MediaPost | TVBlog

Classless Clowns To Network That Paid Them Millions: F-You!

Tue, 19 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Like others who have been in the same situation, Stephen Colbert has a choice of either bowing out of late night gracefully or taking the low road of anger and ingratitude.

Brooke Shields Gets Cozy In Acorn Mystery Series

Mon, 18 May 2026 10:57:41 -0400

A bestselling mystery author is an amateur sleuth who conducts her own self-styled investigations of murders in the storybook seaside town in which she lives.

If this sounds like the premise for the old 1980s and ’90s CBS series “Murder, She Wrote,” then that would be correct.

But it also serves as a description of a new mystery series starring Brooke Shields.

Angela Lansbury famously played mystery author Jessica Fletcher on “Murder, She Wrote,” which had an extraordinarily long run on CBS for twelve seasons (1984-96).

The new Brooke Shields show -- titled “You’re Killing Me” and premiering Monday on Acorn -- has Shields, 60, playing Allison Chandler, a very successful mystery writer who has written so many novels relying on the same detective character that her sales have plateaued.

The character is named Chandler, perhaps as a nod to Raymond Chandler, who wrote detective novels for 19 years starting in 1939 with The Big Sleep.

But Raymond Chandler’s hard-boiled novels were not “cozy” mysteries. The term “cozy mystery” has come to describe a genre of murder-mystery TV shows that take place in quaint towns or villages, where murders are incomprehensibly numerous in relation to the population.

In a cozy mystery, crime scenes are not depicted graphically and the murders are relatively chaste affairs.

The crime-solvers in the shows range from a local police detective to amateurs such as vicars, mystery writers and, in at least one mystery show, a nun (“Sister Boniface Mysteries”).

Cozy mysteries imported from British television are a staple of PBS, and the content on Acorn TV is, for the most part, British as well.

“You’re Killing Me” is definitely cozy and decidedly American, although it was filmed in and around Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Like “Murder, She Wrote,” which took place in the fictional seaside town of Cabot Cove, “You’re Killing Me” also takes place in a similarly named fictional “cove” named Founders Cove.

In the first episode previewed by the TV Blog on Friday, Chandler is receiving an award at a convention of mystery writers that just happens to be taking place in the very town in which she lives.

All of a sudden, a man known to everyone in town plummets from a high hotel window and crash-lands on the roof of a parked car. And thus begins the episode’s murder mystery.

“You’re Killing Me” diverges from the “Murder, She Wrote” formula in one important way.

Unlike Jessica Fletcher, Allison Chandler takes on a sidekick -- a young woman who styles herself as a true-crime podcaster (played by Amalia Williamson, above photo, right, with Shields).

As Episode One proceeds, the Baby Boomer and the Gen-Z’er clash over everything from cellphones to coffee orders.

More to the point, they are each carrying on their own investigations and bumping into each other everywhere they go.

Eventually, they make peace, team up, face danger together and solve the murder mystery.

The verdict? “You’re Killing Me” is a very nice show that is easy to take -- in a word, cozy.

“You’re Killing Me” starts streaming on Monday, May 18, on Acorn TV.

Surefire Hit 'Big Bang' Spinoff Goes To Streaming, Not Network TV

Fri, 15 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

"The Big Bang Theory" and its two spinoffs have been huge hits for CBS, but the third spinoff is going directly to streaming.

Kimmel Avoided Trump Attacks In Upfront Monologue

Thu, 14 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Jimmy Kimmel restrained himself from making his annual monologue at the Disney Upfront this week all about his battles with Donald Trump.

The Audacity Of 'Baywatch,' Other Upfront Notes

Wed, 13 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Fox positions its new "Baywatch" as a drama, but it drew some scattered laughs around the audience at the Fox Upfront Monday in New York.

New NBC 'Rockford,' Fox 'Stewie' Spinoff Enliven Monday Upfronts

Tue, 12 May 2026 07:00:00 -0400

The new "Rockford," slated to premiere next January and starring David Boreanaz, was one of four new scripted shows - two dramas and two comedies - announced by NBC for next season.

Show About Illegal Squatters Takes Up Residence On A&E

Mon, 11 May 2026 09:14:54 -0400

Almost under the radar, basic cable seems to have upped its game with a slew of addictive docu-reality series.

