TV Show Reviews

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BoJack Horseman

3/5★ Unforgiving and a little tired with intermittent moments of scathing wit. Are we reaching the zenith of pop culture referencing, life satirizing adult oriented cartoons?

Verdict: An acquired taste.

Plot: Meet the most beloved sitcom horse of the '90s - 20 years later. BoJack Horseman was the star of the hit TV show "Horsin' Around," but today he's washed up, living in Hollywood, complaining about everything, and wearing colorful sweaters. ~imdb

Creator: Raphael Bob-Waksberg

Cast: Will Arnett, Amy Sedaris, Alison Brie, Paul F. Tompkins, Aaron Paul

Network: Netflix

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Constantine

3/5★ Brings to mind cult shows of the 90's like Buffy, The Dresden Files and The X-Files, with its themes of the occult and evil and snarky dialogue.

Verdict: For fans of the comics and genre.

Plot: Based on the wildly popular comic book series "Hellblazer" from DC Comics, seasoned demon hunter and master of the occult John Constantine specializes in giving hell... hell. Armed with a ferocious knowledge of the dark arts and his wickedly naughty wit, he fights the good fight - or at least he did. With his soul already damned to hell, he's decided to leave his do-gooder life behind. But when demons target Liv, the daughter of one of Constantine's oldest friends, he's reluctantly thrust back into the fray - and he'll do whatever it takes to save her. -- (C) NBC

Cast: Matt Ryan, Lucy Griffiths, Angélica Celaya, Charles Halford, Harold Perrineau

Channel: NBC

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Forever

3/5★ An interesting, though not totally original, concept: Exploring immortality via a crime procedural show. Forever is charmingly harmless, a rather vanilla network show that is a pleasant time passer.

Verdict: Ultimately forgettable.

Plot: A 200-year-old man works in the New York City Morgue trying to find a key to unlock the curse of his immortality. ~imdb

Creator: Matt Miller

Cast: Ioan Gruffudd, Alana de la Garza, Joel David Moore, Donnie Keshawarz, Lorraine Toussaint, Judd Hirsch

Channel: ABC

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Red Band Society

4/5★ A good show is built on the strength of its characters and the connection we as the viewers feel for them. Do we like them? Do we root for the couples and groan at the inevitable misunderstandings that drive 92.7% of drama TV shows? Red Band Society is a comedy drama set in one of the least comedic places on the planet: a children's hospital ward. Yet, despite its depressing settings and occasional Disneyish tone, the young cast overcome their stereotypes and make the show something worth watching.

Verdict: Time worthy.

Plot: A group of teenagers live together as patients at a hospitals paediatric ward and learn how to deal with their illnesses, the experiences that they have, and the people that they meet. ~imdb

Creators: Albert Espinosa, Pau Freixas, Dawn Turner

Cast: Octavia Spencer, Dave Annable, Astro, Ciara Bravo, Griffin Gluck, Zoe Levin, Rebecca Rittenhouse, Charlie Rowe, Nolan Sotillo, Mandy Moore, Wilson Cruz

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Cristela

2/5★ A throwback to classic sitcoms of yesteryear. Cristela draws all its energy from the titular character played by Cristela Alonzo who created, produced, starred and wrote for the show becoming the first Latina to do so in a network series. Sitcoms with laugh tracks are low on my viewing list, and Cristela had plenty of weaknesses (mainly the supporting cast and iffy writing) but Cristela herself was fun to watch.

Verdict: For fans of 90's family sitcoms

Plot: In her sixth year of law school, Cristela is finally on the brink of landing her first big (unpaid) internship at a prestigious law firm. The only problem is that her pursuit of success is more ambitious than her traditional Mexican-American family thinks is appropriate. She's stuck straddling the old culture she's trying to modernize at home with her working-class family and the modern world she's trying to embrace in her professional career. Breakout comedian Cristela Alonzo stars in this hilarious comedy about laughing your way down the path to the new American dream. ~ABC Publicity

Creators: Cristela Alonzo, Kevin Hench

Cast: Cristela Alonzo, Gabrielle Iglesias, María Canals Barrera, Carlos Ponce, Terri Hoyos

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Stalker

3/5★

Not bad, as far as creepy procedural go, if you liked Criminal Minds Stalker offers up the same on the surface but not HBO level exploration of deviant behavior.

