TV Reviews

Michael Epps, Alex Hibbert and Shamon Brown Jr. play three boys who have to dodge gang violence on their way to school in The Chi.

Arts

'The Chi' Falls Short Of Giving The South Side Its Own 'Wire'

11:00am January 12, 2018

by Eric Deggans

Critic Eric Deggans has been waiting for a show that makes pop culture poetry out of Chicago's mostly black South Side neighborhoods — but The Chi doesn't quite hit the mark.

TV Shows To Binge-Watch During The 'Bomb Cyclone'

Arts

5 TV Shows To Binge-Watch During A Winter Storm

4:30pm January 04, 2018

by Eric Deggans

For a TV nerd, a storm that shuts down work and school means more time for binge-watching. It may be only a day or two, so viewing choices are crucial.

Arts

'Better Call Saul' Tops Critic David Bianculli's Picks For The Best TV Of 2017

1:39pm December 21, 2017

by David Bianculli

Fresh Air's TV critic spends a lot of time watching television — in part because there are so many great shows to watch. Godless, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Fargo are also among his favorites.

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The first three episodes of The Crown's new season focus on turmoil in the royal marriage between Elizabeth (Claire Foy) and her husband, Philip (Matt Smith).

Season 2 Of 'The Crown' Exposes The Royal Family's Fitful Evolution

5:00am December 08, 2017

by Eric Deggans

The best episodes of this season are layered and complex; they juggle questions of whether a good marriage is possible in a royal setting, and how forgiveness has its limits.

Review: Season 2 Of Netflix's 'The Crown'

5:06am December 06, 2017

by Eric Deggans

Season two of Netflix's The Crown focuses on Queen Elizabeth II's reign from 1956 to 1963, where a modern British monarch deals with war and politics.

Rachel Brosnahan plays housewife-turned-stand-up-comic Midge Maisel in Amazon's new series, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

Arts

Zippy And Delightful, 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Spotlights An Unlikely Comic

6:05pm December 04, 2017

by John Powers

Amazon's new series centers on a spurned 1950s housewife who has a knack for stand-up comedy. Critic John Powers says Rachel Brosnahan delivers a "genuinely funny performance" in the title role.

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Review: 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel'

5:19am November 29, 2017

by Glen Weldon

The the new show from Amazon takes place in late 1950s New York. Midge Maisel's life falls apart and she has to figure out what she's good at. So she goes from housewife to stand-up comic.

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Review: Netflix's 'Godless'

4:57am November 22, 2017

by Eric Deggans

Netflix's new show Godless is an attempt at making a western for contemporary audiences. It takes place in a town governed by women who have to defend their turf from a gang of outlaws.

The view from the cheap seats (L to R): Molly (Allegra Acosta), Gert (Ariela Barer), Nico (Lyrica Okano), Alex (Rhenzy Feliz), Chase (Gregg Sulkin) and Karolina (Virginia Gardner) in Runaways.

Arts

'Runaways' Finds A Sunny Corner Of The Marvel Universe — And Stays There

1:22pm November 21, 2017

by Glen Weldon

In adapting a wildly entertaining comics series by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona, the new Hulu show opts to flesh out the villains, making for a more grounded — but slower — story.

The Search is Over, The Party's Just Begun: Dory (Alia Shawkat), Drew (John Reynolds), Portia (Meredith Hagner) and Elliott (John Early) go shopping for human empathy in the TBS series Search Party.

Arts

In Its Second Season, 'Search Party' Finds New, Even Darker, Life

6:01am November 19, 2017

by Glen Weldon

Last season, four morally bankrupt friends found the missing Chantal. Now, the TBS series shifts focus, and genre — from blackly comic mystery to acidly funny suspense.