More great TeeVee news: HBO is going to stream Watchmen for free this weekend to celebrate Juneteenth. If you haven’t watched it, friends, I urge you to do so.
#Watchmen begins in Tulsa, 1921 and explores the legacy of systemic racism in America. We’re proud to announce @HBO will make all nine episodes available for free this weekend on https://t.co/dvMR4HmhIR and On Demand, and will air a marathon of the series tomorrow at 1PM ET. pic.twitter.com/UBDLR3OYIV
— Watchmen (@watchmen) June 18, 2020
I genuinely thought Watchmen was the best series of the year even before the protests took over the country, but my God, it is more relevant than ever. If you’re someone who didn’t watch because 1. you don’t like superhero stories or 2. were worried that you didn’t read the comics and therefore wouldn’t be able to follow the series: 1. it’s not really a superhero show in any traditional sense and 2. good news! I recapped the series with that in mind and tried my best to explain those things that newbies might have had trouble with.
That said, I feel like my recaps failed in a significant way in that I didn’t really spend much — if any — real effort writing about the racial component of the story. I admit, I was intimidated by it. As a white Southern woman, it didn’t feel like it was my place to interpret the Black experience as it was being told in the series. And it’s not! But in retrospect, what I intended to be a respectful distance from the issue feels now like cowardice. I am genuinely sorry for not doing the story — which is beautiful and profound and powerful — justice.
But please, spend this weekend watching this remarkable and brave series. You’ll love it.
Watchmen isn’t your only Juneteenth option this weekend: FX, FXX, and FXM will be running marathons of Atlanta and black-ish, and airing Selma and Get Out.
Your idiot president is taking credit for making Juneteenth “very famous.”
The Bachelor recap series, The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons — Ever! isn’t going to recap Rachel Lindsay’s season because of “licensing issues” according to Nick Viall. I don’t know what the fuck that even means, but it’s not a good look right now, ABC.
The Rookie will touch on police brutality this season. (As will every. single. other. cop show. I’m not complaining, just pointing out the obvious mea culpas that are coming. )
Bravo fired Peter Hunziker from Below Deck Mediterranean for being a racist piece of shit online.
OH NO NOT MEGAN AMRAM, DAMMIT.
Why We Hate: The Reckoning, a two-hour special about everything going on is going to air on Discovery on June 21.
HBO’s Real Sports will cover racism and the virus this season. Welcome to the party, Bryant Gumbel.
ABC just moved black-ish to the fall, pushing new series Call Your Mother to midseason. And I just wrote about the fall season in a post over at Chron.com, dammit. I put the schedules together here so you can plan accordingly, and wrote a little about how the networks are dealing with COVID-19. Sorta.
Here’s the plan for The Bachelorette: it involves filming at a resort.
Hasan Minhaj had his producer move in with him so they could continue making Patriot Act. Commitment!
HBO is making a quarantine comedy special, Coastal Elites, filmed entirely during lockdown. It stars Bette Midler, Kaitlyn Dever, Dan Levy, Sarah Paulson, and Issa Rae and will premiere in September.
Meanwhile, ABC is hoping that COVID-19 will officially be the death of “pilot season.” I keep seeing these stories about how the networks want to move away from pilot season to which I say, JUST DO IT. YOU ARE THE ONLY ONES MAKING PILOT SEASON HAPPEN.
Outbreak: The First Response, a special hosted by Soledad O’Brien, is going to air on Hearst channels tomorrow.
A special episode of Lenox Hill dealing with COVID-19 will be released on Netflix on June 24.
The idea that production is going to come roaring back anytime soon might be misguided.
And I keep telling you people, there is a good chance NFL Football might not happen this year. Americans will LOSE THEIR DAMN MINDS. And I don’t know what the NCAA is thinking but …
FAUCI: "One of the problems we face in the United States is that unfortunately, there is a combination of an anti-science bias that people are, for reasons that sometimes are, you know, inconceivable and not understandable, they just don't believe science."
— Ryan Struyk (@ryanstruyk) June 18, 2020
Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernandez has been hospitalized with COVID-19.
From my buddy and fellow blogger, Charles Kuffner, is this delightfulness in which a family has used their time in lockdown to create Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure shot-for-shot.
Sex Monsters
WELL, WELL, WELL. LOOK WHO IS FINALLY GOING TO HAVE TO PAY FOR HIS CRIMES. Xenu can’t save you now, Danny Masterson.
Finally, victims are being heard when it comes to Scientology! Praise the lord! This is just the beginning Scientology, your days of getting away with it is coming to an end! #justice #scientologytheaftermath https://t.co/oAFlIoWFYd
— Leah Remini (@LeahRemini) June 17, 2020
Chris D’Elia is denying being a pedophile and creep. OK.
That time James Gandolfini threatened to beat the shit out of Harvey Weinstein (but not for being a rapist).
All Other TV News
The Emmys are increasing the number of nominees as a result of a deluge of content.
Better Call Saul‘s Saul Goodman offers his Emmy voting services in a clever bit of outreach.
Grey’s Anatomy will outlive us all.
Is there any chance God Friended Me or Single Parents might be saved? (Honestly, no. They were both produced by the networks who canceled them, so I can’t imagine those same networks are going to shop them around to different networks, that just doesn’t make any damn sense.)
However, spinoffs for Modern Family and Fresh Off the Boat are still on the table.
