Benjamonster's TV

Here's a look at my Top 10 Episodes of 2022! Following this post, my blog will take a holiday break and return on January 3! Close Calls A League of Their O wn "Stealing Home" (8/12/22) Yellowjackets "Sic Transit Gloria Mundi" (1/16/22) The Patient "The Cantor's Husband" (10/25/22) 10. FOR ALL MANKIND "Stranger in a Strange Land" (August 12, 2022, Apple TV+) I have been banging the drum for For All Mankind for a couple seasons now. I wish it was more in the conversation among best dramas on TV because it definitely belongs there. Just like the second season finale (which ranked #5 last year on my list), the season-long tension boiled over with an explosive and very intense season finale. Some of the stories that were frustrating during the season paid off in a big way. The show once again boldly killed off some prominent characters and it also once again gave a very intriguing flash forward in the final moments. Bring on Season 4! 9. THIS...

On Wednesday, I take a look at shows that lasted one season or less. Here's a look at Love and Marriage ! LOVE AND MARRIAGE September 28, 1996 - October 12, 1996 3 episodes FOX Starring: Tony Denison, Patricia Healy, Alicia Bergman, Erik Palladino, Adam Zolotin, Adam Wylie, Michael Mantell and Meagen Fay Created by: Amy Sherman Plot: Jack (Denison) and April (Healy) are a husband and wife who barely have time for each other or their kids (Palladino, Bergman, & Zolotin) with their busy jobs. They live in New Rochelle and have new neighbors Louis and Trudy (Mantell & Fay) with their son, Max (Wylie). Brief Pilot Review: Love and Marriage got me thinking about family comedies. This one is like so many other family comedies that have come before and since. It has a couple who is in love with each other and they love their kids, even though they're often exasperated by their kids. How many times have we seen that in TV history? From the most famous examples like The Cosby Sh...

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Sunsdays in the 1996-97 season! After this week, I will be taking a two week holiday break from the blog. ABC 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 10:00 Sep America’s Funniest Home Videos America’s Funniest Home Videos Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Sunday Night Movie Oct Nov Dec Jan Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman America’s Funniest Home Videos America’s Funniest Home Videos Feb America’s Funniest Home Videos America’s Funniest Home Videos Various Programs Mar Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman America’s Funniest Home Videos America’s Funniest Home Videos Apr America’s Funniest Home Vi...

Here's a look at the Top 5 TV news stories this week! #1 - R.I.P. KIRSTIE ALLEY The TV world was shocked this week when it was announced that Kirstie Alley died at the age of 71 after a brief cancer battle. Alley had a long and successful career on film and TV and ruffled some feathers in her later years with her political beliefs that she shared frequently on Twitter. But she is best known for stepping into a very difficult situation on Cheers in 1987. Fan favorite Shelley Long left the series and it wasn't a sure thing the show would ever be the same again. But Alley blossomed as the mess of a character that was Rebecca Howe. She made the character her own with a ridiculous yet grounded performance that earned her five Emmy nominations (and one win). Alley breathed new life into a show that had an incredible second act in its run. Alley's other TV credits included the starring role on a three year run for NBC's Veronica Closet as well as a one year run for TV Land...

Here is a look at all eleven seasons of  Happy Days  including the ultimate countdown of the best and worst episodes! HAPPY DAYS January 15, 1974 - July 19, 1984 255 episodes Starring Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham  (170 episodes) Henry Winkler as Arthur Fonzarelli  (255 episodes) Tom Bosley as Howard Cunningham  (255 episodes) Marion Ross as Marion Cunningham  (250 episodes) Erin Moran as Joanie Cunningham  (233 episodes) Anson Williams as Potsie Webber  (208 episodes) Don Most as Ralph Malph  (166 episodes) Al Molinaro as Al Delvecchio  (142 episodes) Scott Baio as Chachi Arcola  (129 episodes) Ted McGinley as Roger Phillips  (60 episodes) Lynda Goodfriend as Lori Beth Allen Cunningham  (58 episodes) Cathy Silvers as Jenny Piccolo  (54 episodes) Linda Purl as Ashley Pfister  (15 episodes) Pat Morita as Arnold Takahashi  (25 episodes) Beatrice Colen as Marsha Simms  (21 episodes) Harris Kal as Bobby...

