in front of the television and watched two episodes of this show on Antenna TV.

In the first episode, the grouchy old man and his wife were shocked to discover that a runaway girl named Sam was living with the manchild.  Sam explained that she had run away from home because her father was overprotective and didn’t understand her and wouldn’t let her go out with her friends.  The problem was that the actress playing Sam appeared to be nearly 40 years old so it was difficult to sympathize with her.  I mean, just get a job and move out if you can’t take it.  You’re an adult.  Anyway, the grouchy old man explains to Sam that her father loved her and Sam went home.  Yay!

This was followed by an episode in which the manchild and one of the daughters graduated from college.  The manchild got a job as a mall security guard.  Good for him.

The Twilight Zone (Weeknights, MeTV)

On Tuesday night, I watched The Obsolete Man.  In this episode, an authoritarian government official ordered a man to commit suicide.  Before dying, the man revealed the official to be a coward.  The official was then ripped apart by his former supporters.  This is usually described as being one of the more heavy-handed episodes of original Twilight Zone but, in this time of general government overreach, there was something satisfying about watching the smug government representative get outsmarted.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/30/22 — 11/5/22

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

I’ve spent this week in a state of exhaustion as I’ve tried to physically and mentally recover from this year’s Horrorthon.  Here’s a few thoughts on what I watched over the past seven days.

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

The commercial was amusing and I enjoyed the scene where everyone realized that the reason they had allowed the commercials to be filmed was because they had gotten used to being followed around by cameras.  I enjoyed hearing about the shows that the characters happened to be watching when they saw the commercial.  I’m not really sure that Abbott needs a supervillain, though.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here!

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

Al moved out to a farm and nearly got killed by a feral hog.  Brian Tyree Henry’s reactions were priceless.

California Dreams (YouTube)

Surf dudes without attitude …. kinda groovy …. I watched a few episodes and wrote a few reviews that will be dropping over the course of the next few weeks.  I’ll be glad to be done with season 2 because, as everyone knows, season 3 is when this show gets good.

City Guys (Tubi)

98 Degrees played Manny High and Chris dated a goth!  You can read about it here.

Family Feud (Weekday afternoons, Buzzr)

On Monday, I watched two episodes of this deathless game show.  They were both Halloween episodes from the 80s so everyone was wearing a costume.  I have no idea who won.  Survey says, “Didn’t much attention!”

Fantasy Island (Tubi)

I wrote about Fantasy Island and Leslie Nielsen here!

Ghost Whisperer (Hulu)

I watched an episode of my favorite guilty pleasure on Monday.  Jennifer Love Hewitt helped Hillary Duff deal with a ghost.  Meanwhile, Melinda’s dead husband continued to hang out in someone else’s body.  That was a weird season.

Hang Time (YouTube)

I watched a few episodes of Hang Time yesterday and today and I wrote and scheduled reviews for all of them.  Keep an eye out on Monday.

Highway to Heaven (YouTube)

I shared this episode on Monday.  Jonathan battled the devil for Mark’s soul.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (Hulu)

I watched the episode in Sunday in which Mac and Dennis tried to create an economy based on Paddy Bucks.  Meanwhile, Frank chopped off a finger while trying to sale knives.  I fell off the couch laughing.

It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown (Apple TV+)

Erin and I watched this classic on Sunday.  It’s a part of our Halloween tradition.  A few years ago, Erin wrote about this special and why it continues to appeal to us.

King of the Hill (Hulu)

I watched two episodes on Monday.  The first was the episode where Hank fights for the right to trick or treat.  The second was one of my favorites, in which Bobby buys a pack of Tarot cards and accidentally joins a coven.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

A fashion designer is murdered while crime spirals out of control in New York.  This was actually a pretty good episode, even if the mystery itself was rather routine.  It was an episode that acknowledged just how powerless people feel in the face of America’s current crime wave and it put the blame squarely on our elected officials.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about my latest voyage here.

