Critic's Choice
John Larroquette and Christine Baranski are polished veterans who know the good and the bad of sitcoms—from Night Court to Payne, from Cybill to Welcome to New York. One thing's sure: Give them some decent material and you have a fair shot at success.
This series gets off to an encouraging start Sept. 9, and the stars' expert timing is a major reason why. Peter Brennan (Larroquette) and wife Annie (Baranski) look forward to having the house to themselves now that 20-year-old Tim (Tyler Francavilla), the youngest and least gifted of their three offspring, is set to graduate from junior college. But Tim's academic progress proves illusory, and he turns out to be the boy toy of the thirty something divorcée next door (Susan Gibney). Meanwhile, the Brennans learn that their supposedly solid son, Todd (Jeff Davis), has a girlfriend in addition to his fiancée. Each unpleasant surprise gives Larroquette a chance to play appalled incredulity to perfection, and Baranski fares almost as well as a mother with formidable skills in manipulation. The sons' entanglements yield more laughs in the second episode, but the Brennans' desperately dateless daughter, Sara (Melanie Paxson), seems to be stuck on one note.BOTTOM LINE: Happy news
NBC (Tuesdays, 8 p.m. ET)
"Try to be a little less harsh," her lawyer brother Courtney (Wren T. Brown) implores hotelier Mavis (series star Whoopi Goldberg; see story page 89) in this strident sitcom's Sept. 9 debut. If only she'd listen.
Mavis, a one-hit singing star in the '80s, smokes like a chimney and spews racial and ethnic cracks while running her small Manhattan establishment. Her handyman Nasim (Omid Djalili) talks loudly and constantly about being from Iran, stressing that he's a Persian, not an Arab. "All you people look alike to me," Mavis says. What a howl.
Courtney has a white girlfriend, Rita (Elizabeth Regen), who acts like a cartoon version of a soul sister. She's good for a laugh or two, but she'd wear better if her pose slipped occasionally.
BOTTOM LINE: Check out
HBO (Sun., Sept. 7, 9:30 p.m. ET)
I like the wry title of this TV movie, but it suffers when the focus shifts away from the star. Set mostly in 1914, the script by Larry Gelbart (M*A*S*H) concerns a deal between movie pioneer D.W. Griffith's company and Mexican rebel Pancho Villa (Antonio Banderas), who lets the gringos film his army in real combat in return for $25,000 in gold. Banderas is a charismatic Villa, and Gelbart puts over a few witty points about Hollywoodized history. Unfortunately the film dwells too much on Frank Thayer (Eion Bailey), the production assistant assigned to keep the rebel cooperating. Young Thayer hasn't a fraction of Villa's star quality.
BOTTOM LINE: Interesting misfire
Showtime (Sun., Sept. 7, 8 p.m. ET)
Timothy Bottoms has the acting challenge of the year in this talky docudrama about the Bush Administration's reaction to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Apparently hoping we'll forget that he played George W. as a boob in the Comedy Central series That's My Bush, Bottoms portrays the President here as tough, resolute and a whole lot smarter than his detractors might think. Making Bottoms's job even tougher, the film-makers include news footage of the real Bush, as if to remind us that the lookalike actor is only pretending. Overburdened, Bottoms fails to deliver a convincing performance.
The supporting characters—including Dick Cheney (Lawrence Pressman), Donald Rumsfeld (John Cunningham) and Condoleezza Rice (24's Penny Johnson Jerald)—have much to say in meeting after meeting, but their main task is to look impressed by Bush's strength and decisiveness.
BOTTOM LINE: Earnest plodding
Sunday, Sept. 7 MEET THE ROYALS A&E (10 p.m. ET) Davy Jones, of Monkees fame, hosts a new series profiling Brit blue bloods. First up: Prince William.
Monday, Sept. 8 FOR LOVE OR MONEY 2 NBC (9 p.m. ET) In the finale Erin wins $2 million if the guy she picks values her love above filthy lucre.
Tuesday, Sept. 9 NIP/TUCK FX (10p.m. ET) Monogamy with Kimber is a challenge for Christian, the randy plastic surgeon.
Wednesday, Sept. 10 LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN CBS (11:35 p.m. ET) Sharon Stone chats with Dave and touts her new film Cold Creek Manor.
Thursday, Sept. 11 SEPT. 11 REMEMBERED History Channel A full day of programming recalls the 2001 attacks.
Friday, Sept. 12 ESSENCE MUSIC FESTIVAL UPN (8 p.m. ET) Ashanti and LL Cool J perform in the Big Easy.
Saturday, Sept. 13 THE TRUTH ABOUT SEX AND THE CITY Discovery Health (9 p.m. ET) A look at real-life dating and mating in Gotham.
For the past month American Idol has been trolling the country—Pasadena, Houston, Atlanta and New York—seeking a new crop of contestants for the show's third installment, which premieres in January. Last stop: Honolulu on Sept. 30. Want to make the cut? Some tips from people in the know:
•Be prepared. "Bring caps! And bring water. It's going to get very hot out there. You know, I worry for them." —Nigel Lythgoe, an Idol producer
•Check out the competition. "You're nervous. Then you hear someone who's not so good and you feel better." —Juanita Mankuleiyo, who auditioned in Pasadena
•Know your priorities. "I decided to stay up [all night] because if I went to sleep, I'd wake up with my voice out. I also didn't want to mess my hair up." —Tom Cromer, who tried out in N. Y.C.
•Be social. "Don't just sit there alone, because you'll get tired real quick." —Joe Negron, a New York wannabe
•And finally, choose an approach. To make it, "you either have to be extremely good or extremely bad." —Corey Clark, a former finalist
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
