Boots is a Netflix comedy-drama series created by Andy Parker, adapted from Greg Cope White's memoir The Pink Marine. Set in 1990, it follows a directionless young man who impulsively joins the United States Marine Corps alongside his best friend and must survive the brutal crucible of boot camp while carrying a secret about who he is. Executive produced by the legendary Norman Lear in one of his final projects, it balances raw military rigor with warmth and humor.
Miles Heizer stars as Cameron Cope, an aimless teenager with no obvious prospects who signs up largely on a whim and finds himself utterly unprepared for the punishing world of Marine training. Vera Farmiga plays his loving but overbearing mother, and Max Parker, Liam Oh, and Angus O'Brien fill out the ensemble of recruits and drill instructors who become Cameron's unlikely found family. The series mines both comedy and genuine drama from the pressure cooker of basic training and the secrets its recruits carry.
Critics responded enthusiastically, and the show earned a strong 92% Rotten Tomatoes score along with a top-ten streaming run, praised for its heart, its period specificity, and Heizer's grounded lead performance. Though Netflix ultimately did not renew it beyond its first season, Boots was widely embraced as a standout dramedy. It streams on Netflix.
Describing "Harry's Law," one summary says flatly, "A former patent lawyer brings together a group of misfit associates to form an unconventional law practice." How did the producers ever pitch that concept to the network? Oh, wait. It was NBC. Still, a patent lawyer? Misfit associates? Real exciting, right? Do not judge too quickly, because Kathy Bates applies her quirky charisma to her portrayal of Harriet "Harry" Korn, and she works some small screen magic. A mid-season replacement for one of NBC's cavalcade of epic failures, "Harry's Law" actually looks a lot like a real television drama"”real characters, real actors, real plots, and dialogue peppered with genuinely witty repartee. The premise and some of the best writing come from David E. Kelley, television's answer to John Grisham"”prolific and provocative. As The New York Times observes, "A hallmark of Mr. Kelley's shows is often the thinnest application of logic or reason in depictions of a world dedicated to logic and reason." The settings and courtroom dramas seldom resemble anything in real life, but they tend to recreate the audience's imagination of the legal system and "crusading" criminal attorneys. Close enough. In eight episodes, "Harry's Law" has established a loyal following in a timeslot long dominated by ABC's "Castle." Vegas betting parlours probably will give you odds on "Harry's Law" returning in the fall, and it might be worth risking a dollar or so.
The TV show Greek (originally GRΣΣK) is all about belonging to a fraternity and yet it's even more a family program that caters to family relationships and closeness. College settings are fun and often depict the wildness that does occur while attending a college or university. Most everyone is full of youthful energy and are ready to test the boundaries of their young lives. The cast includes frat members, alumni, and a house mother Casey Cartwright (played by Spencer Grammer) who attempts to keep the house in order and not on the Dean's list. Other cast members include Clark Duke as Dale Kettlewell, Scott Michael Foster as the Captain John Paul "Cappie" Jones, and Paul James as Calvin Owens. Frat houses as we learn are somewhat specialized by their curriculum and several were depicted on the program including Zeta Beta Zeta which is a sorority that caters to those interested in athletics, philanthropy, and academics. Omega Chi Delta offers students that are specializing in networking, academics, and athletics a place to call home while they attend that facility of "higher learning".
The newest "boy band" to hit the pop music scene is called Big Time Rush and the boys are ready for their chance at fame and fortune. Starring Kendall Schmidt as Kendall Knight, Carlos Pena, Jr. as Carlos Garcia, James Maslow as James Diamond, and Logan Henderson plays Logan Mitchell allows the actors to keep their own first names and a grip on reality. They must move away from the laid back lifestyle they've grown up with in Minnesota and go to the big city, LA. The four boys head to the Palmdale Hotel in Los Angeles, California and enroll in a special actors and performer's only school, the Palmwoods. Boys will be boys and their antics certainly get the attention of their elders including their producer, a hard driving and outrageous man by the name of Gustavo Rocque (played by Stephen Kramer Glickman). A TV series about brotherhood and friendship, Big Time Rush or BTR has a strong following and some great music. Once the season's filming is complete the band goes on a tour to "strut their stuff" before live audiences.
When Sasha Paley wrote her "young adult novel" about weight problems that are all too common in today's youth, she could have more than likely foreseen the popularity of a television series based on the concept. It is an enormous problem for many young people today and by addressing it within the context of a popular TV program it will be seen by many and perhaps help some who are struggling with their weight. A summer camp dedicated to weight loss, Camp Victory is the destination for the cast of "chubbies" determined to lose weight and become healthier along the way to becoming popular in school. Written capably by Winnie Holzman (My So-Called Life) and her daughter Savannah Dooley, the cast includes Nikki Blonsky playing Willamena, filled with resentment for being sent to "fat camp" by her parents, Hayley Hasselhoff is Amber, thinner and prettier than the rest but lacking self-confidence, and Raven Goodwin who plays Becca, bookworm who is painfully shy and becomes fast friend with Willamena. Good writing and a talented cast make this semi reality show well worth watching.
