February 24, 2023
jmunney
Cinema, Entertainment To-Do List, Music, Television
Adam Lambert, Bless This Mess, Cocaine Bear, Cracker Island, Gorillaz, High Drama, Linoleum, Party Down, SAG Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, The Mandalorian, U.S. Girls
Are we rebooting FUN yet?! (CREDIT: STARZ/Screenshot)
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–Cocaine Bear (Theaters)
–Linoleum (Theaters) – Jim Gaffigan stars, and I know some of the producers.
TV
–Party Down Season 3 Premiere (February 24 on STARZ) – My favorite part of this show is when Scott Aukerman asks Adam Scott what his catchphrase is.
-Screen Actors Guild Awards (February 26 on Netflix’s YouTube Channel)
–The Mandalorian Season 3 Premiere (March 1 on Disney+)
Music
-Adam Lambert, High Drama
-Gorillaz, Cracker Island
-U.S. Girls, Bless This Mess
July 7, 2021
jmunney
Awards Shows, Emmys, Television
2021 Emmys, Big Shot, Emmys, His Dark Materials, Lovecraft Country, Perry Mason, Pose, RIverdale, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, The Handmaid's Tale, The Mandalorian, Utopia
CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot
It’s that time again! The 2021 Emmy nominations will be announced on July 13, which means I’ve got a Wish List for the nommy noms I’d most like to see! In case you’re wondering, I haven’t held myself to any minimum or maximum number of entrants per category, nor do I strictly adhere to official Emmy rules. (I’ve included explanations for my deviations.) And of course, I must mention that I haven’t seen everything, so there are probably some worthy considerations I may have missed. Today, it’s Drama’s turn.
My Drama Wish List this year is a tale of two shows whose two most recent seasons were nearly two years apart. But weirdly enough, they were both eligible last year, and they’re both once again eligible this year. One is resurgent, while the other is just as excellent as ever. I’m of course talking about The Handmaid’s Tale and Pose. The former was nowhere to be seen on my 2020 Wish List, while the latter was one of my favorites last time and is even more so this time, as it’s my top choice in Drama Series and ALL the main acting categories. (It’s also striking up plenty of heat in the Guest fields.)
I’d also like to send some love to Disney+’s winning basketball series Big Shot. Who knew that John Stamos coaching high school girls would be the cure for what ails us?! The more you know…
KEY:
Bold=My winner
Drama Series
Big Shot
The Handmaid’s Tale
The Mandalorian
Pose
More
January 6, 2021
jmunney
Best of 2020, Best of TV 2020, Television
A.P. Bio, American Dad!, Animaniacs, Beef House, Best of 2020, Better Call Saul, Big Mouth, Dispatches From Elsewhere, How to with John Wilson, Joe Pera Talks with You, Killing Eve, Middleditch & Schwartz, Never Have I Ever, PEN15, Rick and Morty, Search Party, The Baby-Sitters Club, The Mandalorian, What We Do in the Shadows, Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist
(CREDIT: FX/YouTube Screenshot)
When making Best Episode lists, some TV critics limit themselves to one entry per show, but I never operate by that self-imposition, as certain shows are just masterful when crafting a single hour or half-hour (or whatever runtime they feel like using), and that ought to be reflected in the ledger. So you’ll find that several shows have wound up more than once in this list, and those tended to be the ones that also fared the best on my Best Shows of 2020 list. You’ll also find at least one program that didn’t make my Best Shows list, as it’s possible to have one excellent outing within an otherwise disappointing season. So forthwith, if someone who missed all TV in 2020 asked me for a refresher, here is where I would direct them:
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January 4, 2021
jmunney
Best of 2020, Best of TV 2020, Television