Verdict: Time passer.

Plot: A gripping psychological thriller that revolves around a pair of LAPD Threat Management Unit detectives who handle stalking incidents.~tv.com

Creator: Kevin Williamson

Cast: Dylan McDermott, Maggie Q, Mariana Klaveno, Victor Rasuk

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The Mysteries of Laura

1/5★ Well The Wire it aint.  I like Debra Messing but not enough to like this mess. The writing is bad and the acting is worse. The Mysteries of Laura tries to be too many things and fails at all of them.

Verdict: Skip

Plot: A single mom NYPD homicide detective cracks case after case while raising wild twin boys and locking horns with her less than helpful police detective ex-husband. ~imdb

Cast: Debra Messing, Laz Alonso, Josh Lucas, Janina Gavankar, Max Jenkins, Meg Steedle

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Review

4/5★ Take a Michael Scott type, add total commitment and vague disregard for societal norms and what you get is Forrest MacNeil, a seemingly straitlaced man with a mission to experience it all. At first Review seems like a straightforward mockumentary, but develops into a dark, almost surreal breakdown of a man who on the surface had it all.

Verdict: One of those shows that you gotta see it to believe it.

Plot: A critic takes aim at intense real-life experiences in lieu of food or cinema. Fair game includes divorce, anonymous sex and all manner of criminal activity. ~imdb

Creator:  Charlie Siskel

Cast: Andy Daly, Megan Stevenson, Jessica St. Clair, Fred Willard, James Urbaniak

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Miranda

4/5★ There is much to love about Miranda, both the show and the titular character. There is also much to find disagreeable, if one is inclined to do so. Miranda has a openness that can appeal to all ages: Its lovable silliness, the catchphrases and the slapstick humor that is comedic yet childish. I found it funny but with an occasional what I call eye roll moment. Miranda is the less insufferable, female version of the current man-child trend in pop culture.

Verdict: Try it.

Plot: Miranda is 6 feet 1 inch tall and gets called ‘Sir’ once too often. She has never fit in with her old boarding school friends, Tilly and Fanny, and finds social situations awkward, especially around men. ~imdb

Creator: Miranda Hart

Cast: Miranda Hart, Sarah Hadland, Patricia Hodge, Tom Ellis, Sally Phillips

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The NCIS Shows

3/5★ NCIS is easy viewing: Formulaic, procedural, and glacial character development all make for easy viewing. Watch one episode and you know what to expect for the next 287, more or less. I'm not knocking it, its almost like comfort viewing: Nothing edgy or polarizing ever happens and I can stop and start watching without feeling like I missed anything too important. NCIS: Los Angeles and NCIS: New Orleans. If the formula works, copy it and change the flavor just enough to differentiate it and keep on doing it until it don't work. In a nutshell- the packaging might be a bit different but the contents are the same.

Verdict: For when nothing else is on and you lost your reading glasses.

Plot: Shows that combine elements of the military drama and police procedural.

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Selfie

3/5★ Selfie had a lot going for it: A genuinely likable cast, leads with real chemistry and a concept relevant to our selfie obsessed times. All good stuff, except I cant stand Karen Gillan's Eliza Dooley, a character that is all too real: I wouldn't want to be around her, let alone voluntarily watch long enough to care about her transformation.  

Verdict: Watchable but there is so much better.

Plot: A woman who is megapopular on social media needs help making friends and being liked in real life, and so she turns to a marketing genius for tutelage in this modern take on 'My Fair Lady.' ~rottentomatoes.com

Creator: Emily Kapnek

Cast: Karen Gillan, John Cho, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Allyn Rachel, David Harewood

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Happyland

1/5★ Nothing stands out about this rather tired and unoriginal offering from MTV. The writing is uninspired and the acting is lame. Further more, the inevitable comparison to Jane the Virgin does it no favors.

