Network TV is Not Bad
Or my standards slipping. Either way, my discerning taste in streaming has been challenged lately by a few promising shows [from the boob tube].
I watch a lot of TV - both series and films- mostly on streamers like Apple TV+, Max, Hulu, and Netflix (roughly in that order). I’m a self-professed snob when it comes to network TV (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX), but lately I’ve found the tide shifting, so this is a post about a few of those shows, but first, a 90s cultural reflection segue:
In my nostalgic musings, I often find myself reminiscing about Lilith Fair OG songstress Paula Cole's catchy 90s hit "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?". This song, which seemed to play endlessly on VH1 back in the day, came out long before the Yellowstone craze, the proliferation of "Utah moms," or the Stanley cup phenomenon.
Having come of age in the ‘90s, I've developed a little game where I substitute "Cowboys" with various nostalgic terms, creating my own versions of the song's memorable refrain. Doesn’t everyone? It's a quirky habit that probably says more about my fondness for 90s pop culture and the stickiness of songs of my youth than anything else.
Where is my John Wayne?
Where is my prairie song?
Where is my happy ending?
Where have all the cowboys gone?
For instance, as I reminisce about the glory days of prestige shows and original programming on HBO and other premium networks, Paula Cole's tune pops into my head. I can’t help but swap out "cowboys" for "good shows," turning it into, “Where have all the good shows go-ahh-on?” (she goes really high). It’s the song loop I need to hear in the background as I write this post.
Cultural Side Note: Cole clarified that this song was point of fact not about lusting after a cowboy, after all. It was a commentary on traditional gender roles. Rush Limbaugh didn’t get the memo though. He thought it was about a pioneer woman chasing after her Marlboro man. Oh irony.
My Prairie Song
I've had a humbling time lately finding my metaphorical TV/film prairie song. There are a number of shows I’m still watching on streamers and they get me through the week-to-week, but I’ve also felt restlessness creep in and a desire for the other. Could it be that too many P shows put me over the edge [See post on this topic] Possibly.
Qualifying My Taste in Network TV with Criteria:
Self-Contained & Self-Aware
Closure or catharsis per episode
Standalone or “can stand as a series” enjoyment
Laugh-worthy
At least one genuine laugh per episode
Decent Character Maturity
Evident even in younger characters like “Young Sheldon”
No Covid References
This one’s self-explanatory
Non-Hallmark Relationship Drama
Avoids corny, cliché romance (and questions like, “Is this just a Canadian thing?”)
Download this chart to keep it handy when you watch shows.
Now on to some decent network shows plus a PBS program. One show is brand-spanking new so the verdict is still out there, but it shows promise. And in case you’re wondering, my prestige TV qualifier list has higher standards but same basic principles or criteria as I explained above, applies.
🔍 Quirky, Sexyish Genius with an Insane Eye for Detail Solves Crimes in under 60 minutes
High Potential on ABC and Hulu (1 episode in, 2 episodes out). Kaitlin Olson or “Sweet Dee” (It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia) is back as a lead in a network TV show after two seasons on The Mick (currently on Hulu) in 2017. More recently, her turn in the award-winning show Hacks as Jean Smart’s Deborah Vance’s troubled, but oddly sympathetic daughter is so nuanced, she picked up two Emmy nominations in the past few years for it.
In her latest role, she’s a single mother of three kids (ages 14 to bébé) with the sandwich/middle kid being a boy genius. The genius part is where Olson’s character fits in genetically, because contrary to what outward appearances might suggest, she’s what’s known as a “person with high intellectual potential” or HIP which means she has an IQ of over 130. In her case, it’s 160, as she relays to her new boss, played by Scrubs’ Judy Reyes, who we’re all happy to see on TV again. FYI: The average IQ is between 90 and 110.
The season premiere has Olson working the nightshift cleaning at the LAPD headquarters when she comes across an open case and makes quick detective work of it. The rest is history. Or rather, herstory.
Bonus: Taran Killam (ex-SNLer) as her ex and baby daddy. We definitely need more of him here. Maybe his real-life wife, Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother) will make a cameo here too.
🔍 A Murder in Miss Marple-Land Type Show
Moonflower Murders (and Magpie Murders - Season 1) on PBS and Prime with PBS Masterpiece subscription.
I have a thing for female sleuths, especially Agatha Christie, because she’s the greatest detective storyteller of all time. [My proof is here] Anthony Horowitz, author of this detective series, is a close second. His ability to tell a crime story within a story (meta man, I tell ya!) laying out spectacular clues from the book that connect into the real life story is so well-woven together it has you guessing at all sorts of hints and doing deep work to get to the who, what, when, where and why.