And Amazon is hinting that there might be more Sandition, which has a very passionate fan base.
Thanks to this virus, people have too much damn time on their hands.
The Bachelor producers tried to make Jason Tartick propose to Kaitlyn Bristowe on their dumb recap show. Fortunately, he has a brain in his head.
Y’all, don’t let HGTV’s Windy City Rehab anywhere near your house.
LOL, even Fox News recognizes that Tucker Carlson is full of shit.
Congratulations, Raven-Symoné!
WOW, congratulations, Kristen Wiig!
This doesn’t have anything to do with television but I hope Stephen Miller is having a miserable day deep in the recesses of his cave.
I am thinking of the scared DACA student who wept in my campus office the day after Trump was elected. ”What will happen to me now?” he said, gasping for air. “This is the only country I know.”
Breathe, dear heart. You are home. https://t.co/K11mtyC5oY
— Connie Schultz (@ConnieSchultz) June 18, 2020
And I’m leaving this here because why not.
We have received information confirming the validity of the photo below. This is Gunner and his water buddy, Delta. Delta lives at a seaside sanctuary in the Florida Keys and has been best friends with Gunner ever since he was a puppy. 13/10 for both https://t.co/doLa57OnxI pic.twitter.com/2YfnYS2Xa8
— WeRateDogs® (@dog_rates) June 18, 2020
Renewals
- Sherman’s Showcase has been renewed at AMC and IFC.
- Crossing Swords and Solar Opposites have both been renewed for a second season on Hulu.
- Betty has been renewed for a second season at HBO.
- Hanna has been renewed by Amazon for a third season.
- Murder House Flip has been renewed at Quibi for a second season.
In Development
- Dopesick, a drug drama starring Michael Keaton, is coming to Hulu.
- Dan Harmon is making a new animated series for Fox.
- The Smurfs are coming back.
- 10-Year-Old Tom, and adult animated series, has been bought by HBO Max.
- The novel Deacon King Kong is being turned into a series.
- The novel You Can’t Catch Me is being developed into a TV series at Paramount Television.
- A documentary about Stacey Abrams and voting rights has been bought by Amazon.
- We Got This, a Swedish crime comedy, has been picked up by AMC.
- Matthew A. Cherry, the director of Hair Love, has signed a deal with Warner Bros. Television.
Mark Your Calendars
- Cursed debuts on Netflix on July 17. It’s a gender-twist on the Excalibur story and I am here for it.
- Zack Snyder’s Justice League is coming to HBO Max in 2021.
- Say I Do will debut on Netflix on July 1. You have time to invest in some tissues.
- Hanna returns on Amazon on July 3.
- Twilight Zone will return on CBS All Access on June 25.
- Doom Patrol debuts on HBO Max (for its second season) on June 25. The first season, which originally premiered on DC Universe, received strong reviews, so it might be worth checking out now that it’s not hidden away on a platform no one has.
- Desperados will debut on Netflix on July 3.
- George Lopez: We’ll Do It for Half will premiere on Netflix on June 30.
- Desus & Mero is moving to Sundays to compete directly with Last Week Tonight.
- Mapleworth Murders will debut on Quibi on August 10.
- How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast) will return on Netflix on July 21.
- The Lost Boys of Bucks County will premiere on Discovery on June 22.
- Esme & Roy will debut on HBO Max on June 25.
- Lost Pyramids of the Aztecs will premiere on the Science Channel on June 28.
R.I.P.
Yohan, K-Pop star, member of TST
Dame Vera Lynn, Singer of “We’ll Meet Again.” Shamefully, this obit neglects to include maybe the most famous use of the song:
WATCH THIS
Bully. Coward. Victim. The Story of Roy Cohn: A documentary about the hateful little creep who worked for Senator McCarthy and mentored Donald Trump. 8 p.m., HBO
Top Chef Masters: A winner is chosen. (Go, Melissa!) Season finale. 9 p.m., Bravo
Taste the Nation: And now that her Top Chef duties are complete, Padma Lakshmi can focus her attention to this other show about immigrants and American food. Series premiere. Hulu
The Order: Season two. Netflix
Summer Camp Island: The animated series from one of the Adventure Time creators moves to HBO Max for its second season. Premiere. HBO Max
Late Night:
- Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Rev. Al Sharpton, Luke Bryan
- Late Night with Seth Meyers: Judd Apatow
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Sherrilyn Ifill, Mike Birbiglia
- The Late Late Show with James Corden: David Tennant, Jodie Whittaker, Leon Bridges featuring Terrace Martin
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Amy Schumer
- The Daily Show: The Daily Social Distancing Show
- Watch What Happens Live: Padma Lakshmi, Tom Colicchio
| THUR | 7:00 | 7:30 | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 |
| ABC | Holey Moley (new) |
Don’t (new) |
To Tell the Truth (new) |
| CBS | Young Sheldon (repeat) |
The Unicorn (repeat) |
Mom (repeat) |
Broke (new) |
S.W.A.T. (new) |
| CW | Burden of Truth (new) |
In the Dark (new) |
News/Local |
| FOX | Celebrity Watch Party (new) |
Labor of Love (new) |
News/Local |
| NBC | Council of Dads (new) |
Blindspot (new) |
Law & Order: SVU (repeat) |
Aww, thank you for the shout-out. Much appreciated. 🙂