Night Flight (NightFlight+)

I watched an episode of this entertainment news show from 1992.  The show contained a profile of Bruce Springsteen, some footage of Duke Ellington performing, and then a few comedic shorts featuring Charlie Chaplin, W.C. Fields, and others.

The Office (Peacock)

On Halloween, I watched the first Halloween episode.  Imagine how different the series would have been if Michael had fired Creed instead of Devin.

One World (Tubi)

I binged the entirety of this show on Thursday and Friday.  Here are my thoughts on two episodes.

Saved By The Bell (Hulu)

Zach and the gang went on a mystery weekend!  It’s about as close as this show ever got to a Halloween episode so I watched it on Halloween.  Even when Zach thought people were actually being murdered, he seemed oddly unconcerned.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here!

Toy Story of Terror (Sunday Night, ABC)

I watch this special every year.  I have to admit that it’s never quite as good as I seem to remember it being but, that said, how can you not love the toys?

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/23/22 — 10/29/22

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

I spent most of this week watching horror films.  I’ll have a lot to catch up on, starting on November 1st.

Here’s some thoughts on what I did watch this week:

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

This week’s episode was a Halloween episode and it was a true classic, with Baby Thanos releasing candy to all the children in the middle of the school day and chaos breaking out as a result.  Jacob dressing up as Wage Theft for Halloween made me laugh way too much, as did the competing Scarlet Witch costumes.

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

This week’s episode was a mockumentary about Thomas Washington, a black animator who was briefly the CEO of Disney Studios when the board mixed him up with a white exceptive named Thompson Washington.  Thomas Washington was obsessed with making “the blackest movie” ever.  The end result was The Goofy Movie, though it’s explained that Disney’s Board of Directors interfered with Washington’s vision and cut the most powerful scenes out of the film.  Thomas Washington, we’re told, died under mysterious circumstances.

I’ve never seen The Goofy Movie.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here!

Full House (Sunday Evening, MeTV)

On the first of this week’s episode, Michelle was finally punished for being a brat.  She nicknamed Jesse “Uncle Tattletale.”  This episode was even more cingey than usual because it featured a scene with Michelle talking to “Angel Michelle” and “Devil Michelle.”  The Olsen Twins weren’t even believable as one person, let along three.  This was followed by an episode in which DJ learned how to drive.  As usual, her stupid family screwed everything up.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, Fox)

No one went home this week!  Chef Ramsay decided to spare the nominated chefs because it was a good service overall.  I would have sent home Vlad but Ramsay decided to show mercy.  Good for him.

Highway to Heaven (YouTube)

My friend Mark recommended an episode of this show to me after reading my review of I Was A Teenage Werewolf.  I’ll write more about this episode tomorrow.

It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia (Hulu)

On Tuesday night, I rewatched the classic “The Gang Tries Desperately To Win An Award” episode.  Sudz seems like a fun place.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week’s episode featured a law professor who was being blackmailed after he was filmed using a slur.  After the blackmailer turned up dead, the professor was put on trial.  It turned out that the professor’s 14 year-old son was the guilty party.  It was kind of boring.  This season has been a dud so far.

The New Wave Theater (NightFlight+)

This was an old show from the 80s, which featured live performances from various up-and-coming bands.  It was hosted by Peter Ivers, who co-wrote the classic “In Heaven, Everything Is Fine” for David Lynch’s Eraserhead.  I watched an episode on Saturday morning.  Elvira was the co-host.  The music was cool and trippy.  All of the performers were off in their own little world.

Night Flight (NightFlight+)

I watched three episodes of this show on Friday.  One episode was about “rock poets.”  The second episode dealt with “villainous actors.”  (Dennis Hopper, Henry Silva, Rutger Hauer, James Woods, and Robert De Niro were profiled.)  The third episode featured Talking Heads.  Good stuff!

The Real Love Boat (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I don’t know if I so much watched this show as I just sat through it because it aired in between Survivor and The Amazing Race.  I didn’t pay much attention to it.  The people on the boat are boring.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

You can read my thoughts on Survivor here!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/16/22 — 10/22/22

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

I watched very little television this week because I’ve been preparing for Halloween!  I’ll have to get caught up on what I’ve missed later.  Or, I’ll just shrug off the previous two episodes of Bachelor in Paradise.  These are the difficult life choices that we all face.