A.P. Bio, American Dad!, American Housewife, Animaniacs, Aunty Donna's Big Ol' House of Fun, B Positive, Beef House, Best of 2020, Better Call Saul, Better Things, Big Mouth, black-ish, Bob's Burgers, Bojack Horseman, Devs, Dicktown, Dispatches From Elsewhere, Earth to Ned, Fargo, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, grown-ish, His Dark Materials, Holey Moley, How to with John Wilson, Jeopardy!, Joe Pera Talks with You, Last Week Tonight, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Match Game, McMillion$, Mike Tyson Mysteries, mixed-ish, Mrs. America, Muppets Now, Nancy Drew, Never Have I Ever, Normal People, PEN15, Rick and Morty, RIverdale, RuPaul's Drag Race, Saved by the Bell, Search Party, Sex Education, Solar Opposites, Stargirl, Superstore, The Conners, The Eric Andre Show, The Goldbergs, The Good Fight, The Good Lord Bird, The Last Dance, The Last O.G., The Mandalorian, The Masked Singer, The New Pope, The Plot Against America, The Twilight Zone, The Unicorn, Three Busy Debras, Unorthodox, What We Do in the Shadows, Who Wants to be a Millionaire?, Whose Line is it Anyway?, Wilmore, Young Sheldon, Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist
Clockwise from Top Left: What We Do in the Shadows, Never Have I Ever, Better Call Saul, How To with John Wilson (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshots)
Last year, I decided to rank as many TV shows as I felt like recognizing in my year-end list, and that worked out so well that I decided to do it again for 2020. So welcome to my ranking of the 67 Best TV Shows of 2020! Not every show is accompanied by a blurb, just the ones that I felt like I really needed to say something about.
I worked with a self-imposed rule that I had to have watched at least 50% of a show’s 2020 output for it to be eligible, but there were some shows that I’ve only just begun to watch that I wanted to recognize as well, so they’ve got their own Honorable Mention section. And there were also some shows that aired relatively few episodes in 2020 to the point that I didn’t think they should be eligible either, so they’ve also got an Honorable Mention section. And then there’s one more show that’s managed to establish its very own Honorable Mention section, and that’s where we start.
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October 30, 2020
jmunney
Entertainment To-Do List, Music, Television
Elvis Costello, Hey Clockface, The Mandalorian, Young Sheldon
The Mandalorian (CREDIT: Star Wars/YouTube Screenshot)
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
TV
–The Mandalorian Season 2 Premiere (October 30 on Disney+) – Baby Yoda is on this show.
–Young Sheldon Season 4 Premiere (November 5 on CBS)
Music
-Elvis Costello, Hey Clockface – The 31st studio album from Mr. Declan MacManus!
July 20, 2020
jmunney
Awards Shows, Emmys, Television
2020 Emmys, Better Call Saul, Emmy Wish List, Emmy wishlist, Emmys, Evil, Killing Eve, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Mr. Robot, On Becoming a God in Central Florida, Pose, Stargirl, Succession, The Good Fight, The Mandalorian, The New Pope, Undone
CREDIT: YouTube Screenshots
The 2020 Emmy nominations will be announced on July 28. As per annual tradition, I have assembled a Wish List for as many categories as I have something to say about. There is no minimum or maximum number per category, nor is there any strict adherence to official Emmy rules. And of course, there is the necessary caveat that I have not seen everything. Even with much of the country shut down for the past few months, that’s impossible.
I’m kicking off my Emmy Wish List discussion with some Drama this year. The top shows in this field are absolutely-without-a-doubt Pose and Better Call Saul. The former was nearly my favorite show of 2019, while the latter is right up there for 2020. And you know what? I just couldn’t pick between the two of them for Outstanding Drama Series, so I’m calling a tie! Nor could I pick between Bob Odenkirk or Billy Porter for Lead Actor, so it’s another tie! (I’ll probably pull for Bob come the night of the ceremony, as he’s yet to win, while Billy is the reigning champ.)
The Albuquerque and ballroom crews are dominating most of the acting categories, especially Rhea Seehorn, who I believe was a co-lead this season though she was once again submitted as Supporting. Stunningly, she’s yet to ever be nominated; that had better change this year. Meanwhile, also on BCS, Tony Dalton made an undeniable impression as Lalo Salamanca in his first full season as a regular cast member.
