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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

ED MARTIN

Ed Martin's TV Mix

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Aerial View

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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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TVWW ARCHIVE

Contributors Archive
 
 
2013
Nov
7
'HOMELAMB' By Monique Nazareth
 
 
Sesame Street's parodies are turning out to be better than SNL's. In their homage to Showtime's Homeland, Carrie has to help find the big bad wolf...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
7
THE BIG BANG THEORY By David Bianculli
 
 
Bob Newhart won a Guest Actor, and quite deservedly, for his appearance last season as former TV science host “Professor Proton.” Astoundingly, it was the first performing Emmy won by Newhart, ever. And tonight, he gets another shot, reprising the role in a new episode that pits his Professor Proton against another TV science celebrity – played, quite appropriately, by Bill Nye, as in Bill Nye the Science Guy. Putting these two guys together ought to make for some fairly combus
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
7
GLEE By David Bianculli
 
 
Returning after its tribute to late cast member Cory Monteith, Glee presents an episode asking its young performers to pledge their loyalties and reveal their self-images, and reveal whether they consider themselves more of a Katy Perry or a Lady Gaga. This is the modern equivalent, I suppose, of previous questions posed about whether one preferred Marilyn to Jackie, or Ginger to Mary Ann. But I’m not sure it’s progress… just as I’m not sure, the past two years, whether
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
7
THE RETURNED By David Bianculli
 
 
Part 2. Last week, I did everything I could to steer viewers towards this imported French miniseries without revealing even the most basic elements of its slowly unfolding plot. I hope you watched, because then I know you’re ready for the second installment, to get a better idea of what the hell is going on, and why, and even to whom. I’ll keep things mysterious for one more week, but sooner or later, I’ve got to talk about what’s going on in this show with specifics. It&
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
7
TWO AND A HALF MEN By David Bianculli
 
 
In this episode, Alan (Jon Cryer) runs into Lynda Carter at a fundraiser, and reveals – no surprise – that during his formative youth, he was a major Wonder Woman fan. I wonder, woman, what happens next, when the two of them actually spend some time together.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
7
PARENTHOOD By David Bianculli
 
 
A lot’s going on tonight, in and out of the music studio and on and off the campaign trail – but the story line that grabs me the most is the one involving Ray Romano as Hank, whose honesty continually throws yet intrigues those who come in contact with him. Recently, it was Monica Potter as Kristina, getting advice about her son’s photography hobby – and tonight, it’s the latest round with Lauren Graham’s Sarah, who seems poised to give their romantic relatio
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
6
A SERIOUS AND SERIOUSLY FUNNY ‘JIBBER JABBER’ WITH MEL BROOKS By Gabriela Tamariz
 
 
Conan O’Brien sits down with Mel Brooks for an in-depth and sometimes hilarious conversation on Serious Jibber Jabber, his online talk show...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
6
THE 47TH ANNUAL CMA AWARDS By David Bianculli
 
 
Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood host again, for the sixth time, in this annual awards show that’s heavy on the performances, and on sharing the stage with fellow artists. So Taylor Swift, Alison Krauss and Vince Gill all sing… and not necessarily by themselves.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
6
THE KILLERS By David Bianculli
 
 
It’s Burt Lancaster month on TCM, which means Wednesday nights will be filled with his movies – starting tonight at 8 p.m. ET with his impressive feature-film debut, in this moody 1946 thriller, based on the Ernest Hemingway story and co-starring Ava Gardner.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2013
Nov
6
AMERICAN HORROR STORY: COVEN By David Bianculli
 
 
Jessica Lange is dressed in black for this episode’s funeral service. That’s not unusual – but the service itself certainly is, even among the creepy shenanigans common to this series, which, so far, is having a very good year.
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
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