On Wednesday, I take a look at shows that lasted one season or less. Here's a look at Relativity ! RELATIVITY September 24, 1996 - April 14, 1997 17 episodes ABC Starring: Kimberly Williams, David Conrad, Jane Adams, Cliff DeYoung, Lisa Edelstein, Adam Goldberg, Devon Gummersall, Robert Katims, Poppy Montgomery, Ricard Schiff, Mary Ellen Trainor Created by: Jason Katims Plot: Twentysomethings Isabel Lukens (Williams) and Leo Roth (Conrad) are both from Los Angeles but meet by chance in Italy and instantly fall for each other. Once they get back to Los Angeles, they have to deal with Isabel's long time boyfriend, Everett (Randall Batinkoff) as well as their families and friends. Brief Pilot Review: Jason Katims knew what he was doing even before Friday Night Lights and Parenthood . This is a fully realized pilot that felt a lot different than many of the other 90s-era drama pilots. It was a high production quality and the performances and writing were strong. Of course it dabble...

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Saturdays in the 1996-97 season! ABC 8:00 9:00 9:30 10:00 Sep Second Noah Coach Common Law Relativity Oct Nov Saturday Night Movie Dec Jan Feb Various Programs Mar Dangerous Minds Saturday Night Movie Apr Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Leaving L.A. Gun May Saturday Night Movie Once again, ABC was giving it the old college try on Saturday night. This was before the networks just gave up on Saturdays and even though ABC had year after year of Saturday fails in the 90s, they were trying again with two returning shows and two new shows. Second Noah aired at 8pm. The family drama was already on the ropes in the ratings and the...

Here's a look at the Top 5 TV news stories of the week! #1 - "WEDNESDAY" SETS NETFLIX RECORDS Netflix has a new hit on their hands with Wednesday . The Addams Family -universe series starring Jenna Ortega, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzman with direction by Tim Burton did not get great reviews, but it quickly became a hit with viewers. According to Netflix, it set an English language series record for hours viewed in its first week with 341.23 million hours viewed. That beats the first week for the most recent season of cultural icon Stranger Things though the record holder when factoring in international shows is Squid Game . Even though Netflix's numbers are always hard to verify, it's clear this show has gotten into the cultural conversation. A Season Two renewals feels like it will be coming very soon.

On Thursdays, I take a critical look at a TV show by season. Here's a look at Season 11 (Part 2) of  Happy Days ! For Part 1,  click here ! 245. Like Mother, Like Daughter (1/24/84) Marion's high school boyfriend comes to visit and Howard prepares to be jealous but then turns angry when he starts dating Joanie. I don't know why the show felt the need to do so many gross Joanie storylines in the final season, especially in the last stretch of episodes. From her "shower screaming" recurring gag to the student hitting on her to the much older man dating her, the show is really doing some icky things with the character. And surprise, surprise, it requires Fonzie and Howard to attempt to save her. The show spent basically the entire second half of its run with Howard treating Joanie like a helpless little girl who can't make any decisions on her own and, like most things with  Happy Days  at this point in its run, it's tiresome. RATING: 1.5/10 246. Social Studi...

On Wednesday, I take a look at shows that lasted one season or less. Here's a look at 1996's Mr. & Mrs. Smith ! MR. & MRS. SMITH September 20, 1996 - November 8, 1996 9 episodes CBS Starring: Scott Bakula, Maria Bello, with Timothy Olyphant and Ray Dotrice Created by: Kerry Lenhart & John J. Sakmar Plot: "Mr. Smith" (Bakula) is a spy who works for a private security organization under Mr. Dig (Dotrice) and with a partner (Olyphant). He meets a rival, "Mrs. Smith" (Bello) who loses her job after a failed mission and she teams up with Mr. Smith as they continue to spar. Brief Pilot Review: Mr. & Mrs. Smith was a nicely shot pilot for 1996. Set and filmed on location in Seattle, it made great use of its location with lots of on-location filming that worked quite well. It wasn't up to today's production standards of course but it definitely didn't feel as drab as so many dramas did back in the 1990s. It felt like the network spent som...