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

Janine’s insistence that the kids drink more juice leads to a crisis at Abbott!  Meanwhile, Ava continues to be the best character on the show.  This was a funny episode, though Gregory is going to have to tell Janine how he feels at some point soon or I’m going to start to lose respect for him.  Melissa and her teacher’s aide provided a lot of good laughs.  I have a feeling I would be a pretty annoying teacher’s aide, as well.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

The Amazing Race goes to Jordan!  The scenery was lovely and, after struggling over the last two legs of the race, Claire and Derek finally had another good day.  Yay!  I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here!

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

Earn, Van, and Lottie go camping!  After last week’s wild episode, this week was definitely a bit more low-key.  This episode was a funny, well-acted, but somewhat melancholy exploration of Earn and Van’s relationship.  Earn wants Van to go to Los Angeles with him.  Van said that she loves Earn but the episode ended without a decision on moving to L.A.

Bubblegum Crisis (Nightflight Plus)

I watched the second episode of this anime on Saturday morning.  There were robots and a lot of explosions and the bad guys were referred to as being “boomers,” which made me smile.  I have no idea what’s going on but the visuals are impressive.

Fantasy Island (Tubi)

Check out this week’s review of Fantasy Island here!

Ghosts (Thursday Night, CBS)

The ghosts tried to save a tree and Thor became an environmentalist.  It was funnier than it sounds.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

For the first time this season, it was men vs. women.  And shockingly enough, the men pretty much destroyed the women during the service.  Usually, it’s the opposite on Hell’s Kitchen.  The women usually come together during their first dinner service while the men struggle.  It usually takes a while for the women to start fighting with each other.  Chef Ramsay was so angry that he demanded three nominees from the women.  Ramsay sent home the chef who he felt had lost her passion to win.  No, I cannot remember her name and yes, I’m too lazy to look it up.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

Check out this week’s review of The Love Boat here!

Night Flight (NightFlight Plus)

On Friday night, I watched an episode of this old show, one that featured interviews with music video directors.  The video for Duran Duran’s A View To A Kill was discussed.  That song, incidentally, is one of my favorite James Bond songs.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I reviewed this week’s episode here!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/2/22 — 10/8/22

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Here’s some thoughts on what I watched this week!

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

Oh Lord, the Story Samurais.  Seriously, I’ve known people just like that.  I was cringing for them through the entire episode.  Ava continues to be the best character on the show.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here.

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

This week’s episode dealt with an enigmatic entertainment mogul known as Kirkwood Chocolate, who was a prolific and popular creator of melodramatic dramas and broad comedies.  Everyone on the show acknowledged that Mr. Chocolate’s shows were not necessarily good but they also wanted to support black art.  Mr. Chocolate, himself, turned out to be a somewhat crazed megalomaniac who also claimed to have no control over his shows.  Lottie briefly became Mr. Chocolate’s biggest star.  It was a funny and thought-provoking episode and it made no attempt to hide that Kirkwood Chocolate was basically Tyler Perry.

Bachelor In Paradise (Monday and Tuesday Nights, ABC)

I just watched it for the scenery.  It is kind of interesting that everyone who has been eliminated so far came from Clayton’s season.  It’s like someone put a curse on that season and the people involved will never find peace.

Beyond The Headlines (Sunday Morning, Lifetime)

This was a one-hour discussion of the Gabby Petito case, which Lifetime aired as a companion to The Gabby Petito Story.

East New York (Sunday Night, CBS)

On Sunday, I watched the first episode of CBS’s newest cop show, East New York.  The main reason that I watched it was because I had been inundated for commercials for the show while I was watching Big Brother last month.  Much as I was expecting, East New York turned out to be a middling cop show, one that tried to walk the fine line between back the blue and defund the police.  It didn’t really work but it was nice to see that the show had good roles for Richard Kind and Jimmy Smits.

