The Mandalorian is a Star Wars series created by Jon Favreau for Disney+, set five years after the events of Return of the Jedi. It follows Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), a solitary bounty hunter of the Mandalorian creed, and Grogu, the Force-sensitive foundling in his care.
Season 3 premiered on March 1, 2023. Having been declared apostate for removing his helmet, Din sets out for the ruined surface of Mandalore seeking redemption in the Living Waters of the Great Forge. His journey draws in Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) and turns toward the larger project of reuniting the scattered Mandalorian clans and reclaiming their homeworld from Imperial remnant forces under Moff Gideon.
The season expanded the show's scope considerably, weaving in threads from The Book of Boba Fett and setting up the broader Mando-verse. Reception was more mixed than for the first two seasons, with praise for its production design, Pascal and Sackhoff's performances, and Ludwig Göransson's score, alongside criticism of its more diffuse structure.
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.
All it takes is a great concept with a winning recipe and a thick skin to ward off the slings that the celebrity chefs will be throwing at you when you trip up. Bobby Flay (Food Network star, executive chef, and owner of 10 restaurants), Australian Celebrity Chef Curtis Stone, Lorena Garcia (Lorena Garcia Cocina Restaurant), and Steve Ells (founder of Chipotle Mexican Grill) steer the contestants toward creating their own individual restaurant concept that will be successful in three nationwide locations which are Los Angeles, California, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and New York, New York. The successful contender will also receive financial backing in the form of a huge monetary reward plus all the expert help they could ask for from the celebrity judges. Called a combination of The Apprentice and the Top Chef, Next Great promises to be an interesting look behind the scenes of what it takes to be successful as a restaurateur and run a business that makes money. Some episodes include live taste testing with audience participation by passersby, showing off the competition's flair for crowd pleasing food.
Previewing "Breaking In" for the press, star Brett Harrison suggested, "If you like "The A-Team", you'll like "Breaking In". If you like "The Office",'you'll like "Breaking In". And if you like breaking-in, you will like "Breaking In!". Harrison's observation proved strangely prophetic in at least two ways: First, the new Fox comedy does combine comic elements from "The Office" with "The A-Team's" dark, sarcastic point of view. Office humor"”there's just no such thing as too much. Second, the weak attempt at humor in Harrison's last line is sadly characteristic of the writing for "Breaking-In." Apparently, the B&E crowd lobbied for its own version of appointment viewing. Who knew? Although it's becoming this season's standard"”bad guys gone good, the premise nevertheless has promise. Five exceptionally skilled and highly specialized burglars team-up to operate Contra Security, a consulting firm that tests companies' security systems by breaking into them. Borrowing liberally from "Leverage" and "Breakout Kings," this wickedly bland team includes a hacker, a bad girl who can pick any lock, a semi-skilled con man, and a mysterious boss. First episode ratings may prophecy the sitcom's fate. Scheduled right after a big-big episode of "American Idol", "Breaking In" carried approximately 19 million viewers into its time-slot; by the end of its half-hour, 12 million of them had tuned-in elsewhere.
Always busy actor, writer, producer, stand up comedian, musician, screen writer, and television personality Paul Reiser has a new project and with the title of The Paul Reiser Show it is obvious that he will have an invested part in this one, a sit-com that is about"¦ well"¦ Paul Reiser. He wrote the scripts, produces, and stars as himself (sort of) as the show is somewhat autobiographical. Paul (Mad About You, Curb Your Enthusiasm) portrays a former TV star who chooses to return to the small screen after years of staying home and taking it easy while spending "quality" time with his wife and children. With a bit of help from his friends Paul searches for just the right "big thing" that can get his creative juices flowing again. Amy Landecker (Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Louie) is Claire, Paul's wife. Friends Jonathan played by Ben Shenkman (Law & Order), Habib played by Omid Djalili (Gladiator, The Mummy), and Fernando portrayed by Duane Martin (Ghost Whisperer, All of Us) help Paul get back into the groove and return to what he loves which is acting and being funny. Paul Reiser is a very funny (not to mention multi-talented) guy!
If you watched "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" before you watched "The Sopranos," you would get the uneasy sensation art was imitating life just a little too closely. They are two versions of the same story: Wiseguys attempt to balance the strange demands of life in the suburbs with the everyday business of running a criminal empire. The problem with posing as a respectable businessman is that you sometimes must actually be respectable. It's almost funny in a painfully awkward sort of way, but nothing good could come from laughing out loud. "Ayy, fahget abowt it," Tony Soprano and his New Jersey mobsters would say. Are you genuinely surprised to discover that prom dresses and cement overcoats do not easily reconcile? Are you genuinely surprised to learn "The Sopranos" is cable television's greatest financial success? "The Sopranos," in fact, was the foundation of a major cultural phenomenon and marketing franchise, which supported books, videogames, soundtrack CDs, and more than a few critical blogs. Of course, the producers and cast had to hijack a semi-trailer to cart home all of their Emmys and Golden Globes.
Imagine having millions, and being a charitable type, decide to spread your wealth around a bit. How can you go about giving some of your wealth away without appearing like a phony? Do it through a network television program designed to help people on both sides of the "street". ABC takes viewers along as true life millionaires enter poverty stricken areas to live among the local citizens and upon getting to know them, donate part of their millions to one or more deserving folks or projects in the area. It's a fascinating concept and most of us wish we could be on the receiving end of that concept. Some of us actually belong to the giving, generous portion of the population and love the idea of giving to those in need. But, determining who is actually needing and deserving can get complicated because greed makes many of us deceptive. That's why these secret millionaires infiltrate the poor community and try to make good decisions based on how they perceive the needs and those who deserve. Don't miss this inspiring television program that has been produced in the UK, Australia, and the U.S.
An American crime drama, The Killing is based on a Danish television program titled Forbrydelsen which means The Crime. American writers say they used the original as a "blue print" but gave it a distinctly Americanized flair with characters that will be more appealing to the viewing audience. The setting for The Killing is Seattle, Washington and the show revolves around police investigators and their daily work load. Each episode will center on one day of an investigation into the homicide of a small girl and follows along with the investigating officers as they track down clues and work to solve the case before the trail runs cold. A dark show, The Killing is brutally honest in many respects regarding the why's and how's of a murder. The police deal with brutality and mayhem but never get used to it entirely. Cast members include Mireille Enos as detective Sarah Linden, Billy Campbell as politician running for Mayor of Seattle Darren Richmond, Michelle Forbes portrays Mitch Larsen (mother of the murdered girl Rosie), Brent Sexton as Stan Larsen (father of Rosie), and Joel Kinnaman who plays the part of Stephen Holder, Sarah Linden's partner and fellow detective
Based on the Italian fifteenth century Borgia dynasty, the made for the Showtime network series titled The Borgias follows Rodrigo Borgia (Jeremy Irons) rise to power and the Papacy. Called the original crime family, the Borgias amassed great wealth, influence, and power as family patriarch Rodrigo committed nearly every sin imaginable as he gained power and vast wealth. Such successors as The Godfather (Mario Puzo) and The Prince (Niccolò Machiavelli) were inspired by the original "bad family" the Borgias and made for entertaining viewing. But the originals were greedy evil people who had no morals. It is at the height of the Renaissance period that we find the Borgia family intriguing to watch and perhaps learn from. Besides Jeremy Irons there are many fine actors in the cast including Francois Arnaud as Cesare Borgia, Holliday Grainger as Lucrezia Borgia, David Oakes as Juan Borgia, and Derek Jacobi portraying Cardinal Orsini. Look for this entertaining television series and see the original "Godfathers of crime".