Over in Supporting Actress, I’ve got the ladies of Pose all stacked in there, much as the Game of Thrones ladies were last year at the actual Emmys. And also much like the actual Emmys, my top pick is actually from another show; in this case, Carly Chaikin, who got to do her most complicated work yet in Mr. Robot‘s final season.
Other notables: Evil makes a strong impression in its first season, Rosa Salazar shows up for a rotoscoped performance, and my Guest picks come almost entirely from The Mandalorian.
KEY:
Bold=My winner
!( )!=I haven’t caught up to the current season of this show, but I still wanted to recognize it.
*=I have placed this nominee in a different category than the Emmy ballot.
Drama Series
Better Call Saul
Evil
!(The Good Fight)!
The Mandalorian
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Mr. Robot
Pose
Stargirl
Undone
More
May 1, 2020
jmunney
Entertainment To-Do List, Television
Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, Jeopardy!, Jerry Seinfeld, Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill, Ken Jennings, Rick and Morty, The Mandalorian
CREDIT: Netflix/YouTube Screenshot
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
TV
–Rick and Morty Season 4 Mid-Season Premiere (May 3 on Adult Swim)
–Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian Series Premiere (May 4 on Disney+) – Docuseries BTS look at our new favorite Star Wars show.
–Jeopardy! Ken Jennings Encore (May 4-15, Check local listings) – Encore presentations of the first and last games in Ken Jennings’ original run as well as the Greatest of All Time tournament.
Comedy
–Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill (May 5 on Netflix)
January 4, 2020
jmunney
Best of 2019, Best of TV 2019, Television
American Dad!, American Housewife, AP Bio, Barry, Baskets, Best of 2019, Better Things, Big Mouth, black-ish, Bob's Burgers, Bojack Horseman, Broad City, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Documentary Now!, Fleabag, Fosse/Verdon, GLOW, I Think You Should Leave With Tim Robinson, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Jane the Virgin, Jeopardy!, Joe Pera Talks with You, Last Week Tonight, Legion, Living with Yourself, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., mixed-ish, Momma Named Me Sheriff, Mr. Robot, Pose, Rick and Morty, Russian Doll, Sex Education, Sherman's Showcase, Silicon Valley, Speechless, Superstore, The Conners, The Goldbergs, The Good Place, The Kids Are Alright, The Last O.G., The Mandalorian, The Masked Singer, The Orville, The Other Two, The Unicorn, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Undone, Watchmen, What Just Happened??!, What We Do in the Shadows, You're the Worst, Young Sheldon
CREDIT (Clockwise from Top Left): Amazon; Disney; Pamela Littky/FOX; Rhys Thomas/IFC
Under the known laws of physics, it is currently impossible to watch every TV show (or even just every good show) airing new episodes in a given year. But for those of us who treat televisual consumption as a transcendent pursuit, we do our best to fit in as many programs as possible, which means that there are more than ten or even twenty shows worth recognizing in an annual best-of list. So this year, I decided to rank as many shows as I thought were worthy of recognition and provide blurbs for the ones where I really needed to say something.
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November 8, 2019
jmunney
Cinema, Entertainment To-Do List, Television
Disney+, Doctor Sleep, Forky Asks a Question, Jeff Goldblum, Last Christmas, Noelle, Pixar IRL, Rick and Morty, The Mandalorian, The World According to Jeff Goldblum
CREDIT: Adult Swim
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–Doctor Sleep (Theatrically Nationwide)
–Last Christmas (Theatrically Nationwide)
–Noelle (Streaming November 12 on Disney+)
TV
–Rick and Morty Season 4 Premiere (November 10 on Adult Swim) – The show with perhaps the best episode titles finally returns. (“Edge of Tomorty: Rick Die Rickpeat” kicks us off.)
Disney+ Launch Alert!
–Forky Asks a Question Series Premiere (November 12 on Disney+)
–The Mandalorian Series Premiere (November 12 on Disney+)
–Pixar IRL Series Premiere (November 12 on Disney+)
–The World According to Jeff Goldblum Series Premiere (November 12 on Disney+)
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