Ghosts (Thursday Night, CBS)

Sam started a podcast about Hetty’s murder but, in order to get funding, she had to accept the eccentric and creepy Todd Pearlman as a co-host.  This episode wasn’t quite as funny as the season premiere but it did set up what I assume will be this season’s major storyline.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Someone finally tried to serve raw chicken.  It’s not really Hell’s Kitchen until that happens.

Inspector Lewis (YouTube)

I watched the end of the 8th series on Tuesday.  Robbie was upset because one of his old cases was being reopened.  I was upset because Hathaway had a truly terrible haircut.  Hopefully, that’ll be corrected next week.

Interview With A Vampire (Sunday, AMC)

I watched the premiere on Monday and I was bored out of my mind.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

Anti-Asian hate crimes have been on the rise in New York City so, of course, Law & Order decided to do an episode about it in which they blamed it all on a generic right-wing gun nut who was upset over COVID.  The U.S. government wanted to prosecute the criminal but they also wanted to see the death penalty.  “I don’t know if I can set my personal beliefs aside,” Price said.  When has Price ever been able to set aside his personal beliefs?  Seriously, we’re only to seasons into this season and I’m already sick of Price talking about his personal beliefs.

Law & Order: Organized Crime (Thursday Night, NBC)

I did watch Organized Crime but seriously, don’t even ask me what happened on this week’s episode.  I got bored and kind of zoned out.  All I know is that Stabler needs to relax.  Maybe try yoga or something.

Law & Order: SVU (Thursday Night, NBC)

SVU took a heavy-handed swipe at influencer culture this week.  It was a bit of a generic story but the episode was somewhat redeemed by Killi Giddish’s performance as Amanda Rollins, who is still struggling to put being shot behind her.

Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head (Paramount Plus)

Never will I forget the horror of Beavis putting on Yoga pants.  The season came to an end this week with an appropriately hilarious episode.  First, Beavis and Butt-Head were thrilled to discover their employer reserved the right to refuse service to customers who created an unsafe work environment.  And then Beavis decided that he would “look really sexy” in yoga pants.  Needless to say it didn’t go well.  As for the overall season, I liked it.  I perhaps would have done a bit less with Old Beavis and Old Butt-Head but otherwise, this was a really funny and sharply satiric show.

Night Flight (NightFlight+)

I watched two episodes of this old 80s show on Friday night.  One dealt with songs about drugs.  The other was a profile of Depeche Mode.

The Real Love Boat (Wednesday Night, CBS)

Basically, this is just Paradise Hotel on a boat.  Who knows?  Maybe everyone will find love before the season ends.

So Help Me Todd (Wednesday Night, CBS)

This is a new show about a lawyer and her son, the private investigator.  Guess what the son’s name is!  CBS advertised the Hell out of this during Big Brother, so I watched the first episode when it was re-aired on Sunday.  It was not quite as bad as I was expecting but it’s still very much a middle-of-the-road, safe to watch with your middle-aged relatives sort of show.  Marcia Gay Harden plays the lawyer and it’s nice to see her playing someone who isn’t a half-crazed victim for once.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here.

Talking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I still like Talking Dead but it’s hard not to feel that everything that can be said about The Walking Dead already has been said.  Even Chris Hardwicke seemed to be kind of bored with it all.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

The Walking Dead returned with a boring episode.  Let’s hope things pick up next week.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 9/25/22 — 10/1/22

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Not only did I spend this week preparing for Horrorthon, I also ended up watching quite a bit of television.  Here’s some thoughts on what I watched.

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

This week, Janine tried to get Abbott a computer and Ava got to host a Shark Tank-style competition.  Ava is such a great character.  This episode may not have matched the premiere but it was still pretty funny and a good example of how Abbott Elementary is able to deal with the realities of public education without losing sight of the comedy.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here!

