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DAVID BIANCULLI

Founder / Editor

Bianculli's Blog

ERIC GOULD

Associate Editor

The Cold Light Reader

LINDA DONOVAN

Assistant Editor

Dateline Donovan
Contributors

DAVID HINCKLEY

All Along the Watchtower

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Uncle Barky's Bytes

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TV That Matters

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Open Mike

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Ed Martin's TV Mix

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MNtv

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TV Feeds My Family

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Must-Click TV

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Raised On MTM

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Crossing Jordan

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TVWW ARCHIVE

Contributors Archive
 
 
2017
Mar
8
SYFY’S ‘THE EXPANSE’ FEATURES THE WORKING CLASS – IN ABOUT 200 YEARS By David Hinckley
 
 
Perhaps contrary to its title, the Syfy space drama The Expanse, in its own way, shrinks the universe...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
8
‘UNDERGROUND’ IS A COMPLEX, INTELLIGENT RETELLING OF THE STORY OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD By David Hinckley
 
 
One of the best shows on television, WGN America’s Underground, resurfaces Wednesday night...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
8
SURVIVOR: GAME CHANGERS By David Bianculli
 
 
CYCLE PREMIERE: Because Survivor tends to turn out two editions per year, its competitions are more technically cycles than seasons. But as CBS is describing the granddaddy of reality competition shows, Survivor is now on Season 34 – and has been cranking out variations on its outplay-outwit-outlast theme since the year 2000. Tonight’s new cycle is set in the Mamanuca Islands, and the Game Changers in the titles are, like this game’s All-Stars, previous Survivor competitors, re
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
8
CLEOPATRA By David Bianculli
 
 
Robert Osborne is gone, but far from forgotten – and the legacy he left, of appreciating and showcasing films and filmmakers, will survive so long as TCM stands. Which, for my money (going to my very hefty cable and satellite bill), should be eternal. Meanwhile, TCM’s Star of the Month is Richard Burton – and the movies featuring him tonight also feature his most famous significant other, Elizabeth Taylor. The evening starts with the 1963 movie that got the two of them together
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
8
LEGION By David Bianculli
 
 
We’re up to chapter five of this new FX series from Noah Hawley. The plot isn’t getting any clearer – but in this case, that’s not a complaint. And this week, Jean Smart gets even more fun stuff to do… For more on, and from, Jean Smart, see David Hinckley's All Along the Watchtower. 
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
8
THE TAMING OF THE SHREW By David Bianculli
 
 
This 1967 movie, a rowdy and bawdy cinematic exploration of the fiery Shakespeare comedy, benefits greatly from a Shrewd bit of casting. Elizabeth Taylor plays the spitfire who rails against men and romance, and Richard Burton plays the man determined to romance her into submission. Feminists may want to skip the final scenes, but embracing it as a classic is totally acceptable. And what a wild ride this is…
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
8
DR. FAUSTUS By David Bianculli
 
 
The same year Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor filmed William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, they filmed another movie based on a classic play: This telling of the Faust story, by Shakespeare contemporary Christopher Marlowe. Burton plays a man tempted by the Devil – and by Taylor, who embodies several forms and guises, from satanic demon to Helen of Troy. Her wardrobe and makeup choices don’t make Dr. Faustus amazing – but they sure do make it memorable.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
7
INSIGHT INTO THE WANING SEASONS OF ‘THE AMERICANS’ FROM EPS WEISBERG AND FIELDS By David Hinckley
 
 
Since none of Joe Weisberg’s earliest concerns about The Americans turned out to be a problem, he sees no point in worrying now whether the show can stick the landing...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
7
SEASON 5 OF FX'S 'THE AMERICANS' IS STILL IN THE REAGAN WHITE HOUSE ERA, BUT WHAT IF SOMEDAY . . . By Ed Bark
 
 
Season 5 of FX’s The Americans remains set in the 1980s, specifically George Orwell’s 1984 at this point...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Mar
7
AMY SCHUMER: THE LEATHER SPECIAL By David Bianculli
 
 
SPECIAL PREMIERE: “Every comic has some special where they wear all leather and they regret it later,” Amy Schumer says at the start of her standup comedy concert from Denver. Then she launches into a very lengthy discussion about genitalia and sex and – well, for a long time, that’s about it. Eddie Murphy wore all red leather in his 1983 Delirious tour, but one thing he didn’t have to regret was the range and intelligence of his comedy. The Leather Special takes a
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
New From TVWW

PBS' 'Frontline’ Examines Pension Promises and — Spoiler Alert — Finds the Math Doesn’t Add Up
By Alex Strachan
 
 
 
 
The Decadence of ‘Versailles’ Comes to Ovation
By David Hinckley
 
 
 
 
Prescribing Mamie Gummer in 'Emily Owens, M.D.'
By Ed Bark
 
 
 
 
Looking for a Free Ride? HBO Can Deliver
By Christy Slewinski
 
 
 
 
'Pass the Biscuits' Part of the Hatfield-McCoy Pop-Culture Legacy
By Noel Holston
 
 
 
 

Dispatches From TVWW

'Extinction: The Facts' is a Sobering Call to Action
By David Hinckley
 
 
 
 
How 'Mayans' Has Been Influenced by the Show's Creator Elgin James
By Mike Hughes
 
 
 
 
For Whom the Bell Tolls: Ken Burns and Lynn Novick Take on Ernest Hemingway, the Man and the Myth
By Alex Strachan
 
 
 
 
In the Final Season, Sutton Foster's Liza is Now the Genuine Version of Her 'Younger' Self
By Monique Nazareth
 
 
 
 
Season 2 of 'City on a Hill' Returns with Kevin Bacon, Aldis Hodge, and Boston Corruption
By David Hinckley