Showtime hasn't yet committed to a second season of its charming and clever Episodes series, which presents its first-season finale Sunday night at 9:30 p.m. ET -- but should, and fast. When a show comes out of the box this impressively, and wraps up its first batch of installments with such compelling brilliance, viewers deserve more...

2011

Feb

ELEMENTARY, MY DEAR WATSON: ON 'JEOPARDY,' COMPUTER BITES MAN By David Bianculli

Ken Jennings, until now the best contestant ever to play Jeopardy!, was trounced by IBM's Watson supercomputer in this week's two-game, three-day duel -- but in the final "Final Jeopardy," accepted defeat in a way that was lovably, laughably human. Beneath his correct answer of "Bram Stoker," Jennings added, "I, for one, welcome our new computer overlords"...

2011

Feb

ANOTHER PROPOSAL TO CUT FUNDING FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING? WHAT A BIG BIRD-BRAINED IDEA By David Bianculli

This one was inevitable: With Republicans in Congress winning seats in the 2010 midterm election and feeling their oats, and with budget cuts a hot-button issue on both sides of the aisle, Republicans are proposing a complete elimination of public funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which provides money to both PBS and public radio. What's a supporter of public broadcasting to do? Simple: Remember your history...

2011

Feb

MOIST EYES, HEAVY HEART, CAN'T WATCH: 'FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS' DELIVERS A BITTERSWEET FAREWELL By David Bianculli

No spoilers here, since NBC viewers won't see the finale of Friday Night Lights for about half a year. But DirecTV subscribers -- the ones who spent Wednesday night watching the final episode of the five-year drama about family and football life in a small Texas town -- witnessed a loving, thoughtful, inspirational ending to an equally loving, thoughtful and inspirational series. The only thing that put the bitter in its bittersweet is that it's over, for good...

2011

Feb

WITH RETURN OF FX SERIES, ENTHUSIASM, PRAISE AND LOYALTY ARE 'JUSTIFIED' By David Bianculli

Last year's first-season finale of FX's Justified didn't end merely with a cliffhanger. It ended in the middle of a chase scene -- and as the down-home law-and-disorder drama series begins its second season tonight (Wednesday) at 10 ET, it picks up right where it left off. But before long, we're thrown into a whole new story line of second chances, new villains, and an artful mix of comedy, drama and character that does series inspiration Elmore Leonard proud...

2011

Feb

SHAWN RYAN SWIMS UPSTREAM, GOING FROM FX TO FOX, WITH NEW 'CHICAGO CODE' COP SERIES By David Bianculli

Most TV producers, and most quality TV shows, are fleeing from broadcast to cable TV in droves. (Or, at least, mini-droves.) Opportunities are better there, restrictions are looser, and many of the programs are more ambitious. But Shawn Ryan, who helped lead that revolution with FX's The Shield, is going against the grain -- by moving to broadcast TV for his new cop series, The Chicago Code, which premieres tonight at 9 ET on Fox...

2011

Feb

WHEN THE SUPER BOWL ENDS, IT'S TIME FOR... 'GLEE'? YES, AND SMARTLY SO By David Bianculli

Last year, CBS used its post-Super Bowl slot to launch a new reality series, Undercover Boss. It was renewed for a second season, so that game plan worked. This year, Fox is using its ultra-valuable time slot after Super Bowl XLV to expose new viewers to an existing hit...

2011

Feb

40 YEARS LATER, YOU REALLY SHOULD GET 'THE POINT' By David Bianculli

Forty years ago -- on Feb. 2, 1971 -- ABC presented a 90-minute animated movie called The Point. Directed and animated by Fred Wolf, with story and songs by Harry Nilsson, it was delightful, unique and way ahead of its time. In 2011, it still is...

2011

Jan

LOOK AT THE (SUB)WAY TV IS MAKING YOU (FORD) FOCUS ON INTERNAL ADS By David Bianculli

Your move: You don't want to watch ads on broadcast TV shows, so you record the shows to watch later, and zip through the commercials. Network countermove: Inject more giant type and bold graphics into the ads, so you can read (and get) the message even as you fast-forward. But now, the networks have gotten even more insidious, and are stuffing ads where you CAN'T miss them...

2011

Jan

OPRAH, LARRY, REGIS... MY TAKE ON THE 'BIG 3' LEAVING THEIR RESPECTIVE TV SHOWS By David Bianculli

At my advanced age, I've made a Eureka! discovery. It's a lot easier to be interviewed for a story than to write one. So thanks, David Bauder of the Associated Press, for including me in your story about the latest seismic shift in TV's talk landscape. Now, instead of writing a full column about it, I can just steer you...

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