Though HBO’s latest comedy is called “The Franchise,” there’s never any doubt which franchise creator Jon Brown (“Succession,” “Veep”) has in mind. The beleaguered crew, stressed-out producers and insecure stars of “Tecto: Eye of the Storm” comprise a tiny fiefdom of a sprawling empire. Overseen by an invisible puppetmaster, the master narrative is a jumbled knot of continuity errors. Actors get yanked off the set for a day’s cameo elsewhere on the drab, generic backlot as plot holes demand. Directors and performers with prestigious résumés do time for a paycheck, getting praise for their visionary genius as their every contribution is overruled or ignored. If this IP abomination had
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