Apple Plus has pulled the plug on Central Park after three seasons. I stopped watching after the first, so this is not something I’m deeply invested in. Are you?
1) Bodies (Netflix)
English Audio Description?: Yes
Status: Limited
This should be a fun plane to land. A high concept British drama about the same dead body inexplicably appearing in many different time periods. I can’t imagine the production value for this, showing all these various time periods in Britain, while also having cast members who are needed to flesh out each period in what seems like a monstrous undertaking. The pilot was interesting, and posed that initial question about the body rather well, but the size of the show almost demanded a super-sized first episode for us to really understand more about each period. I’m honestly not sure how many timelines we are in. My guess is four. I might be wrong. Very cool concept, and i really hope this show lands.
Episode Grade: B+
2) The Buccaneers (Apple Plus)
English Audio Description?: Yes
Status: Unknown
Not what I expected, but I knew nothing about it. It is adapted from an Edith Wharton novel, and features a group of young women over a century ago living with the expectations of society, a class system, and the dream of getting married. it feels like Apple wanted a Bridgerton type of story, and this has a young adult vibe to it, like The Summer I Turned Pretty. one of the turn offs was that the ensemble was a mixture of actors who felt right for the period, and sounded like they knew they were in a period piece, while others felt like they were picked up right out of a Starbucks. I don’t mind an updated revisionist take, but the inconsistency in casting bothers me. one person sounds really current, and one person sounds like they are trying to have a vernacular and sound from an earlier time. It just isn’t cohesive.
Episode Grade: B-
3) The Santa Clauses (Disney Plus)
English Audio Description?: Yes
Status: Unknown
TI love Tim Allen even if I don’t always agree with him. His speech here is noticeably slurred, and I think if you went from Season 1 into season 2, you would notice that difference, because I don’t remember this last year. The series continues to expand the lore of the North Pole, while leaning in on things that just don’t work. The first film was great, it’s one of my favorite classic Christmas films. The sequel wasn’t terrible, but not great. everything after that has been deeply disappointing.
Episode Grade: C
4) Black Cake (Hulu)
English Audio Description?: Yes
Status: Unknown
I’m not sure what this show is really about, but I did Ike the chemistry between the two leads, and having a strong young female lead who knows what she wants. Plus, it’s nice to explore island culture, that isn’t necessarily Hawaiian, and focus on surfing. I hope this continues to head in that direction, but I really don’t know. I feel like it started out a lot heavier, and lightened up in tone as the episode progressed.
Episode Grade: B-
5) Everwood (FreeVee)
English Audio Description?: No
Status: Ended
While Madison and Ephram get closer, Andy is trying to work with a patient who is rapidly losing his vision, but is asking his congregation to pray that he still has vision for his wedding day, which he even moves up. he wants to be able to see his bride on his wedding day before going blind. As a blind person, I felt that there wasn’t enough done to really describe why this was happening, or a character we’d seen before was just now noticing loss of vision. It just kinda happened. I feel like when i first watched this, when I could see, I probably never gave it a second thought, but now…
Episode Grade: B-
6) Young Sheldon (MAX)
English Audio Description?: Yes
Status: Final Season
There’s one of those fake “we might be moving” plots, where you know they won’t be. So basically, this episode didn’t really do much for me. However, it was also a Thanksgiving episode, so that part had some interesting dynamics.
Episode Grade: B
7) Alf (Peacock)
English Audio Description?: No
Status: Ended
Alf does some singing.
Episode Grade: B-
8) The Masked Singer (Hulu)
English Audio Description?: No
Status: Renewed
Jenny and I were both right. I had a feeling there were too many Orlando references for that to not be someone from o-Town. The other boy banders who actually live here have already been on the show, except the last surviving member of LFO. Yes, two of the three members of LFO are dead. Sorry to depress you today. I’m pretty sure Cow is Nelly, who would need the traffic light to represent Ride With Me, and played a footballer in the comedy The Longest Yard. I got, and have gotten, Hilary Duff vibes from Gazelle. I think there have been references to her being a princess, perhaps in a Cinderella Story (the added glass reference backs that up), and she’s married.
Episode Grade: B
9) Celebrity Jeopardy (Hulu)
English Audio Description?: Yes
Status: Unknown
I didn’t know who that Heather was, but I assumed Cynthia Nixon, who tried to get a political office was going to run away with this. I gave up when i realized she didn’t know where the Suez Canal is. We really need to have a basic test of key important things every elected official should know before they get elected. How do you discuss foreign policy when you can’t even tell me where the Suez Canal is?
Episode Grade: B-
10) All Rise (OWN)
English Audio Description?: No
Status: Final Season
I’m sad that the episode wasn’t given the opportunity to act like a series finale. The whole open door thing with Andre suing Amy on her wedding day feels like a “coming next season” ending, but there never will be, and All Rise was cancelled a while ago. They had more than enough time to edit this.
Episode Grade: B