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

This week’s episode of Atlanta took a break from the surreal with a straight-forward but very funny episode about Earn and Al’s family.  Earn’s mother “kidnapped” Grandpa while Earn’s father made the mistake of buying a hat and allowing himself to get delayed in the mall.  While Aunt Jeanine called the police and demanded that her sister by criminally charged, Earn and Al looked for a way to escape the studio.  It was funny and enjoyably cringey.  Give Isiah Whitlock, Jr. an Emmy.

Bachelor in Paradise (Monday Night, ABC)

It’s a new season of Bachelor in Paradise!  All of the people who couldn’t find love on the main show get to hang out on the beach.  Bachelor in Paradise is actually more fun than The Bachelor because it’s honest about being a totally and completely shallow production.  Nobody is there for the right reasons and it’s great.

Apparently, Jesse Palmer is going to be the host for the entire season so I guess last season’s rotating host gimmick has been retired.  That’s probably for the best.  I actually like Jesse as the overall franchise host.  He doesn’t bring a lot of extra drama with him like Tayshia and Kaitlyn did and he seems to understand that his job isn’t exactly the same as being a brain surgeon.

That said …. where’s Meatball!?

Big Brother (Sunday Night, CBS)

Big Brother 24 finally came to a close on Sunday night.  Taylor Hale not only won the game but she also won America’s Favorite Player.  Considering the way that Taylor was bullied by the other houseguests at the start of the season, her victory was popular with the show’s fans.  Personally, I think both Monte and Turner played a better game but knowing that Taylor’s victory upset some of the worst people to ever appear on the show was still a satisfying feeling.  Knowing that Ameerah, Nicole, and Daniel were probably upset made the past few months worth it.

I wrote about this season over at the Big Brother Blog.

Bubblegum Crisis (NightFlight+)

80s cyberpunk!  Man vs machine!  The Sabre Knights vs a pack of robots known as the Boomers!  The main character, Priss, is also a rock star!  I had no idea what was going on when I watched this show early on Saturday morning but the animation was interesting to look at and Priss was undeniably cool.

CHiPs (Weekday Afternoons, Get TV)

I watched one episode of this old motorcycle cop show on Tuesday.  The cops kept the peace at an anti-nuke rally and Erik Estrada provided counseling to a child who was being abused by his parents.  I can’t say that I really paid that much attention.  I did like the bass-heavy theme song however.

Concentration (Weekday Afternoons, BUZZR)

This was an old gameshow from the 70s and the 80s.  I watched an episode on Friday while I was doing some work around the office.  The most interesting thing about it was that it was hosted by Alex Trebyk, who came across as being far more relaxed and casual about things than when he hosted Jeopardy.

Full House (Sunday Evening, MeTV)

Uncle Joey (you know, the one with the mullet) tried to teach Michelle how to ride a bike but he wasn’t very good at it and Michelle was humiliated when she fell off her bike at the park.  At first, Michelle blamed Joey but eventually she got over it.  What a brat.

This was followed by an episode in which poor DJ (who, really, deserves to nominated for sainthood for putting up with her family) has to take her two obnoxious sisters with her on a date.  Everyone learned an important lesson about sneaking into the movie and lying.  Don’t do either of them but, if you do sneak into the movie, don’t get caught.

Ghosts (Thursday Night, CBS)

The second season premiere of Ghosts was as charming as ever, with the ghosts spying on the B&B’s first guests and Jay discovering that, despite his near death experience, he still cannot see the ghosts.  I felt bad for Sam, as most of the stuff that the guests complained about when it came to her was the same stuff that people tend to complain about when it comes to me.  I cheered a little when she stood up to them.  The whole “Our yelp account was hacked!” ending was perfect.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Hell’s Kitchen is back!  This season is going to be 40-something chefs vs 20-something chef.  To be honest, the gimmick doesn’t matter.  I’m just looking forward to Chef Ramsay yelling at people and losing his temper at the potentially lethal incompetence around him.  Who will be the first to try to send out raw chicken?  Sadly, the premiere episode did not feature a dinner service but, according to the previews, it’s coming up next week!

