Benjamonster's TV

Welcome to my Monday newsletter! This week, I am looking at Prime Video's new series Etoile , plus the latest episodes of The Last of Us, Hacks, The Studio and the series finale of The Conners . I am also looking at the Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Emmy race and continuing my countdown of the 25 Best Shows Since 2000 with #22.  WHAT'S NEW ETOILE Etoile is the newest series from the husband and wife team of Amy Sherman Palladino and Daniel Palladino. They have a very unique style of writing made famous by Gilmore Girls and then reaching its peak of critical acclaim with The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel . Etoile is their follow-up to Maisel , an all-time favorite show of mine, so I was excited for this one even if I wasn't completely sold on the show being set in the ballet world. Like Maisel , this show is gorgeous to look at. Although it is not a period piece like Maisel , it is still filled with beautiful cinematography and a romanticized look at both New York City and Pa...

Welcome to my Monday newsletter! This week, I am looking at Ransom Canyon , the season finale of Abbott Elementary and the latest episodes of The Last of Us, Hacks and Good American Family plus the Emmys race for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series/TV Movie and the next show in My Top 25 Shows Since 2000! WHAT'S NEW RANSOM CANYON TV has always been a copycat medium. When something breaks out in a big way in terms of ratings and/or culturally, it's followed by years of rip-offs. Think of how many Friends knockoffs there were in the 90s or how many times networks have tried to find the next Lost . There are some tried and true formats that often work for TV. But something that feels like a blatant rip-off almost never works. Which brings us to Ransom Canyon . Netflix's new Texas drama is very clearly their attempt to capitalize on the success of Yellowstone . Taylor Sheridan's drama may not get awards attention, but it's been one of the most successful scripted...

Welcome to my Monday newsletter! This week, I am looking at Your Friends and Neighbors, Season 2 of The Last of Us and Season 4 of Hacks . Plus the season finale of The Pitt and the latest episodes of The Righteous Gemstones, Good American Family and  The Studio as well as the Lead Actress in a Limited Series/TV Movie Emmy race and #24 in My Top 25 Shows Since 2000! WHAT'S NEW YOUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS Your Friends and Neighbors is a new Apple TV+ show that marks the first starring TV role for Jon Hamm since Mad Men . While he has done other shows in supporting roles such as Fargo, The Morning Show and Landman , he has not fronted a TV show since he was Don Draper and there's plenty of Don Draper (2025 edition) in this new show, where he plays a wealthy man who hits a rough patch and starts stealing from his friends and neighbors to keep up his lavish lifestyle.  I'm a huge fan of Hamm even when he's in less than stellar shows (hello, The Morning Show ) so I'm goin...

Welcome to my Monday newsletter! This week, I am looking at Dying For Sex, The White Lotus, The Pitt, The Studio, Good American Family  and SNL plus the Emmy Race for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited/Anthology Series and kicking off my Top 25 Shows of the 2000s WHAT'S NEW DYING FOR SEX The big debut last week was Dying For Sex on FX/Hulu. The limited series, which is based on a podcast, follows the story of Molly (Michelle Williams), a woman with stage four breast cancer who ends her 13 year marriage to find more "fun" before her death. The series, despite being about cancer and starring a character who is dying, definitely takes on a more comic tone. I've seen the first four episodes of the eight episode season. Williams is really strong in the main role, but more than anything, this is a breakout role for Jenny Slate. As Molly's best friend, Nikki, this is the best Slate has ever been this side of Mona Lisa Saperstein. She adds a huge amount of comic re...