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Fridays in the 1996-97 season! ABC 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 Sep Family Matters Sabrina the Teenage Witch Clueless Boy Meets World 20/20 Oct Nov Boy Meets World Sabrina the Teenage Witch Clueless Dec Jan Feb Mar Step by Step Apr May After two years of a very steady lineup for ABC's TGIF, there were many changes for the 1996-97 season. Both Step by Step and Hangin' with Mr. Cooper were held for midseason (and Mr. Cooper didn't even air until summer). Family Matters continued at 8pm while Boy Meets World was slated to close out the block at 9:30pm. In between were two fairly high profile new shows. At 8:30pm was Sabrina the Teenage Witch  which st...

Here's a look at the Top 5 TV news stories of the week! #1 - CBS MIDSEASON PLANS After NBC, ABC and FOX all announced midseason plans on the same day last week, CBS announced its midseason plans this week. There wasn't too much to see with only two new shows joining the fold. A RuPaul hosted version of the game show Lingo will make its debut on January 11, airing between The Price is Right at Night and Tough As Nails . Then on February 23, a sneak preview premiere of the new drama True Lies will air after Young Sheldon and Ghosts . It will then settle into its regular Wednesday 10pm slot after the return of Survivor on March 1. Elsewhere, as previously announced, freshman drama  Fire Country will get the coveted post-AFC Championship Game slot on January 29 and a three show  NCIS crossover event will kick off the midseason on January 2. 

On Thursdays, I take a critical look at a TV show by season. Here's a look at Season 11 (Part 1) of  Happy Days ! HAPPY DAYS: SEASON ELEVEN 1983-1984 22 episodes Happy Days  ends its long run with the eleventh season. It's an improvement from the misguided and almost unrecognizable tenth season, but it doesn't restore the show back to its former glory. The closest it comes is when former star Ron Howard returns for a two part episode early in the season. The show also benefits from Scott Baio and Erin Moran returning to the series as full time characters and the departure of many superfluous and unmemorable characters. It helps send the show off in a way that leaves a slightly better taste in the mouth. Starring: Henry Winkler as Arthur Fonzarelli  (22 episodes) Tom Bosley as Howard Cunningham  (22 episodes) Marion Ross as Marion Cunningham  (22 episodes) Scott Baio as Chachi Arcola  (22 episodes) Erin Moran as Joanie Cunningham  (20 episodes) Anson Wi...

On Wednesday, I take a look at shows that lasted one season or less. Here's a look at Moloney ! MOLONEY September 19, 1996 - May 22, 1997 21 episodes CBS Starring: Peter Strauss, Nestor Serrano, Wendell Pierce, Cherie Lunghi Created by: Ronald Bass & Jane Rusconi Plot: Nicholas Moloney (Strauss) is a psychologist who is also a Los Angeles cop. Because of that, he can make arrests which can lead to conflicts of interest with his job as a psychologist. He works with Lt. Matty Navarro (Serrano), Dr. Sarah Bateman (Lunghi) and his poker buddy, D.A. Cal Patterson (Pierce).  Brief Pilot Review: This was a very gentle procedural that offered nothing offensive or exciting. I can already tell as I start to write this review that it's going to be hard to write two paragraphs about this show. It might be one of the most non-descript, boring shows to last a full season. The hook was of course that the lead character was not just a cop but also a psychologist so they were trying to mash...

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Thursdays in the 1996-97 season! Also, after this week of posts, I will be taking a one week break for Thanksgiving! ABC 8:00 9:00 10:00 Sep High Incident Various Programs Turning Point Oct Murder One Nov Dec Jan Feb Thursday Night Movie Mar Vital Signs Turning Point Apr May Thursday Night Movie Thursdays belonged to NBC so the other networks sort of threw up their hands with no one really going after the Peacock as they tried at the beginning of previous seasons. ABC went with a pair of modest second year dramas. At 8pm was High Incident . The police drama had aired on Monday the previous spring and was sent to the wolves against Friends on Thursday. It lasted the whole season but t...