Matthew Perry Estate Auction Reveals Star's Private Life

Fri, 08 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

An auction of 130 of Perry's personal belongings was announced earlier this week by Dallas-based Heritage Auctions.

Ted Turner's Greatest Contribution Was Not CNN

Wed, 06 May 2026 12:50:50 -0400

...or creating cable TV's "superstation" or saving the American bison. It was shaming the world's richest men into becoming its greatest philanthropists.

Will Kimmel Deliver A Trump Diatribe At Disney Upfront?

Wed, 06 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

There is no reason to expect Disney to deny Jimmy Kimmel his annual opportunity to strut upon the Upfront stage for a monologue that generally runs for about 15 minutes.

Now 70, The Children Of 'Seven Up!' Are Saying Good-Bye

Tue, 05 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

The final installment of one of the greatest TV series ever made is finished and ready to premiere later this year.

Is The World Ready For 'The Apprentice Jr.'?

Mon, 04 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

In response to the rumors about reviving "The Apprentice," the "TV Blog" asks: Why bother?

Unglued Late-Night Host Vs. Unglued President

Fri, 01 May 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Enough already! The "TV Blog" believes that both of these combatants have gone too far.

Netflix 'Man On Fire' Thriller Packs A Punch

Thu, 30 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Netflix's new limited-series thriller "Man on Fire" burns like a furnace in the third act of the first episode, and from there, it is off and running.

Disney's Jimmy Kimmel Problem

Wed, 29 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Kimmel's ratings have been falling for a long time. Focusing on abusing Trump every night is part of the reason.

For Journalists At The Correspondents' Dinner, The Story Was All About Them

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 06:00:00 -0400

Many of the journalists who were in the hotel ballroom when shots rang out in an area outside the White House Correspondents' Dinner have been talking about it in the days following the event.

The One Person Who Is Not Looking Forward To New 'Little House'

Mon, 27 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

The "TV Blog" has unearthed a negative take on Netflix's upcoming revival of "Little House on the Prairie," the beloved series of the 1970s and '80s.

With Deal Done, WBD And Paramount Face Familiar Hurdles

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Now that Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Skydance are on the road to closing their merger deal, will there be potholes along the way?

Shareholder Vote Today Is Moment Of Truth For WBD, Paramount

Thu, 23 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

If the voters vote yes, then the story of Paramount's long pursuit of WBD comes to an end. Or does it?

Peace Is At Hand In TV Land With Netflix Gardening Show

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Just in the nick of time, charm returns to TV today, thanks to Zach Galifianakis.

New Relentlessly Sad Drama Typifies TV Content Today

Tue, 21 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

I have written a number of times that much of the dramatic TV landscape today can be described as the saddest place on Earth.

Remembering The Far-Out Kids' Shows Of Sid And Marty Krofft

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 08:43:52 -0400

The death of Sid Krofft on April 10 revived memories of a very different era in kids' TV.

Cartoon Cat Is a Real Butt-Head In Amazon's 'Kevin'

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

The health of a cat's rear end is a recurring theme of the new animated series "Kevin," created by Aubrey Plaza.

Snooki Waves Good-Bye As 'Jersey Shore' Has Final Season

Thu, 16 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

The news that "Jersey Shore" is about to have its final farewell season raised a question: Wait a minute - "Jersey Shore" is still around?

PBS 'Nova' Scoops Discovery In Artemis Space Race

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Two different documentaries on the Artemis II moon mission are coming this week, but one will touch down on TV one day earlier than the other one.

As In Days Of Old, TV Took Us To The Moon And Back

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

For those old enough to remember the Golden Age of the space program in the 1960s and early '70s, Artemis II seemed like old times.

'DMV,' 'Watson' On Short List Of Network Cancellations This Season

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

It is rarer than it used to be, but some network TV shows still get canceled after one or two seasons.

AMC Has The 'Audacity' To Take On Silicon Valley

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

"The Audacity" has a lot going for it, including a great script and story, a diverse cast of characters and dazzling locations.

'Malcolm in the Middle' Gets Updated In New Hulu Series

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

In "Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair," the lives of Malcolm and his family are seen 10 years after we last saw them.

Peacock's 'Miniature Wife' Is Less Than Meets The Eye

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0400

Long story short - "The Miniature Wife" is the opposite of a tall tale.