Month: April 2017

‘Imaginary Mary’ and ‘Great News’: New-ish takes on family comedy

In a world of reboots, it’s nice to see some newer ideas.

Taking on the family comedy genre are ABC’s “Imaginary Mary” and NBC’s “Great News.”

“Imaginary Mary” focuses on Alice (Jenna Elfman), whose imaginary friend Mary (voiced by Rachel Dratch) comes back into Alice’s life when she starts seriously falling for a man with kids.

“Great News” focuses on a mother who becomes an intern at her daughter’s work after a friend dies.

Both shows are full of B-list stars, though “Great News” boasts that it’s produced by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock.

The comedies are not as revolutionary as “Modern Family,” but at least they tried for something different.

When was the last time you saw an imaginary friend on TV?  And it’s nice to see an older female starring in a TV show about something that is slightly relevant (baby boomers in the workforce)

Yes, there are still some usual tropes: “Imaginary Mary”  has the I-don’t-know-how-to-handle-children mentality and “Great News” yet again focuses on the world of journalism. And yes, neither show is laugh-out-loud funny.

But with all these reboots, I’d give these a shot.

“Imaginary Mary” airs 9:30 p.m. Tuesdays on ABC. “Great News”airs 9 p.m. Tuesdays on NBC.

History on TV: Examining ‘When We Rise’ and ‘Shots Fired’

Some shows take us to magical worlds…or at least away from reality. But not these two.

ABC’s “When We Rise” and Fox’s “Shots Fired” take a tough look at relevant issues: gay rights, women’s rights, police ethics and racism.

“When We Rise” is a miniseries based on an unpublished manuscript and starred Mary-Louise Parker and Guy Pearce, among others.

Looking back on history starting in the 1960s, each episode was 2 hours (with commercials), and it aired for four nights over the course of a week.

“Shots Fired” mentions Ferguson, but it’s a black cop who shoots a white teen— and everyone is trying to figure out what happened.

The only super big name star in this 10-part series is Helen Hunt; it airs at 8 p.m. Wednesdays.

The two shows are similar in structure — and ratings.

“When We Rise” ratings dropped each night, and the Dustin Lance Black-produced mini-series wasn’t deemed a success.

“Shots Fired” isn’t doing well in ratings either.

My question is: Why?

Maybe airing 2-hour arcs four nights in one week is too much. Perhaps 8 p.m. Wednesdays is too full of good options.

Or is it because we don’t want to face the reality that these issues exist?

It’s not easy to watch. But in this day and age, the fact is this does still exist. Rips of racism and homophobia still prevail throughout the United States.

Especially, after the election, could it be these shows are too close to reality?

TV and movies for some are an escape from the world. It’s why I enjoy musicals and Disney and not war movies.

But now, especially after a vicious election cycle, is it time to put that aside to relearn some history or see it from another angle?

Black wanted to show another side of the story. The duo behind “Shots Fired” wanted to challenge perspectives.

Is it worth stepping out of the comfort zone and learning something new? What do you think?