When you put a book editor of crime novels as the armchair detective in any series, you have me at “Hello, Siri.” Leslie Manville is a coup in her role here as Susan Ryeland, who is an imperfect heroine we all root for. I can’t wait to watch her with my eyes wide shut in her upcoming role in Grotesquerie, which I know will be vastly different for her.
Bonus: The relationship between Susan Ryeland (Manville) and her fictional detective Atticus Pund (Tim McMullan) is the winning combination. Given Pund is a figment of her imagination, and not a real-world person, scenes featuring them in the same place could easily have gone awry but their onscreen time works, and it’s minimally awkward.
👻 Best Kept Secret Show #3 - American Ghosts can Rival the Brits
Ghosts on CBS and Paramount Plus (3 seasons). This show is one of the best family sitcoms out there and has been for the past few years. Based on the British comedy of the same name, it centers around a couple, Sam and Jay who move to her family’s estate which she inherits and converts into a B&B. An accident in the home renders her unconscious and dead for a few seconds in which time she is able to see the ghosts who inhabit the estate. The humor writes itself pretty easily once we’ve established the dichotomy of 1/2 of a couple seeing dead people and the other unable to. The ghosts are from different time periods throughout the ages, which makes for compelling storytelling in the way of historical and cultural intrigues. What they all have in common is that they died on the property.
Bonus: The ‘80s Wall Street, pants-less guy, Trevor, is a MUCH nicer version of a Wolves of Wall Street type character. The real life actor, Asher Grodman, is a Film Producer and avid Jacksonville Jaguars American football fan. So much so that he produced a short film about the team (think: mockumentary) that won an award at Cannes, and I watched it. It was pretty funny.
ROMANCE FILM LOVERS CLUB STARTS NEXT WEEK
JOIN my October film club where we’ll be watching and chatting about these romance films via chat. BUT FIRST, please make sure to upgrade your membership. This club will only be available to paid subscribers. Find out how below.
🎶The REPOST Challenge: Do you have a song like, “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” where you sub out word(s) to create your own version of the song’s refrain? If so, what is it? And would you sing it for me?
🎁❗I will pledge a paid subscription for 6 months to anyone who reposts this post along with a video clip of them singing along to a diddly of their choice with them subbing in their own word(s) in place of the actual song lyrics. 🎁
🎶This is the perfect way to ensure you get a seat in our October subscriber film club chat :) Also, one song HINT to get you started… “You can go your own way” (Fleetwood Mac). Think about the endless potential for variations, like “You can drink your kool-aid.” 🎶 Caveat: You only need to sing the one line or lyric, as long as it’s recognizable.
Top TV Shows Posts
Let’s Discuss
Have you watched any of these shows?
What network TV shows do you watch?
Where HAVE all the cowboys gone? Did Paula ever find hers?
Did you repost this post yet? Why not - What you waiting for? (A song by Gwen Stefani and yet another possible song - listen here) Tick Tock, Tick Tock…
I grew up in the 80s and I must say, TV shows during that era were pretty on point. Like you, I used to watch A LOT of TV (to the point where I recorded/DVR'd and watched later). These days, since I only have streaming services--not network--I've been watching less and reading more. But to answer your questions:
Have you watched any of these shows? I haven't, but I've heard of them.
What network TV shows do you watch? See my mention of lack of TV watching above. But when it's my Caregiver Week at my parents' house and my Dad isn't watching football, sometimes I try to catch "Elsbeth" and "Brilliant Minds". Elsbeth reminds me of a female version of "Monk" (which I used to watch) and Zachary Quinto as a doctor who likes to experience what his patients are feeling is a new hospital show concept that intrigued me. There are So. Many. Hospital shows it's fucking ridic and all the characters are cookie cutter (except for "The Good Doctor"). As an actor, I never would've pictured him portraying a doctor (he was a fabulous Dr. Spock and I liked him in "Heroes"), but this show is unique, so I hope it lasts for him.
Where HAVE all the cowboys gone? Did Paula ever find hers? She kinda disappeared, didn't she? I think all the cowboys ended up in romance books, I read. And even then, I get tired of reading about them. LOL
Did you repost this post yet? BWAHA! Just did.
I know it’s not network TV but FX (on HULU) has my new favorite sitcom. English Teacher. It’s so great and clearly aimed at Gen-X with all the 80s music. Planning on writing about that one?