Verdict: Cancellation

Plot: Happyland centers on Lucy, a cynical teenage girl whose mother works as a fairy tale princess in a popular theme park. Lucy explores the reality of growing up and falling in love whilst living in their fictional world of fantasy vs. reality. ~IMDB

Creator: Ben Epstein

Cast: Bianca A. Santos, Camille Guaty, Shane Harper, Cameron Moulene, Katherine McNamara, Ryan Rottman

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Marry Me

3/5★ Great casting: Casey Wilson and Ken Marino are likable, watchable and believable as a couple in love. I want to hang out with this couple of lushes and play pop culture trivia games. Unfortunately, Marry Me dials it up to 11 on everything else while the rest of the cast tries to keep up with Wilson and Marino's great comedy chemistry. Also, the writing could be better.

Verdict: Enjoyable but not enough to keep up with every week.

Plot: Annie and Jake finally get engaged after six years, but her larger-than-life personality and his laid-back approach to life will severely test the theory of "opposites attract". They quickly realize getting engaged was the easy part. ~imdb

Creator:  David Caspe

Cast: Casey Wilson, Ken Marino ,John Gemberling, Sarah Wright Olsen, Tymberlee Hill, Dan Bucatinsky, Tim Meadows

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A to Z

3/5★ Cutesy. The entire ensemble is cutesy, the cast is cutesy and the writing is...well you get the picture. The casting is great, and Lenora Crichlow is an added bonus. All that cute aside, A to Z tries a little too hard. Sweetness in such large quantities leads to cavities, regrets and in this case, extraction.

Verdict: Watchable but not for everyone.

Plot: A chronicle of Andrew and Zelda's relationship, which lasts for eight months, three weeks, five days, and one hour.

Creator: Ben Queen

Cast: Ben Feldman, Cristin Milioti, Katey Sagal, Lenora Crichlow, Henry Zebrowski, Christina Kirk, Parvesh Cheena

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The McCarthys

2/5★ Old school sitcom throwback, complete with the single most irritating feature of the style: the laugh track. The McCarthys is middle of the road blandness and is nowhere near the quality of sitcoms just a click away.

Verdict: Skip

Plot: Comedy about a sports-crazed Irish-Catholic family that shares a three decker house in Boston and the one member that dares to move out on his own. ~imdb

Creator: Brian Gallivan

Cast: Tyler Ritter, Laurie Metcalf, Joey McIntyre, Kelen Coleman, Jimmy Dunn, Jack McGee

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The Mindy Project

3/5★

Trained on The Office, with the likes of Tina Feys 30 Rock as inspiration, Mindy Kalings Project is a sitcom about a woman navigating her personal and professional life, surrounded by a cast of quirky characters. While not terribly original, the writing stands out, with jokes, cultural references and satire making for a genuinely funny show. The great cameos are an added bonus.

Mindy’s character is a little off-putting: Obsessed with celebrities and pop culture, she is also rude and insensitive. She does, however, have a knack for saying quotable things.

Verdict: It’s funny and watchable.

Plot: A young Ob/Gyn doctor balances her personal and professional life, surrounded by quirky co-workers in a small office. ~imdb

Creator: Mindy Kaling Cast: Mindy Kaling, Chris Messina, Ed Weeks, Ike Barinholtz, Beth Grant 

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Manhattan Love Story

1/5★ There are plenty of shows about smug white people and their romantic trials and tribulations. Manhattan Love Story is boring, the characters are unlikable and the voice over gimmick gets old fast. Why waste time on it when we have Happy Endings reruns?

Verdict: Skip

Plot: The unfiltered internal monologues of a young man and a young woman are exposed as they begin a new relationship together.

Creator: Jeff Lowell

Cast: Analeigh Tipton, Jake McDorman, Nicolas Wright, Jade Catta-Preta, Chloe Wepper, Kurt Fuller