Is this destined to be simply another alien invasion movie that scares the daylights out of most of us? Or will it have more to offer than merely a chaotic aftermath depicting the results from heartless alien beings that want to take over this magnificent planet. This television series starts out at six months post invasion and we find the citizenry has been cut down to a few survivors who have banded together in hopes of fighting back. Citizen soldiers have been chosen in an attempt to protect those in their care and set up an insurgency campaign that will fend off the aliens. The aliens and their ships are fascinating to look at, mostly thanks to the imagination of Spielberg and DreamWorks Television, but it remains to be seen if this has much originality in the story line considering the basic idea has been redone many times. As the citizens are cruelly tested on a daily basis an ex college professor played by Noah Wyle (Librarian movies, ER) leads a group of civilians and soldiers as they strive to win against alien forces who are intent on occupying earth. Ann Glass, Drew Roy, and Maxim Knight also star.
The new half hour sit-com called Happy Endings is an American TV series that has not only a great cast but extremely talented writers, producers, and directors and that almost always guarantees a successful run. Making it work with a single camera approach, stars Zachary Knighton (Dave) and Elisha Cuthbert (Alex) were ready to be married when she left him literally "at the altar" . We begin visiting their lives and the friends, whose lives revolve around them, enjoying the pratfalls and miss-communications as they occur. Zachary Knighton, formerly from "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" and Elisha Cuthbert of "The Forgotten" and "24" head up a cast that includes Eliza Coupe portraying Jane, Adam Pally is Max, Casey Wilson is Penny, and Damon Wayans, Jr. trying to be serious as Brad. The group have been long time friends but when the very couple that brought them all together suddenly split up their loyalty becomes conflicted. As each struggles to deal with their own individual personal issues they try to remain friends in spite of the personal earthquake the break up has created. Humor is what holds them all together in the long run.
What does it take to convince twenty four hopeful contestants to risk life and limb to compete for a prize of $50,000? This reality show is fast paced and looks to be extremely painful for some who slip, get knocked down, or otherwise bruised and mangled while running through the obstacles presented on Wipeout each week. As the competitions numbers are whittled down we find just how far some will go to win 50K. The games begin with twenty four and cut that number in half by competing against each other and the clock that stops for no man. The Qualifier Round, which has four obstacles to win over, will cull the slower and less lucky while the second round pares the numbers down to six. Then those who remain must face the final round and that changes each season with each being more challenging than the season before. Traversing some obstacles are easier than others but may require quicker times. Some may even be skipped entirely but that contestant will lose a certain amount of time. Taped in Canyon Country in Santa Clarita, California at the Sable Ranch, which is forty miles north of Los Angeles, hosts Jill Wagner, John Anderson, and John Henson keep the competition running as smoothly as possible.
Moving from the Real Housewives of New York to Bethenny Ever After with a stop off for Skating with the Stars we find that Bethenny Frankel has been a really busy girl. Oh and she also had a baby girl and turned 40! How many "housewives" can claim all of that in a short span of time? Who would want to? Bethenny has a very protective husband, Jason who tends to be overly defensive when it comes to protecting his wife and family life. But when there are cameras in the house it is difficult to keep much from being disclosed. The surprise birthday party that was planned to celebrate Bethenny's 40th birthday became awkward mostly because it really wasn't a surprise from Beth's perspective (again the cameras don't let much get by them). Will Bethenny flip out and go into therapy? Look for a warm fuzzy scene where the entire family plops down in the bathtub for some tender moments and water logged skin. The parents, a new baby and even the new puppy "Cookie" with sunglasses on had plans to go to the beach but find the tub works quite well.
Take five business gurus with millions to invest if they like what they see and some intrepid inventors or entrepreneurs who stand before the sharks and offer proposals to invest in their ideas, and you have a surprisingly entertaining reality show with a different twist. This is real life drama and the "contestants" have only a few short minutes to convince the multi-millionaires who sit before them that money can be made if they only invest in their ideas for money plus a percentage of the business. Produced by Mark Burnett who is brilliant at developing (and winning Emmy's) such highly rated shows as The Apprentice and the Survivor series. This season sees some switching chairs in the Shark Tank as Jeff Foxworthy (The Blue Collar Comedy Tour) and Mark Cuban (Dallas Mavericks owner) spend some time and money investing their expertise and money into contestant's business ideas. The program also adds a look back at some successful investments made by the sharks and how it affected the life of a contestant and their business idea. Interesting concept and watching some good ideas (and some awful ones too) is entertaining.
With the plethora of "reality" programming seen everywhere today it is refreshing to see a show like The L Word which deals with a group of people involved with being lesbian, transgender, or who are bisexual. All the ongoing stress and controversy that must be dealt with on a daily basis plays out in and around West Hollywood, in sunny Los Angeles, California. Some powerful writing is provided by Guinevere Turner (American Psycho) and Rose Troche (Six Feet Under) and others. Starring in the L Word are some well known names such as Jennifer Beals (as Betty Porter), Pam Grier (as Kate Porter), and Laurel Holloman (as Tina Kennard). The coded language for lesbian has long been "the L Word" but today simply calling oneself a lesbian is more preferred and common for these women have "come out" proudly. This controversial show deals with same sex marriage and the desire to have a baby. Alcohol and drugs effect lives and ongoing relationships are often threatened by affairs and sexual transgender issues.
