The Bachelor |
ABC, 8 ET/PT
Tonight, if tradition holds, the Bachelor is going to make some young woman very happy — namely, the one he doesn’t pick who gets to be the next Bachelorette. Because clearly, considering the series’ romantic track record, the only reason any sensible person would take part in this nonsensical trash is for the opportunity to take part in it again as the star.
CRITIC’S CORNER CHAT: Monday, 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT[1]
The Following | Fox, 9 ET/PT
Back in the ’60s there was a TV series called The F.B.I. that some felt was an egregiously shameless bureau recruiting tool masquerading as a show. Well, if TV amends needed to be made, The Following is bending over backwards to do so, because this makes FBI agents, who just let America’s worst serial killer escape from custody, look like the most bumbling, incompetent people on earth. We understand the bad guy has to elude his pursuers in shows like this, or else there’s no show. But this still-promising, often-frightening series has to find a way to keep its story running that does not constantly seem to depend on the heroes being 10 steps behind — because that’s already wearing thin.
Dallas | TNT, 9 ET/PT
TNT’s reboot marks that passing of J.R. Ewing — and Larry Hagman — with a funeral that will be attended by characters from both the new and the old shows. To say Hagman will be much missed by fans is to state the obvious, but his loss will also be keenly felt by TNT. It’s hard enough to watch this second-rate remake with him; watching it without him seems impossible.
About the Author
Robert Bianco
I’m the TV Critic at USA Today, and a TV watcher always and everywhere. In a prior life I was a restaurant critic, and before that, a lawyer. The current job is the best I’ve had, and maybe the best there is.
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