Tough as Nails, on CBS
Phil Keoghan hosts this new reality series, as men and women who work hard everyday face off in mental and physical challenges designed to test their endurance, life skills and all-around toughness. In the end, only one will be crowned champion.
Q: Will there be another season of "Archer"? I feel like we've been waiting for a while now.
I struggled to think of a reference to one of "Archer's" million running jokes to use here, but none were suitable for a respectable, family-friendly TV column. (I can't even use "I had something for this …" because that's usually prefaced by a swear word.) So I'll just say it outright: Yes, there will be another season, but it's been delayed.
Season 11 of the consistently profane cartoon comedy was originally scheduled for release on May 6, but the coronavirus happened.
What Would You Do?, on ABC
Host John Quinones and his covert team of actors find out how average people behave in provocative situations in this poignant series. Hidden cameras record the reactions of onlookers as ethical and moral dilemmas play out before their unsuspecting eyes.
Lemon aid: Liz Lemon and friends tout NBC's new season in '30 Rock' special
Tina Fey stars in NBC's "30 Rock" special
After months of dealing with social distancing and quarantines imposed as a result of a global pandemic, it's nice to see familiar faces. One network is bringing back some of its most beloved characters to share news about its upcoming season, and fans couldn't be happier.
Q: Four or five years ago, a TV series was on -- I think it was called "The Twelfth Hour." The main character was a newspaper reporter, and he and his staff found out that there were 12 special clocks hidden throughout the world and they tried to find the
Time was never on the side of "Zero Hour." (Good try on the title, by the way -- you were close.)
It was a "Da Vinci Code" clone that came about six years too late, critics said it tried to fit too much plot into too little time, and ABC never really gave it a chance to find an audience.
Brockmire, on AMC
Jim Brockmire (Hank Azaria), a beloved Major League Baseball color commentator, receives some incredibly disturbing news while on the air causing his life to spiral in Season 1 of this hit comedy series. Amanda Peet and Tyrel Jackson Williams also star.
New Releases for the week of July 12 - 18
Enter the Fat Dragon
Once a shining example and the best of the Hong Kong Police Special Task Force, Fallon Zhu (Yen) drops rank and gains some pounds after his fiancée (Chow) leaves him. When an old colleague promises Zhu a transfer if he takes on a mission for him, Zhu jumps at the opportunity to be a cop again and soon finds himself escorting a suspect to Japan. But things don't go according to plan, and Zhu must enlist some unconventional help to take on the baddies of Japan and find out what's really going on.
Director: Kenji Tanigaki. Stars: Donnie Yen, Teresa Mo, Jing Wong, Niki Chow, Naoto Takenaka, Tetsu Watanabe, Hiro Hayama, Louis Cheung. 2020. 96 mins. Action.
Castle in the Ground
The opioid crisis takes center stage in a film that follows teenager Henry (Wolff) after his mother (Campbell) dies from illness. Numb from grief, he strikes up an unlikely friendship with his troubled neighbor, Ana (Poots), who introduces him to the world of opioids. As the opioid crisis reaches the streets of their small town, Henry and Ana's drug use begins to bring them severe affliction instead of the escape they seek.
Director: Joey Klein. Stars: Alex Wolff, Imogen Poots, Neve Campbell, Tom Cullen, Keir Gilchrist, Kiowa Gordon. 2019. 105 mins. Drama.
VHYes
Twelve-year-old Ralph (McNulty) journeys into the bizarre world of film and media when he records over a VHS tape that he believes to be blank, but in fact is a recording of his parents' wedding. The film is shot entirely on VHS and Beta, and Ralph's new video is presented in a nostalgic medley of home videos shot on his new camera, including late-night cable TV and, if his parents are lucky, the occasional snippet of their wedding day.
Director: Jack Henry Robbins. Stars: Kerri Kenney, Thomas Lennon, Mark Proksch, Courtney Pauroso, Charlyne Yi, John Gemberling, Mason McNulty, Rahm Braslaw, Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon. 2019. 72 mins. Comedy.
Food to inspire: 'Salt Fat Acid Heat' has all the elements of a modern classic
Samin Nosrat hosts "Salt Fat Acid Heat"
Merry 'Gemstones': HBO announces comedy Christmas special
Adam Devine, Danny McBride and Edi Patterson in "The Righteous Gemstones"
Merry 'Gemstones': What would a "Righteous Gemstones" Christmas look like, exactly? We might find out later this year if series creator, executive producer, head writer, lead actor and general mastermind Danny McBride ("Eastbound & Down") has his way.
Late Laughs for the week of July 12- 18, 2020
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
If God submitted the year 2020 to "Black Mirror," they would have rejected the script. Come on, a plague? Racial unrest? A racist demagogue with a base coat of global warming? Pick a lane!
In New York, roughly 600 plainclothes officers have been reassigned to new roles, effective immediately. The reassigned officers were part of a special unit in the NYPD known as the anti-crime unit … aren't all police officers the anti-crime unit? If there's a pro-crime unit, they really ought to reassign those guys, too.