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

Last week’s Law & Order was pretty good.  This week, sadly, was one of those middling, lefty political episodes that the franchise often does in an attempt to remain in the good graces of those who would otherwise dismiss the whole thing as being copaganda.  It’s always funny to me how the Law & Order franchise is full of blue collar, Catholic cops who sound like they spend all of their time watching Joy Reid and Chris Hayes as soon as their shift is over.

On last night’s Law & Order, the victim was the daughter of the governor of Texas so, of course, we got this whole big thing about how the governor is always criticizing New York City as being crime-ridden.  “Why does the governor of Texas care about New York?” one of the detectives demanded and that’s when I started to tune this episode out.  One could just as legitimately ask why people in California and New York always feel the need to comment on what’s happening in Texas.  Law & Order always errs on the side of going overboard when it attempts to deal with politics.  This was especially true this week, as Law & Order waded into the abortion debate and came up with an ending that was both so heavy-handed and so predictable that I felt embarrassed for the show’s writers.

Law & Order: Organized Crime (Thursday Night, NBC)

With the start of a new season, Stabler got a new partner and a new crooked family to investigate.  From what I’ve seen, Organized Crime is the least interesting of the Law & Order shows and often feels more like it should be a part of NCIS franchise than Law & Order.  It was difficult for me to watch because Stabler really does seem like he’s going to give himself a heart attack if he doesn’t figure out a way to relax.

Law & Order: SVU (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week’s episode of SVU opened with an extremely disturbing scene in which a teenage girl was gang-raped on a subway while, just a few feet away, the rest of her family was hacked to death with machetes.  This scene reminded me of why I don’t regularly watch this show.  It’s undeniably well-acted and usually well-written, except for when it tries to be overly political.  But Good Lord, are the cases ever disturbing!

Mike (Hulu)

I wrote about Hulu’s disappointing Mike Tyson miniseries here.

Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head (Paramount Plus)

Inspired by a holy nacho chip, Beavis went on a spiritual journey and learned nothing.  This was a unique episode in that it told one story instead of the usual two.  It’s become obvious that Beavis, with his odd moments of clarity and his desire to actually be something more than just a sidekick, is a far more compelling character than Butt-Head.

Monarch (Tuesday Night, FOX)

This show gets sillier and sillier with each episode but it’s kind of worth it for the scenes of Trace Adkins glowering in the shadows while holding a gun.  I don’t really care much about which Roman daughter is crowned the next queen of country music but I definitely do what to know who Trace has been burying for the past three episodes.

Night Flight (NightFlight+)

From the 80s, it was a look at women in rock, from Janis Joplin and Grace Slick to Stevie Nicks.  I watched on Friday night.  The music was good.

Password (Weekday Afternoons, BUZZR)

I watched two episodes of this old game show on Tuesday.  Apparently, the aim was to try to guess a word and win money.  The episodes I saw were from the mid-70s and the most interesting thing about them was how cheap and run-down the show’s set looked.  One got the feeling that the whole studio probably reeked of cigarettes and spilled beer.

Saving Grace (Weekday Nights, Start TV)

On this show, which apparently ran for three seasons, Holly Hunter played an Oklahoma detective who, after she accidentally ran over a pedestrian after a night of drinking, was told by a fallen angel named Earl that she was going to go to Hell unless she changed her ways.  So, apparently, the rest of the show was about Grace solving crimes and talking to Earl.  How have I never heard of this show before?  It aired from 2007 to 2010 and Hunter was even nominated for two Emmy awards for playing Grace.

Anyway, the episode that I watched on Wednesday night featured Grace trying to solve a murder while another angel (F. Murray Abraham) tried to convince her to abandon Earl and work with him.  It was odd but Holly Hunter is always good and the show took place in Oklahoma so, as someone who spent some time in Oklahoma while she was growing up, I felt like I could relate to most of the characters.

Super Password (Weekday Afternoons, BUZZR)

I watched two episodes of this show on Tuesday.  It was just like Password, except the set looked cleaner.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here!